I know i will need help

Last year i bought my first Erie boat, have been fishing the lake since i was a kid but always had dad with me. Now i am 28 and i buried dad 2 weeks ago at the age of 49. He knew where to fish and how to get them in the boat. We were planning a trip to the western basin for the spring, finally i was going to get to take him fishing. Me and and my cousin and a few good friends are going to do the trip in his memory. When should we be looking to come up, we are driving from Pittsburgh. Dad usually took us in May, is this a good time. Hopefully i will be able to show everyone a good time and catch some fish, i know that dad will be there with us in spirit.

I am very sorry for you lose!!!! Give me a call and I will help you get on the fish... 614.327.7144.. if I dont have a evening trip booked I will even take you guys out on my boat as my treat... and I will show you guys a good time... again I am very sorry...

thanks skipper, is may a good time for us to come up. That was dads thing he just seemed to know when would be good i dont know how but he knew.

Sorry to hear about your father, I am 26, couldn't imagine losing my father at this age. To answer your question May is generally excellent fishing, the way this year is looking should still be into the jig bit pretty solid or a good trolling bite pending on how the weather goes. Stop in the shop when you get this way, give ya the latest report and put ya'll on some fish. Where are you guys planning on running out of if I might ask? What are you running? and what style of fishing are you comfortable with? Feel free to shoot any questions you have my way.Take care and God bless!

Sorry for your loss. As the others said there is plenty of help to be had by the people on here. If you are down west give me a call I will tell you where we have been fishing at the time you come. If you are going to be around Port Clinton you will be in Skipper9 area and he always has the hot spots in his area.

Thanks everyone for the nice words. Dad always had us stay in Port Clinton so i guess we will be in that area. I do not know where we are staying yet, didnt even think i would want to do this trip with out him, but i know how much he looked forward to the spring bite up there

Sorry for your loss, I never got to make the last fishing trip with my Dad either. Lost him many years ago and we never fished Lake Erie. Started fishing the big lake about ten years ago. I think I have become a successful fisherman in part on my own and the guidance of Skipper9. If I had one last wish it would be to be able to take my Dad out on the big lake now and show him what the little boy can do. Skipper 9 aka Captain Jim will take good care of you go do your trip I can’t help but feel when on fishing the big lake with my brothers Dad’s looking down and sometimes laughing at us.

Kevin
Fish Tales

If I was you, I would start gettin ready now. There is a spring jig bite that is unreal. Youhave to travel every bit of a couple miles in a day to get fish, sometimes only a 1/2 mile from your put-in, I use wildwings, go out @ dark thirty and alot of days, be heading back in when the fella's are on the way out. It's an easy catch fishing trip, kinda nice with the price of gas nowadays, helps balance out the season. Keep an eye on this website, you will know when it's time, then just come out the mouth of the channel, look north and join the masses and I mean that litterally. Also, my condolences for your pops, lost mine over 15 yrs ago and never have felt the pain go away. See ya up there, Mike

When does the spring bite usually get hot. One of the reasons i think dad always waited till may cause the weather is a little more stable. It would suck to drive 5 hours just to not fish lol.

Sorry for your loss. I would take Jim up on his offer as he has helped out many on this site.

If interested we rent our condos at Green Cove Resort which is right next door to Wild Wings Resort. Boats are usually right out front on the reefs in early spring, maybe 1-2 miles out.

http://www.vacationrentals411.com/vacation/23785.html

Thank you captain walleye for the information. I checked the site and that sounds like a great deal. I will be in contact with you in the upcoming months

Sorry for your loss! Like everyone else has said, just let us know when you want to come up and what type of fishing you want to do and we'll make sure you know what you need and where to go. Take Jim up on his offer, you'll learn a lot in a few hours of evening fishing.

If you're coming clear from Pitt, I'd try to plan at least 3 or 4 days of fishing. The weather does tend to stabilize in May, but you never know when the wind will keep you off. We were pretty fortunate last year and had very few blow days.

To answer your question...the spring bite gets hot as soon as the ice clears off. You can either jig in front of Turtle Creek or you can troll the can lines with 800 Series Reef Runners. Both of those should be on fire by early to mid April, weather depending.

Greg

feel free to add me to your contact list will be happy give you any reports i have when you come down.fish mostly out of fenwick
my first trips with my dad was out of our 1954 17ft wood thompson

kudo,s to you skipper9. thats one of the most compassionate offers i have seen on any forum.

im not looking for the same offer or anything. im just wanting to let him know i feel his pain. i lost my little brother last may the 10th and he was my best friend and we have fished from a salmon trip to wis to yelloetail snapper in the florida keys. he was my deer hunting buddy also and just my best friend. he would always do 90% of our driving on erie and when we fished lake michigan. i was and still am just lost. then we went to tenn for our family reunion. on the morning of the 25th of may i got a call from my nephew, and he told me his dad had just died. he was my next best friend and my last old fishing buddy that had fished and hunted with me since i was 9 yrs old. i could go on all day about the things this did to me. but i,ll just tell you one.

i had bought a 28 ft sea ray so i would have a big enough boat to fish both of them then my son and his wife and my grandson. after losing them i dont even want to use that boat. so this spring im going to get it ready and just sell it. my 21 ft boat is big enough for my son and his family, so i just lost interest in the big boat. but im moving on just in a smaller way.

i am so sorry about your dad. and for any of you who have lost a loved one. but i do believe families that fish together are just close.
sherman

Thank you all for the kind words, and the offers for the help. My dad loved to see sportsman come together and i know he would be smiling to see so many people willing to help. Hopefully when we do our trip this spring i get to meet some of you and buy you a beer or something for all your help. God bless all of you and be safe

WOW... bitter-sweet read... my sincere condolences as well... I must provide a testimony to these guys. Last year on March 18th I lost my brother at nearly the same age. And I found that fishing the lake was a great comfort. It was a great year for walleye and EVERY single time they provided great advice/tips/assistance, etc.... you are in good hands with these guys... I just want to say thanks again to them for helping me last year... I was a rookie last year too, but these guys just jumped right in and helped out without hesitation... CHEERS TO YOU !!!

I lost my fishin Buddy and a good friend he was much older than myself he had fished the lake for decades , he died in a car accident on the way to go fishing in Florida that happened about 4 years ago he had a house in downtown pt clinton we stayed in when he died I went up by myself one time and I could not stop thinking about him I almost stoped fishing , but about that time I met a new fishing buddy and I am now the older guy with all the lake exsperience (so he thinks ) its pretty cool how life works thing out

so sorry for your lose! without knowing your father it's hard to say, but i'm guessing that the spring memorial trip in his honor would be exactly what he'd want you to do. that being said, I can't say that i'm surprised by capt. jim's offer. speaks for his character as I know it and that is as nothing short of first class. highly recommend that you take him up on it. three or four hours and he'll have you ready to strike out on your own with at least one way to get 'em.

My dad started me fishing on Lake Erie in 1950. At first it was night fishing for blue pike and it ended for him in September 2005 between lunker walleye trips. I feel his presence on the boat every time we go out. As per his wishes I scattered his ashes about 3 miles off Geneva so I know he is close. This website, as you have already seen, is a great source of information from a great bunch of guys. With the help of a radio and GPS, we can put you right on the fish and tell you what is working right now, not yesterday. My first trip will be the day after the ice clears from the ramp at Catawba State Park or at Wild Wings. Check this website for the latest news.

Hey! I saw your post. Gimme a call when you have a chance in the next few days. I am working on a couple articles for Newspaper Network of Central Ohio on blue pike. 419-559-7582. Thanks! James Proffitt