Water temp
66.7°F
NOAA CO-OPS 9063079 updated 10:18 AM
Waters · Lakes · OH · Wed, Sep 30
Lake Erie water level today 2.438 ft, falling
Bite index 6/10 — Biting — save your energy for the evening.
Worth a cast.
6/10
Biting
Today's bite windows
12 AM6 AMNoon6 PM11 PM
10Peak 9 8Strong 7 6Good 5 4Slow 3 2 1Dead
Major
3:18 AM–5:18 AM
Moon overhead
Minor
11:43 AM–12:43 PM
Moonset
Major
3:47 PM–5:47 PM
Moon underfoot
Minor
8:46 PM–9:46 PM
Moonrise
Sunrise 7:26 AM · sunset 7:14 PM · tomorrow's first major 4:18 AM–6:18 AM · windows on every water
Solunar · computed updated 10:27 AM
Conditions right now
Water level
2.438ft
-0.31 ft in 24h
NOAA CO-OPS 9063079 updated 10:18 AM
Pressure
30.07inHg
steady · +0.68 hPa/12h
NOAA KLPR updated 10:10 AM
Wind
8mph S
NOAA KLPR updated 10:10 AM
Moon
81% waning
Solunar · computed updated 10:27 AM
Nearby gauges
These sit on connected water, not on Lake Erie itself.
- Inflow above — 1960 cfs · 66.7°F USGS 04193500 updated 10:00 AM
What this means
Largemouth bass
67°F sits in the sweet spot. Work the first few feet early.
Work shallow to mid.
Crappie
67°F sits in the sweet spot. Work the first few feet early.
Work shallow to mid.
Catfish
67°F is on the cool side. Slow everything down.
Work mid to deep.
Lake Erie level over the last 8 days
2.438 ft above LWD down 0.31 ft in 24 hours
That sits 61% of the way up the band it has held over the last 9 days, between 0 and 4.03 ft. Over the week it is down0.87ft.
09-21 0.00–4.03 ft 09-30
NOAA CO-OPS 9063079 updated 10:18 AM
The week ahead
| Thu | 7 | Biting | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fri | 8 | On fire | |
| Sat | 7 | Biting | |
| Sun | 7 | Biting | |
| Mon | 6 | Biting | |
| Tue | 7 | Biting | |
| Wed | 7 | Biting |
Forecast days carry solunar and the wind outlook. Pressure and gauge movement land the morning of.
Lake Erie boat ramps and public fishing access
Ohio Department of Natural Resources lists 324 public access points on Lake Erie. These are the 8 closest to our gauge — the farthest one the agency lists sits 116 mi away.
- Island View Marina/Cottages 0.7 miFee: No
- Orib Boat Club 1.6 miFee: No
- Mazurik State Wildlife Area 1.7 miFee: No
- Shrocks Marina Inc. 1.9 miFee: NoHours: 7a - 5p
- Marblehead Harbor Marina 2.0 miFee: NoHours: 8a - 5p
- Lakevue Marina 2.1 miFee: NoHours: 8a - 5p
- Taylor's Resort 2.2 miFee: No
- Historic Harbor 2.2 miFee: YesHours: 24 hrs
Access data from Ohio Department of Natural Resources. Distances are straight-line from our gauge, not driving distance.
Ohio Department of Natural Resources · public access inventory
Before you go
A Ohio fishing license covers this water — $25 a year for residents. ODNR sets the rules and is the one that counts.
What it costs, and who is exempt →Nearby waters today
- 7 Biting Detroit River MI · 89 km
- 7 Biting Lake St. Clair MI · 104 km
- 5 Picky Saginaw Bay MI · 250 km
- 5 Picky Lake Minnetonka MN · 949 km
- 5 Picky Lake Havasu AZ · 2853 km
Questions people ask about Lake Erie
Answered from the same readings as the rest of this page. Where we have no basis for an answer, there is no entry — spot-by-spot local knowledge is not something we can claim for Lake Erie.
- Is it worth fishing Lake Erie today?
- 6 out of 10 — biting. Worth a cast. The strongest stretch is 3:18 AM–5:18 AM. That number is worked out fresh each morning from the solunar windows, the pressure trend, the water level and the water temperature.
- What time should you fish Lake Erie?
- Today's major windows run 3:18 AM–5:18 AM and 3:47 PM–5:47 PM, with minor windows at 11:43 AM–12:43 PM and 8:46 PM–9:46 PM. Sunrise is 7:26 AM and sunset 7:14 PM. A major landing on first or last light is the stretch worth setting an alarm for.
- What is the water temperature at Lake Erie?
- 66.7°F, read at 10:18 AM from NOAA CO-OPS station 9063079. That is 0.4 degrees cooler than 24 hours ago.
- What is the water level at Lake Erie right now?
- 2.438 ft above LWD, read at 10:18 AM from NOAA CO-OPS station 9063079. Over 24 hours it is down 0.31 ft.
- Are water levels rising or falling at Lake Erie?
- Falling. The lake is down 0.31 ft in 24 hours and down 0.87 ft over the week. Over the last 9 days it has held between 0 and 4.03 ft. Every figure here is a difference between two gauge readings, not a forecast — what the level does next depends on rain and on what the dam releases.
- Can you eat the fish you catch in Lake Erie?
- That is a health question and it belongs with the state, not with us. OH publishes fish consumption advisories through its health or environmental agency, and those are the ones that count. We give no eating advice.
- Do you need a licence to fish Lake Erie?
- Yes. A Ohio fishing license covers this water, required from age 16. ODNR sets the rules and is the one that counts.
- What size fish can you keep in Ohio?
- It depends on the species, and several have slot limits rather than a simple minimum. Open to harvest today: largemouth, smallmouth and spotted bass, walleye, sauger and saugeye, yellow perch, white, striped and hybrid striped bass. Seasons here change mid-year by agency order, so the status is re-checked every morning.
Largemouth, smallmouth and spotted bass limits · Walleye, sauger and saugeye limits · Yellow perch limits · White, striped and hybrid striped bass limits · Check a length against the rules
Where these numbers come from
- Solunar computed 10:27 AM
- NOAA KLPR Lorain / Elyria, Lorain County Regional Airport 10:10 AM
- NOAA CLE gridded forecast 4:01 AM
- NOAA CO-OPS 9063079 Marblehead 10:18 AM
Marblehead reports the open water of the Western Basin, next to the Bass Islands. The Maumee gauge at Waterville adds the river that carries the spring walleye run and most of the sediment load into this end of the lake.
No one types these in by hand. If a source goes quiet, the page says so instead of showing you yesterday.