Lake Erie West Basin
Fishing Reports.
From The 2002 Fishing Season
These Reports are provided as a comparison of fishing in the West Basin of Lake Erie from year to year.
Report 10/7/02:
Huron River: Steelhead are
beginning but just a few fish are being taken. I saw two small steelhead that
came on worms on a bobber on 10/6.
West Basin: Sorry for the lack of reports, my computer committed suicide and
quite frankly not much to report anyway. I am running 22 miles out to between
the B and C can to catch walleye. The only reports that have been emailed to me
have been for perch north of Sputnik. You need to move around a bit to find fish
but once you do you should do well.
Report 9/9/02:
West Basin: I managed to
limit on walleye off of Stony Point on Sunday 9/1 but walleye were tough on
Monday and only got 5. Perch off of Stony Point have also become difficult. This
past weekend I fished Perch 1 mile East of the old Sputnik. We did well catching
about 60 perch, most around 8 inches, some under, but many to 10. Walleye this
past weekend continue to be spotty. A report from a boat fishing Stony did not
catch a walleye. Another fishing about 11 miles East of Stony (north of the old
Sputnik) caught 8. The radio chatter would lead one to believe that they were
doing very well on walleye south of West Sister. You can still get perch in
Michigan waters, just inside the Ohio border and NW of old Sputnik but they are
running small. The best perch are in Ohio waters.
Report 8/31/02:
Detroit River: I am still
receiving reports of good walleye catches south of Sugar Island. I suspect the
'Hole in the Wall' may still be a good choice but no new reports.
West Basin: I did not fish Friday. Did reasonably well (8 eye's and 3 lost) in
the same area 1 - 3 miles ESE of Stony Point. The fish seamed to have moved a
little deeper into about 24' to 25' of water. We did catch walleye to 5 lbs
today. The fish are not abundant, however if you work the areas where you do
catch walleye you should do well. Blue pattern blades on crawler harnesses
continue to be the best technique.
Report 8/25/02:
Detroit River: No new
information
West Basin: I was fishing Saginaw bay last week and I did not receive any email
with what was going on here at home. Thus, no reports in a bit. Fished this
weekend with the following results. The walleye between Sputnik and West Sister
have disbursed. Caught one on Saturday in 1 1/2 hours of trolling. We switched
to perch NE of the old Sputnik and I was very disappointed. We kept 4 perch and
the biggest was 7". There are a good number of boats fishing the new Sputnik (no
information) as well as a pocket east southeast of Stony Point. At Stony they
are catching many small perch (6" to 7"). I did find PLENTY of walleye between
Stony Point to the perch fisherman 3 miles ESE of Stony. The walleye are from 1
to 3 miles out and purple tiger thunderstick DJr's were the best crank bait.
Switched to harnesses later and found blades that were predominately blue did
best. I will not be able to fish again until Friday before the holiday, look for
an update Friday night or sooner if I receive any email reports.
Report 8/12/02:
Detroit River: I continue to
get glowing reports from many sources on walleye in the river. The hot spot is
the 'hole in the wall'. The 'hole in the wall' is an opening in the Livingston
channel (freighter downbound channel) located south and west of Crystal bay and
North and west of Boblo Island. Fisherman are handlining, drifting crawlers and
jigging. All methods are working great and fish are running 2-3 lbs. Work the
Michigan side of the channel.
West Basin: First time out for a couple of weeks. I found walleye 3 miles NE of
(old) Sputnik. I trolled both Saturday and Sunday at about 150 degrees to a
point 3 mile north of West Sister. The best concentration of walleye seem to be
in the area 3 miles NE of Sputnik. Limited in 2 hours Sunday and fish are
running 2 to 4 lbs. I was running Thunderstick Jr's both days. Run them 50 foot
back, 3 oz snap weight and then 50 more to the release. Working 31-32 ft of
water. Purple Tiger works best, Red hot working also. Metallics were not
working. No weeds, few fisherman, it was pleasant fishing all weekend! I haven't
fished perch but listening to the radio perch'n was tough. A large pack of perch
fisherman have been working 2 miles NE of Sputnik.
Report 8/8/02:
Sorry for the lack of info
lately. Bad weather a couple weeks ago followed by other commitments recently
have kept me off of the water. Here is what I do know.
