Green Sunfish At Woodcock Stream

Took the kids for another overnight camping trip to Colonel Crawford Park in Woodcock Crawford County. Ran into a school of Green sunfish. Really cool fish. Very aggressive, colorful, with large mouth and colored highlights on the tips of the fins. Note the coloration differences to the common bluegill or other species of sunfish.

Camping & Fishing On Pennsylvania State Parks

Took the kids to one of our beautiful PA State Parks. We are so lucky to have some great areas to fish and camp. Kids caught plenty of fish, and quite a few jumbo Bluegill. Some of my favorites include Pymatuming, Woodcock, and Chapman Dam. All 3 of these choices offer excellent fishing, good hunting nearby, and clean facilities. We opted for tent camping, and found a nice quiet rustic spot. Enjoyed watching wildlife and took some time to enjoy the water for some fishing. All three spots are worth exploring, as each have their own varieties of fishing and hunting opportunities. Panfish are quite abundant, as well as larger species including Walleye and Musky. Saw plenty of deer, and Bear are not far away for great hunting choices. There are some nice sites in each park, with quiet settings with woods. Just a great time to relax and enjoy the outdoors.

Flagship Niagara Sails Through Channel In Lake Erie

While fishing for bluegill last evening on the South Pier, I had the pleasure of watching a magnificent vessel. The Flagship Niagara went through the channel. It is the Flagship Of Pennsylvania and the warship that won the Battle Of Lake Erie in the War of 1812. She first set sail in 1990, a reconstruction of Oliver Hazard Perry's victorious 1813 warship. It is owned and maintained by Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission. We are lucky to have this wonderful piece of history in our hometown of Erie PA.

Lake Erie Walleye Move Off North East Marina

Fished for Walleye this morning on Lake Erie Off of North east marina. Fished in 55 ft of water right due North of the Marina. Drifted Crawler Harnesses and had three on and landed 2 nice fish. A 28 incher and a 30. Lake was calm, made drifting difficult. Would have caught more with choppy water. Great day to be on the Lake.

Lake Erie Boating For Schools Of Yellow Perch

Was lucky to get on Lake Erie today. My buddy called me late last night and said he had a spot open on his boat. My first time on open water this year. Small old boat, a 16 ft Larson. We headed out from the launch at 6:15 and returned with our limits of yellow perch by 9:30. I was done in an hour and a half, 30 in the bucket. We were in about 60 ft of water off the Lighthouse. Large pack of boats, at least 75-100 were there. It is not hard to find the perch pack. A simple bit of advice is to anchor down just outside the pack. We scanned the fish finder and found a large school on the bottom just north of the pack. This is a great tactic, fish usually less spooked and you will have an area of feeding fish to yourself. Used spreaders and live emerald shiners. Constant action off the bottom. Looking forward to going again.

Great Blue Heron Friendly To South Pier Fishermen

Just about every time I fished the South Pier at Erie PA there was an amazing sight. A local Great Blue Heron was close by, enjoying the company of the local fishermen. The locals would frequently throw gobies to it, and it has become quite friendly. You can get to about 15 feet of it, and it willingly will accept any fish you toss at it. We have named it "Mike", after one of our fishing buddies that has recently not been fishing with the perch pack. Now we can at least say "We saw Mike today at the pier." Great Blue Herons are the largest of the Herons. They can have a wing span of up to 79 inches and weigh up to 8 ponds. They are found throughout North America, and feed upon small fish and swallow them whole. Just a pretty cool thing to see up close.

The Presque Isle Tug/Barge Vessel Arrives In Erie

As I was recently fishing the South Pier with my son, we had an amazing view of a very large vessel. The Presque Isle Tug went through the channel. This was a push tug, part of a tug/barge combo. Used to carry dry cargo. Has been chartered to the Great Lakes Fleet. Built in 1972, and has a total power output 14.840 bhp and rated service speed of 14 knots. Pretty cool to watch. Great to have these amazing vessels in Erie!