The main Walleye spawning areas are in the western basin of Lake Erie. As the eggs hatch and turn into small Walleyes, they tend to hang together in schools for protection purposes. The Walleye "fry" tend to hang out fairly close to the area they were hatched. When the fish reach two years old (about 14"), they become very aggressive in their feeding habits and are sometimes caught in large numbers. Usually this happens in Late May through July. As these two year old are normally about 40-60% of the total Walleye population, they usually make up the largest part of the total catch of Walleye per year. Since these fish haven’t ventured too far from home yet

By the increase water clarity due to the zebra mussels, expect the walleyes to be more light sensitive and spooked more easily by boat traffic. Expect your fishing success to increase on more windy days or when rough lake conditions exist, compared to calmer days. This is due to the waves breaking up any light penetration through the clean water. Also expect walleyes to generally move off into deeper water adjacent to the reefs earlier in the season that in years past.

Early morning or late afternoon fishing trips can be more productive when the sun is at a lower angle. Trolling with dipsy divers that allows for a more wide presentation can also increase your success. Night fishing can be very productive as walleyes are very active at night.

The Eastern Basin of Lake Erie offers both shallow and deep water fishing opportunities. A variety of depths and bottom structures (reasonably close to each other) hold walleyes throughout all seasons and weather conditions. Fish don’t have to travel very far to find favorable conditions. These combinations also attract forage fish and other species of fish that walleyes feed on easily. This just might be the reason for the exceptional size of Eastern Basin walleyes.