Lake Erie Walleye 2025

[Gill-T]

Ha!  Maybe. 🤔 

[Diversion]

On 6/22/2025 at 11:07 AM, Gill-T said:

We had probably 5-7 board pull backs yesterday that were hit and runs so yes we saw nipping behavior. No buried swallowed deep hook ups. 

Try running a small stinger hook, has worked well for us on those days where they are very light striking 

[Gill-T]

Adam are you taking the rear treble off and extend a stinger or tying the stinger off the rear treble?

[Diversion]

Leave the rear treble on there, we tie a short piece of floro to a small stinger treble that then hangs back about 1.5" from the stock treble to help get those short striking fish. We also use those Northland slip on stinger hooks if we have any at the time. 

Edited June 25, 2025 by Diversion

[Gill-T]

Word of big mayfly hatch happening. Stomachs and fishfinder screens full of them. 

[mr 580]

Nice boxes and big fish for 9th Annual WNY Heroes Veterans Fishing Day from Dunkirk Harbor today.  Captains donate their time and boats.  DEC cleans their catch after taking samples.  Vets get a catered lunch too.  Long lines for fish cleaning today.

[Totally Hooked]

We participated too mr 580. Excellent fishing for us from the plant west in 55 to 65 fow. 4 to 7 color cores with sticks and braid dipseys (clipped on) with worm burners did the most of the work. We had a nice box by 11:30. What a great event this was. 

[ifishy]

Finally had a chance to take the drive  to erie I've been trying all spring and things kept coming up so or course the lake kicked up so decided to shorten the drive and launch at the buffalo state park had my aging father with us so we peaked at the lake and fished it for about 10 mins got 1 but he was uncomfortable so we went back in the harbor eventually found an active area and managed to 9 to the net and dropped another 4 or 5 so gonna be a nice fish fry and made my dad smile I only have to take him out about 1000 more times for all the times he took me out as a kid still for a first time trying erie for walleye it was pretty good

[Totally Hooked]

Buffalo harbor is on 🔥🔥🔥. 
 

Limited by 8:05 this morning and we had to throw a few back that hit while we were clearing lines. 2-3-3-4 color cores and two braid dipseys set on 3 out 60 to 80 feet. All six rods with burners and harnesses. Tight lines!! Time to switch over to Ontario for some LOC fishing. Maybe I’ll even catch a king. 🤪

[Gill-T]

Catching kings is a challenge this year. Still a coho bite. Had my first outing on Ontario this morning. Action was out around 300’

[Gill-T]

Reports from the weekend have been OUTSTANDING. Any worries about mayfly blues have been proven wrong. Limit catches from everyone from Pennsylvania to Buffalo. Fish from Ohio appear to be here from their long journey and have empty stomachs. There are certainly fish on the bottom to catch but the majority are being reported from 10’-30’ down suspended. You absolutely do not need to dirty your boat with worms as stickbaits are working just fine. Parking lots that were empty last weekend were full this weekend so plan accordingly. GO GET’EM and do your part to save a baitfish’s life. 

[13owhunter]

 

I havent taken the boat to Erie yet but I'd like to give it a shot this Thursday.  Would plan to launch from the small boat harbor.  Is there anything I need to know?  Can I fish the harbor if I get blown off the lake? Looks like a west wind.  I know Erie is a different animal than Ontario.  Thank you!

[Gill-T]

There probably are some bass inside the harbor but you will not be tapping into the main schools of walleye unless you are out on the lake. 

[Pequod1]

The reports out of buffalo are correct and it has been on fire for two weeks. I have been fishing there every light wind day we get with limits plus throwbacks. Contrary to what some guys are doing, I have not been successful with the 25-35’ deep fish I see on the screen. All my fish have been 6-7 color lead, 90’ on wire dipsey and 45’ on riggers using harnesses and worm tipped spoons. There still are walleyes inside the harbor at the south gap and just beyond but you better get there real early before the boat traffic . I’m not sure how long this will last. Traditionally the Buffalo bite dies down by the second week in July. But this has been anything but a normal year.

[13owhunter]

Thanks fellas!  The weather is calling for a 10-15mph west wind.  Im assuming that is concerning.  Is that a red flag or worth chancing it?  19ft aluminum boat here.

 

Any insight on conditions would be helpful.  My buddies fish the west side of the lake and have told me stories of very rough going out there.

 

Appreciate it!

[Gill-T]

Over 12 mph you will start to feel uncomfortable.  Timing is everything. If you have calm seas to start, head SW for 5-7 miles, turn around and troll back with following building seas. Check weather.com and click on the hourly icon and you will get the timing of the wind by the hour. 

[walleye hunter 101]

Windfinder forecast for tomorrow 

[Stillwater]

Windfinder app is great. I recommend it. The station for small boat harbor is "Buffalo Lighthouse". There are stations for all of the ports heading west as well. I like the "report" tab. It gives you a running graph of the wind speed. I also like the NOAA marine forecast for Dunkirk to Buffalo for planning what day to fish. Weather channel hourly forecast is the 3rd piece of data. Their radar also shows approaching rain / thunderstorms.

Good luck.

