I don’t like to pick favorites, but the fall smallmouth fishing on Lake Erie is something special. It can offer incredible fishing as fish essentially move back to a lot of areas they would use in the springtime. As the thermocline breaks up with increased wave action, fish begin to scatter and use all depths due to oxygen levels becoming more uniform. Bait moves constantly early on and it can be tough to stay with them initially. As it cools and becomes more stable, the fishing cranks up ten fold. Fish are hungry from moving and are having to bulk up for the winter time where they will try and conserve energy. Reaction baits start to play more and more with swimbaits, jerks and crankbaits being great options for covering water and catching fish. Pay attention to wind directions days prior to your trips as it can help you predict where the bait and fish may be headed. The bass also migrate back into Presque Isle Bay some too. Presque Isle is shallower and warms and cools quicker than the main lake.
As it gets colder and most anglers call it a season in favor of camo clothes and tree stands, the bass fishing often continues to be very good. Fish group up more and more towards the areas they will winter and blade baits, jigging spoons, ned rigs, and things like drop shots will take over. It can be feast or famine sometimes, but if you run into a group, you can catch excellent numbers of bass. During this time, I’ve caught up to 180 bass in one outing with my buddies on New Years Eve in 2021. It’s also a great time to catch giant bass as they are fattened up to about as big as they will get. My tournament partner Andy, of Full Fishing Guide Service, and I won a Douglas Rods Big Money Open out of Buffalo during this period with a 29.28 lb bag (almost a 6 lb average fish)! Deeper into the fall, fish seem to push towards deeper areas that they would utilize in the summer months again. Finding the bait is key as it will also lead you to these big schools of bass.
Fall is a popular time for us, so if you are wanting to come fish, book with us today!
