SEASON GREETINGS 12/25

Just finished our Christmas dinner and opening our gifts and thought I should take the time to wish all of my followers a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. I hope Santa Clause left everyone the fishing gear you need for the upcoming season. I asked my wife to keep our bed a little warmer this coming year so my first gift this morning was  a heated mattress cover, go figure. Woody Hayes our yellow lab enjoyed opening his gifts more than our grandchildren but that wasn't a surprise. We are under a snow and blizzard warning until Thursday morning not good for my attitude. Sure makes a launch date seem a long time away. Anyway Merry Christmas to all and thanks for following my website this year and in the future.

HOLIDAY SPECIAL 12/17

Courtesy of OGF walleyes continue to be caught north west of Green Island between Green and Rattlesnake Island. Trolling with Reef Runners and Husky Jerks anywhere from 60 to 90 feet back and speeds of 1.0 to 1.2 mph. I thought this year I would run a HOLIDAY SPECIAL from now until January 31 on all NEW bookings with a 100.00 dollar discount on all full day charters. If interested contact BudMan Charters at 419-602-4486. This is a good opportunity to purchase a holiday gift certificate for that special person and to reserve a date for the hot early spring fishing.

FIRST MATE SEARCH 12/11

I am currently in search of another first Mate for the 2013 fishing season. If anyone is interested in spending time fishing as a first mate next year I will provide the necessary training if needed. This is a good opportunity for anyone who needs the hours to get their captain licenses. Please contact me at 419-602-4486 to obtain additional information.  Thank you.................. Captain Ron Gribble.

CAPTAINS REPORT 12/11

F can continues to produce nice walleyes four ten pounders caught last Saturday trolling on a south to north direction. Reef runners and Husky Jerks all produced fish with leads varying 45 to 65 back. Best speed 1.2 knots or slower. Only 80 days until the first of March...........its gonna be a long winter.

CAPTAINS REPORT 12/5

Hearing a lot of good fishing reports of walleyes being caught south west of F can, west of Green Island  and north west of Kelleys Island. Again the program is Husky Jerks and Reef Runners trolled anywhere from .75 to 1.4 mph and leads of 40 to 70 feet back. No weights or divers. It is hard to believe this is December with 60 degree weather a couple of days ago. These areas are producing some big fish with the largest at 15 lbs north of Kelleys. Only 85 days until the 1st of March.

CAPTAINS REPORT 12/1

Nothing really to report for this weeks fishing. Daytime walleye fishing continues to be fair around Green, Rattlesnake and west of Kelleys Island. Huskey Jerks and Reef Runner are the choice of trollers. Pier and night trolling has been spotty but some Hawgs are being caught. Let me know if anyone has a good day and forward pictures and I will post on the website. Only 89 days until March 1st...........just sayin!!!

CAPTAINS REPORT 11/28

Just finished reviewing the OGF website and came across some information that a few of you might be interested. If you get bored this winter and miss getting on the water ice fishing may fill the void. Fin Feather & Fur Outfitters in Ashland are having an up coming seminar on Ice Fishing here is the information:

Here are the seminar times for the ice fishing weekend at the Fin Feather Fur Outfitters in Ashland, Ohio The show opens at 9am. There will be plenty of knowledgeable staff there to help you. Seminar Times Saturday December 8th at 11:00am-12:00pm Jeff Jump "Lake Erie Ice Fishing Walleye Guide" Saturday December 8th at 1:00pm- 2:00pm Ryan Kerns "Bluegill Ice-fishing Techniques" Sunday December 9th at 1:00pm-2:00pm Doug Stewart "Inland Ice Fishing Techniques for Saugeye's" Sunday December 9th at 3:00pm-4pm Joel Prince "Using your electronics to catch more fish through the ice"

HAPPY THANKSGIVING 11/22

On this day when we all stop to reflect on everything we have to be thankful for I stop and thank God for us having the greatest resource in the country in our backyard, LAKE ERIE. It is by far the best fish nursery in the world and I pray that it will not be lost through governmental bureaucracy. I would like to also thank everyone who followed my website this year and to wish you and your family a blessed and happy Thanksgiving.

CAPTAINS REPORT 11/20

Fishing reports continue to be good anywhere west of the fairy lane between Catawba and Kelleys Isand. West of Green Isand, west of CIC buoy, A and B cans all reporting nice walleyes being caught on both Husky Jerks and Reef Runners any where from 25 to 70 feet back trolling 1.0 knots to 1.5 knots. Best Reef Runners were Bare Naked Purple and Barbie. Now is the time to get those big Hawgs and the weather looks good until Friday and Saturday so enjoy it the rest of the week. Lots of boats every night at the Huron boat ramp for the night bite in shallow water.

CAPTAINS REPORT 11/15

Saturdays trip was cancelled and rebooked for next spring due to uncooperative walleyes on 11/08 and 11/09. However, had a group who really wanted to fish Sunday afternoon so I relocated the boat Sunday to Anchors Away Marina after hearing a good  bite west of Green Island. Fished west of Green Sunday starting around 12:00 pm pulling only 6 nice fish. Had a difficult time running at the speed the fish wanted 1.2 to 1.3 knots running with the wind. Pulled reef runners and husky jerks color really didn't matter but the speed was critical. Best leads were 80 to 90 feet with no weight. This was a birthday trip for two brothers 8 and 10 years of age. Both caught three fish for their first walleyes. All had a good day with the nice weather. On 11/14 I took the boat to Craft Marine in Sandusky and hauled the BudMan out of the water until next March. Hope we have a good warm spring like last year. Will continue reports as information comes available from other fisherman. Good reports on the night bite from Vermilion to Huron so for those still looking for a big HAWG..............JUST SAYIN.

