Artificial Lure here coming to you from the windy shores of Cleveland, November 13th, and folks, Lake Erie’s showing her late-fall attitude. The lake is kicking up some serious chop: as of this morning, waves are rolling in at 7 to 10 feet, and there’s a Small Craft Advisory in effect. Water off Cleveland’s sitting at a chilly 52 degrees, so bring your best gear and some caution if you’re heading out.

High winds out of the west are topping 30 knots—good news for stirring up bait, but not for smaller boats. It’s a day for sturdy hulls and experience on the water. The weather’s mostly cloudy with rain tapering off, temps hovering in the upper 40s. The forecast calms down a bit by tonight, but expect a blustery, brisk day. Sunrise hit at 7:13 AM and you’ll see sunset at 5:09 PM, so plan your drifts to make the most of those dusk bites when the walleye fire up.

Speaking of fish activity, the bite’s strong for late fall. Walleye are the main draw—charters out of Edgewater and Wildwood report boats limiting out most mornings. Fish are averaging 18–24 inches, with a few tanks pushing 9 pounds popping up west near the Lorain sandbars. Perch action’s slowed but you can still pick some up anchored around the Cleveland Crib or east by Mentor Lagoons, with fish running 8–11 inches. Steelhead are hot in the river mouths and up into the Rocky and Chagrin—look for big chromers busting bait at first light.

Best baits right now? For walleye, it’s all about trolling deep-diving crankbaits like Bandits in chartreuse or purple back, stickbaits, or running husky jerks 35–55 feet back. A hot ticket is the Fish Sense Binsky blade bait in silver/blue, cast and jigged along rocky points and break walls, especially with the water temps dropping. If you like to anchor or vertical jig, try hair jigs tipped with emerald shiners or plastics in pumpkinseed and motor oil—make sure to add a stinger hook, as those short strikes are classic cold-water behavior.

Perch want live minnows on crappie rigs, fished just off the bottom. Steelhead are smacking spawn sacs or little cleos flung in current seams at the river mouths. Local bait shops like Erie Shines and Shur Strike are stocking up on shiners and nightcrawlers, so swing by before you launch.

Hot spots this week:
- The Cleveland Harbor breakwall and lighthouse area—great numbers of walleye after dark, and a few bonus steelhead hanging around the warm discharge pockets.
- The western basin near Lorain sandbar and Avon Point—big walleye prowling the edges, especially as bait is pushed in by the wind.

Safety note—if you’re braving the open lake, check the National Weather Service marine forecast out of Cleveland and don’t mess around with these November winds. The bite’s hot but safety’s always first.

That’s the Lake Erie rundown for today. Folks, thanks for tuning in, and don’t forget to subscribe for more real-time, boots-on-the-ground fishing reports. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai.

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This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI