Windy City Salmon Fishing Charters

We went salmon fishing in May 2016. Everything was so perfect. The weather was nice, the lake was peaceful, and the fish was biting. Each of us took 5 salmons home. He also filet them all for us on the way back, so no time was wasted. I love captain Rick, and we decided to come back again next year!
:)

Our group had an awesome time. Rick was super nice and did a great job of explaining what we were doing (most of us were first timers and didn’t have a clue). I already booked again with him. All the others review were right, this is your place for fishing charters. I’m booking another trip asap!

Caught our limit on Captain Rick’s hand tied flies.
Captain Rick runs a stand up operation from our experience today. Clean boat, calm water. It was a good day.

Can’t say enough good things about Captain Rick. He’s honest, personable, knowledgeable, and friendly. If anyone ever goes fishing on Lake Michigan he’s the man you need to talk to! We opted for a 10 hour day… but only went 9(the bite slowed after we limited out on 12 Lake Trout in only 90 minutes!). He even told us some of the history of the super expensive large mansions by the North Harbor on the way back in!

Excellent Charter. Great Experience. Knowledgeable, courteous, attentive Captain. Highly recommend.

Can’t recommend Windy City Salmon enough. Captain Rick was a great guide. He answered any and all questions, even the stupid ones. He was friendly and knew where to catch some good fish. What else is there to say? We’re already planning our next trip out.

Captain Rick did a great job. He is very knowledgeable about the area from where to fish to what lure to use. We caught our limit in under two hours. I would recommend him to others. If your planning on fishing out of Waukegan Harbor, go with Captain Rick and you will have an enjoyable experience. Honest and knowledgeable man.

I can not say enough for Captain Rick and his charter experience!!! Capt. Rick himself is a super nice, easy going Capt. who does his best to get the most from your trip. There’s never a guarantee that you’ll catch lots of fish, that’s in someone else’s hands and the conditions at the time, but Rick does an excellent job of making it happen.
We had our charter in early Aug. when the Kings are running. My father and I took my nephews for a six hour charter and we all had a great time. While he caught almost double the fish than we caught 24 hrs. previously, my oldest nephew had Capt. Rick’s biggest fish for the season, a 25lb. King, right up until the last day of his fishing season when he hauled in that 33 lb. slop of a Trout. Everyone got off the boat happy and safe.
As mentioned by others, you can make the decisions on how you want your fish prepared, (some smoke houses prefer the whole fish to smoke) but if you do request filets, Capt. Rick will have everything done before you hit the docks, if you’ve had a slower day. Otherwise, he’ll clean everything up back on shore.
Capt. Rick’s boat is clean, presentable and top notch. His gear is in excellent condition. You can tell he prides himself on providing a clean, safe and pleasant environment not only for himself, but anyone that comes on his boat, so please treat him and his gear with respect. You get out what you put into it, so make the most of it.
For all you ⁴⁄₅ a.m. whiners, yeah it stinks, but if you’re going with kids, I see that as a bonus! The looks on their faces when you drag their butts out of bed at that time in the morning, classic. But there’s also a great joy in watching a first timer reel-​in and catch a big one. Priceless! Capt. Rick does a great job coaching if you need help.
So if you’re looking to cut corners and find the rock bottom cheapest charter around, go somewhere else. He’s pretty price competitive from my perspective. But if you’re looking for the best. Go nowhere else! I’m already planning my 2014 trip and hope to make it an annual exercise, with Capt. Rick for as long as he stays around!

My buddy raved about his experience with Capt Rick and his salmon adventures, so I decided to join him the next time he went out. Granted, I’m not a fan of waking up at 4am to drive up to Waukegan Harbor by 5am… but it was well worth getting up early. I ended up catching a 8 lb brown trout, right off the bat… and our group caught a number of good sized salmon to finish the day. Capt Rick fillet our fish like a Samurai before we hit land. It was a slow day for fishing, but we did better than most boats out that day. I’m certainly going to book a charter for my dad and friends next year!