STEAK AND LUBE VERMILION 11/08

Here are two pictures taken Tuesday morning during the super storm Sandy showing my boat docked at the Vermilion Steak and Lube Restaurant. Notice the water levels just inches from going over the dock wall. Scary! We did survive the storm with no damage. Just got the first satellite images of the lake and it appears that some parts of the lake can be fished. Heard today that fish are being caught around the Vermilion dump and that the marks are very good in this area. The weekend is calling for weather in the 60's and I have a charter Saturday. Should be a excellent weekend for fishing. Will let everyone know how things turn out. See you on the water!

SUPER STORM VERMILION BREAK WALL 10/30

This shows the the Vermilion break wall yesterday morning around 9:00 am. Can't really see the waves going over the wall that well but it was really something to witness. The winds were sustained at 44 knots making it difficult to take the picture. When the waves hit the wall it was like an explosion shooting up 30 feet or more really awesome to see. The Vermilion River was almost over the dock wall and my swim platform was above the wall at my dock.  Many large logs floating down the river even saw a deer that apparently drowned crossing the river up stream. This was one super storm. I decided to keep the boat in until at least the 15th of November. Hope to get to fish in about a week. The walleyes were about six miles out and some good catches were made last Friday with several captains with limits by midday. See you on the water maybe!

CAPTAINS REPORT 10/26

The perch bite continues from Avon, Lorain, Vermilion and Huron with fish ranging to 14 inchers.  Perch caught out of Vermilion 3 to 8 miles out has been excellent. Just look for the pack of boats and you can't go wrong. Many fisherman are reporting good catches with no marks on the fish finder screens apparently the fish are hugging the bottom.  I set my Raytheon screen in the bottom zoom mode and a setting of 4x to get the best look at the bottom as possible. Walleyes continue to be caught around the Huron dump using crank baits but the numbers are still down compared to previous years. The water temperature is still running in the 57 degree area and as it cools more the walleye fishing should improve hopefully after this storm goes through next Tuesday. Pulling the boat around the 15th of November depending on the weather. See you on the water!

PERCH AGAIN 10/25

What a beautiful day sunny and little wind and the fish responded. Saw many more walleye marks today and from what I heard on the radio walleyes were being caught all over the lake. We fished on the 21 line north to 42 feet of water 150 perch for 57 lbs. 2.6 fish per lb. Lots of jumbo perch largest 14 inches. If you want to get on the water better get out today or tomorrow morning Saturday, Sunday and Monday looks bad with 6 to 8 footers all three days and a long awaited northeast wind.  See you on the water!

JUMBO PERCH VERMILION BREAKWALL 10/21

Awesome day perch fishing north east of the Vermilion break wall with a total of 50 lbs of perch or 2.8 per lb. really a great day. I attended the weigh in for the Walleye Central  Bragging Rights Tournament on Saturday after watching the Buckeyes almost lose their first game of the year. Listed below are the tournament results as listed in OGF sounded like a real rough day with the winning  weight of 32.12 lbs. Most fishermen are reporting the late evening bite produces more fish but totals continue to run 10 fish or less. Keep checking my website for notice when the large walleyes schools return to our area. I am keeping a list of customer who want to be called with the fish start their usual fall bite, give me a call and add your name. See you on the water!

BOAT # Team or Boat Name # FISH Big Fish WT TOTAL WT 1 19 GET BIT Cavin Cameron Kevin 4 8.89 32.12 2 7 RICK'S RAFT Rick Villhauer 4 7.48 27.84 3 8 PMS EXPRESS - Deb Levitan 4 6.76 23.51 4 26 Joe Stelzer 3 7.30 19.22 5 17 FISH WARS 3 6.64 17.06 6 21 LADY BRIDGE - Rick McGuckin 3 4.87 11.44 7 22 IN THE NET Jerry 3 4.83 10.01 8 3 Bugsy's Bait 2 4.69 9.23 9 5 Eric Haroldson 1 8.57 8.57 10 12 Darrell Wood 1 4.99 4.99 11 6 Jason Pelz 1 4.74 4.74

CAPTAIN'S FISHING REPORT 10/19

Perch fishing continues to be awesome with many jumbo perch being caught from Avon to the Islands. The most productive water is 38 to 50 feet from Vermilion to Huron. Night fishing is picking up on the Huron Pier and casting crank baits are the method of choice. Trolling in the day has been slow but early morning and evening pulling Reef Runners north west of the Huron Dump. Some nice fish were caught this past week 7 to 11 pounders just not the normal amount for this time of year. Also as a reminder this weekend is the 14th annual Walleye Central Bragging Rights Tournaments. Below is information taken from the Walleye Central Website regarding the tournament written by Steve Carlson. This should provide everything you need to know if interested. See you on the water.  

