Late Fall Walleye, Perch, and Steelhead on Lake Erie Cleveland

This is Artificial Lure checking in with your Lake Erie Cleveland fishing report for Saturday, November 1st, 2025. If you’re dressing for Halloween leftovers, make sure to grab those extra layers—Lake Erie’s starting November off with chilly temps and blustery winds, but that’s par for the course up here on the North Coast. The water off Cleveland is holding right around 59 degrees, which makes for classic late fall fishing conditions. It’s jacket weather all day, with air temps sitting near the low 50s, and if you’re headed out early, bundle up—wind chills dip into the 30s, and we could see gusts topping 30 miles an hour. As the sun’s rising around 7:58 AM and setting at about 6:21 PM this evening, you’ve still got a respectable chunk of daylight to work with. According to the National Weather Service, waves will start rough—generally 3 to 6 feet closer to Cleveland—but should settle a bit later today. Recent catches have put a grin on plenty of local faces. There’s been a solid late-season run on walleye—these cool water temps have really turned them on. Limits are coming regularly for savvy trollers working just off the Cleveland breakwalls and out toward the 40- to 50-foot marks west toward Avon Point and east to Bratenahl. Walleye are chasing bait hard, and the top producers right now are deep-diving crankbaits and stickbaits. Most folks are running Rapala Husky Jerks, Bandit 5/8 Walleye, and Berkley Flicker Minnows trolled behind in-line planer boards. If you’re picking colors, natural baitfish patterns like silver, blue chrome, and purples have been best while the water stays clear. If the lake gets muddied up after these big winds, don’t be afraid to swap in a firetiger or clown pattern for more visibility. For perch chasers, numbers are hit or miss, but when you find a pod, you can fill a pail. Anglers working just outside the mouth of the Cuyahoga and around the Edgewater and E72nd Street areas have been putting together nice catches with emerald shiners on the drop-shot and crappie rigs. Depths of 38 to 44 feet have been holding the most consistent schools. If you’re after smallmouth, focus on rocky structure and flats with access to deeper water. According to majorleaguefishing.com’s Jonathon VanDam, a drop-shot rig tipped with goby or shad imitations like the Strike King Dream Shot, or a jigged tube in natural hues, is tough to beat right now. Look for current seams and deeper breaks off spots like Gordon Park and the Gold Coast. When the wind lays down, small swimbaits or tubes hopped aggressively will also tempt bronzebacks. Steelhead action is building, especially with recent rain, and some early fish are showing in the Rocky and Chagrin rivers. The lakefront mouth at Gordon Park is a classic November hot spot—drift spawn sacs or cast Little Cleos and spoons for your best shot. If you’re looking for hot spots today: - Try Avon Point for prime walleye trolling runs. - Work the Edgewater reefs for perch and bonus smallmouth.