No matter the season, Ohio’s Lake Erie & Shores & Islands is a freshwater fishing hot spot where both pro anglers and beginners join in the fishing fun.

Although most known for walleye, perch and smallmouth bass, in certain waters at many times of the year you will also find steelhead trout, white bass, rock bass, largemouth bass, catfish and other species. Below is a list of fishing hot spots during the spring months in the Central and Western Basin of Lake Erie.

Western Basin Fishing Hotspots

Walleye: Maumee River, Sandusky River, Sandusky Bay, Reef Complex, Bass Islands, Kelleys Island, Marblehead

Yellow perch: Catawba, Marblehead, Bass Islands, Kelleys Island

Smallmouth Bass: Bass Islands, Kelleys Island, Catawba, Marblehead, Sandusky Bay, Reef Complex

Central Basin Fishing Hotspots

Walleye: Breakwalls; Huron, Huntington Beach, Lakefront State Park, Fairport Harbor plus Grand River and nearshore areas from Vermilion – Conneaut.

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Yellow perch: Nearshore; Ruggles Reef, Vermilion, Fairport, Perry, Ashtabula, Conneaut; Lorain, Cleveland artificial reefs

Smallmouth Bass: Vermilion, Rocky, Chagrin, Grand rivers and Conneaut Creek; smaller tribs from Cleveland east.
For more information, please visit Ohio Department of Natural Resources – Division of Wildlife.