Captain
Dennis Ansell

Member since February 2016 Sturgeon Bay, United States
Background
My father taught me how to fish for largemouth bass with plastic worms and I became interested in tournament fishing. As I fished more tournaments for different species I became a consistent multi species angler. This year I'm working with Lathem Smith Lodge in Sturgeon Bay. If you're going to be here in town for 2 night's or more they are offering a 10% discount on rooms with free breakfast. You have to mention my Guide Service for the discount.
Techniques
My preferred method is using artificials for all species including perch,walleye, largemouth and smallmouth bass, Northern pike and Musky on Green Bay and trout and salmon on Lake Michigan. Both trolling and casting methods are used.

Hey, I'm Captain Dennis Ansell

Sturgeon Bay, United States
Background
My father taught me how to fish for largemouth bass with plastic worms and I became interested in tournament fishing. As I fished more tournaments for different species I became a consistent multi species angler. This year I'm working with Lathem Smith Lodge in Sturgeon Bay. If you're going to be here in town for 2 night's or more they are offering a 10% discount on rooms with free breakfast. You have to mention my Guide Service for the discount.
Techniques
My preferred method is using artificials for all species including perch,walleye, largemouth and smallmouth bass, Northern pike and Musky on Green Bay and trout and salmon on Lake Michigan. Both trolling and casting methods are used.
177
Reviews
35
Fishing Reports
Verified

My Charter Listings

Lure-In Fishing Guide โ€“ Sturgeon Bay

Excellent
4.6 / 5
(156 reviews)
Sturgeon Bay
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Trips from US $500

Lure-In Fishing Guide โ€“ Oshkosh

Excellent
4.7 / 5
(21 reviews)
Oshkosh
 Last booking: 17 hours ago
 Instant Confirmation
Trips from US $550

Fishing Reports

Fishing for Smallmouth bass and muskie
Fishing for Smallmouth bass and muskie
May 30, 2026 Sturgeon Bay
Muskie we're not biting very well yesterday but we got plenty of Smallmouth bass action fish up to just over 6 and 1/2 lb. Karl had a fun time catching Smallmouth bass.
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We tried fishing for walleye today, cast
We tried fishing for walleye today, cast
May 9, 2026 Oshkosh
Trying to fish for walleye many different places on Saturday May 9th. 2026. There was a lake fly hatch and a black fly hatch the last few days. Lots of fly carcasses on the water. Today was cool. Northwest winds and fishing was slow at best. All we caught today was Sheepshead. We had seen two small walleyes caught and one white bass. Most people didn't do any good. That is my report for Saturday.
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Fishing was slow today because of dirty
Fishing was slow today because of dirty
May 5, 2026 Sturgeon Bay
We initially went out trolling for brown trout today because they're fishing has been very hot lately. But because of the South winds yesterday, it dirtied up the water up to almost a mile out and the brown trout right now are in 10 to 20 ft of water. We trolled a long ways today marked a lot of fish. Had one hit but didn't hook up with any brown trout. We then went to Sawyer Harbor to try for Bass. We caught one largemouth bass. It was a slow day. That was the whole trip today. The picture shown was from a trip on Saturday. We went six for seven with brown trout.
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Fall fishing is just starting and only g
Fall fishing is just starting and only g
Sep 17, 2025 Sturgeon Bay
Still using slip bobbers for perch, trolling for walleyes and Northern and some fall salmon as well. Call to book your fall trip now
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Great fall perch fishing now
Great fall perch fishing now
Sep 9, 2025 Sturgeon Bay
Fishing weed beds and structures are producing nice perch and trolling for Northern Pike is also good
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Great perch fishing, walleye and Norther
Great perch fishing, walleye and Norther
Aug 13, 2025 Sturgeon Bay
When the winds allow first, fishing has been pretty darn good. The northern pike and walleye fishing has been picking up as of lately, even with an enormous amount of bait in the area.
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Customer reviews

Rating summary
Excellent
4.6 / 5
out of 5 stars from 177 reviews
See details
Boat
Excellent
4.5 / 5
Crew
Excellent
4.7 / 5
Experience
Excellent
4.5 / 5
Photos & videos by reviewers (151)
Experienced captain ensured I caught fish!
Experienced captain ensured I caught fish!
Experienced captain ensured I caught fish!
+148
Angler rating
130
31
7
5
2
Anglers claimed
Good experience
86%
Friendly captain
97%
Recommend this charter
92%
Appropriate for children
91%
Satisfied with the boat
96%
Caught fish
81%
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Showing:
5 of 177 reviews
Karl H.
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Experience:
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Boat
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Crew
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Overall

Experienced captain ensured I caught fish!

VERIFIED   NEW  Full Day Trip on May 29, 2026
Caught many small mouth bass and some rock bass. Saw a few large muskies but they wouldnโ€™t bite for anyone. Overall great...
Karl H. recommends Lure-In Fishing Guide โ€“ Sturgeon Bay
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Alex L.
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Experience:
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Boat
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Crew
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Overall

Fishing with Dennis

VERIFIED   NEW  Half Day Trip Afternoon on May 15, 2026
Alex L. recommends Lure-In Fishing Guide โ€“ Sturgeon Bay
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Alex L. recommends Lure-In Fishing Guide โ€“ Sturgeon Bay
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Rick M.
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Experience:
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Boat
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Crew
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Overall

We had a great morning of fishing

VERIFIED   Half Day Trip AM on July 5, 2025
The wind did not help us but the Captain was able to adjust and put us on fish anyway. We started a little slow but we kept...
Rick M. recommends Lure-In Fishing Guide โ€“ Sturgeon Bay
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Rick M. recommends Lure-In Fishing Guide โ€“ Sturgeon Bay
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Lawrence H.
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Experience:
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Boat
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Crew
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Overall

Awesomeness

VERIFIED   Half Day Trip AM on July 29, 2025
Dennis is a great fishing guide and super good instructor.ย  I walked away with a variety of fishing concepts that were demonstrated...
Lawrence H. recommends Lure-In Fishing Guide โ€“ Sturgeon Bay
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Lawrence H. recommends Lure-In Fishing Guide โ€“ Sturgeon Bay
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Paula G.
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Experience:
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Boat
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Crew
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Overall

Dennis wanted to make sure we caught fish!

VERIFIED   Half Day Trip Afternoon on June 24, 2025
The main body of the lake was pretty rough but he kept putting us into areas that were calmer. We caught a lot of fish. We...
Paula G. recommends Lure-In Fishing Guide โ€“ Sturgeon Bay
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Paula G. recommends Lure-In Fishing Guide โ€“ Sturgeon Bay
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