Detroit River: Handliners still doing well with walleye in the lower river. I
recevied a report yesterday of a limit catch of 24 walleye drifting crawler
harnesses at the 'Hole in the Wall'. This all came in the morning and the action
was fast.
West Basin: Perch are doing very well off of Stony Point and also around Sputnik
to the turnaround bouy. Shinners are working best and the perch are running to
14". I will be fishing walleye this weekend and I will be heading between the
islands and east, I suspect that will be the best game in town.
Report 7/31/02:
Detroit River: Handliners
are doing well in the evening in the lower Trenton Channel. Still fisherman are
also doing well with jigs and crawlers and crawler harnesses in front of Lake
Erie Metro Park.
Huron River: I received a report from the Huron River stating the bass and
particularly the pike fishing is fantastic. Pike are coming mostly off of the
pilars at the upper dam and are running to 8.5 lbs. After sunset work the
shorelines. Surface running buzz baits in blue, purple and black seem to be
best. Bass are coming from the edge of weed beds and other available structure.
West Basin: The walleye have thinned out in Michigan waters. Limits can be taken
regularly NNE of West Sister Island. Technique working best for me is
Thunderstick DJ's and Thunderstick Jrs (one each off of a three way) fished 50
feet back, 2.5 oz snap weight and 50 feet more to the clip. Best colors are
purple tiger and red hot tiger. Perch fishing seems to be best around the
Sputnik.
Report 7/22/02:
West Basin: As far as weeds,
they come and go with the wind. Fished Saturday, did not stop in front of Fremi,
to many weeds. We moved 3 miles east of Stony and set up and fished, again too
many weeds. We did get 3 walleye trolling harnesses but the weeds were
unbearable. We ran to West Sister Island hoping to finally excape the Lake Erie
salad and set up north of the island and worked east. Perch, white perch and
sheepshead prevented us from even setting one line running harnesses so we
swithed over to cranks and limited in less than 1 hour. Purple Tiger and Red Hot
Tiger Thunderstick DJrs were the best two baits, spoons caught a couple fish,
rattle tots none. The trick was to get the baits down, we used 2 oz snap weights
50 foot back and then ran another 50 foot to the release. Sunday we made up our
mind before we left to run to West Sister, as we ran out the area east of Stony
was weedless. The same area that was weed choked Saturday. We ran to West
Sister, limited again, colors the same and again trick was to get the baits
deep. We used deep thundersticks on one side 130 feet back to get deeper, they
did not catch fish but the junior thundersticks off of the three way swivel took
many. I received a report from a drifter working the same area. He was very
succesful using 1/2 once weight on a 15" leader and a crawler harness with a #5
gold blade and gold beads. They used the count down method using a count of 22
and did very well with a quick limit. I had another report from bouys 3 and 4 on
the Raisin River Channel. They again did very well limiting while trolling
crawler harnesses off of bottom bouncers, the reported no weeds as well.
Report 7/20/02:
West Basin: Forget the
recent information from yesterday's report, it was based on reports from others
over the past few days and conditions have changed dramatically. Fish are still
in front Fermi to about 25 feet of water but the weeds are terrible. Drifting
will work but it is not very productive, trolling crawler harnesses can be
effective but it will be an awful lot of work, crank baits you can forget. We
kept moving east and found the weeds to extend 12 miles east of Stony. We ran
17.2 miles east to North East of West Sister. The perch and other small fish
made trolling harnesses very difficult so we changed to Tundersticks and caught
12 walleye in less than an hour. We ran a Rattle tot, 2 spoons and several
Thundersticks. Spoons took 2, 10 on Thunderstick Jrs. Red Hot and Purple Tiger
were the hot two colors. We had two aboard and ran 4 lines.
Report 7/19/02:
West Basin: Last weekend had
weeds move into the area in front of Fermi. Saturday was good and we caught 37+
walleye by 1:00pm. On Sunday we had 10 by 9:30 am but the weeds were too tough
to take. We moved 4 miles east of Stony in 26 foot of water and caught 20+ more
by 1:00pm. Weeds were still present but better. Most recently, I received
reports from 7/17 that the weeds have been blown out from the area in front of
Fermi and the fish are still there. I had 3 reports of limit catches in front of
Fermi Wednesday and Thursday. Our best crawler harness blades all had blue in
them. Last weekend was the first time that I observed a color preference and
blue was it.
