Western Basin- Walleye fishing has been excellent during the past week in the Western Basin. Limit catches of 18 to 22” fish, including a few up to 30”, have been caught in the area between West Sister Island, the Gravel Pit and the Toledo Shipping Channel Turnaround Buoy. Best lures included gold weapons and bottom bouncers with crawler harnesses. In the Bass Islands area trophy fish and some limits continue to be caught around Kelley’s Island. Fish from 17 to 29” are being caught in 25 to 40 feet of water by trollers using dipsy divers with spoons or crawler harnesses and by drifters using bottom bouncers and crawler harnesses.

Yellow perch fishing has been best around the dumping grounds 4 miles NE of Cedar Point in 25 to 35 feet of water. Spreaders tipped with shiners have been most productive for 7 to 12" fish.

Kelley's Island and the Bass Islands have produced the best smallmouth bass catches. Tube jigs and soft craws have been used to catch fish between 15 and 20". June is the peak spawning period for smallmouth bass in Lake Erie. When practicing catch-and-release please return fish to the water as quickly as possible so that the bass may return to its nest to protect its eggs from goby predation.

Central Basin- Smallmouth bass are being caught on Ruggles Reef in 12 to 25 feet of water and in nearshore breakwall and harbor areas from 15 to 30 feet of water around Lorain, Conneaut, Ashtabula, Geneva, Fairport and Cleveland. 14 to 20 inch fish have been caught on tube jigs, jigs tipped with shiners and crankbaits. When practicing catch-and-release please return fish to the water as quickly as possible so that the bass may return to its nest to protect its eggs from goby predation.

Yellow perch are being caught within 2 miles of Lorain in 30 to 40 feet of water, 2 to 3 miles west of Ashtabula in 30 to 40 feet of water, less than 1 mile N of Lakewood in 30 feet of water and less than 1 mile NW of Wildwood State Park in 25 to 32 feet of water. Spreaders tipped with shiners are taking fish from 7 to 13".

Walleye fishing in the Central Basin has been best near Ruggles Reef in 25 to 40 feet of water, 4 miles north of Cleveland Edgewater Park in 50 to 55 feet of water, 3 to 4 miles north of Euclid in 45 to 52 feet of water and 3 to 5 miles north of Geneva in 50 to 60 feet of water. Near Ruggles Reef trolling crankbaits, spoons, or crawler harnesses and casting weight forward spinners or mayfly rigs have been most productive for fish from 14 to 28”. Farther east anglers have been trolling dipsy divers with spoons or crawler harnesses for fish from 17 to 26”.

Reprinted with the permission of the ODNR.