Catawba Fishing Brief - 2026-07-27
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. 7/27 is a GO and it is the CLOSING WINDOW: buoy 45005 at 7:20 AM reads WSW 9.7 kt gusting 11.7, and LEZ143 calls SW 5-15 kt with waves 1 ft or less all day. No Small Craft Advisory, no hazard banner on the Ottawa County point forecast, empty alerts array in live.json. Water up to 76.3F, warmest of the month. Southwest is the LEE quadrant at Catawba, the friendliest direction this brief reports. WHY TODAY MATTERS: tonight goes SW 15-20 kt with showers and thunderstorms and 0.5-0.75 in of rain, and TUESDAY IS A NO-GO at NW 15-20 kt becoming north with waves 1-3 ft building to 2-4 ft. North quadrant plus 15-plus knots plus 2-4 ft over shallow water is the stay-home combination. IMPORTANT: the wave number is an ESTIMATE, not a reading. Buoy 45005's WVHT channel has been dark since 7:50 PM 7/26, 69 consecutive MM rows (last valid 0.1 m / ~0.3 ft on a light southerly). Treat Mouse Island Reef at 1.2 nm as your instrument and look at the water before committing to distance. WEATHER INSIDE THE DAY: shower band 8-10 AM, slight chance of thunderstorms late, heat index to 96F. Launch at sunrise 6:19 AM, fish the morning, set a turnaround time before you leave the ramp. KEEP THE LEGS SHORT: the top three spots are all inside 5 nm on purpose. INTEL: perch is the ascending bite. The three newest community.walleye.com threads are all perch including a 30-fish limit on 7/24, and the regional read names the reefs north of Catawba as key water with the season running mid-July through October. ODNR has perch starting south of Green Island. Walleye stays east and deeper, 23-30 FOW with lures 15-30 ft down, helped by the lowest barometer of the month at 1011.5 hPa ahead of tonight's front - fish the TOP of every speed range. Two programs: perch spreader in 16-24 FOW, weighted worm harness for walleye. In-line boards are back on now that it is a Monday, but deploy them early.
Reel Quest

Catawba Pt Assoc Launch
APPROXIMATE. Private community ramp at the tip of Catawba near Mouse Island. Verify exact location. Sunrise 6:19 AM, sunset 8:56 PM EDT - Ohio PWC rule is sunrise to sunset. TODAY IS THE CLOSING WINDOW: storms tonight, NO-GO Tuesday. Launch at 6:19 and set a turnaround time before you leave the ramp. Heat index reaches 96F and a PWC gives you no shade, so carry more water than you think you need. Float plan with Jen, kill-switch lanyard clipped to the PFD.
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, two jobs. First it is your WAVE GAUGE: the buoy wave sensor has been dark eleven and a half 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 how far you are willing to go. Second it is PERCH WATER in 16-24 FOW, and the regional read names the reefs north of Catawba directly - two-hook spreader with emerald shiners on any school you mark, park on it rather than trolling through. At 9.7 kt WSW you get a workable natural drift without touching the trolling motor. For walleye work the 14-22 ft perimeter with a Husky Jerk 40 ft back at 1.5-1.7 mph to find pods, then jig back through with a 3/8 oz hair jig. Lean fast today, the barometer is the lowest of the month.
Fishing

South of Green Island
MED confidence, derived from ODNR's last filed Lake Erie report. ~3.3 nm NNW of launch, 16-24 FOW. RANK 02 TODAY. ODNR has yellow perch STARTING SOUTH OF GREEN ISLAND, and perch is the bite going up this week - the three newest community.walleye.com threads are all perch including a full 30-fish limit on 7/24. This water also sits PROTECTED on today's WSW wind, with the islands and the Catawba shore upwind, so the drift stays civilized. Idle the 16-24 ft contour watching the finder, and when you mark a school STOP AND PARK ON IT rather than trying to troll through. Two-hook spreader, #4-6 hooks, fresh emerald shiners, straight down. West Zone limit is 30. At 3.3 nm this is a twelve-minute run back to the ramp if the sky turns. Coord is derived from a descriptive report, so treat it as a search start, not a pin.
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 03 TODAY and the farthest this brief ranks, because the storm risk is late and short legs home are worth more than distance. 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. 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 it is a Monday so Saturday's traffic argument is gone. DEPLOY EARLY - the wind builds through the afternoon toward tonight's 15-20 kt and boards get harder to manage solo as it climbs. 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 work it close to home. 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 9.7 kt the natural drift is workable, but check SOG and add trolling motor to hold 1.2-1.3 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.

Round Reef
VERIFIED (Coe Vanna Charters). ~6.8 nm W of launch, right next to Niagara. Jigging water, 10-16 FOW. Fish it and Niagara as a single complex on one trip out. DAWN START ONLY TODAY - thunderstorms are forecast late and this is a 20-plus minute run home.

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 unlike Saturday it is a MONDAY, so you get real elbow room. Troll the 18-22 ft edges at 1.5-1.7 mph, or jig the rocky outskirts 10-16 FOW. DAWN START ONLY TODAY - that is a 25-minute run home if a cell builds, and today is the wrong day to be an hour from the trailer.

Toussaint Reef
VERIFIED (Coe Vanna Charters). ~8.2 nm W of launch. Named for jigging the rocky outskirts. Sees a fraction of Niagara's pressure. Pairs with Little Pickerel 1.5 nm to the north, so the two are one trip out. Eight miles is a real commitment on any day and a questionable one on a day with late storm risk: watch fuel, hit REFRESH before committing, turn back if the sky changes. Snap-jig or vertical-jig 10-16 FOW, or troll the outside edges at 1.5 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. Watch fuel and the clock.

Little Pickerel Reef
VERIFIED (Coe Vanna Charters). ~9.5 nm WNW of launch. Named perch water, limit catches in 16-24 FOW, alongside Crane Creek, Toledo Light, A Can, and the Toledo Water Intake. Mark a school, park on it, drop a two-hook spreader with emerald shiners. Pairs naturally with Toussaint 1.5 nm to the south. LONGEST RUN ON THE LIST. On a day with thunderstorms forecast late this is a DAWN-DEPARTURE-ONLY spot, and the Green Island water at 3.3 nm fishes exactly the same program at a third of the distance. If you go west, go at 6:19 and be heading back by noon.