Catawba Fishing Brief - 2026-07-25
Western Basin Lake Erie waypoints. Verified against Coe Vanna Charters + Natural Atlas. Mouse Island Reef is the structure ~0.94 nm N of the island itself. 7/25 is a GO and the flat stretch holds into the weekend: buoy 45005 at 5:10 AM reads WNW 7.8 kt gusting 9.7, and LEZ143 calls W under 10 kt shifting SE, sunny, waves under 1 ft all day. No Small Craft Advisory, no hazard banner on the Ottawa County point forecast, empty alerts array in live.json, no fog, no storms. Water holding at 75.4F. IMPORTANT: the wave number is an ESTIMATE, not a reading. Buoy 45005's WVHT channel has been dark since 9:20 PM 7/24 (last valid 0.6 m / ~2 ft on a NE wind that has since swung WNW and eased). Treat Mouse Island Reef at 1.2 nm as your instrument and look at the water before committing to the 9.5 nm run west. Wind direction is WNW now, the caution quadrant, but at 7.8 kt it is a non-issue and it backs SE then S through the day, so direction improves. INTEL: lakeeriefish's July report has walleye stacking NE of Kelleys Island near the old C-can (out of PWC range) with the good boats launching 5-6 AM, and it names the perch water specifically as Crane Creek, Toledo Light, A Can, Toledo Water Intake, and LITTLE PICKEREL in 16-24 FOW. Little Pickerel is the only one of those in PWC range, which is why it is new on the board today. ODNR's 7/17 read is unchanged: east of the reef complex and near Kelleys, 23-30 FOW, lures 15-30 ft down, keepers 16-22in. Two programs: weighted harnesses for walleye, spreader for perch. SATURDAY NOTE: reefs will be crowded and the Put-in-Bay ferry lanes run all day. Go vertical on busy reefs, save the wide spread and the in-line boards for the open water east of the reef complex. Sunday carries a 20% storm chance 11 AM to 4 PM, so today is the clean weekend day.
Reel Quest

Catawba Pt Assoc Launch
APPROXIMATE. Private community ramp at the tip of Catawba near Mouse Island. Verify exact location. Sunrise 6:17 AM, sunset 8:50 PM EDT - Ohio PWC rule is sunrise to sunset. lakeeriefish notes the boats doing well are on the water at 5-6 AM, so 6:17 is your legal start and it is worth taking.
Launch

Mouse Island REEF
VERIFIED (Natural Atlas). Actual fishing reef, NOT the island. ~1.2 nm NNE of launch. Limestone shoal, 0.33 sq mi, least depth 9 ft. RANK 01 TODAY, and it has two jobs. First it is your WAVE GAUGE: the buoy wave sensor has been dark for eight hours, so the 1 ft figure in today's brief is an estimate. Run the 1.2 nm, look at the water yourself, and only then decide whether the 9.5 nm push to Little Pickerel is on. Second it is perch water in the same 16-24 FOW band as the named spots to the west, at a tenth of the fuel - drop a two-hook spreader with emerald shiners on any school you mark. For walleye work the 14-22 ft perimeter with a Husky Jerk 40 ft back at 1.4-1.6 mph to find pods, then jig back through with a 3/8 oz hair jig. At 7.8 kt you get a workable natural drift.
Fishing

East of Reef Complex
MED confidence, derived from ODNR's official 7/17 Lake Erie report. ~4.6 nm ENE of launch, 23-30 FOW. RANK 02 TODAY and the cheapest run after Mouse Island. ODNR puts Western Basin success east of the reef complex and near Kelleys Island, drifting, casting, or trolling with lures running 15-30 ft down, keepers averaging 16-22in. lakeeriefish's July read pushes the same pattern further east to the old C-can NE of Kelleys, which is out of PWC range, so this is the near end of it. Add a Jet Diver or 1-2 oz bottom bouncer - nothing unweighted reaches 15-30 ft down. BEST PLACE ON THE LIST TO RUN THE IN-LINE BOARDS: open water, room to spread, and crucially not a Saturday-crowded reef. Coord is derived from a descriptive report, so hunt the 23-30 ft contour on the finder rather than trusting the pin.
Fishing

Marblehead Current
APPROXIMATE. Just E of Marblehead Lighthouse in the current break. Pin is ~6.7 nm ESE of launch, but the CORRIDOR ITSELF STARTS ABOUT 3 NM OUT so you can begin working it early. Port Clinton reports name the water between Catawba and Marblehead in 18-26 FOW as a current producer, fish taken DRIFTING OR CASTING WORM HARNESSES 4-8 ft off the bottom, keepers mostly 15-22in. At 7.8 kt the natural drift is closer to workable than it has been all week, but check SOG and add trolling motor to hold 1.0-1.3 mph, or pull the harness behind a bottom bouncer. Verify the exact current break with the fish finder. Quick bail to Catawba or Port Clinton.
Fishing

Round Reef
VERIFIED (Coe Vanna Charters). ~6.8 nm W of launch, right next to Niagara. Named in lakeeriefish for jigging, 10-16 FOW. Fish it and Niagara as a single complex on one trip out. Straightforward run on today's water.

Niagara Reef (buoy 5)
VERIFIED (Coe Vanna Charters). Lighted buoy 5 marks the reef. ~7.5 nm WNW of launch. Best structure in range and on today's water the run is easy. Troll the 18-22 ft edges at 1.4-1.7 mph, or jig the rocky outskirts 10-16 FOW. EXPECT SATURDAY COMPANY: watch how the boats are working the contour before you set lines, and strongly consider going vertical here rather than pulling a wide spread. Save the in-line boards for the open water east of the reef complex.

Toussaint Reef
VERIFIED (Coe Vanna Charters). ~8.2 nm W of launch. Named in lakeeriefish for jigging the rocky outskirts. Sees a fraction of Niagara's pressure, WHICH MATTERS MORE ON A SATURDAY THAN ANY OTHER DAY. Pairs with Little Pickerel 1.5 nm to the north, so the two are one trip out. Eight miles is still a real commitment on a PWC: watch fuel, hit REFRESH before committing, turn back if the wind climbs. Snap-jig or vertical-jig 10-16 FOW, or troll the outside edges at 1.4 mph.

Crib Reef (buoy 7)
VERIFIED (Coe Vanna Charters). Buoy 7 marks it. ~8.6 nm NE of launch. The northeast alternative if you would rather not run west, and less crowded than Niagara. Watch fuel.

Little Pickerel Reef
VERIFIED (Coe Vanna Charters). ~9.5 nm WNW of launch. NEW ON THE BOARD TODAY, RANK 03, and it is here because the perch intel finally names water a PWC can reach. lakeeriefish's July report lists limit catches in 16-24 FOW at Crane Creek, Toledo Light, A Can, the Toledo Water Intake, and Little Pickerel - and Little Pickerel is the only one of the five inside sensible range from Catawba. Fish it like the near reefs: mark a school on the finder, park on it, drop a two-hook spreader with emerald shiners straight down. Pairs naturally with Toussaint 1.5 nm to the south. TWO CONDITIONS ON THIS RUN: confirm the wave estimate at Mouse Island Reef first (the buoy wave sensor is dark), and watch fuel. Longest run on today's list, but far less company than Niagara.