Once Mother Nature eases up on Old Man Winter, it doesn’t take long for yellow perch anglers to shake off cabin fever and hit the water. Along Lake Erie’s eastern basin shoreline in Western New York from Sturgeon Point to Dunkirk Harbor, including Sunset Bay, the early season bite is already delivering fast limits and even faster smiles.
There is nothing more fun than the excitement of a youngster like Colton Kubiak with a 3-for-3 hook up with Lake Erie yellow perch.
This year’s early access at Sturgeon Point has been a gift, giving perch enthusiasts a head start. Anglers are already boxing out with 50 fish limits (per person) in short order, sure proof that the spring perch bite is alive and well.
When successful anglers are willing to share some of the important details, it helps to dial in the early season perch pattern and then everyone has fun. In the eastern basin, early-season perch often school in 40–50 feet of water, sometimes deeper depending on temperature swings. These fish hold tight to the bottom and bunch up. When you find them, you’ve generally found the motherlode.
Top gear and rigs are generally simple. Most folks either use commercially tied (wire style) crappie rigs for perch fishing, or they tie their own from fluorocarbon line to create two or three hook perch rigs as the standard. Hooks are thin wire number 4 or 6 with sinker weights of one to three ounces (bell sinkers). Line is 6-10 lb mono or 10-15 lb braid with a fluorocarbon leader for sensitivity. Using emerald shiners and occasional plastics, too, Bob Kubiak and his son Colton filled the cooler quick last weekend off Sturgeon Point using 3-hook perch rigs, #6 hooks and 2-ounce sinkers in 55 feet of water.
Bait choices should always include emerald shiners as the king, but soft plastics can be deadly when the fish are aggressive. Golden shiners can work too if the fish are not picky. The techniques that fill the cooler are not complicated. A vertical presentation from man anchored boat (or anchor lock with an electric motor) with the rigs kept just off bottom, understanding that perch rarely chase far in cold water. Add subtle jigging from time to time, gentle lifts and taps outperform aggressive motion. Add controlled drifts if the wind allows, and you can cover lots of water to find the fish, and then anchor up. Electronics can be the key for locating tight schools in deeper water.
In addition to Sturgeon Point, Captain Tom Miranda of Pole Dancer Charters (716-531-6683) shared that anglers can launch at the Town of Hanover site at Sunset Bay in Irving. Bathrooms are open now too, though the fish cleaning station is not yet in service. Miranda continues to put clients on daily limits when lake conditions allow, another sign that the eastern basin is firing on all yellow perch cylinders.
Bob Kubiak and his son Colton filled the cooler quick last weekend off Sturgeon Point using 3-hook perch rigs, #6 hooks, and 2-ounce sinkers in 55 feet of water.
Remember that the daily limit is 50 yellow perch per angler, no minimum size, but be easy on your cleaning chores – let the little ones go. Always check current NYSDEC updates before heading out.
From lake to table, handle your catch to keep it healthy. To make the most of a limit catch on the water, keep the fish cold and dry. Once you get home, fillet them, don’t put it off. Then vacuum seal or freeze in water-filled bags with the date on the bag. For best taste, use within three to six months. A simple recipe follows here for the “Classic Lake Erie Perch Fry.” Ingredients include 1 lb perch fillets, 1 cup flour, 1/2 cup cornmeal, 1 tsp salt and paprika, 1/2 tsp pepper and 2 eggs, plus some oil for frying. Heat the oil to 350F as you mix the dry ingredients, but keep the flour separate. I put the flour into a plastic bag and drop the fillets in, then shake to coat them with flour. Remove one at a time and dip the fillets in the egg, then into the cornmeal dry ingredient mix to coat the fillets. Next, into the pan. Fry for 2–3 minutes until golden. Serve hot with lemon and tartar sauce (or ranch dressing to be simple). Yum!
The spring yellow perch fishing fever is a tradition for many, and it can yield these tasty golden rewards. From Sturgeon Point to Dunkirk, the eastern basin of Lake Erie is delivering exactly what perch anglers wait all winter for: steady action, full coolers and the kind of days that turn into bedtime stories that can last a lifetime. Time to get after it.
Each year, deserving sportsmen and women who have made significant contributions to conservation or to preserving the heritage of outdoor sports are nominated for induction into the Outdoorsmen Hall of Fame. After committee review and verification, they are honored at an annual banquet. This year, 11 nominees will be inducted, but the notable thing about this year is that four of the very deserving inductees are from Erie County.
