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Perch New Fishing Report for Perch


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  • 1 month later...

Yellow perch can be taken any time you can locate them. Under the ice, near shore at spawning time, 42 to 48 degree water temperature, after spawning in deeper water to 78 degree surface water temperature, where they are in 65 to 70 foot of water. When the water cools to 65 degrees they are returning to shallow water again.

Emerald shiners are the preferred bait and the bottom is where you will find them. Before stopping your boat, find them on your fishfinder. If you see a group of boats, anchor near the boats that are catching perch, not near the guys doing nothing.

The Niagara River below the Black Rock Lock in the slow current is good for shore fishing for them in the spring.

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Last summer I saw a lot of guys slow trolling reeeeal slow, put it in neutral, drop their lines, pull up four or 5 quick ones, then back in gear hunting for more.  The perch schools were thin & moving fast.  For years before that, you could drop anchor & catch your fill.  Not last year.

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  • 3 weeks later...

In Lake Erie, the highest I ever saw was about two to three feet up from the bottom.  I'll use two hooks about two feet apart vertically & make note of which they prefer.  What I've seen on the sonar is for them to be right on the bottom, but I never caught any perch, say, 20 ft up over 50 ft of water.

In Chautauqua, I like to look for weeds whose tops are about 6' below the surface in over 12'-14' of water, then fish right on top of the weeds.  They'll come up from the weeds to hit it.

I remember in my younger days, we would catch perch in shallower water but I think water clarity has changed all that.

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Thanks Smeltz,

I guess I am looking for another way to target them in the finger lakes once the water warms and the larger fish leave the shallows. I would rather not use live bait if possible.  I think I do fairly well in the spring time using a simple double drop shot rig but I would like to learn as many new techniques as I could. As we all know many people are hesitant at best to share much useful info when it comes to perch because it can easily turn into a "follow the crowd" mentality. 

I am not looking for spots to fish. I am looking for new techniques to fish the spots I know better.  any ideas would be great.

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  • 7 years later...

Perch are school fish and if you see a boat catching perch  fish near him. Set your anchor to not foul him but down from him, Set your three lines with from three to five snelled hooks baited with Lake Erie minnows  With the odor and numbers below your boat a whole school of perch will hold there till the bait disappears. The bottom currents will bring the school to your boat. Three anglers set up three rods and you will have a school of perch there. This was the the ticket to catch "blue Pike" years ago. It works with Atlantic and Pacific head boats for halibut and haddock. Perch will remain as long as plenty of bait is below your boat. 55 foot of water in March is well but when the surface water reaches 70+ degrees then 65 foot is better for perch. There are "dead oxygen" zones out deep there with rotting plankton and biologics . Always ice your catch in the summer, not in the warm water of an alleged live well. They will be good for a year then with clear eyes and bright red gills.

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  • 5 months later...
  • 2 weeks later...
  • 2 weeks later...

The dead zones in Lake Erie are the result of Western Basin agriculture fertilizers from Ohio, Indiana and Michigan. The plankton growth explodes in the western Basin and results in the dead zones on the lake bottom as the oxygen concentration falls in the deepest waters.

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  • 2 weeks later...

The boys boxed out on 13 inch perch Sunday. Flat calm, early morning fog but beautiful early ice free waters were the trick. Bring plenty of minnows, spot the hooks on about 55 foot of water and anchor up. If you see a boat catching, that is good as two boats hold the moving perch schools near by. Each guy uses three hooks per line, three lines are lawful per angler. that puts a lot of bait under your boat. The reservation windmill is good. Lifejackets are the law yet.

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The state ramp closes to the lake was open now. Only a couple trailers in the lot the other day, good perch fishing now. For walleye drive to Ohio where they have no problem with hook and line fishing as we have here.

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