# night fishing



## p_tr (Aug 11, 2019)

thinking about making some trips after dark. I have always done it later in the year nov,dec. Wondering if it is worth it this time of year. troll in closer once it gets dark


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## p_tr (Aug 11, 2019)

out lorain btw


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## Gottagofishn (Nov 18, 2009)

Never done it myself, there are shallow rock walleye currently though. I hope your night fishing is more productive than my day fishing at Huron yesterday… and you’ll never know till you try.


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## erie mako (Jan 22, 2013)

We been doing more night fishng for the past two months, however we go out of Walnut in PA.
Seems like much less craziness at the ramps and easier to get in and out.

We try to launch around 4 or 5 pm, run out to the edge of the first trench and start fishing.
It's amazing the things you see on the sonar when the sun disappears below the horizon!

Most of the time, we harvest nicer fish from 8 pm on...
Crazy how unassisted deep Storm lures back 150' on braid (no snap weights) can pull nice, plump Eyes even in 76 degree water!

Most memorable moment of night fishing was reaching back with the net to scoop up an Eye...seeing it eyes light up in the beam from my head lamp...and seeing two more sets of glowing eyes following right behind the hooked fish.


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## stampman 60 (7 mo ago)

Ice fishing up in the UP at LBDN. several people got out an hour or 2 before dark and set up in 10 ft off water . seen many of stinger doing that. Fish Sandusky bay last fall casting out from the bank 3 nights 1 1/2 hrs. each night 17 fish over 5 lbs and 1 dink that went 4lbs 13 oz.


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## JCarp (Feb 1, 2005)

Shh. LOL. One July, years ago I was driving up about once a week for 3 weeks to fish late afternoon until 11ish. I was on a good bite for deep fish on crankbaits miles out in your area and would watch the fish come up on the finder towards dark. Kept running baits higher and higher eventually switching to stick baits (and catching) until right at dark and the marks would disappear. (Note this process lasted maybe 30 minutes) I could not catch fish out deep (shallow or deep) after dark. I'd run in to nearshore breaks and always catch a few good fish on stick baits until 11ish. The bite would slow and I'd pack it in. Never did great after dark, but always caught.

I can't say the offshore fish were running inshore at dark, but I sure wondered about it. I once read an In-Fisherman article that said great lakes eyes run in miles at/after dark in the fall. I'm intrigued by the deep fish after dark comment, I've never caught more than a stray fishing deep after dark.


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## Doboy (Oct 13, 2008)

erie mako said:


> We been doing more night fishng for the past two months, however we go out of Walnut in PA.
> Seems like much less craziness at the ramps and easier to get in and out.
> *We try to launch around 4 or 5 pm, run out to the edge of the first trench and start fishing.
> It's amazing the things you see on the sonar when the sun disappears below the horizon!
> ...



The reason I started fishing IN SO CLOSE TO SHORE,,,,,,, early AM,,,, or late evening.( I just never tried it in the dark)
I started BSn with an OGF member about 5-6 years ago. He lived on the N side of Y-town & like me, we both use'ta fish most of the Aqua Lakes,,,, so we had a lot in common.
He started sending me pics of HUGE WALLEYS that he caught every time he went wading along the Erie shoreline at night. & I mean to tell ya,, He caught stringers of hogs! 1/2 oz slip egg & 1/2 of a worm,,, hopping & dragging. Fan casting. lol,,, He always busted me, telling me that he never needed a boat.
He said that those hogs will swim in 5-6 miles every night, just to feast on the perch, gobies, whatever.
After an hour or two of morning light,,, they are GONE!
After my friends & I have been fishing the shorelines for so many years,, I now know it's an absolute fact.
*Same as, wading & casting Mosquito shallows at night!?
Same as, HappySnag busting them off of the Cleveland rocks. At Night.
SAME AS, floating a chub 5' from shore, all along the O River shoreline rocks! ;>)

SAME AS,,, Erie Mako,,,, flatlining plugs, 150' back,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, AT NIGHT.

