Fishing Report Archives

I’m back! Man, do I need a few days rest. Hello from the Excel 230 Elite.

We just got back from the most glorious fishing trip of my long fishing career. Lake Erie was somewhat of a disappointment in 2016 when a group of my friends and I were there. My first trip there in March of this year was great but weather conditions made it tough for a big part of the trip. There was nothing that stood in the way this time.

My fellow Off Shore Tackle and Walleye Nation Creations Pro Staffer Tyler, his Dad Mark, my cousin Rickie and myself made up the motley crew.

I’ll have to say there were some concerns about our rented house. It had no air conditioning! This small point got past us when the rental was secured at a late date. Once we drove up to the house and saw the million dollar view, the a/c was forgotten. We were spending 4 days on the shore of Erie. The yard ended at a bluff that dropped to the shore. Nightly opened windows and fans took care of the concerns.

We stayed just west of Conneaut, Ohio. Our launch point was the Harbor of Conneaut. This harbor should be the model that resorts here use. The ramps were orderly, parking was very well organized, food trucks and restrooms were plentiful, and bank fishing was welcomed. We arrived for our first trip out onto the lake right in the middle of a large community 4th of July celebration. Everyone was courteous and friendly.

The lake was slick calm and it took us no time to find and start catching walleye. The minimum size length was 15 inches but we decided to self-impose an 18 inch limit so we could stay out longer. We could each keep 6 walleye daily. Our 24 keepers still came in less than two hours.

The next three days are now a blur of toothy fish, laughs, back pats, great meals, and friendship. Each afternoon found us all in lawn chairs, sitting next to the bluff, watching the sunset. Each trip ended like the others, with limits of walleyes. Our last trip lasted an hour since we needed to be headed south soon.

To be able to fish four trips in four days is somewhat unusual for the Great Lakes. Tyler’s 25 foot North River boat was the main reason. Two of the trips saw waves up to 5 feet but his boat was up to it. I would not have tried the 5 mile offshore trips the last two days in my Excel. Not that my 23 foot Bay Pro couldn’t handle it, but it would have been a very uncomfortable trip for somebody prone to seasickness like me.

We left Tyler there to meet some friends to fish thru Friday. The 9 hour drive back to Benton let us talk about our experiences. Wednesday found me cleaning our Tuesday catch that had been iced down. The fish were split between the group with all of us having plenty.

All in all it was probably the most fun and memorable fishing trip of my life-long fishing career. The people of Ohio were friendly and helpful. I do have one warning for those who might consider the same time-frame trip to Erie….take all the ice you can possibly carry. Nobody, and I mean nobody, had ice. We carried almost 100 pounds but struggled to find any more until Monday afternoon. The 4th of July and beautiful weather was the reason.

I’m now back in the real world with guide trips coming up. I have no reports from the lakes because all of my contacts have taken the holiday off. Hope you don’t mind me going off my usual track. Rest assured there will be no slide shows! (Humorous memories of the 60s) I’ll be on the water and reporting next week.

Be careful out there! Welcome to our slice of Heaven.