Report 7/9/02:
West Basin: Fermi is still
hot. The wind blew the weeds out completely. Took one pass from 15 foot of water
on the south side of the banana dike and headed for Stony Point staying in 19-20
foot of water. Caught 15 walleye in 2 hours fishing 2 rods. Only 1 or 2
Sheephead, 2 perch, 2 rock bass, one 2 lb smallmouth 3 silver bass and a couple
white perch got in the way.
Report 7/7/02:
West Basin: The walleye are
still in tight in front of Fermi. Most boats have moved deeper but the story I
am getting around the marina is that we were the only boat to come in with a
limit on Saturday. I have limited every day Wednesday through Saturday in short
periods of time staying close. I spent some time in deeper water only to find
mostly sheepshead although I did get a few walleye. The most active fish, and
fewest sheepshead are right in front of Fermi to a little north in 19 feet of
water. Still trolling crawler harness and color still does not seem to matter.
Report 7/5/02:
West Basin: The NE winds
blew in a lot of weeds today. Boats seemed to try to stay in deeper water away
from the weeds. I did not have much success in the deeper water. I moved into
the 18-20 foot of water that has held so many walleye for the past week and they
are still there. The only trouble is so are the surface weeds. I found running
harness to be annoying, I suspect crack baits would be near impossible, but
there are still a lot of walleye (and minimal sheepshead) in 19 foot of water in
front of Fermi and north.
Report 6/30/02:
Detroit River: I have
received a report that some walleye are being caught south of Celeron Island.
West Basin: If you have been out you have probably noticed a large pack of boats
SE of the Banana Dike. That area is the hottest thing going. My observations are
that the fish are from a line due east of the Fermi plant and north, anything
south of this line seems to be much slower. Baits do not seem to be important,
they are hitting everything. Trolling is far more productive than drifting. You
do not have to fish in the middle of the pack, walleye can be readily caught
east and north of Fermi from 12 to 24 foot of water.
Report 6/24/02:
Detroit River: Nothing new
to report.
West Basin: Reports from Friday and Saturday were good from an area 5 miles SE
of Stony Point. Fishing in the same area on Sunday morning was also good. There
are many charter boats also fishing this area. On Sunday morning, I fished an
area ENE of Fermi in 22 to 24 foot of water that has produced well in recent
years but only caught a few fish. I moved to the area 5 miles SE of Stony in the
afternoon and caught 8 walleye fishing alone. This seemed a bit slow. Maybe had
something to do with no wind, 90+ degree temperatures and fishing between 2:00pm
and 5:00pm but can't say for sure. The most interesting report I received came
from the south side of the banana dike in 10 feet of water. Limit walleye
catches in a couple of hours on Sunday but the fish were running on the small
side. In addition to the walleye as many smallmouth and even a muskie to add to
the action. Best baits this weekend seemed to be crank baits over crawler
harness. In the shallow water, hot n tots and wiggle warts. I ran crawler
harness and bright colors (orange / chartreuse blades) did the best.
Report 6/22/02:
Detroit River: Walleye still
doing well in the mouth of the river in front of Lake Erie Metro Park. Crawlers
and cranks both working. Perch fishing is also strong.
West Basin: I have been land locked since 6/16 but I have received several
reports, all very good. One report had limit catches coming from "11 miles east
of Boles Harbor". Sound like the same area I have been reporting on between the
new and old Sputnik on the east side of the Maume Channel. Rattle tots the
ticket in this report. A second report from Stony point in 21' of water, again
Rattle tots, limit in 2 hours. A third report was from 4 miles out from Stony,
bait unkown, but again a near limit catch despite fishing from a sinking boat!
This fisherman also added they found the problem and made it in safely. Looks
like 2002 is following the pattern from the previous few years with limit
catches reported from Fermi to Stony point and out to the Sputnik. Crawler
harness and Rattle tots seem to be the hot baits.
Report 6/17/02:
Detroit River: No report.
