While famous for it's Walleye, Lake Erie also produces football size Smallmouth Bass, Jumbo Perch, and not to mention the occasional killer Sheep's Head. Lake Erie also has many quality shore fishing opportunities that are less popular to the visitors of the area, but are also known to produce quality size and numbers when fished during the right time of the season.

Early spring and late fall is the best time for Walleye. Night fishing in November and into December can produce the biggest catches from the shore, while May and June are best for the Smallies, followed closely by August and September. Perch fishing has been the best during the months of April and May, again followed closely by August and September.

Winter ice fishing is also very popular on Lake Erie. The most popular spots are around the various islands where the ice freezes first. The primary target of the ice fishermen is the Walleye and Perch.

While not as popular as the Walleye, Lake Erie can also produce decent Steelhead. Harbors and tributaries can also produce a variety of freshwater fish, including Largemouth Bass, Crappie, Bluegill and Catfish.

Lake Erie also has many public boat launches, allowing private boat owners access to the same harbors and marinas as the more famous charter boats. For those unfamiliar with the lake, marked maps are available in most bait shops.

2004 LAKE ERIE FISHING OUTLOOK IS PROMISING
Near-record walleye hatch recorded in 2003

COLUMBUS, OH -- Year after year, Lake Erie anglers have experienced some of the finest and most diverse fishing on the Great Lakes and this year will be no different, say fisheries experts with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Division of Wildlife. "Great opportunities abound for veteran anglers and those new to the Lake Erie fishing scene," said Roger Knight, Lake Erie fisheries program manager at ODNR. "The lake's famous walleye, yellow perch, smallmouth bass, steelhead trout and white bass are again plentiful this year." Knight noted that good fishing and a large charter boat fleet in the western and central basins, as well as numerous public boat ramps, private marinas, and shoreline access continue to make Ohio's Lake Erie waters a popular fishing destination.

Walleye

The 2004 Lake Erie walleye fishery will be dominated by the 1999 and 2001 hatches. Fish from the 1999-year class will range from 18 to 22 inches and fish from 2001 will range from 15 to 18 inches. Walleye from the 1996 and 1998-year classes will provide 22 to 28-inch fish, with "Fish Ohio" walleye (over 28 inches) being from older year classes. Sampling during the 2003 season found fish up to 21 years old remaining from the large 1982 hatch.

Anglers are reminded that new walleye regulations (download in .pdf format) are in place for the 2004 fishing season. The bag limit during March and April has been reduced to three fish, while the bag limit from May through February remains at six. A new 15-inch minimum size limit is in effect during the entire season. Another new regulation also prohibits the use of treble-hooked lures in Sandusky and Maumee bays during March and April. State fisheries biologists believe the 2003 walleye hatch to be one of the largest in recent history. August and September trawls sampled numbers comparable to the 1982 and 1986 hatches, two of the largest on record. By last September, anglers fishing with shiners were already catching walleye hatched in spring 2003. Individuals from the 2003-year class should reach 12 to 13 inches by fall of 2004. With the new 15-inch minimum size limit in effect, any fish caught from the 2003-year class should be gently handled and released as soon as possible. The fish from the 2003-year class will reach 15 inches during the 2005 fishing season.

Yellow Perch

The excellent perch fishing that anglers have experienced since the mid-1990s should continue through 2004. Fish from the excellent hatch in 2001 will enter into the fishery as 8 to 9-inch fish just in time for the peak season in August through October. Anglers also had some success fishing for yellow perch during non-traditional months of June and July this past year, especially in the central basin. However, fall is when the catch rates are the highest. Limit catches of large yellow perch should again be attainable during 2004. Ten to 12-inch fish from the 1998 and 1999 hatches and a few Fish Ohio-size fish (over 13 inches) from the 1996 hatch will be available.

Conservative regulations for sport and commercial fishermen, coupled with improved spawning success, have helped Lake Erie's yellow perch stocks to gradually recover after low levels in the early 1990s. Ohio's daily bag limit for yellow perch remains at 30 fish per angler for the 2004 season.

Smallmouth Bass

Excellent smallmouth bass fishing exists in many Ohio areas of Lake Erie. Traditional "hot spots" such as the Lake Erie islands, the western basin reef complex, Sandusky Bay, Ruggles Reef, and harbor breakwalls from Lorain to Conneaut, all produce good numbers of smallmouth bass and also the potential to catch a trophy over 5 pounds. In the spring of 2003, a smallmouth bass weighing slightly less than the state record of 9.5 pounds (caught in the Bass Islands area in 1993) was caught near Conneaut. Smallmouth bass anglers can expect to land "smallies" from 1993, 1994, 1998 and 1999-year classes, now ranging in size from 14 to 19 inches and weighing 1.5 to 4 pounds. New smallmouth bass regulations will take effect for the 2004 season. A closed season will be in effect from May 1 through June 26 to enhance reproduction. Fishing during the closed season will not be unlawful, but all black bass (smallmouth and largemouth) must be immediately released. The daily bag limit after June 26 will remain at five fish with a 14-inch minimum.

