kingfisher72

Yes, jigging if they are concentrated on specific spots/structures. Drift and cast crawler harnesses if they are spread out and up off bottom.  

On 9/18/2021 at 11:14 AM, Coldfeet said:

Spent entire week at sunset rented cottage there. What a crap week. Winds every day kept us off the water. We went out trying it but 2 days off shore winds which were supposed to be under 1 foot we found 2 1/2 footers out 60 ft. Not one fish suspended no baitfish  couple bumps on bottom but why bother rigging up when it's a baron wasteland.  I refused to go out to 80fow due to waves. My boat isn't capable of handling 4 footers.  I'm throughly disgusted. 

Don't feel like you have to run that far out on Erie if you are in a smaller boat. Walleye are not trout/salmon. They will sit and feed in warmer water if there is food there. We never fished deeper than 40 fow all summer and we caught fish consistently out of all three of the westernmost ports in NY with many limits.  Even with surface temps approaching 80 degrees at times. 

Not all the big females go deep...

On 5/7/2020 at 7:05 PM, Youngblood said:

 Where do you get the tail fins ? I need about 50 of those to replace the broken ones on my Raps.

Corner guard for drywall works well to make fins.  Cut with heavy shears.  Use epoxy to attach.  I like devcon 2 ton 30 min.  It isn't necessary, but once glued on and cured....coat the whole lure and fin with a topcoat of the epoxy.  

2 hours ago, shinintimes said:

Is it true that your allowed 3 per man on the Niagara ? I know on the salmon river its only 1 

Yes, three rainbows in the lower Niagara.  The lower river has it's own regs. The one rainbow limit is for Lake Ontario tribs other than the lower. 

I don't tip any of the jigging lures.  It ruins their action and is more hassle carrying bait these days than worth in my opinion.  You're looking for a reaction bite.  They either eat it or they don't.  In a boat, you can keep moving easily to find fish that will bite. 

Lures are sold.  I will PM you my contact info on the rod/reel.

Muskie Tackle

I have a muskie rod and reel combo ready to fish and a lot of lures for sale.  Located in Mayville, NY....

Gander Mountain Competitor series musky rod.  Rod is fast action, 7 foot, 1-3 ounces.   An Abu Garcia 6601 C4 reel with the speed handle and 80 pound test Power Pro line.......$100

Musky lures for sale.  Would like to sell as a lot.  $50 for the lures....

Gotchas and Jigging raps are both balance jigs.  They get their action from their balance point and body shape.  Jigging raps are at their best fished vertically.  Gotchas excel when they are out at an angle (cast/drift).  When it is super windy and tough to slow down your drift, the gotchas really shine.     

Outboard Motor Bracket

Panther outboard motor bracket for sale.  Ten hp or 80 pound max.   $100.  Located in Mayville, NY.

The lake is polluted with walleyes.  It's pretty much angler's choice on how and where you want to catch your fish this year.  There's been fish deep all of August and September (35-40 fow).  There's always fish along the weedlines.  Lately, I have been catching them well in 3-5 fow if the weeds allow too.      

We've had good luck using riggers to fish dipsey divers deeper than 50 fow or so.  Set the smaller diver on a 2 or 3 so they swing off to the side and below the ball and cable.  We've set as many as three divers off a single rigger before with no problems.  Never had much luck fishing a bait at the same depth as the ball is running without running extremely long leads and at that point you'd better be using rubber bands or you'll drag fish forever. 

One of three from early this morning.  Casting from shore. 

Sold

I've never boat fished up at that end of the lake so I can't say from personal experience with regard to the thermocline.  I was speaking more generally why oxygen could be low below the thermocline.  I don't know to what degree walleye would be stressed enough by lack of oxygen to go outside their preferred temperature or feed less.  I see a 50% or so decline in that graphic over the course of that year in some places in the eastern basin.  Looks like the biggest change in the eastern basin is east of Sturgeon Point.  Some of that is probably shallow enough over there to be above the thermocline in late August or September though, so it may just be the water temperature at the bottom being warm.  Can't say. 

Walleye should be at or above the thermocline in most instances.  Oxygen concentrations below the thermocline would be more relevant to lake trout fishing.  You could almost label that September image "Lake Trout Hot Spot" instead.

9 hours ago, J. Sparrow said:

Colder water holds more dissolved O2 than warmer water.  

Aye, it does but Jimski said "contact" with DO or essentially mixing with the air.  The thermocline forms a density barrier which prevents layers below from mixing with layers above, thus no further inputs of oxygen.  In a relatively shallow lake like Erie, there is a minimal volume of water between the thermocline and bottom.  Especially East of Sturgeon Point.  Nutrients dissolving in bottom waters consume oxygen.  Leading to anoxic conditions below the thermocline...ie, a dead zone.   A deeper lake such as Michigan or Ontario has more volume below the thermocline and can "eat" more nutrients than Erie can. 

How far down the rabbit hole do you want to go? lol....

I'm fascinated by limnology and could ramble on for hours.  Water like any fluid is in constant motion even when it appears to be for all intents and purposes "still". 

This is a good read and discusses some generalities of how water moves through Lake Erie.  The LE Gyre is what our summer time Eastern basin fish "ride" back East after they spawn to the west.  The predominate  west/southwest winds magnify the current and Northeast winds tend to disrupt it.  This current is driven by how the lake warms in the spring (west to east and shoreline out).  Too much NE winds will slow the warming lake and delay that summer pattern.

https://www.glerl.noaa.gov/pubs/fulltext/1999/19990004.pdf

Once the thermocline sets up, things are more stable, but winds can cause reverse submarine currents which mess with a bait's action at depth as it is trolled along.  A thermocline can bend and change depth after strong winds.  The depth you caught fish at before the blow could be drastically different temperature and void of fish after. 

This infish article is also worth reading on the topic....

http://www.in-fisherman.com/walleye/principles-of-wind-and-walleyes/

Yeah, they are around.  I don't understand why trolling isn't more popular here.  It really is baffling.  The best fishing coincides with the closed walleye seasons so it's not like people are distracted.  I don't bother with a boat.  It's not uncommon to do double digits from shore and I imagine someone trolling and covering water should do even better if they know what they're doing.  The real star of Lake Erie spring fishing is the smaller rainbows, though.  Too young to spawn but otherwise adults....

Look up where the browns are stocked here in NY and fish the warmest water you can find in the area.  They don't seem to wander much through the year.  Harbors at ice out, shallow bays with creeks after the harbors get too warm.  Browns are usually available from shore until the water hits 60F or so.  Some years, good fishing  lasts as late as June.  Go get 'em....