I got a new PC,,, so I'm sorry to say that every one of those 'BEACH hogs' pics are gone,,,or I'd post them all right now.

THANKS Erie Mako,,, for showing us a DIFFERENT WAY!
Maybe,, you'd be kind enough to drop some night pics on us? ;>)*


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## stampman 60 (7 mo ago)

JCarp said:


> Shh. LOL. One July, years ago I was driving up about once a week for 3 weeks to fish late afternoon until 11ish. I was on a good bite for deep fish on crankbaits miles out in your area and would watch the fish come up on the finder towards dark. Kept running baits higher and higher eventually switching to stick baits (and catching) until right at dark and the marks would disappear. (Note this process lasted maybe 30 minutes) I could not catch fish out deep (shallow or deep) after dark. I'd run in to nearshore breaks and always catch a few good fish on stick baits until 11ish. The bite would slow and I'd pack it in. Never did great after dark, but always caught.
> 
> I can't say the offshore fish were running inshore at dark, but I sure wondered about it. I once read an In-Fisherman article that said great lakes eyes run in miles at/after dark in the fall. I'm intrigued by the deep fish after dark comment, I've never caught more than a stray fishing deep after dark.


Fish marks will disappear up high depending on your cone angle. Say a 20 degree cone ( must are ) at a deep of 20 ft you will see fish only in a diameter of 7 ft.. anything outside your graph will not show. i failed to mention of my post in fishing Sandusky bay was off the bank. It can be hit or miss you never know when they will chase the shad into or how close the bank. My second time trying banks at night > Huron slant wall 1997. 6:30 to 9;30 pm, 9 fish weighing 62 lbs. stay till sunrise to # 10 and they left and never came back in. next night same rock till 11:30 0 fish. but you never know when they are coming in ti feed.


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## kdn (Apr 27, 2015)

*Here is a 32.5" caught during the brawl in 2019 but she only weighed in at 9-1/2 lbs. We fish at night all the time. This was three miles off the shoreline of Cleveland.*


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## p_tr (Aug 11, 2019)

makes sense. I always thought the reason for the "walleye" is to give them an advantage in the dark. It would follow that they would be more active in low light.


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## JCarp (Feb 1, 2005)

stampman 60 said:


> Fish marks will disappear up high depending on your cone angle. Say a 20 degree cone ( must are ) at a deep of 20 ft you will see fish only in a diameter of 7 ft.. anything outside your graph will not show. i failed to mention of my post in fishing Sandusky bay was off the bank. It can be hit or miss you never know when they will chase the shad into or how close the bank. My second time trying banks at night > Huron slant wall 1997. 6:30 to 9;30 pm, 9 fish weighing 62 lbs. stay till sunrise to # 10 and they left and never came back in. next night same rock till 11:30 0 fish. but you never know when they are coming in ti feed.


Valid point about cone angle but if I recall, at 10 ft, there is still close to a 3 ft window with a 20 degree cone angle. Hull displacement and motor noise is a big factor too. I have a wide 16 fter and can mark as high as 9 ft when running the electric up high or if I shut it off. Not as many marks as deeper, but enough to let me know they are there. Prev boat was a narrower 16.5 and I marked more high fish with it. Water conditions are a factor too - One example: On one sunny day, 20+ft visibility, flat-water trip near Fairport I couldn't mark a fish with the boat moving with electric TM but marked at 30ft in 50ft fow when I shut down and drifted. Then proceeded to catch eyes at 30 ft with boards set way, way, out. Didn't mark fish when trolling that day. SOP to shut down and drift for a bit when looking and not marking in similar conditions. No experience using the current generations of side finders but w/o that tech, I do agree that anything higher than 9-10 ft on erie, you gotta fish for them to know if they are there.


