One of the best spots in Erie and its largely unfished for bass. Mohawk Island offers world class bass fishing where a 4 pounder doesn't even raise an eyebrow. I have fished this area for years and the fish tend to come shallower making it even more fun .I'm sure almost everyone here knows about the 10.15 lb smallie caught last November around Pelee Island so I got to thinking that after looking at the charts the area around Port Maitland looks like it could hold some monsters. Coming out of Kitchener, its a fairly short drive.
Thoughts?
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And the Walleye fishing is deadly there also if you can figure the setup out.One of the best spots in Erie and its largely unfished for bass. Mohawk Island offers world class bass fishing where a 4 pounder doesn't even raise an eyebrow. I have fished this area for years and the fish tend to come shallower making it even more fun .
Wow thanks - so that just out (South East) from Port Maitland, correct? BTW, where is the best boat ramp in the area for a 21' glass bass boat?One of the best spots in Erie and its largely unfished for bass. Mohawk Island offers world class bass fishing where a 4 pounder doesn't even raise an eyebrow. I have fished this area for years and the fish tend to come shallower making it even more fun .
Weedlines in about 12 to 16 feet around Mohawk works well!!! Yes lots of big sheepshead there too and you can sight fish for the big smallies .And the Walleye fishing is deadly there also if you can figure the setup out.
Way better then dragging all that Tuna gear around for small fish.
Walleye and Sheep fight like hell catching them shallow.
I use Mohawk marina . Great launch. You wouldn't have an issue .not sure if it's the closest ramp but works fine . You can't miss the island out there .Wow thanks - so that just out (South East) from Port Maitland, correct? BTW, where is the best boat ramp in the area for a 21' glass bass boat?
Thanks in advance
P
My opinion is that the goby is the best thing that ever happened for smallies, Erie is a world class SM fishery, it's never been better. There is no where for a goby to hide inside the inner bay, so why should we expect smallies to be there outside of the spawn. The water is clearer now than ever which allows the bass to spawn in deeper water. Last friday I was on top of a school on a flat in 30-35 fow.Those with honeyhole locations have gotten pretty secretive and depending on who you talk to, perhaps justifiably so. As a kid, I remember you couldn’t drop a splitshot with a worm over the side of a boat almost anywhere in the bay and not get rewarded with a few decent-sized bass. It seems that sustained pressure on the species for too many years has contributed to declining numbers for a few decades now. I hear the term “over-harvested” used by the few bass tournament fishermen that I have met. The situation seems to have relegated the large numbers of these bass to a few select places that have ideal conditions and can be harder to find or get to and there is almost surely fear that if these places become too well known, the ones in those locations will suffer the same fate. I hate to bring up ” regulation” but if we don’t police ourselves to sustain the resource, someone else will - Enjoyment v.s. Exploitation. Maybe a strict “catch and release” policy is the way to go for a while.
I am not saying it’s purely a sport fishing issue either. The lake biology has had a number of hits in the last 40 years or so too. The introduction of zebra mussels and the bass nest-raiding round goby are 2 things that no doubt contributed to declining stocks. It’s a very complex problem with no easy solution. I don’t blame those who are a bit secretive/protective with that sort of information. I have pretty much quit targeting them myself. Once in a while, before walleye and rainbow switch on, I will go and see if I can topwater fish for some largies (so much fun to fish) but I don’t keep either longer than it takes to take a pic and put them back. Just my $0.02
Ahh the good ol’ days
No worries, I have chartsYou won't see the island till you get out passed the pt. Mohawk and Rock.
Really? Lake Erie was declared a "dead lake" in the 60s due to eutrophication. It was bad enough that Dr. Seuss even called it out in a kids book, and you're saying that in 1973 (50 yrs ago) it was better than it is today?I was talking to a gentlemen at Canadian tire about a year ago who works or volunteers for the long point anglers association. He believes that bass opener should be pushed back a week. Asked about catch and release and he said that was another option. The smallmouth season in the bay has not been great the past two to three years. I have read a book about the Great Lakes and it is kind of sad what has happened over the past 50 years with the lakes. Shipping, and reclaimed land for farming in Ohio have put a hurt on the lake.
great read and info.Really? Lake Erie was declared a "dead lake" in the 60s due to eutrophication. It was bad enough that Dr. Seuss even called it out in a kids book, and you're saying that in 1973 (50 yrs ago) it was better than it is today?
"During the 1960s, Lake Erie was declared a “dead lake” due to eutrophication and pollution. The children’s book, The Lorax, written by Dr. Seuss, actually included the following line referring to fish: “They will walk on their fins and get woefully weary in search of some water that isn’t so smeary. I hear things are just as bad in Lake Erie.” Fortunately, as the conditions in Lake Erie improved, the line was removed from future editions of the book."
They certainly feast on gobies but most do. I have cleaned rainbows browns pike largemouth perch and walleye stuffed full of round gobies . They certainly didn't have the impact that was predicted.My opinion is that the goby is the best thing that ever happened for smallies, Erie is a world class SM fishery, it's never been better. There is no where for a goby to hide inside the inner bay, so why should we expect smallies to be there outside of the spawn. The water is clearer now than ever which allows the bass to spawn in deeper water. Last friday I was on top of a school on a flat in 30-35 fow.
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