WALLEYE CENTRAL GET TOGETHER DETAILS We are going back to where it all started in HURON, OH - with the Huron Boat Basin serving as the hub for the festivities. Here is a link to a new website with info on local facilities / lodging / boat ramps, fuel, tackle, etc. www.fishhuronohio.com Fish Huron Ohio is a group formed earlier this year by local city / township / chamber of commerce and business people in Huron, Ohio with the goal of promoting Huron, Ohio as a Fishing Destination. A huge thanks to Doug Steinwart at the Huron Boat Basin 419-433-4848 - www.huronparks.org/boatbasin.htm - also has some helpful information on local facilities. Call Doug if you want to reserve a dock at the Boat Basin - there should be some docks open. Another big supporter is Matt Solberg from Huron Lagoon's Marina (HLM). HLM will also have transient dockage avaialble during the fall fishing season. Call 419 433 3200. HLM also has a fuel dock. For places to stay - The River's Edge Motel is located right on the water just North of the Huron Boat Basin 419 433-8000. This will be real convenient for those that want to enjoy the fun at I5's Bar & Grill located where the old "JP's Down Under" was located at the Boat Basin. For those that remember the old JP's - you won't believe it is the same place when you walk in the door. I5's is a lot of fun with good food & drinks and a friendly staff that are looking forward to welcoming Walleye Central back to Huron. There will be food & drink specials starting Wednesday and running through Sunday. The Brass Pelican is also offering food and drink specials though the week so be sure to visit them also. The Charity Dinner and Raffle will take place at Mesenburg's Plaza Place which is about 1 mile to the West of the Huron Boat Basin at 545 Cleveland Road West. DO NOT BRING YOUR BOAT to Mesenburgs for the Charity Dinner. There won't be enough parking if people bring their boats. MENU from Mesenburgs: Wood Roasted Pork w Sausage Stuffing, Scalloped Potatoes, Corn, Pasta Salad, Garden Salad, Rolls & Cookies. Full Cash Bar Walski's Ramp between the Route 6 and train bridge is available as well as a ramp at Holiday Harbor Marina which is just South of town on Main Street / Route 13. Just to the East of Huron is Cranberry Creek Marina for an additional boat ramp for boats smaller than around 21 feet. Woody at the tackle shop can also set you up with the right tackle and fishing report info. 419 433 3932 is the number there. The "Braggin Rights" tournament will take place on Saturday Oct 20 of course weather permitting - (we are overdue for some good weather!) with the weigh-in to take place at the Huron Boat Basin. BRAGGIN RIGHTS TOURNAMENT DETAILS - THERE ARE SOME CHANGES TO PAST EVENTS LISTED HERE: There is NO ENTRY FEE but we do need people to SIGN UP their team during the Charity Dinner & Raffle. We will take signups on Saturday morning at the Huron Boat Basin for those that can't make the Friday night dinner. There is no official "blast off" in the morning. You an take off from any ramp / harbor. Lines can go in the water at 8AM - honor system. If you need to sign up in the morning at the Boat Basin we will have someone there to take late signups from 7:30 AM until 8:30AM. The only money involved is the OPTIONAL BIG FISH POT which will be $20 per team with 100% payback. Your team must be registered and paid CASH ONLY for the Big Fish contest by 8:30 AM on Saturday. THERE WILL BE ONLY ONE TEAM PER BOAT ALLOWED. YOU CAN HAVE AS MANY PEOPLE ON A TEAM AS YOU WANT BUT EACH TEAM IS LIMITED TO A MAXIMUM OF 8 RODS IN THE WATER. We know that some people are coming from a long distance away and not everyone will be bringing their boat. This will allow more people to get together in the boats and help everyone save on costs. We will have a signup for people at the dinner / raffle that "need a ride" - or better yet we can start a thread to allow people to arrange for fishing partners. A big part of the fun of past Get Togethers has been fishing with different people. Anyone that wants to come to the Get Together whether you own a boat or not is encouraged to attend. You will get to fish with someone if you are polite and make it known you need a ride. Just be prepared to share expenses if you need a ride. Limiting it to one team per boat and a maximum of 8 rods per team gives more people a chance to do well. You won't have to compete with a local charter or private boat that is running 14, 16, 18 rods. We know there will be some teams that will only have 2 or 3 people and you will be limited to the Ohio state law of 2 rods per person. If you want to get a 3rd or 4th person to get 8 rods invite someone to go with you. If someone does have a charter booked and wants to fish the Braggin Rights / Big Fish Contest that is fine, but no more than 8 rods in the water. LET'S KEEP THIS FUN - HONOR SYSTEM - EVERYONE HAVE A GOOD TIME... Rules are simple - staying within the rod limits covered above, the rules are the State of Ohio fishing laws and "boundaries" are the Ohio Waters of Lake Erie. OPEN COMMUNICATION IS ALLOWED AND ENCOURAGED - REMEMBER WE WANT EVERYONE TO CATCH FISH AND IT IS ALWAYS FUN TO HEAR WHO HAS SOME "BIG ONES" THROUGHOUT THE DAY. You must be at the weigh-in site by 4PM. Weigh-in site is the Huron Boat Basin Amphitheater Stage. If you have your boat ramped / docked on the Huron River - PLEASE COME TO THE BOAT BASIN BY WATER TO WEIGH YOUR FISH. There will be plenty of room to tie up along the river wall and also there will be some open docks to come in to and grab a basket and take your fish to the stage. Each team will weigh 4 FISH. Plan to take your fish with you after weighing them. There will be fish cleaning tables available at the Boat Basin during the Get Together. IF you are docked / ramping from a location other than on the Huron River you MAY bring your fish to the weigh-in site by car in a cooler but we encourage you to come by water if possible. However you choose to get to the weigh-in site, you MUST BE THERE BY 4PM to weigh your fish. If the parking lot at the Boat Basin fills up, the parking lot at The River's Edge is adjacent to the Boat Basin and should have some room. This year's charity donation will go to St. Jude's Children's Hospital. ANY AND ALL DONATIONS TO THE CHARITY RAFFLE ARE APPRECIATED AND ENCOURAGED. We've also had some generous cash sponsors from the Huron community through the Fish Huron Ohio group that have helped offset part of the cost of the dinner and hall rental, and will have volunteers to assist at the dinner / raffle and during the weigh-in. As always there will be a donation jar at the entrance to the charity dinner and your contributions go directly to the charity once all expenses are paid for. There has never been a "charge" to attend the Get Together Dinner. Just a meal donation jar. As you make your donations please keep in mind that our COST to put this dinner on averages about $10 per person. For anyone arriving in town earlier next week, please try to patronize the businesses listed above and let them know you are in town for the Walleye Central Get Together fishing event. SEE EVERYONE SOON!