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## Eyegagger (Jan 13, 2018)

A friend of mine that has livescope said that he could literally see fish veering and dartingout to the sides before his boat even got over top of them when trolling with his outboard, night time daytime he said it did not matter, in the clear water I guess you'll have that. But I thought everybody fished the lake at night has many of my best trips have been casting at night and I do not believe that it is a oriented around what time of year it is. I'm sure I'll get some flack from this but there's fish in close all year round all the way up the coastline I guess some call them resident fish.And although I have to admit that it has gotten quite slow with the heat but these cold nights will really start to turn them on again in the shallows, and I'm talking 8 to 15 f o w. I think more and more people are starting to figure this out as I have seen a large increase in people close to shore when all the pros are out in 65 to 70 ft trolling with winch type rod and reels as I used to 25 years ago before I spent the time on the water to figure things out. I rarely p


































































ut a dipsy rod in the water anymore and I have to laugh at these guys with all this steel line and **** wow, it's really not that difficult actually it's gotten so easy it's starting to get a little routine as I've had to switch it up and start going to some inland lakes to break the monotony. Oh well I think I'm going to go out and catch six right now good luck to everyone. I'm no pro or anything but if I had to give one peace








of advice to anyone it would be electric trolling motor!


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## stampman 60 (7 mo ago)

Eyegagger said:


> A friend of mine that has livescope said that he could literally see fish veering and dartingout to the sides before his boat even got over top of them when trolling with his outboard, night time daytime he said it did not matter, in the clear water I guess you'll have that. But I thought everybody fished the lake at night has many of my best trips have been casting at night and I do not believe that it is a oriented around what time of year it is. I'm sure I'll get some flack from this but there's fish in close all year round all the way up the coastline I guess some call them resident fish.And although I have to admit that it has gotten quite slow with the heat but these cold nights will really start to turn them on again in the shallows, and I'm talking 8 to 15 f o w. I think more and more people are starting to figure this out as I have seen a large increase in people close to shore when all the pros are out in 65 to 70 ft trolling with winch type rod and reels as I used to 25 years ago before I spent the time on the water to figure things out. I rarely p
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Eyegagger said:


> A friend of mine that has livescope said that he could literally see fish veering and dartingout to the sides before his boat even got over top of them when trolling with his outboard, night time daytime he said it did not matter, in the clear water I guess you'll have that. But I thought everybody fished the lake at night has many of my best trips have been casting at night and I do not believe that it is a oriented around what time of year it is. I'm sure I'll get some flack from this but there's fish in close all year round all the way up the coastline I guess some call them resident fish.And although I have to admit that it has gotten quite slow with the heat but these cold nights will really start to turn them on again in the shallows, and I'm talking 8 to 15 f o w. I think more and more people are starting to figure this out as I have seen a large increase in people close to shore when all the pros are out in 65 to 70 ft trolling with winch type rod and reels as I used to 25 years ago before I spent the time on the water to figure things out. I rarely p
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If you have a "livescope" that has a 20 degree transducer with the mounting bracket that turns into side view is unbelievable what you can see. ice fish with one and you can see 200 ft. to the side . also if you turn the transducer you can see 360 degrees around your position. first time I saw a wally 50 ft. and 5 ft. higher than my lure. Raise my lure as he got closer 9 lb. 5 oz. Downside a livescope with 9 in.screen transducer with side view $1000 . transducer with side view is $1400 mounting pole if needed for the 360 degree is around $ 300. not need if mounted on trolling motor but has limitations as the motor is turning. Cost per lb. has a slight increase but amazing to use.


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## Doboy (Oct 13, 2008)

stampman 60 said:


> If you have a "livescope" that has a 20 degree transducer with the mounting bracket that turns into side view is unbelievable what you can see. ice fish with one and you can see 200 ft. to the side . also if you turn the transducer you can see 360 degrees around your position. first time I saw a wally 50 ft. and 5 ft. higher than my lure. Raise my lure as he got closer 9 lb. 5 oz.* Downside a livescope with 9 in.screen transducer with side view $1000 . transducer with side view is $1400 mounting pole if needed for the 360 degree is around $ 300. not need if mounted on trolling motor but has limitations as the motor is turning. Cost per lb. has a slight increase but amazing to use.*



*LOL,,,,, That's a hoot,,, made me laugh.*
When we went down to SC to fish a huge reservoir,,, we were using a pontoon with no electronics. So I took one of my trusted fish finders along. I built a bracket for it that quickly clamped it to the railings So I could easily move it all around the sides of the pontoon. *D-Cell, self contained BATTERY powered! 360* rotation & SIDE VISION!!* 
We could clamp that fish finder anywhere, & I could see all of the stripers swimming by,,,, & all of the crappies hanging out around the columns,,, 50' to either side.

