Casters are still fishing the way they have been, heading to the shallow water of Lake Erie and scoring in the 18 to 25 foot depths while casting around the spawning reefs. The top reefs to fish have been off Davis Besse, and around Gull Reef and Kelley’s Island Shoal. In the mornings when there has been a lot of boat traffic, it has been better to be in 12 to 15 feet of water in the drop off ranges. Some worm harnesses have been used, but the action has been slower. As the temperatures start to rise the action should get better.

Trolling for walleye has remained steady. Bandits set 25 to 70 feet back have been the best way to catch them. You are going to want to use speeds of 1.6 to 1.8 miles per hour. Hot spots have been along the can lines marking the Lake Erie Firing Zone, especially down in the areas of F Can and D Can.

The combined fields of the Lake Erie Walleye Trail, a local tournament circuit, and the national Masters Walleye Circuit hosted by Bass Pro Shops and Cabela’s lured a crowd of 167 two-anglers teams to Sandusky last Friday and Saturday, and the Northern Ohio anglers managed to dominate the pro fishermen coming from around the country.

The top anglers in the final standings won both events.

With many of the teams running east of Sandusky on Friday to catch their walleye, despite brisk east winds and chilly temperatures, fishermen welcomed balmy weather and sunny skies on Saturday and the weights of five-fish tournament limits bumped up a bit.

In a very tight finish, Joseph Gibson of Avon Lake and Bryan Beck of Lakewood edged Steve Hendricks of Wellington and Brian Ulmer of Lodi by a single ounce, weighing a limit of 10 walleye that pushed the scales to 67 pounds, 14 ounces. With bonuses from boat sponsors, Gibson and Beck won $19,806 in the MWC event.

Jason Kopf of Avon Lake and Ryan Buddie of Amherst were third with 65 pounds, 4 ounces. The big walleye was an 11-pound, 9 ounce fish checked in by Gary and Alex Kisel of Macedonia, helping them finish 33rd with a 55-13 total.

Until next week, get out there and enjoy Lake Erie and have a good week of fishing!