If they offered a 10 start rating, I would choose that! Capt Rick/​Windy City Salmon is a top notch charter with memories to last a lifetime! If you are ever even considering renting a charter for salmon/​trout fishing, do not even think about using anyone other than Windy City Salmon. I went last summer for my friends bachelor party and we will be turning this adventure into an annual maybe bi-​annual excursion. Capt Rick does it all with providing all the top of the line equipment, boat, and will filet the fish for you right on the boat after your day is done. Look no further, this IS the place to go for charter fishing! Thanks Rick, looking forward to more trips soon!

Capt. Rick is a great skipper with a great boat and more lines in the water than we’d ever seen! He guided us to enough Coho, Kings, and Steelhead to fill our grills for the rest of the summer! Highly recommended for vets and newbies alike!

I’ve been out on a charter with WCS a few times over the last few years, including this past weekend. Always a good time. The catch is depends upon the particular day you go and how the fish feel that day, and some days will be better than others. Regardless of whether you catch a few or fill up on your limit, Capt. Rick always does his best to put you in the best position to have success. Great guy and great boat.

Great time.
Capt. Ricky is super knowledgeable about the entire ecosystem. The Salmon and Trout you catch are premium size always.
thanks Rick, See ya next year.

I don’t always go on fishing charters, but when I do, I prefer Windy City Salmon Charters!
We were on Lake Michigan at 5am with only one mission… to catch some fish. It was my first time on a fishing charter. Four friends and I had the boat to ourselves… with Capt Rick operating the 34′ vessel. He does not mess around. His boat had a lower cabin which was equipped with a bathroom. He also had SONAR and had just recently added an autopilot system. He set up TEN fishing rods at the stern. He had an array of fishing spoons/​lures. My friends and I took turns keeping an eye on the lines waiting for the fish to bite… all the while enjoying a few cold ones. There was even a bit of camaraderie between Capt Rick and another rival fishing charter on the waters as they communicated with one another over the radio ever so often to see how each other’s luck was running.
By the end of the day we had caught several King Salmon. Capt Rick even fillets the fish after docking… then places them on ice for you and even gives you a few recipes to use! It’s definitely a good idea to bring your own coolers though, just to make sure the fish stays cold…
…along with the beer beforehand! I would definitely do this again.
Let all be aware: Captain Rick is LEGIT.

GO GO Capt. Rick!
This is a cool experience. I’ve been a fisherman since my grandfather gave me my first Zebco reel when I was five, and it doesn’t get much better than Windy City Salmon. I’ve gone out with Capt. Rick twice, and both times I’ve bagged close to my limit — with some real lunkers. All together, hundreds of dollars worth of fresh salmon, saving me (and my toes) from the line of mommies with huge strollers at Whole Foods.
Capt. Rick knows his stuff. So much so, it’s not uncommon to hear the other local guides chime in Rick’s CB radio to ask him some advice for the day. Rick’s setup of the poles is perfect — fish bite early and often, and when they don’t, Cap knows which lure to throw on. Some of our faves include «Clown» and «Watermelon», which took a 12 lb. salmon and a 13 lb trout. Not to mention the FREE dock service of filleting your catch done fantastically and effortlessly by Rick. Seriously, it’s like watching Michelangelo when Ricky’s got his fillet knife out.
Our last time out, we had SIX fish hit at ONCE. With only five people fishing, it got a little nuts on deck, but with Rick’s guidance and steady hand, all five of us took in a fish. When the day was over, 4 fish a person, which is one shy of the daily limit. Seriously, this is the real deal. Capt. Rick starts up at 5 am and sometimes stays out till 10 pm. All with the same passion and enthusiasm of that little boy inside of us who just nabbed his first sunfish. It’s definitely a rush when Capt. Rick’s eyes flare up and he shouts «Fish On!».
Indeed, Capt. Rick. FISH ON!