West Basin: Still a good number of fish on the east side of the Maume Channel
between the new and old Sputniks. This past weekend was very rough but still
took 15 fish in this area in about 4 hours of trolling. Using bottom bouncers
and harnesses 40-45 feet back. Best colors are blue/green/silver and blue/black.
Sunday was even rougher and stayed close, fishing off of Fermi. We did take a
couple fish in a short period of time but conditions were just too tough to
fish. Premature to say if this area has started yet but it certianly deserves
more attention (preferably in less than 20 mph winds).
Report 6/10/02:
Detroit River: The river has
slowed but still some good reports trolling Thundersticks in front of the Metro
Park in 9 to 12 foot of water. Crawlers on weight forward spinners and bottom
bouncers reportedly are also doing well. Many, many Silver bass!
West Basin: The northern Michigan waters are not producing many walleye, this is
normal for this time of year. This should pick up in 7 to 14 days. More to the
south, good catches are reportedly coming from the 'E' bouy, roughly 5 miles out
of Boles Harbor. The best walleye catches are coming from Ohio waters SSW of the
Sputnik (old Sputnik) to just north of the New Sputnik (Mcdonalds). These fish
are east of the Maume Channel to about one mile east. Large numbers of boats
with some good reports coming from east of the Toledo Light. Reports are also
good 2 to 4 miles west of the 'C' can also in Ohio waters. Slow presentation
seems to be key, Rattle Tots in the 2.0 mile range or crawer harnesses from 1.5
to 1.8 mph. Blue chrome Rattle Tots and blue chrome and orange/chartreuse in
crawler harness are the hottest colors. For those seeking perch, catching many
10"+ perch trolling for walleye 1 mile at 140 degrees from the old Sputnik.
Report 6/3/02:
West Basin: Fishing in the
lake continues to pick up. Limited for the first time this season on Sunday with
the fish in the 2 lb to 5 lb range. Still fishing north of the Raisin river
channel in about 21 foot of water and still using the same blades described in
the last report. A few Charter boats are fishing the area as well and one took a
30" 9 1/2 lb walleye on Saturday. More boats are fishing toward Boles Harbor and
the E buoy. Radio reports suggest that there are fish pretty much scattered all
the way to West Sister but nothing sounds substantially better than anywhere
else. Unless the weather turns bad and stirs things up, fishing in the lake
should continue to steadily improve.
Report 5/31/02:
Detroit River: For the best
walleye catches handlining in the river is the best bet. #9 and #11 Rapala's are
top baits. Horse Island and the head of Calf Island are most productive. Bigger
fish can be found up around Great Lakes Steel.
West Basin: Walleye are in the lake but the greater numbers seem to still be in
the rivers. I have had best results fishing the 'reefs' along on the north side
of the Raisin River channel between buoys 1 & 2 and 3 & 4. You can also find
fish in the middle of Brest Bay in about 21 foot of water. You need to work
hard. Additional reports seem to be better from Ohio waters east of the water
intake and between the Maume channel and West Sister but reports are not
substantially better. My best crank bait has been the purple tiger thunder stick
and crawler harnesses are also catching fish with a blue dolphin or orange
blade. In early morning or evening hours be sure to try along the Raisin River
channel in 7 to 18 foot of water. Catching a lot of perch trolling for walleye
so if you are looking for the smaller cousins seems like they are plentiful.
Report 5/20/02:
Detroit River: The River was
the place to be with the biggest catches in both size and quantity coming from
these waters. The biggest fish came from Great Lakes Steel but the lower Trenton
also turned up many big fish. Rapala's on handlines was the best method.
West Basin: Some fish are coming from the Lake. For numbers try Luna Pier in 16
foot of water. If you are looking for lake lunkers try Swan Creek in 7 to 12
foot of water. You can find some fish in 21 foot of water between Stoney Point
and buoy's 1 and 2 marking the Raisin River. Most fish came on various crank
baits including Rattle Tot's, Thunderstick Dj's, Bomber long A's and Reef
runners, but none seem to be substantially better than another. Night crawlers
are beginning to take a few fish. When trolling the lake this time of year
remember to keep the speed slow, 1.5-1.9 MPH.