HURON DUMP 10/13

Fished Saturday in the first IBEW Local 246 Tournament held out of Vermilion. Team Budman won the tournament after catching both perch and some real nice walleyes. We fished two miles northeast of the Vermilion break wall for the perch and managed 115 pounds of perch for three boats. We ran west of the Huron dump 28.5-30/30-31 lines and fished for three hours. Our team caught the most walleye with four ( 2@26, 27 and 28) all while trolling in a westerly direction. No pull downs running west to east. Good number of marks with most of the fish 36 to 38 feet. We pulled three fish on Reef Runners with two once inline weights back 100, 170 and 190 and one fish on a high diver 85 back (RR Ripsteak).
The largest tournament fish was 29 3/4 inches caught on a Reef Runner with a two once weight 190 back. There are more walleye marks in the Huron area than Vermilion but this should change soon. If anyone wants to share your walleye success with other walleye fisherman  just enter your information here in the post comment window below. Sure hope we get some relief from the wind it has been a very slow September and October. See you on the water!

FISH HURON OHIO WALLEYE CHALLENGE 10/7

I attended the weight in for the Fish Huron Ohio Walleye Challenge yesterday and the tournament was once again a big success. A total of 169 fish were caught for a total weight of 961.16 lbs. Congratulations to the  winners, Scott Geitgey, Jason Kopf and Jay Gullett with a total of 42.85 lbs.  A big thanks to the Fish Huron Ohio (FHO) board members, South Shore, Steve Carlson and the Huron businesses and organizaions that sponsored the tournament. Anyone wanting to get additional information on the tournament or view pictures can visit fishhuronohio.com. See you on the water!

VERMILION PERCH 10/5

Perch fishing continues to be awesome in the Vermilion area. 120 perch in 2 1/2 hours for a total of 36 lbs. including two at fourteen inches. Short run only 1 1/2 miles off of the break wall 38 feet of water. This area has produced fish all week with many boats limiting out every day. All of the charter captains are still waiting for the walleyes to appear in Vermilion, walleye fishing should start any day. See you on the water.

HURON WALLEYE CHALLENGE 10/3

The fall Huron Walleye Challenge will be held this Saturday October 6 with a large field of 80 boats.  Just wanted to wish all participants good look in this years tournament. Anyone interested in watching the weight-in it starts at 3:15pm at the boat basin. This will be an interesting tournament since the walleyes have not been cooperating during the month of September. Fishing has been slow and everyone was anticipating the arrival of the large schools from the east. While pre-fishing this week many fisherman were reporting good marks but the fish have not been active. We'll see whats in store for the weekend. Once again good luck to all. See you on the water!

CAPTAINS REPORT VERMILION 9/29

Most of the captains docked in Vermilion are perch fishing and have been the last two weeks. Fishing has been good but not always fast. Good reports coming from 1 1/2 miles off the break wall to 10 miles straight out. The walleye bite has stopped in Geneva which means the big school that was there is moving west.  I would suspect this coming week from Lorain to Vermilion should begin the fall walleye fishing. If you interested in big fish now is the time to get out. I would suggest reef runners with one or two ounces of weight or nightcrawler harnesses on Tru-Trip divers.  Also don't forget to check the top of the water column 12 feet and up. I will be fishing next week so watch for my updates. See you on the water!

BAD BOY TACKLE BIG EYE CHALLENGE 9/15

First and only tournament I could fish this year. Unable to pre-fish for the tournament due to 8 to 9 foot waves on the lake Friday. It was slow all day and the weights were really low. 17 teams didn't weigh in fish which shows how the day progressed. We did finish in fourth place with only three fish and a total of 18.94 lbs. Pulled 40 Tru-Trips with worm harnesses 120 to 130 back. The high winds on Friday scattered the fish and they just would not cooperate. We all enjoyed the tournament and hats off to the staff of Bad Boy Tackle for making this a great event. We also want to thank Dan Heyne of Tru-Trip Divers for sponsoring us in the tournament as well as a tournament sponsor. Two of the top four places fished the weather buoy area. Did hear some good perch catches in 38 feet of water straight out from the Vermilion break wall. See you on the water. The attached photo might explain why we only had three fish!! Just Sayin.

VERMILION WEATHER BUOY 9/7

Half day charter only fished 2 1/2 hours but caught some real nice fish. Caught 15 nice walleye running east to west with the best speed at 2.0 knots. Pulled 40 Tru-Trips with crank baits back 110 feet. We had to cut the trip short due to customers having to get to the airport on time. But still great fishing for a short trip. The Big Eye Challenge was cancelled for Saturday and rescheduled for Saturday the 15th. See you on the water.

