Kelleys Island Shoal (north-east of Kelleys Island)
Ranked plans are not available for Lake Erie (western basin) yet: in the backtest on 8 tournament events the winner's area was in the top 3 in 2, and the gate needs 6. The map shows the areas without a ranking; water conditions and the forecast are current.
WaterOhio
Depth12-20 ft
BottomBedrock shoal (top 2 ft) with steep drops; rock (GLAHF)
CurrentNo
River plumeNo
Well-known spotNo
Position41.637, -82.653 (approximate center)
Shoal top is a navigation hazard; GLAHF spawning record for Kelleys Island (May-June, bedrock)
Run from each launch
| Launch | Run | Open water | Crossing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cullen Park (Ohio) | 42.9 mi | 25.3 mi | Yes |
| Lucas County Cooley Canal boat ramp (Ohio) | 33.0 mi | 24.6 mi | Yes |
| Catawba Island State Park (Ohio) | 11.4 mi | 3.5 mi | No |
| West Harbor public boat launching ramp (Ohio) | 11.2 mi | 2.9 mi | No |
| East Harbor State Park (Ohio) | 10.8 mi | 3.0 mi | No |
| Mazurik Access Area (Ohio) | 8.8 mi | 1.8 mi | No |
| Dempsey State Fishing Access (Ohio) | 10.5 mi | 1.4 mi | No |
| Shelby Street public boat launch (Ohio) | 13.1 mi | 4.4 mi | No |
| Put-in-Bay Village public launch (Ohio) | 8.5 mi | 6.8 mi | No |
| Middle Bass Island State Park (Ohio) | 8.6 mi | 6.6 mi | No |
| Kelleys Island State Park (Ohio) | 3.2 mi | 0.3 mi | No |
| William C. Sterling State Park boat launch (Michigan) | 40.2 mi | 34.0 mi | Yes |
| Bolles Harbor boating access site (Michigan) | 40.9 mi | 35.7 mi | Yes |
| Lake Erie Metropark boat launch (Michigan) crosses the U.S.-Canada boundary | 41.4 mi | 32.9 mi | Yes |
| Colchester Harbour (Ontario) crosses the U.S.-Canada boundary | 28.2 mi | 23.8 mi | Yes |
| Cedar Island Marina boat launch, Kingsville (Ontario) crosses the U.S.-Canada boundary | 26.8 mi | 17.8 mi | Yes |
| Leamington Marina boat launch (Ontario) crosses the U.S.-Canada boundary | 27.1 mi | 18.0 mi | Yes |
| Scudder Marina, Pelee Island (Ontario) crosses the U.S.-Canada boundary | 12.4 mi | 5.7 mi | Yes |
Run: the distance along the water route. A crossing (the open lake, the border or a long stretch of open water) needs over-water wind under your crossing wind limit (default 15 mph), waves on the route within your wave limit and no small craft advisory.
Evidence
- Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit Super Tournament 2020 Tue, Aug 11 2020Justin Lucas: A sunken piece of steel off a shoal near Kelleys Island, used as a current break, 15-20 ft; Drop shot (Berkley MaxScent Flat Worm).Source
- Toyota Series Northern Division 2020 Thu, Jul 9 2020Lee Rogers: Days 1-2: a handful of rocky spots on Kelleys Island and the Bass Islands; day 3: largemouth in and near Sandusky Bay (wind), 12-18 ft; Drop shot; day 3 tube and Texas-rigged swimbait (largemouth).Source
- YETI FLW College Fishing, Northern Conference 2019 Sat, Sep 7 2019Youngstown State University (Jardine, Soots): Kelleys Island shoal; steep drop of the shoal, 15-17 ft; Ned rig (Z-Man TRD); drop shot.Source
- NOAA U.S. Coast Pilot 6, chapter 6 (Lake Erie), edition of 27 Sep 2026, paragraph 710 Kelleys Island Shoal, least depth 2 ft, north-east of Kelleys Island; its north-east end about 2.5 mi from the island, marked by a lighted buoySource
- GLAHF spawning and nursery sites after Goodyear et al. (1982), smallmouth bass records in western Lake Erie Ohio records: Bass Islands spawning mid May-June at 59-60 F on gravel and rubble at 1 m; Gull Island Shoal spawning ground of 30 acres on bedrock; Kelleys Island spawning May-June on bedrock (season context only, no spawning water targeted)Source
- Ohio Sea Grant (2025-04-29): smallmouth bass telemetry in Lake Erie, sedentary or migratory Ohio DNR acoustic telemetry: 60 smallmouth tagged in 2023 (Bass Islands, Fairport Harbor) and 156 in spring 2024 (Bass Islands, Kelleys Island, Lorain, Ashtabula), over 400 receivers; preliminary results: most fish stay in a small area near where they were caught; one fish tagged near North Bass Island went to Lake St. Clair and back twiceSource