Middle Bass Island rock piles, with Ballast and Buckeye reefs
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
Depth8-24 ft
BottomRock piles and boulders; rock, sand and gravel, sand and mud (GLAHF)
CurrentNo
River plumeNo
Well-known spotNo
Position41.682, -82.796 (approximate center)
Two winning reports (2017, 2022) at 8-14 ft and 16-24 ft
Run from each launch
| Launch | Run | Open water | Crossing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cullen Park (Ohio) | 35.2 mi | 22.6 mi | Yes |
| Lucas County Cooley Canal boat ramp (Ohio) | 25.6 mi | 19.0 mi | Yes |
| Catawba Island State Park (Ohio) | 8.1 mi | 0.6 mi | No |
| West Harbor public boat launching ramp (Ohio) | 9.2 mi | 1.2 mi | No |
| East Harbor State Park (Ohio) | 9.6 mi | 2.5 mi | No |
| Mazurik Access Area (Ohio) | 9.9 mi | 6.3 mi | No |
| Dempsey State Fishing Access (Ohio) | 12.2 mi | 6.2 mi | No |
| Shelby Street public boat launch (Ohio) | 16.2 mi | 6.2 mi | No |
| Put-in-Bay Village public launch (Ohio) | 2.2 mi | 0.0 mi | No |
| Middle Bass Island State Park (Ohio) | 1.0 mi | 0.0 mi | No |
| Kelleys Island State Park (Ohio) | 6.6 mi | 3.2 mi | No |
| William C. Sterling State Park boat launch (Michigan) | 32.2 mi | 28.1 mi | Yes |
| Bolles Harbor boating access site (Michigan) | 32.9 mi | 28.7 mi | Yes |
| Lake Erie Metropark boat launch (Michigan) crosses the U.S.-Canada boundary | 34.3 mi | 27.3 mi | Yes |
| Colchester Harbour (Ontario) crosses the U.S.-Canada boundary | 22.2 mi | 14.8 mi | Yes |
| Cedar Island Marina boat launch, Kingsville (Ontario) crosses the U.S.-Canada boundary | 22.9 mi | 17.0 mi | Yes |
| Leamington Marina boat launch (Ontario) crosses the U.S.-Canada boundary | 25.9 mi | 23.2 mi | Yes |
| Scudder Marina, Pelee Island (Ontario) crosses the U.S.-Canada boundary | 11.8 mi | 5.1 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
- Abu Garcia College Fishing, Northern Conference 2022 Fri, Sep 9 2022Adrian College (Davis, Shoemaker): Boulders in the Middle Bass Island part of Lake Erie, 16-24 ft; Ned rig; drop shot.Source
- MLF: Top 10 patterns from Lake Erie (Toyota Series, July 2020) Tue, Jul 14 2020Top-10 finishers (not winners): two rock piles off South Bass Island topping at about 8 ft; Middle and South Bass islands; Michigan waters near the Detroit River mouth, rock piles 18 ft on top, 22 ft off the edgeSource
- 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
- BFL Buckeye Division Super Tournament 2017 Sat, Sep 16 2017Hunter Colwell: Four rock piles around Middle Bass Island, 8-14 ft; Drop shot (Strike King Dream Shot).Source
- NOAA U.S. Coast Pilot 6, chapter 6 (Lake Erie), edition of 27 Sep 2026, paragraphs 713-714 Middle Bass Island: east, south and west sides deep within 0.3 mi; a shoal with rocks awash 0.75 mi off its east peninsula; Ballast Island 0.8 mi north-east of South Bass IslandSource
- 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