VERMILION WEATHER BUOY 9/6

The Budman is finally docked on the concrete wall at Steak and Lube in Vermilion. We pre-fished Thursday for the Big Eye Challenge and what at great day with 24 tournament size fish total weight 135 lbs. Ran crank baits on two once weights back 120 feet. Brown perch was the hot reef runner. Marked numerous bait fish and perch in the area. Also heard good reports of walleye being caught on the 27/27 line but fish were smaller. Fishing reports are harder to come by close to tournament time. See you on the water.

WEST OF RATTLE SNAKE ISLAND 8/28

Still fishing west off Rattle Snake Island three miles west and from the 40 to 43 lines. Had a two boat trip both 1/2 day charters. Slow bite with a total of 24 fish between the two boats. Ran Scorpion spoon on both depseys and board rods. Fish ran from 15 1/2 to 23 inches. Well it's almost time to move to Vermilion and the Budman will be docked on the wall at the Steak and Lube restaurant. Any one interested in some excellent fall fishing give me a call or stop by and just say hello. Also anyone interested in fishing the 2012 Huron Walleye Challenge registration started today. This is a great tournament with a field of 85 boats and a total pay out of 16,000 dollars. More information can be found at www.fishhuronohio.com. See you on the water!

WEST OF RATTLE SNAKE ISLAND 8/25

Fished the same area as yesterday with even more boats in the area. Caught 9 quick walleyes and fished the rest of the day to manage 29 fish that ranged from 16 to 25 inches. Better grade of fish today. Same program as yesterday 40 Tru-Trips and spoons. Best speed was 2.0 to 2.3 knots and trolling east to west pulled most of the fish. Many shorts were caught the last two days  so maybe last years hatch was better than reported. Again perch fishing was excellent in this area and we marked many perch. See you on the water.

WEST OF RATTLE SNAKE ISLAND 8/24

Fished 3 miles west of Rattle Snake Island and managed 27 walleyes by 10:30 am. Pulled 8 planar board rods and 4 depsey rods. The board rods were all spoons with 40 to 45 foot leads on 40 Tru-Trips. The depsey rods were all spoons and were set at 41 feet on a middle diver and 51 feet on a high diver. The fish ranged from 15 to 24 inches. Most of the fish were caught trolling south to north at 1.9 to 2.0 knots. Many boats in the area made in hard to get back on fish but it was an excellent bite. Marked many perch and there were many perch boats in the area. Big perch were reported to have been caught. See you on the water!

LAKE ERIE FAIRPORT HARBOR 8/21 AND 8/22

Fished two days for perch with my good friend Captain Marv DeGreen with Evil Eye Charters. Great two days of perch fishing. Both days we managed all of our perch from 1 1/2 to 2 hours with boxes of 150/180. Both boxes averaged two perch per lb. Nice jumbos.

POINT BREEZE LAKE ONTARIO 8/19 AND 8/20

Fished Lake Ontario for the first time with my good friends Dan Heyne of Tru-Trip Divers and Keith Unkefer of Pooh Bear Charters. What a great time salmon fishing. First day we only managed to boat 4 fish with the largest being 12 lbs. The second day was better but still no large fish but we boated 13 fish with the biggest at 19 lbs. Would recommend anyone thinking of fishing for salmon to make a trip to Lake Ontario. Its only a 5 1/2 hour drive but well worth it. We fished with Erie Drifter out of Port Clinton but there are  many good captains who book trips. Anyone interested in booking a trip for salmon fishing give me a call. See you on the water!

WAGON WHEEL WEST OF PELEE ISLAND 8/4

Another great day with 42 walleyes west of Pelee Island while running scorpion spoon all day with blood red 40 Tru-Trips. Fished a break line between 29 and 32 feet of water running 40 foot leads in the morning and later 55 to 60 feet. A north to south direction with a speed of 1.8 knots pulled most of the fish. Numerous white bass and maybe six throw backs. Won't be long and I will be moving to Vermilion on the wall at Steak and Lube. See you on the water!

EAST OF WEST SISTER 8/3

Fished east of West Sisters on a combo trip for walleye and perch. Excellent bite with 37 walleyes by 11:45 all on scorpion spoon running 40 and 45 leads on 40 Tru-Trips. Most of the fish came on a north and south troll running at 1.8 to 2.0 knots. Fish ran from 15 to 25 inches. Switch to perch and struggled after running to four different spots. Finished with 91 perch with only one jumbo for the day. Still hearing good reports east of the weather buoy clear to the 18 line. Pretty good day considering the 95 degree temperatures. See you on the water!

VERMILION WEATHER BUOY 7/29

Returned to the weather buoy for the third consecutive day along with my casting friends Deb, Vern, Dave and Dane Schisler. I thought after a couple days of excellent fishing, casting this area could produce some nice fish. I sure missed this call and we only managed 8 walleyes after the wind took a break making drifting difficult.  Got lost of sheep head with one individual I won't mention by name seem to catch all fish ohio sheep head. HER sheep head reputation continues. Even with all the sheep head she did catch the second largest walleye of the day.  Great job! See you on the water!

VERMILION WEATHER BUOY 7/28

Returned to the weather buoy again with Dan Doyle and experienced the second straight day of excellent fishing. Managed 37 wallyes with a box of 130 lbs. Our program was the same as the 6/27 post. The difference in the trip was the weather with five and six footers. Everyone over came sea sickness and managed to catch their fish. Great job! It sure was a long ride back to Anchors Away Marina. See you on the water!

