This adventure marks the third stop on my fishing road trip through Ontario’s Southwest region. We had the chance to visit Elgin County for a walleye fishing adventure on Lake Erie out of Port Glasgow. I was SO excited to FINALLY check Lake Erie walleye off my bucket list! I partnered with Ontario’s Southwest and Elgin County for this adventure.
Please note: It is recommended to plan ahead before traveling by connecting with local operators and businesses to determine any new public health measures and procedures put in place.
Eric and I arrived in the region the night before our fishing adventure and grabbed dinner in Port Bruce. I heard that Corner View Café is well known for their delicious perch, so we decided to check it out and were not disappointed! The perch on a bun was a definite two thumbs up from both Eric and myself (as seen in the below left image). It was very windy out so we decided to enjoy our dinner from the car while taking in the view of Lake Erie.
We booked a room for the night at Port Stanley Beach Hotel which also offers a lovely view of Lake Erie just steps away. It is a humbling feeling to be on the shores of such a magnificent body of water. My excitement grew for our upcoming fishing adventure the next morning. After checking in at the hotel and unpacking, we decided to go for ice cream at nearby Licks Ice Cream & Milkshake Bar. My goodness, we were not expecting this amount of ice cream! LOL! It was SO delicious and also neat that you get to keep the mason jar when you order a milkshake. Eric went for the Banana Split milkshake and I ordered a Cookie milkshake (both shown in the above right image).
Lake Erie Walleye Fishing
After a good nights sleep, we were up and atom for a 7am departure with our fishing guide for the day, Ben Schnekenburger of Churchville Outfitters. We met up with Ben at Port Glasgow Yacht Club & Marina and set off into an amazing sunrise on Lake Erie. What an incredible sight to see!
As avid walleye trollers, Eric and I were very excited for this experience on Lake Erie for the first time. This body of water is known as one of the premier walleye fishing destinations in the world with an incredible walleye population. We made our way out to the fishing grounds while chatting with Ben and learning more about his operation. After about a 30-45 minute boat ride, Ben began setting up the trolling spread with various types of spoons using downriggers, leadcore and Dipsey Divers to get these presentations down deeper. Our trolling speed ranged from around 2.3 – 2.4mph. Before Ben even had all the lines in the water, we were already into our first fish of the day! This was followed by a flurry of many more bites including double and triple headers. Eric and I were having a blast with these Lake Erie walleye!
Check out more of our catches in the full video from this adventure:
Over the years I’ve heard so many anglers talk about how delicious Lake Erie walleye are, but had yet to try them up until this trip. Ben’s charter guests typically join him back at Churchville Outfitters headquarters where he cleans fish and occasionally cooks for guests as well.
We were lucky to get to experience not only some great fishing, but an amazing meal of walleye thanks to Ben and his lovely wife, Ashley. The dining room at Churchville Outfitters is an outdoor enthusiasts dream with an impressive trophy wall that has many stories to tell. We had the chance to learn about some of these hunting/fishing adventures while Ben and Ashley prepared lunch. And as for the walleye lunch – it was scrumptious! It doesn’t get fresher than that!
Big thank you to Ben for such a fun and memorable fishing experience, as well as Ashley for a delicious lunch! We cannot wait for our next visit to Elgin County!