Report 5/14/02:
Yes, I am delinquent on
updating the fishing report page. Trying to get a new boat ready for this year's
fishing season and am facing some challenges. Anyway, here is what I have been
able to put together.
Detroit River: Jiggers and Handliners are still doing well in the Trenton
Channel. Recent rains should really muddy things up however. Jiggers doing best
in the lower Trenton Channel around Horse Island on large jigs with stinger
hooks.
Huron River: Nice suprise here, trollers doing very well in the Huron for
Walleye trolling Rapalas and Shad Raps. The recent rains have really muddied
things up so allow a couple days for water to clear or use bright baits which
have been working well anyway. Best area around the first railroad bridge
upstream from the lake. This is a 30 minute boat ride from the mouth but is
generally good water depth to that point. Upstream from here does get a little
dicey especially in low water conditions. I have routinely had a 20 foot boat
with 200 Merc to the railrod bridge without a problem, just exercise normal
shallow water precautions.
West Basin: I tried last weekend with that new boat I am getting ready but never
set lines and the only thing I caught was a tow back to port. I have received
mixed reports from the Lake. The best reports are from the shipping channel out
from Boles Harbor and down around Turtle Island. Reports that I have received
from everywhere else have been poor.
Report 4/18/02:
Detroit River: Reports are
that fishing is great all the way up and down the river. Big fish are still
plentiful. This weekend could prove to be fantastic. Handliners are still doing
very well, large bright Rapalas #9, #11 and #13 are doing best. Jiggers are also
doing well. Word is the water on the Canadian side is clearing. Perch fishing is
slowing some but the can still be found in Canadian waters north of Boblo
Island.
West Basin: I heard the first report from the lake. Walleye are straight out
from Boles Harbor. I did not catch the depth but I would focus on a slow
presentation in less than 22 ft. of water. I also have a report that some fish
are coming from around Turtle Island.
Report 4/14/02:
Detroit River: The recent
heavy rains turned the tables in favor of the handliners. Handliners did very
well Saturday using big bright baits, Rapala #11's and #13's. Up until yesterday
jiggers had been very successful. When the water clears success should return
for the jiggers. The oil spill has not been a major problem and you can feel
confident when you head to the river you will be able to fish. Perch fishing has
been excellent around Boblo Island (Canadian waters).
Huron River: Steelhead fishing in the Huron has been fantastic. Spawn and
spinners doing well as are jigs tipped with wax worms. The recent rains have
cause the river to by high and dirty which will probably have a negative impact
for the short term but the rain seems to have really turned on the run.
Report 4/9/02:
Detroit River: The perch
fishing has been great the past week in the river. Best perch fishing is coming
from the Canadian side. Walleye are fair. Many limit catches but many catches of
only 1 to 3 fish as well. The pros last week fishing the RCL tournament had
similiar results. A good number of big fish are showing up with 10lb+ fish not
uncommon. Jiggers are doing will with the usual chartreuse and orange. A few
fisherman are also doing very well with white and even white jigs with a brown
tail. I checked on the lake today but seems that no one is giving it much of a
try just yet. I have heard some question whether the Sterling State Park ramp
will be closed this year as was planned. It was confirmed to me that it is
closed for the season.
Sorry reports are coming a bit slow thus far this year but I am rigging a new
boat and it is consuming a lot of time. Planning to have it ready for the lake
by May so things should get back on track by then.
Report 4/1/02:
Detroit River: Things are
really picking up on the River. Many limit catches are showing up at the ramp.
10lb plus fish are numerous. Jiggers and handliners are having equal success.
Jiggers are doing best on jigs with chartreuse or red spinners. Best bet for
handliners is large Rapalas size 11 and 13 in bright colors. Fisherman seeking
pike are doing exceptionally well!
Report 3/23/02:
Detroit River: The run is
just beginning on the river. Boats are averaging 1-4 fish but they have been
large. One boat just came in with two fish but both around 10lbs. Fish up to
13lbs are being caught and the best is still to come.
Huron River: Steelhead are being caught and those fisherman familiar with the river are catching many. Flies and spawn have been effective. Also, walleye have been strong in the Huron since February with fish to 9lbs and many limit catches right up to the 15th of March. The Huron River is inland waters and since March 15th walleye are out of season so any you catch must be released.
T