CLEVELAND, Ohio — The Ohio Division of Wildlife reported late last year that the 2018 Lake Erie walleye hatch was the best on record. Those 4- and 5-inch walleye celebrated their first birthday this spring. This summer they’ve now grown large enough to chase a lure — but it will take many months for them to reach the legal-size limit of 15 inches.

Trolling anglers will face big schools of the youngsters, and should take care to wet their hands and gently release the baby walleye. It is also a good bet to check trolling lines early and often. It is difficult to tell if one of the small walleye has been hooked. Some anglers this week are reeling in their trolling lines every five to 10 minutes, just to make sure they are not dragging around one of the youngsters, which are plentiful and very hungry.

CENTRAL LAKE ERIE

Lake Erie walleye fishermen will have smooth sailing this weekend, with southwest winds landing on Lake Erie after a slight chance of Friday night thunderstorms. The hot walleye fishing has been from Huron to Cleveland, although the big schools of good-sized walleye have moved a little further offshore this week.

The best walleye fishing has been from Lorain to Avon Point, with nice walleye hanging around about nine miles northeast of Lorain and off Avon Lake. The best programs have been trolling Reef Runner and Bandit diving plugs and Stinger, Silver Streak and Badmo spoons behind Dipsy, Jet and Tru-Trip diving planers combined with side planer boards.

The colorful names of the spoons that have been collecting limits of walleye are Silver Streak’s Yellow Anti-freeze, Stinger’s Fluorescent NASCAR. Chicken Wing and Blueberry Muffin. BadMo’s Kryptonite has a lot of fans, as well as its BadMojo.

Small boat fishermen who don’t want to run offshore have been taking advantage of the smaller schools of walleye that are still hanging around the 18- to 20-foot depths closer to shore.

The yellow perch fishing continues to be very slow, with some perch caught around Cleveland Harbor. Limits of 30 perch have been hard to find.

Smallmouth bass are being caught in 17 to 22 feet of water around the harbor areas, and the shoreline rock piles in Cleveland, Fairport Harbor, Geneva, Ashtabula and Conneaut. The top lures have been tube jigs, drop shot rigs tipped with soft plastics or nightcrawlers, golden shiners, leeches and crayfish. Emerald shiner minnows are a top bait for bass and perch, but very hard to find at local bait shops.

WESTERN LAKE ERIE

The walleye seem to be scattered around the Western Basin and the Lake Erie Islands, but fishermen are still catching some limits of fish while trolling or drift-and-cast fishing. Many of the charter boats are focusing on the dumping grounds off Cedar Point, and the waters three to six miles east of Kelleys Island.

Rock pile fishermen have been casting to much shallower structure around Gull Reef and Kelleys Island Shoal. The small single-spinner rigs and nightcrawlers are doing best, but traditional weight-forward spinners and nightcrawlers are catching their share.

Some yellow perch are being caught east of the Perry Monument on South Bass Island on crappie rigs. Anglers are using a combination of lively golden shiners and frozen emerald shiners, which are still available at some of the tackle shops in the area.

A few perch anglers have been reporting success in the B Can area off the Camp Perry firing range. The perch have been suspending two to three feet off the lake bottom.

The largemouth bass fishing has been good in East Harbor and West Harbor, and around near-shore weed beds on Lake Erie. Smallmouth bass are being caught around rocky structure in 15 to 25 feet of water.

INLAND LAKES, RESERVOIRS

The lake and reservoir bass fishing have been best around Northeast Ohio very early or late in the day during the dogs days of August. Top waters range from Wallace Lake in Berea, where lots of big bass were trapped on private ponds and relocated, and on Pymatuning and Mosquito reservoirs, where topwater lures are scoring around the weed beds in early morning. The Portage Lakes bass have been biting, especially around Turkeyfoot Lake.

Swim jigs and swim baits have been fooling bass, as well has small creature baits, spinnerbaits and small, shallow-running diving plugs.

The cool waters of local upground reservoirs are giving up bass, panfish and catfish, including Oberlin, Wellington and Norwalk reservoirs. Fish the rip-rap edges of those reservoirs early in the day with drop shot rigs and small jigs and soft plastic creature baits.

Muskies are often more eager to bite during August. Troll or cast the shoreline areas of Pymatuning, West Branch, Leesville and Clear Fork reservoirs.