Lake Erie Fishing Report: June 13, 2002:

Western Basin - Lake Erie water temperature off Toledo is 66* F. Walleye
fishing improved over the past week. The best walleye action continues to be
along the Toledo Shipping Channel and eastward to the Toledo Water Intake
and West Sister Island, as well as A Can of the Camp Perry Firing Zone.
Trollers are doing best. Gold lures continue to work best. Anglers are
trolling with deep diving crankbaits and spoons and drifting with
weight-forward spinners, mayfly rigs, and bottom bouncers with worm
harnesses tipped with nightcrawlers. Catches are 15 to 20 inches with some
larger fish. The legal bag limit for walleyes on Lake Erie and its
tributaries is six fish from May through February.
Yellow perch fishing continues to be excellent at many locations with plenty
of limit catches. Some excellent perch fishing locations include east and
northeast of Kelleys Island, Kelleys Island to Middle Island, both sides of
Gull Island Shoal, and around Rattlesnake Island. Perch catches are in the
9- to 13-inch range. Anglers are using perch spreaders tipped with minnows.
The yellow perch bag limit is 30 perch per angler per day.
Smallmouth bass fishing is reported as fair. Best locations are around the
islands and on Sandusky Bay. Most catches measure 14 to 18 inches. Anglers
are using softcraws or leeches. The legal limit for smallmouth bass is five
fish per angler per day with a minimum length requirement of 14 inches.

Central Basin - Water temperature is 54* off Cleveland. Some walleyes are
being taken about 8 miles off Eastlake in 65 to 70 feet of water. Anglers
are using dipsy divers and spoons in silver and chartreuse, or watermelon
and black. Trollers are also picking up some steelhead trout. Walleyes and
steelhead are measuring 23 to 28 inches. Perch fishing has been good off
Lorain, Cleveland breakwalls, Wildwood, Fairport Harbor, Geneva and
Conneaut. The bite has been best in the evening. Smallmouth bass anglers
have been most successful from at Ashtabula and Geneva using tube jigs and
or trolling crankbaits in 25 to 40 feet of water

Source: ODNR