VERMILION WEATHER BUOY 7/27

After fishing Gull Shoal last Tuesday and only pulling 10 walleyes moved Friday to east of the Vermilion weather buoy and fished with Dan Dolye and friends. Pulled 36 walleyes  that weighed over 125 lbs. with the largest fish at 30 inches. Excellent day! Spoons pulled white bass and peach so a switch was made to all harnesses.  Green/orange and green/red beads with orange and green tapped willow leaf blades produced the most fish. Ran a north south direction with speeds of 1.7 to 1.9 knots. Used 40 Tru-Trips with leads of 80, 90 and 100 feet. Lost of bait fish in the area and marked lost of perch. Fish are usually in this area every year at this time but the down size is the cost to run this area. See you on the water!

NORTH BASS NORTHWEST OF THE KIDNEY 6/22

37 Walleyes caught north west of North Bass while fishing along the Canadian Line. Moved west this trip after the blow on Friday made everything east of the Island muddy. Switched to all Scorpion Spoons and finished by 1:30. Worked a small school the entire time running west to east. 1.8 to 2.0 knots into the waves and 2.0 knots with the  waves. Pooh bear purple, cat/dog and blue berry muffin were the most productive spoons. The largest fish was 25 1/2 inches.  I will be switching to all metal for now. See you on the water!

EAST OF KELLEYS 6/19

12 walleyes with a two man trip by 11:30 fishing the east side of Kelleys Island. Fished with both harnesses and Reef Runners with all but one fish taken on the Reef Runners. Pink Lemonade and a orange bare naked with yellow dots. Best speed was 2.0 knots. See you on the water.

GULL SHOAL 6/18

Slow day limited out with 18 walleyes all on harnesses trolling on the west corner of Gull Shoal. Concentrated on two very small pockets of fish but finally managed to get all of them. Tolled east to west early morning and later in the day north to south again the best speed was 1.8 to 1.9 knots.

DOWNTIME

Fished last Tuesday and pulled by planar board mast from my top after installing new motors. Not sure what the root cause of the problem but suspect reels are too big so I am installing smaller reels to reduce the torgue. The fishing remains good around Middle Island, east of Middle Island along the Canadian line and Kelley Shoal. Should be back in the water Tuesday 7/17. Anyone looking for larger fish should concentrate around the north end of the sand bar all the way to Lorain. Good Perch reports have have been received from the north west corner of Pelee Isand, south of G can, south of Middle Island and east of Kelleys Island airport strip. See you on the water!

NORTHWEST CORNER MIDDLE ISLAND 7/10

First trip after spending the week of the fourth at PIB. Managed 36 walleyes just northwest of Middle Island in Canada. Lots of drifters which made it hard to really get to the fish. Fished around the perimeter of the pack and once it thinned out started trolling further east until we caught our limit. A west to east troll was the best direction with a east speed of 1.7 knots and a west speed of 2.0 knots. 33 of the fish were caught on harnesses with willow leafs 60 to 65 feet back on 40 Tru-Trips. 3 fish were caught on high divers pulling Pooh Bear Purple Michigan Stinger spoons 52 back. All in all it was a great day. See you on the water!

WAGON WHEEL PELEE ISLAND 6/30

Fished today with the Schisler brothers Vern, Dave and Dane and what a great day we had casting. We limited out around 1:30 after getting a late start with 18 walleyes the largest 26 inches.  We were casting  small gold colorado blades with small red beads. Reports received that walleyes are still being caught along the Canadian line east of the weather buoy. Anyone wanting to share there success with fellow anglers just comment on my blog. See you on the water!

PELEE WAGON WHEEL 6/24

Fished just off Pelee Island Saturday and limited out with 36 walleyes by 1:30 pm. Worked a very small pocket running north and south the entire day approximately .7 miles. 40 Tru-Trips and harnesses with willow leaf blades at 1.8 knots. Several other captains also limited out while running harnesses and Scorpion spoons. Nice grade of fish for a total of 134 lbs. 3.7 lb average with the biggest fish at 28 inches. I have heard good reports from the weather buoy to the sandbar. If you find some fish be sure to turn on them and continue to work that area and you will fill your fish box. See you on the water!

GULL SHOAL 6/22

Fished the west side of Gull Shoal since no one wanted to get Canadian licenses. Half day trip and the bite was good for about two hours from 8:30 to 10:30 with 15 walleyes and no big fish but still a decent size. All harnesses on Tru-Trips with 35 and 40 foot leads and a speed of 1.7 knots. Lots of marks at 28 feet but could not pull any of the fish at the deeper depths. Ran some 65 foot leads but the deeper fish would not cooperate. The Canadian bite slowed down today with most captains taking most of the day to get 30 to 36 fish. Running tomorrow to Canada not sure where but maybe east of Middle Island and going North. The walleye bite along the weather buoy has also slowed down with lost of white bass the last couple of days. It seems that the 90 degree temperatures has really slowed the walleye action. See you on the water.

WEST OF PELEE ISLAND 6/17

Fished the west side of Pelee Island again today. 19 walleyes by 9:30 with the same program as the last two trips. 40 Tru-Trips have really pulled these fish with short leads on harnesses. Best speed today was 1.9 to 2.1 knots faster than the last couple of trips. See you on the water!