Steelhead Trout

Anglers should look for peak steelhead action on the waters off Vermilion to Conneaut during June through August, with catches measuring 17 to 29 inches. The typical method for capturing steelhead in the open waters is depth-controlled trolling with downriggers or dipsy divers with spoons. Many charter guides now offer steelhead charters as an alternative to traditional walleye charters. Once Lake Erie's steelheads move into central basin streams in the fall, these feisty fish provide additional angling opportunities for wading anglers throughout the fall, winter, and spring months. The ODNR Division of Wildlife maintains this popular fishery by releasing approximately 400,000 steelhead trout each spring in the Vermilion, Rocky, Chagrin, and Grand rivers, as well as Conneaut Creek.

Fishing conditions on Lake Erie can change hourly. Adjusting fishing methods according to current conditions is the key to success. Anglers should take into account such factors as season, cloud cover, water clarity, boat traffic, wave action, and amount of prey fish present. Electronic equipment to mark fish is helpful. Once a school of fish is located, anglers should try various techniques including drifting, trolling, and jigging at various depths in the water column. The ODNR Division of Wildlife maintains a series of web pages describing its Lake Erie research and management programs, fisheries resources, and open lake and steelhead fishing reports, maps and links to other Lake Erie web resources. This information is available on the Internet at: ohiodnr.com/wildlife/fishing/fairport/index.htm

During the season, ODNR provides an updated, recorded Lake Erie fishing report at 1-888 HOOKFISH. ODNR Division of Wildlife staff members are available from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays at Fairport Harbor (440-352-4199) for central basin information and at Sandusky (419-625-8062) for western basin information. For additional information on lodging, charter boat services, and local launch ramps, contact one of the following lakeshore visitor's bureaus:

Ashtabula County Convention & Visitors Bureau 800-337-6746 Lake County Visitors Bureau 800-368-5253
Convention & Visitors Bureau of Greater Cleveland 800-321-1001
Lorain County Visitors Bureau 800-334-1673
Sandusky/Erie County Visitors Bureau 800-255-8070
Ottawa County Visitors Bureau 800-441-1271
Greater Toledo Convention & Visitors Bureau 800-243-4667
Ohio Division of Travel & Tourism 800-BUCKEYE

LAKE ERIE FISHING: A LOOK BACK AT THE 2002 SEASON

Fishing for walleye, Lake Erie's most popular game fish, was very good throughout last summer at select walleye hot spots. Limit catches of walleyes ranging in size from 14 to 24 inches were common during periods in July and August. Some of the best 2002 western basin walleye locations included the Kelleys Island area, the Reef Complex, along the Camp Perry Firing Range boundaries, and the area from West Sister Island, along the Toledo Shipping Channel up to the Michigan state line. In the central basin, good areas included locations off Huron to Vermilion.

In 2002, anglers caught a total 700,000 walleye on the Ohio waters of Lake Erie, significantly less than the previous year’s 1.2 million fish. Catch rates for private boat anglers peaked in August at approximately one walleye for every two hours of fishing, slightly less than the previous year. Charter boat anglers had better catch rates that peaked in July at more than one walleye for every two hours of fishing, down from one fish every one and a half hours in 2001. The annual catch rate in the western basin in 2002 was one walleye every two hours. The annual catch rate in the central basin was about one fish every three hours.

The largest percentage of the 2002 walleye harvest were three-year-old walleyes from the 1999 hatch measuring 14 to 18 inches. Other year classes of fish that made a showing were from the 1996 and 1998 hatches ranging in size from 20 to 24 inches.
The current state record walleye was caught off Cleveland in November 1999 and weighed 16.19 pounds, a remnant of the large 1986-year class. Walleyes can live to be more than 20 years of age. On the down side, the cold, wet, windy weather in the spring contributed to a very poor hatch in 2002, which means the numbers of 14- to 16-inch fish will be fewer in 2004. However, a strong 2001 hatch, as well as contributions from the 1996 and 1999 hatches and conservative harvests on a lakewide scale, should make for an exciting 2003 fishery and also carry over to 2004.

Yellow Perch

Many top perch-jerking locales across both basins kept perch anglers busy and pleased. Ohio perch anglers filled coolers with 6.6 million yellow perch, a 20 percent increase over the 2001 harvest of 5.5 million. Angler pressure for yellow perch also improved from 1.6 million in 2001 to 2 million fish in 2002. Catch rates hit their highest levels during the traditional peak month of September, with anglers catching nearly four fish per hour, down slightly from 4.2 fish per angler hour in 2001.

Smallmouth Bass

Last year angler pressure for smallmouth bass was an estimated 340,000 angler hours, down from 400,000 angler hours in 2001. The decline is most likely due to bad weather and lake conditions in May, a traditional smallmouth bass fishing month. Creel interviews reveal that most bass anglers practice catch and release with six out of seven smallmouth bass released after being landed. The state record smallmouth bass, taken in June 1993 by an angler fishing off the Bass Islands, weighed in at 9.5 pounds. The world record is 10 pounds, 14 ounces.

Steelhead Trout

Central basin anglers experienced good steelhead fishing during August and September of last year. The steelhead harvest in 2002 jumped 41 percent from 29,000 in 2001 to 41,000. The popularity of Lake Erie's steelhead fishery continues to increase as more anglers discover this exciting sport fish in Ohio waters.

2004 LAKE ERIE FISHING OUTLOOK IS PROMISING Near-record walleye hatch recorded in 2003

2004 LAKE ERIE FISHING OUTLOOK IS PROMISING
Near-record walleye hatch recorded in 2003