January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October
November
December

Fishing Reports

Send Fishing Report to Erie Reports

Winter is here with wind chills in the single digits and plenty of lake effect snow east of Cleveland.  I had a great time at the Cleveland boat show and fishing college last week.  It was really nice to meet some of you in person.  Hopefully I can meet more of you at future seminars.

If you are going to enter the WBSA LEWT tournaments this year don't forget that the early bird entry deadline is this week (Jan. 31).  The earlier you get entered the better boat number you will get.  There is also a $500 Gander Mountain gift certificate that will be given away to one of the early bird entrants.

http://westernbasinsportfishingassociation.com/tournaments_lewt.html

Also there is a WBSA meeting on Tuesday Feb. 6 at the Cold Creek Margarittaville on Venice Road in Sandusky.  Chris Vandergoot of the Division of Wildlife will be giving a presentation on the 2006 surveys.  I also plan to be there.

Travis

Since the last report fishing activity has really slowed down and it's starting to feel more like January.  Not a single report has come in.  Between the cold rain and gusty winds the lake is really a mess nearshore.  The ten day forecast has plenty of cold weather in it and the offshore wind forecast doesn't look good either.  I doubt we will have much of an ice season this year (if any at all), but it might be a few months before the boat fishing gets good again.

This is the time of year to assess and repair all of your gear.  It's a good time to make crawler harnesses, sharpen hooks, replace split rings, and whatever else might need to be done. 

It is also the boat show season.  The Cleveland Boat Show has already started.  I'll be giving presentations at the fishing theatre, along with quite a few other WBSA members.  Check out the schedule for the rest of the week.  I'm also part of the walleye and steelhead college this Saturday January 20.  There were still plenty of open spots that last that I heard.  You can access the schedule here.

Get to work on your gear and take care of any necessary boat maintenance.  Spring fishing around the islands and reefs will be here before you know it.

Travis

Happy New Year!  This is Travis again.  I would like to echo Marc's comments and thank everyone that helped make 2006 a great year.  Keep the reports coming in '07.

I received one report from Kelleys Island this week.  Seven 23 to 25" fish were caught in 18' of water N of Kelleys around the state ramp.  They were caught on husky jerks and rogues just after dark 45' back at 1.2 mph.  About 1 hour after dark the bite shut down.

I got another interesting e-mail that said a few weeks ago a 23" 7.5 pound walleye was caught near Cranberry Creek.  Think about that for a few minutes.  It had 3 shad over 6", 2 white perch that were 6" and also some shiners in it's stomach.  Walleye are usually considered to be mild mannered predators, but don't under-estimate them.  They can pound forage with the meanest of predators.  If it fits in their mouth they will eat it.

This mild weather just keeps hanging around.  I keep thinking that it will get bitter cold any time now, but water temps are still in the upper 30's.  The trolling bite will continue as long as the mild weather holds out, and as Marc mentioned the jigging action around the islands will start to pick up.  If you need your ice-fishing fix try using similar techniques standing in your boat in the historic ice fishing locations between Green and Rattlesnake Islands.

Travis