Walleye
Lake Erie is one of the best walleye fisheries on the planet right now. It has had several years of good to great walleye hatches, which has helped the walleye population soar in recent years. There are so may walleye in the lake and there are plenty of big fish in the lake as well. You can find so many fishing charters around the lake to help get you on the amazing fishing that is currently happening on Lake Erie.
Smallmouth Bass
The smallmouth bass fishing on Lake Erie is some of the best in the country. The only big downside for why many anglers do not come to Lake Erie to fish for smallmouth bass is that this lake can get rough in a hurry from the wind and many of the best smallmouth bass spots are not protected from wind like you would find in Door County, Wisconsin. If you can get on Lake Erie with the right size boat and you stay off the lake during really windy weather, you can experience some absolutely fantastic fishing for smallmouth bass. Lake Erie is known for big bass and good number of them.
Perch
Perch fishing has been good on Lake Erie for years. There can definitely be some years where it is awesome and then some not so good years, but perch are definitely a species of fish that anglers have counted on to put fish on the table while fishing Lake Erie. The charter boats will usually target walleye, but if they get into a school of perch, they will try to fill their coolers with a limit for their clients. Some anglers go out and target perch while catching walleye on accident. Either way, the perch and walleye are often found in similar areas and will eat a lot of the same baits, so you’re most likely going to catch some perch while walleye fishing on Lake Erie.
Muskie
Muskie are secondary compared to other species of fish, however, there are some good places to target them on Lake Erie. If you head into Lake St. Clair, you may experience some of the best fishing for big muskie in the United States. Anglers also pursue muskie in the Detroit River in the Niagara Falls region and in Erie, Pennsylvania. This doesn’t mean that you can’t catch a muskie somewhere else, but these areas are popular for people who want to target muskie in the Lake Erie area.
| Michigan | New York | Pennsylvania |
| Detroit River | Buffalo, New York / Niagara Region | Erie, Pennsylvania |
| Lake St. Clair |
Salmon & Trout
Lake Erie is a better walleye, smallmouth bass and perch lake. Salmon and trout are secondary, however, many anglers due pursue them when they are easier to target. In the fall, salmon and trout will move into the tributaries to spawn and you will often see boats trolling the mouths of these tributaries as they search for active salmon and trout. Once there are good numbers of fish in the tributaries, you will see plenty of anglers targeting these fish from shore. Steelhead are popular on Lake Erie and there is a section called Steelhead Alley that can help you find more information on where to target the steelhead on Lake Erie.
| Steelhead Alley | Ohio |
| New York | Lorain, OH |
| Vermilion, OH | |
| Buffalo, New York / Niagara Region |
Northern Pike
Lake Erie is not home to a large northern pike population. There are some places where you can target them and actually catch some pike, but for the most part, this lake is a walleye, smallmouth bass, perch and steelhead fishery. If you want to target northern pike on Lake Erie, your best bet is probably to fish the bays at Sandusky and Erie, Pennsylvania. If you head into Lake St. Clair, you can up your odds a little bit more if you want to go pike fishing.
| Michigan | Ohio | Pennsylvania |
| Lake St. Clair | Sandusky, OH | Erie, Pennsylvania |
Largemouth Bass
Largemouth bass are secondary on Lake Erie. Most anglers come here to pursue smallmouth bass because the smallmouth bass fishing can be unbelievable on Lake Erie. In some of the areas with bays and harbors, you can find some largemouth bass as well. In certain areas, largemouth bass will outnumber the smallmouth bass, so some anglers do enjoy going out to pursue them. You will not find good numbers of huge largemouth bass on Lake Erie like you will with the smallmouth bass though.
| Michigan | Ohio | Pennsylvania |
| Lake St. Clair | Cleveland, OH | Erie, Pennsylvania |
| Sandusky, OH |
Catfish
Catfish are definitely a secondary species on Lake Erie, however, there is some really good fishing for catfish in Sandusky Bay. There are a lot of anglers who go out and fish for them in the bay since you have a real shot of catching channel catfish that weigh over 10 pounds and on some trips, you could get several of them. Catfish are found throughout the lake in the bays and harbors as well as some tributaries too.
| Erie, Pennsylvania |
| Sandusky, OH |
Carp
Most people do not come to Lake Erie to fish for carp, however, if you’re looking to catch a big carp, you can definitely do that. There are so many carp throughout the lake and some very large carp can be found throughout the lake and area tributaries. From late spring through early summer, anglers will find a lot of carp in the bays, harbors and tributaries, so this is your best bet if you want a shot to catch multiple large fish. If you pursue them in the summer and fall months, there are still plenty of fish around, but not as many will be up in the shallow water that you see in the late spring through early summer months.