CANADA SOUTHWEST OF PELEE 6/16

Awesome morning bite southwest of Pelee 32 walleyes by 10:15 am. Pulled 40 Tru-Trips and harnesses 35 and 55 leads while running 1.5 knots south and 1.8 knots north. Nice grade of fish but no hawgs. Largest fish 27 1/2 inches. It's been several years since fishing in Canada and I have really enjoyed this past week. See you on the water.

MIDDLE ISLAND CANADIAN LINE

Fished allow the canadian line northwest of Middle Island good bite this morning finished by noon with 38 walleye total weight 134 lbs. Ran harnesses color didn't matter. 35 foot leads on 40 Tru-Trips mostly at 1.8 knots. What was really nice little to no boats in the area. See you on the water!

CANADIAN LINE EAST OF MIDDLE ISLAND 6/11

Fished east of Middle Island and managed 25 walleyes while running harnesses at 1.8 knots. Best color was orange and purple beads with gold willow leaf blades. Very slow bite but a good grade of fish. Good reports received on trips to Canada west of Pelee Island with limits by noon. See you on the water!

GULL SHOAL 6/9

Fished north end of Gull Shoal and limited out with 30 walleyes. Ran harnesses on 40 Tru-Trips with all 35 leads, approximately 17.5 feet down the water column. Best color harness was purple/orange beads with gold willow leaf blades with orange tape. Ran mostly at 1.8 knots. This trip makes 4 days in a row and is enough for this captain, need a day to rest but fishing again Monday. See you on the water!

MIDDLE ISLAND 6/8

Caught 33 walleyes fishing south of Middle Island running east to west pulling all harnesses back 35 on 40 Tru-Trips. All harnesses caught fish but orange/yellow beads, orange/green beads with gold willow leaf blades were the best colors. Best speed was 1.7 to 1.8 knots. The largest two fish were 31 and 30 inches. If you haven't tried willow leaf blades when trolling I think you be surprised at the results. See you on the water!

TACO BELL AND MIDDLE ISLAND 6/7

Started in the Taco Bell area with good marks and pulled 9 walleyes the first two hours pulling harnesses and Scorpion spoons on 40 Tru-Trips back 30 to 35 feet. Both programs worked but the fish shut down and when there were too many boats to troll properly so a move was made to Middle Island. Caught an additional 15 fish with most caught on harnesses back 35 feet. Best colors were orange and yellow beads with gold willow leaf blades taped with corresponding green or chartreuse tape. Concentrated on small pockets of fish, no long trolls. Best trolling speed still between 1.8 to 2.0 knots. If you find and catch a few fish turning back and working that area repeatedly may increase you success rate. See you on the water!

TACO BELL 6/6

First day fishing after the weekend of high winds. Water clarity was good but the fish would not cooperate. Managed only 11 walleyes fishing the top of North Bass to the Canadian line. Ran all Scorpion spoons on 40 Tru-Trips with 35 being the best lead. Large sheep head ruled the day with scattered white bass. Many charter books in the area but most reported very slow day. Things should improve with good weather the rest of the week. See you on the water!

FINALLY NO WIND

After three days of heavy winds the National Weather Service in Cleveland is calling for north winds 5 to 15 knots. Waves 1 to 3 feet. I cancelled trips for Friday, Saturday and Sunday and did some maintenance on the boat, made up leaders, harnesses and started preparing for the next charter. Few Captains fished the last three days but several tried with little results. Things should return to normal in the next couple days. Prior to the winds fish were being caught north side of Rattlesnake, Taco Bell and Middle Island on spoons and harnesses. Also a report some nice walleyes were caught on the Huron Dump drifting purple harnesses on the bottom. Any one having success in other areas and would like to share your information with fellow anglers just send me an email. See you on the water!

TACO BELL 5/27

Limited out with 28 walleyes and finished at 12:00 am. Fished between Taco Bell and North Bass pulling 40 Tru-Trips and Scorpion spoons Pooh Bear purple, Pooh Bear chartreuse and Jager Bomb on 30 and 35 leads. Good marks all morning. Best speed was 1.8 knots. Its was a beautiful morning until the winds picked up in the afternoon. Glad to have finished early. See you on the water!

ODNR FILLET UPDATE

As reported from the ODNR earlier this Month:

COLUMBUS, OH - The Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Division of Wildlife has issued a statewide directive to its enforcement officers to clarify guidelines for enforcing a new rule that specifies the condition of fish fillets being kept or transported.

"Many Ohio anglers have expressed that they were confused about the fillet rule so I asked our Division of Wildlife to clarify the rule so no innocent angler stands a chance of getting in to trouble when they are trying to follow the law," said ODNR Director James Zehringer, .

The rule, Ohio Administrative Code 1501:31-13-08, states that it is unlawful to possess or transport a fish unless the fish is in the round or a complete fillet with skin attached until a person reaches their permanent residence. The confusion surrounding the question of whether the skin had to be kept on the entire fillet or whether a patch of skin to identify the fish species would suffice. Many Lake Erie anglers come to the lake for a few days or a week to sample the world class fishery, and anglers may be bringing home several days' limits of the various species.

After a thorough review, a directive sent today to wildlife officers from Scott Zody, chief of the Division of Wildlife, specified that the rule should be interpreted to mean that only a patch of skin, enough to identify the species of the fish is required to be left on the fillet. Changes will be made this fall during the regular rule-making package to further clarify the requirement in code. The rule is designed as a tool to protect the valuable Lake Erie fishing resource and to allow wildlife officers to identify fillets in an angler's possession.