Joe McAdams of the Eire County Conservation Society has provided lifelong dedication to conservation, youth education, outdoor communication and selfless leadership. Over several decades of service to the sporting community, he has demonstrated outdoor leadership—not through personal recognition, but through quiet, tireless work that elevates others and strengthens the entire conservation community.
Mike Cummings of the West Falls Conservation Society was selected for his tireless efforts in support of conservation oriented community and youth events for the last several decades. He has been chairman of the archery and the muzzleloading committees, and has led the Region 9 Archery and Summer Youth Sportsman Camps at West Falls Conservation.
Jerome Gorski of Evans Rod and Gun Club in Angola has been a catalyst for youth education at many organizations across Western New York. His contributions and volunteer efforts as a hunter safety instructor and as a keynote contributor in rebuilding his club over the last decade have brought direction and leadership to Western New York.
Richard Wells of Springville Field and Stream Club, has worked hard for the Field and Stream educational sector of the club for a very long time, as well as on the Springville Community Trout Pond Renovation Project, duck banding, blue birds and other supporting youth programs.
Men and women are carefully selected for this honor based on what they have done to preserve our outdoor heritage, enhance opportunity, or support the causes of conservation and outdoor sports. Selection for this distinguished group is not based on individual achievements, but rather what they have done for others. Since the early 1980s, over 250 men and women have been honored with induction. They include outdoor professionals such as DEC personnel, media professionals, outdoor writers, and public officials, leaders of conservation organizations, and outdoorsmen and women in general. Inductees have given selflessly to improve hunting, trapping, and fishing and to preserve our environment. All have given many years of volunteer service and accomplished significant things to help others, especially future generations, enjoy the outdoors. The New York State Outdoorsmen Hall of Fame recognizes these individuals from all parts of New York State and creates publicity about them through press releases to the media and various conservation organizations. By doing so, the Outdoorsmen Hall of Fame not only seeks to honor these people but to draw attention to the causes they have served and encourage others to give of themselves for projects related to the outdoors.
Gotta love the outdoors.
Outdoors Calendar
April 16 – Southtowns Walleye Association, monthly meeting, 7 p.m., 5895 Southwestern Blvd, Hamburg.
April 16 – WNY Spring PRISM Partner Meeting, 9:30 a.m.-12 p.m., SUNY Fredonia Science Center, Room 105. Register: https://www.wnyprism.org/spring-2026-partner-meeting/.
April 17-19 – NYS Conservation Council Meeting, Register at https://www.nyscc.com/spring-mtg-2026.
April 18 – Hawkeye Bowmen Archery, Wild Animal Shoot, 7 a.m.-12 p.m., course closes 2 p.m., 13300 Clinton St., Alden.
April 18 – NYS Hunter Education Course, 8 a.m.-5 p.m., Erie County Conservation, 13319 Miller Rd., Chaffee; students register online: https://dec.ny.gov. Students must complete homework prior to class. Info: 716-537-3120.
April 18 – 3D Archery, Wild Animal Shoot, Hawkeye Bowmen Archery Club, 13300 Clinton St., Alden, NY, 7 a.m.-12 p.m., open to the public.
April 18 – Niagara Musky Association, Awards Banquet, Eldredge Club, 17 Broad St., Tonawanda, 6-10 p.m., Ticket info: Scott McKee, 716-225-3816.
April 18-19 – NYS Pistol Permit Class, 9:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m., Northern Chautauqua Conservation Club. NRA Certified Instructor: Gary Dudek. Info: 716-366-3397.
April 20 – Adult Learn-to-Shoot-Archery, 6 p.m. start, West Falls Conservation Society, 55 Bridge St., West Falls, equipment provided (bows, arrows, targets). Register with Mike Cummins, 716-655-5030.
April 21 – Erie County Fish Advisory Board, monthly meeting, 7 p.m., Bison City Rod and Gun Club, 511 Ohio St., Buffalo.
April 23 – State of Lake Erie, DEC public meeting, 6 p.m.-9:30 p.m., Woodlawn Beach State Park, Blasdell, NY.
Submit calendar items to forrestfisher35@yahoo.com at least 10 days in advance.
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