I used it on the front of my Berlin crappie boat. Anchored 50' from shore & easily see the specs in the fall-downs.

I took it to Canada & clamped it to the side of my Sportspal canoe. Seen the bass in the near-shore shallows.

I used it ICE FISHING! I clamped it to a 5-gal bucket & shot the beam 360* around, & to the shallow shoreline!
*One AWESOME piece of equipment!

BTW,,,, I think I bought my 1st one 30 years ago,,, & I never paid over $75 for one,,,,,, usually Ebay.

Isn't todays  (over priced) technology awesome! ;>)

Fishing Buddy11.








*


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## stampman 60 (7 mo ago)

Doboy said:


> *LOL,,,,, That's a hoot,,, made me laugh.*
> When we went down to SC to fish a huge reservoir,,, we were using a pontoon with no electronics. So I took one of my trusted fish finders along. I built a bracket for it that quickly clamped it to the railings So I could easily move it all around the sides of the pontoon. *D-Cell, self contained BATTERY powered! 360* rotation & SIDE VISION!!*
> We could clamp that fish finder anywhere, & I could see all of the stripers swimming by,,,, & all of the crappies hanging out around the columns,,, 50' to either side.
> 
> ...


actually I have one of those that I bought around 30 yrs ago to. I use mind in so old gravel pits and city water reserves in my pond prowler.


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## JCarp (Feb 1, 2005)

Hi Eyegagger, If you see this, I mostly wanted to thank you for the livescope info. Blade bait in night pic was interesting too. I'd like to know more about that presentation.

I paid some dues using a Bottomline boat mount side finder when they were introduced. That tech was very primitive and provided less info compared to the new tech. I specifically bought the Bottomline SF to adjust planer board leads when running stick baits and it never paid off for me. I was surprised the portable version works well for others. It did remind me that the s bass guide that introduced me to flashers through the ice also taught me to point the transducer off to the side when scouting for fish through the ice - we attached ducers to metal car trim for ice fishing back then... Regards


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## stampman 60 (7 mo ago)

JCarp said:


> Hi Eyegagger, If you see this, I mostly wanted to thank you for the livescope info. Blade bait in night pic was interesting too. I'd like to know more about that presentation.
> 
> I paid some dues using a Bottomline boat mount side finder when they were introduced. That tech was very primitive and provided less info compared to the new tech. I specifically bought the Bottomline SF to adjust planer board leads when running stick baits and it never paid off for me. I was surprised the portable version works well for others. It did remind me that the s bass guide that introduced me to flashers through the ice also taught me to point the transducer off to the side when scouting for fish through the ice - we attached ducers to metal car trim for ice fishing back then... Regards


I use 'vibes" a lot when ice fishing. Especially when I'm not see fish. The vibration of that bait seems to bring fish in when not marking anything. I drop to the bottom and give it quick short jerks usually a few second apart. The hit usually comes right after your vibes starts to raise again. they are very effective in stain or dirty water.


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## Labman1127 (Jul 27, 2012)

Eyegagger said:


> A friend of mine that has livescope said that he could literally see fish veering and dartingout to the sides before his boat even got over top of them when trolling with his outboard, night time daytime he said it did not matter, in the clear water I guess you'll have that. But I thought everybody fished the lake at night has many of my best trips have been casting at night and I do not believe that it is a oriented around what time of year it is. I'm sure I'll get some flack from this but there's fish in close all year round all the way up the coastline I guess some call them resident fish.And although I have to admit that it has gotten quite slow with the heat but these cold nights will really start to turn them on again in the shallows, and I'm talking 8 to 15 f o w. I think more and more people are starting to figure this out as I have seen a large increase in people close to shore when all the pros are out in 65 to 70 ft trolling with winch type rod and reels as I used to 25 years ago before I spent the time on the water to figure things out. I rarely p
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It certainly sounds like you are a pro if you are dogging the offshore bite right now with guys running wire setups, riggers and dipsy’s. 
I noticed you are wearing a heavier coat and gloves in those pictures which leads me to believe you are fishing earlier or later in the year when the fish are in tight as the bait is in tight, and it’s literally a walleye feeding frenzy. Everyone feels like the man when you can’t keep a walleye off a P10, but not everyone feels like the man when you are running 20+ miles offshore to get a nicer grade of fish. 
I bet ya aren’t catching them in there right now, but then again I’m not a pro either 


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## JCarp (Feb 1, 2005)

Labman1127 said:


> It certainly sounds like you are a pro if you are dogging the offshore bite right now with guys running wire setups, riggers and dipsy’s.
> I noticed you are wearing a heavier coat and gloves in those pictures which leads me to believe you are fishing earlier or later in the year when the fish are in tight as the bait is in tight, and it’s literally a walleye feeding frenzy. Everyone feels like the man when you can’t keep a walleye off a P10, but not everyone feels like the man when you are running 20+ miles offshore to get a nicer grade of fish.
> I bet ya aren’t catching them in there right now, but then again I’m not a pro either
> 
> ...


My apologies to my part in getting off topic from the orig post. Granted, several posters referenced cold water bites when the original question was about a warm weather near shore bite, but I appreciated their enthusiasm. In Eyegagger's defense he did acknowledge "...I have to admit that it has gotten quite slow with the heat..." Big dipsies are a great tool, but they lose appeal if I'm not on a good grade of fish. He's not the first and won't be the last, to go back to preferring lighter tackle. 

The nearshore stuff is an option for everyone but is especially viable for small boats or when the wind is howling out of the south. With a south wind, it doesn't matter hard it's blowing; you can stay dry and mobile in a small boat within a mile or two of shore. The night bite may be one of the least crowded summer options especially for weekenders. I have limited experience with it at erie because gets dark later in the summer and it isn't convenient for me to fish it. If I lived closer, I'd arguably be an expert... There have always been people that do it. I digress, but there's not much that wasn't done for many years before it was "rediscovered" or refined to be more effective and popular. I just think one should have realistic expectations about the summer nearshore bite, day or night. There have been a handful of times, that I have smoked near shore fish during the day, but I tend to forget the trips where I felt lucky to catch a few... I haven't done it a lot but expect the nearshore summer nite bite is the same as the nearshore day bite, you're not always going to limit, but if you get on a good summer bite, it may last for maybe 3 weeks or until the word gets out and the fish get pressured. In my admittedly limited experience, nearshore (resident) structure fish don't move until pressured presumably because their food sources don't move. The side benefits include less crowded, clear nite stars, no sunburn, no biting flies. Not sure what it's like during a mayfly hatch . I have a friend that has fished near shore at Cranberry during August for a number of years and he mentions sorting through a lot of non-target fish but I suspect that may be less of an issue at nite. 

During July?, there was an excellent daytime nearshore bite outside Fairport for eaters for a bit. It was a weekday and there were not many boats out deep, but dock talk when loading was no one was catching offshore. We couldn't buy a bite in 60 to 70 fow and fishing in tight at the end of the day saved the trip. I'd bet money those fish would still be going after dark. Thinking about that, if I was the original poster, I'd review the 1st response in this thread... Plenty of boats catch high fish at night in deep water during the fall, no reason that wouldn't work in Sept either. Successful boats heading in before dark are likely to share some numbers. Regards


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## stampman 60 (7 mo ago)

Last week i was fishing 2 reefs starting at 5 A.M in 10 ft. of water water temp 76 degrees. had six by 6:45: a.m. next day didn't start at the same place but got there around 10;30 caught 4 fish on a sunny day. 1 was 24 in. 1 was 22.in.


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## KPI (Jun 4, 2011)

DUNKIRK 


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