"Our goal was to protect the state's most valuable fishery," said Zody. "It was not our intent to create a hardship for anglers, who bring a tremendous economic benefit to the state."

BETWEEN D AND E CAN 5/26

Fished between D and E cans Saturday and limited out with 24 walleyes. Very slow bite with numerous boats in the area. Ran mostly west to east approximately one mile most of the day. Numerous throw backs 8 to 14 1/2 inches and what can you say about the white bass. Unbelievable!!! Could not keep them off the scorpion spoons. Program consisted of 40 Tru-Trips back 30 to 35 with a speed of 1.6 to 2.0 depending on the wind. All in all it was a good day. See you on the water!

STARVE ISLAND 5/21

Fished north and west side of Starve Island catching 31 walleyes with the same program used the last three weeks. Michigan spoons behind 40 Tru-Trips back 25 in the morning to 35 later in the day. Trolled between 1.6 to 1.8 knots. See you on the water!

SOUTHWEST CORNER OF SOUTH BASS 5/18

Started late and set up at 10:00 am at the southwest corner of south bass. Trolled northwest toward green with excellent marks. Started catching immediately finished the day with 26 walleyes. All fish were caught on 40 Tru-Trips with Michigan spoons back 35 feet. Best speed was 1.8 knots. With the weather beginning to stabilize the walleye fishing has been excellent and will continue provided there are no major fronts. Take advantage of this time of the year before the Canadian Soldiers arrive in June or elevated water temperatures due to higher ambient temperatures.  See you on the water!

NORTH WEST CORNER OF KELLY'S ISLAND 5/17

Fished the northwest corner of Kelley's Island starting in 20 feet of water and headed west to 27 feet of water. Caught 26 walleyes for a total weight of 101 lbs. 40 Tru-Trips with Michigan scorpion spoons on 35 to 45 foot leads. The speed varied from 1.6 to 1.8 knots depending on the our direction. The best spoon colors were Pooh Bear purple, Pooh Bear chartreuse and Jager Bomb. The largest fish was 29 inches followed with two at 27 inches. I have heard larger fish are being caught on the east side of Kelly's Island west of the Airport.

SOUTH OF GREEN ISLAND 5/15

Storm Team Construction returned for a second charter and the walleyes were very cooperative. 37 walleyes were caught running 40 Tru-Trip Divers and Michigan Stinger spoons while running 35 and 40 foot leads at 1.6 knots. Pooh Bear purple, Pooh Bear chartreuse, Helmut and Jager Bomb caught all of the fish. We fished about one mile south of the island.  An east to west troll pulled most of the fish in the morning and north and south direction worked better later in the day running between
Green and South Bass. See you on the water!

NORTHWEST CORNER OF KELLY'S ISLAND 5/14

Fished from Carpenters point to the Northwest corner of Kelly's Island and only managed to catch 6 walleyes. Pulled all harnesses on 40 Tru-Trip Divers with 35 leads taking most of the fish. Best speed was 1.6 knots.  Marks were good but could not get a program started. Moved to American Eagle Shoal and started catching immediately with the combination noted above. Caught another 12 walleyes before the out of town customers had to leave to attend a golf outing.   Ran gold willow leaf blades taped with various colors and matching beads. The largest fish was 29 inches. Many of the captains have switched to Michigan Spoons and are limiting out daily in this area.  Thanks to the Storm Team Construction for a great day on the lake. See you on the water!

AMERICAN EAGLE SHOAL / SATURDAY

Great day 37 walleyes no hawgs but fish ranged from 16 inches to 27 1/2 inches. Majority pulled on harnesses and 40 Tru-Trips pulled 25 to 35 feet back. Speed ranged from 1.6 to 1.8 knots. A majority of  captains pulled Michigan Stingers and pulled their limit in the same area. Our fish came on both colorado blades and willow leaf blades again. Green and yellow beads and pink and purple blades on the willow leafs and gold/bronze colorado blades worked the best. A north south troll pulled more fish than any other direction.  See you on the water!

NIAGARA REEF HAWGS

Fished two miles northeast of the green can on Niagara Reef. Started casting for the first two hours and pulled three fish and dropped two with one nice 27 1/2 inch fish. We switched to trolling with 40 Tru-Trips pulling harnesses on all ten rods with Colorado blades and Willow Leaf blades. Within 3 hours we had 23 walleyes which included 4 fish O's. The new blood red Tru-Trips have produced some nice hawgs this spring. Trolling on a south to north bearing produced most of the fish and running in the trough gave us several triples. Running 40 and 45 foot leads at 1.8 knots worked best. No pattern on blade color all worked well.  See you on the water !

RATTLESNAKE / NIAGRA REEF

Saturday's weather was calling 2 foot waves or less and changed Friday night to 3 to 5 feet so we headed for protection from the strong northeast winds and fished between Middle Bass and North Bass. We started trolling pulling Reef Runners on one side (80 foot leads) and 40 Tru-Trips on the other side (40 foot leads). Trolling west to east produced six fish in about three hours with a speed of 1.6 knots. Only one fish came on a Reef Runner (Copperhead) and the  balance on 40 Tru-Trips with #5 Colorado blades, purple/gold, gold with a red lightning bolt and gold/bronze. Due to the area becoming congested with boats we opted to move to Niagara Reef where we fought  5 footers most of the day. We eventually fished with all 40 Tru-Trips and harnesses. Color didn't matter but 45 foot leads and a speed between 1.6 to 1.8 produced another 11 walleyes so we finished with 17 for the day. See you on the water