[13owhunter]

Thanks everyone.  I love the windfinder app and use it religiously for Lake O conditions.  Really takes awhile to build some intuition about conditions and I have zero experience with Erie so appreciate the feedback.  Thursday looks interesting as it looks like some thunderstorms will be going through.  That said I am planning on getting out there if I can.  If I have to bass fish or fish unproductive waters for a few hours its still a win to get out there with my pops and get the lay of the land.  That said a few walleye in the cooler would be nice.  I will let everyone know how I do out there.  Thanks again!

[Stillwater]

Here's a link to the noaa marine forecast.  Shows the details by day for Dunkirk to Buffalo...

https://marine.weather.gov/MapClick.php?zoneid=lez041#.XslgQFMpDqs

Edited July 1, 2025 by Stillwater
clarity

[Pequod1]

Another easy three person limit today out of Buffalo. Harnesses and spoons fished around 40’ deep worked for us. I also heard of limit catches out of the Cat from 60-70’

if your planning a trip to Erie, now is the time to go.

[Gator]

But by the time anyone actually makes it out, they will should have been there yesterday lol. Good luck guys! And thanks for the ride, Jim. I had eighteen walleye on my grocery list, and you delivered!

[13owhunter]

We fished 35-55fow out of the small boat harbor and killed them.  Lots of doubles and  a triple.  Mostly harnesses with a few on worm burners off slide divers.  Had a hard time keeping 4 rods in the water. Lots of sheepshead when we fished shallower.   Tomorrow should be a great day for a fish fry!  Had a blast out there!

[ifishy]

Hoping a get a chance next weekend again speaks to the trouble I have had salmon fishing the last couple years in the past during derby days you couldn't pry me away from ontario nice to see a reports thread with some basic info on it there is a lot of water so a starting point is nice

[Pete Collin]

Hello All,

This post is a week after the fact, but involves a good, successful trip.  My buddy Steve has a new boat.  Medical stuff has kept him from taking it out.  But encouraging reports and good weather made us jump on an opportunity.  Steve lives much closer to the small boat harbor than I do.  So the day before he drove down there to scope it out (neither of us have seen it since it was redone).  Windy that day, so few boats.  But Steve met one crew that are from the same town as him.  They had a 3 man limit.  Being good at chatting up guys is useful.  The crew gave Steve the whole rundown - 2 oz sinker on 3 way connection, worm harness, drifting with the wind.  They even told him which buoy to look for, and where to be in relation to it.  They said, "You want 39 feet depth.  Not 40, not 38."  Good to have a game plan, because neither of us have much walleye experience.

The launch was predictably very busy, because the forecast was for perfect boating conditions.  I have never been to such a bustling harbor.  A little bit stressful getting launched, but I could appreciate the good layout of the ramps.  Everyone seemed to get in and out efficiently, even with the few folks who were awkward or clueless getting themselves going.

Once we were in 39 FOW, the search began for the buoy.  Turns out there are more than one, so which had the "money" drift?  The graph showed all kinds of marks, so we thought we'd try where we were and see what happens.  It was so calm that we didn't really drift.  So the new, modern graph clearly showed our rigs sinking and bouncing along the bottom.  It also showed the fish NOT responding to them.  Switched to a blade bait, same deal.  We decided to put out the electric motor, set it to 1.5 mph.  I showed Steve how you don't have to use the Minn Kota controller to steer, just let the main motor act as a rudder so you can steer offf the wheel.  Before long we started catching walleye - but mostly shorts.  Figuring that we weren't in the right spot, we went looking for another buoy.  A little ways ahead we found another that was taller, more prominent.  That must have been the right one.  We saw guys around us (and there were boats EVERYWHERE) catching fish.  So we once again put out the electric motor and started fishing.  Rods held in hand because Steve hadn't yet bought rod holders.  I got a nice strike and a strong fight, and eventually netted a sheepshead.  For the next hour that's what we got, big, hard fighting sheepshead.  Steve used a different S-word to name them.  So when our troll took us out of the depth we were told, we cut the wheel and headed for the correct contour.  The "aha" moment came when we marked a tight pile of fish and immediately hung a double - both walleye, good 2 and 3 pounders just right for the table.  Action picked right up and we weren't bothered by tête-de-merdes anymore.  From there it was just a matter of circling around this rather small area, with the help of the GPS, hooking up with each pass.  I played with the speed when there was a lull, which often triggered a strike.  By noon, the last fish was netted that filled our limits.  Best day of walleye fishing I ever had, officially.  If Steve had rod holders, we would have had faster action.  But it was fun feeling each strike, and doing it with only 2 rods let us savor the morning.  It was strange feeling excited when a strike WASN'T followed by a strong fight, because that meant we got the species we were after.  No real big ones, but I just wanted fillets and I would have let go any too big to make good eaters.  I found out later that the guys out deep were targetting suspenders that were likely to be trophy sized.  But that was too close to the Canadian border for comfort.  

Back at the marina, I loved the cleaning station that's available, with the head and gut chute in the middle.  I know how to fillet, but don't keep enough fish to be an expert.  But I suck at sharpening ANYTHING, and the best filleters in the world can't do a good job with a dull knife.  I gave up on taking the delectable cheek meat, resolve to try again next time.  But it was nice spending a fair-weathered day out with the view of the Buffalo skyline behind us.  I'm not used to having much interesting scenery on the Great Lakes!

Edited July 5, 2025 by Pete Collin