Need some advice

[Eyezcrazy]

I kind of thought it was directed at Skipper too.....all I can say is Skipper freely shares a lot of information to help us all catch fish and some others like to complain but I don't see them posting many fishing reports to help others.

[skipper9]

Its ok guys everyone is welcome to there opinion. Fish with who ever you want. I could move docks to be closer to the fish in the summer. I prefer to have my customers/friends to know where my boat is gonna be for long term planning like hotels and such. Everyone has there own business model. I do run out an hour to catch the big fish. But I give the customers an extra hour by leaving earlier. Have a great day guys and good luck this weekend. Jim

[the truth]

So who is lake erie guy he talks a big game and just tries to stir the pot yet never reveals who he is ? Hmmmm. He has started lots of s@$ t in the past but never reveals his identity.

[Lakeerieguy]

Once again you are trying to stir the pot ? Funny that your 2 post are trying to stir the pot but you accuse me of it ?

fishing is still good West of the bar in 42-48 ft of water . 42 eyes this morning with a total weight 263lbs . More and more junk showing up however . Another bit of info to the OP is think about the Ashtabula area as many many limits of big fish are being caught there as well .

Good Luck

[the truth]

Once again you are trying to stir the pot ? Funny that your 2 post are trying to stir the pot but you accuse me of it ?

fishing is still good West of the bar in 42-48 ft of water . 42 eyes this morning with a total weight 263lbs . More and more junk showing up however . Another bit of info to the OP is think about the Ashtabula area as many many limits of big fish are being caught there as well .

Good Luck

So answer to my question still eludes me who is Lake Erie guy

[Madd Matt]

Whoever you go out with just make sure that you can ask them to specifically go after trophy fish and to customize the trip for that. Most captains will not do this.

Lake Erie Guy is right, it is no secret that anyone can catch an occasional large fish, and right now they seem to be catching a big fish or two on most trips close to Huron and Lorain (See my post last week entitled "Still Catching Big Fish.") As I said last week, everyone was catching a big fish or two by fishing the spots that where producing a lot of eaters as well.

What I assume that you are asking is who will take you on a "Trophy" trip.
Right now, this week, if you can get a captain to commit to taking you specifically after monster walleye, you should end up with a limit (or close to it) for the whole boat with the smallest fish being 24" and a half dozen or more "Fish Ohio." I was out with a few boats going after big fish last weekend and between the 5 boats that were trophy fishing we had well over 20 Fish Ohio that I know of.

As far as cost, travel time, etc.... Don't let that factor in (in my opinion). I'd rather pay $50 extra to a captain that will promise me that he won't go 4-5 miles out where all the average fish are and limit out in 3 hours, instead he will run 17-24 miles to go after trophy walleye and maybe only get 30-40 fish that are all over 24".

Most captains will not spend the time and money to trophy fish when they can take a boat load of people 5 miles out and be back at the dock in 4 hours with a limit of 16-20" walleye. Some customers are happy with that, so that's fine. No problem...

If you want to trophy fish then ask a more direct question to your captain. Or post the question in here.

Who will promise to drive right past the average fish that are biting like crazy and go the extra mile to take me on a trophy walleye trip?

If you want the best shot at catching the biggest walleye of your life, that is what you want. Then ask your captain. "How many Fish Ohio have you caught in the last 4 weeks on your trips?

If you captain can't say that they will take you after only trophy fish, or if they can't tell you that they have caught 30 Fish Ohio in the past month, and over 60 this season on their trophy trips then I'd keep looking.

Also, just because a captain tells you they will take you on a trophy trip doesn't mean that they have the ability to produce... So follow up with the question of, "How many trips do you run or have you run this year specifically for trophy walleye?"

Sorry to ramble, but you asked about catching big fish. If you want to just go on a charter that is going to a hot spot of walleye that happens to be producing an occasional big fish then there are a lot of good charters, Lake Erie Guy is right.

If you want a charter that will target big walleye, and go the extra mile and promise to customize the trip for you then there aren't very many choices.

-Matt

[Madd Matt]

By the way, I am NOT a charter captain so I am not self-promoting.

I am however a hunter and a fisherman. My family manages over 800 acres for Trophy Whitetail deer. We also have traditional un-managed land that people pay to hunt.
Every once in a while they get a trophy buck in a traditional area.

However, when someone wants a trophy buck, it costs more money and takes more effort...

You don't want to go trophy hunting with a guide that is content with getting you a shot at any legal buck... Same with fishing. If I'm going after trophy walleye its a totally different trip than just going to limit out on eaters.

Am I nuts, am I the only one who thinks this way? I got a response from a guy that told me that most people never limit out on Lake Erie and if a charter can limit out on legal fish in 4-5 hours then it would be an amazing experience for almost any fisherman...

I disagree.

-Matt

[noonthirtyjoe]

The gentleman asked for opinions and I gave him mine . Nothing against Jim what so ever . Never said one bad thing in my post about anyone did I ?.Just threw some info out their for the OP like he asked . Sounds like you are trying to stir the pot to get something started.

Good Luck

Seems you gave sound advice and I did not see you bashing anyone.

[Dave Clark]

Seems you gave sound advice and I did not see you bashing anyone.

he is just in a chicken **** way'

[wakina]

Madd Matt:

You can't say it any clearer than what you have posted. You have to fish where the larger fish are concentrated to be able to repeatably and consistently catch the larger variety of walleyes. You have to remain mobile and be willing to follow them around regardless of the time, distance or cost.