Lake Erie, the smallest of
the Great Lakes, for expediency and research sake, has always been
divided into three sections: western, central and eastern basins. It
would seem
as though not only government officials and anglers recognize this
fact, the fish do as well. Each basin holds a main specie of fish,
not 'readily
found' in connecting basins. For example, I believe it has long been
recognized that walleye and smallmouth bass make up the majority of
gamefish in the
western basin, while trout or steelhead set up shop in the central
basin and a not so abundant mixture of all inhabit the eastern end
of Lake
Erie.
The western basin of Lake Erie plays host to the largest
numbers of walleye
and smallmouth bass in the lake. Many thousands of local and international
trophy seeking anglers, ply these waters. They come armed to the gunnels
with rods, reels and tackle set to do battle with 10 and 12 lb. walleye
or 5 and 6 lb. smallmouth. Not only do these fish come in these weights,
they constantly get reeled in throughout the seasons.
Up to 95% of
the water's flow enters from the Detroit River and the upper Great
Lakes.
It is also the shallowest of the Great Lakes and vulnerable to fluctuating
water levels. Being 388 km long and 92 km wide, with an average depth
of
19 m, Lake Erie is still a body of water that commands your respect
and punishes man and machine for not heeding it's warnings of when
to get
off. Though most of the winds enter the western basin from the west,
anglers
know that when the wind switches to the south, the waves can reach
2 and 3 m in an awful hurry and it's best that you already be within
sight
of
the shoreline for that quick getaway.
As unpredictable as the western
basin may be weather wise, it is more predictable when it comes to
fishing for
football-sized smallies. Humps and rock piles located off Leamington
and Colchester hold huge smallmouth bass and in great abundance. These
smallies differ from their relatives in nearby Lake St. Clair. The
'camo patterns'
of the fish vary due to the structure they live and ambush prey from.
Western basin smallies come in a blotched pattern that enable them
to hide among
the rock piles while Lake St. Clair smallmouth are usually more of
a barred pattern that serve them well when lying in wait among the
many
weed beds
found in the lake. In addition, the smallmouth bass caught in Lake
Erie's western basin are on average, at least a half-pound heavier
than their
St. Clair cousins.
Preferred Baits
Perhaps, due to the local
anglers fishing live bait for their world famous walleye, the preferred
bait
is 'live' crayfish and shiners. The soft-shelled crayfish is by far
the more
popular of the two baits and the old addage, "the larger the bait, the
larger the bass" may be founded in Lake Erie's western basin, at least
from my experience.
When it comes to using artificial baits on resident
smallies, the preferred baits are tubes, like Mizmo's Big Boy (salted\blended)
or Mr. Twister's Exude (scented). A close second favorite bait is the
crankbait. While most of the water you fish in the 'basin' may be 12'
to 18' deep,
it's best to use a 'crank' that will get you down at least close to
the bottom or better yet past it, and bang it off the rocks and stir
up the
bottom.
There is one charter boat operator locally that employs
the services of a large chunk of chain to drag along bottom. The chain
not only stirs
up the bottom, thereby uncovering hidden bugs and crayfish that eventually
lay a 'chum line' for the bass to follow, it also calls them in by
making that clanging noise (bass are naturally inquisitive and investigate
noises)
that chains do. This is called "ringing the dinner bell" to those of
us who are aware of the
practice and have put it to use.
Preferred Presentation
There is no
secret here. Smallmouth bass tend to roam their home ranges and the anglers
follow.
The old drift and drag is a preferred presentation here as well as on Lake
St. Clair. However, many local anglers will drop anchor when a good school
of bass
and baitfish are found. They will fish that school, perhaps all day, only
moving when the forage leaves the area. Still some anglers like to troll
for their
bass, intercepting them as they roam from feeding to feeding within their
range. When
trolling, these anglers will use bottom bouncers with worms or minnows,
or they'll run mid-depth running crankbaits.
Though it may be sporting
to use
light line
and action rods that smallie fishermen are famous for, the wiser angler
knows that his once-in-a-lifetime trophy may be the next to take his
offering and
will spool-up with 10 lb test or heavier clear premium line like Maxima's
Perfexion or Berkley's Vanish.
So if you have the time, two or three days
is preferred
due to weather\wind instability, take the trip to Lake Erie's western
basin out
of Leamington or Colchester for that smallmouth trophy of a lifetime
. . . but please, take the measurements and the photo and put the trophy
back
for
another
trip.
Fish on!
Tom Morrison,
Sportfishing Education & Promotion
home office phone: 1-519-776-4261
home
office fax: 1-519-776-9715
E-mail: mtm2002ca@yahoo.com mt.morrison@sympatico.ca
Essex County Outdoors website: Tom
Morrison
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