Wave height

I'm sure they weren't 2 foot or less, Erie changes within hours.  You need to take wave reports with caution.  They might be right at the time and can stay accurate for a while, but if the wind changes direction that lake can kick up in a relatively short amount of time.

In my experience if they forecast 2 ft or less that may only be 1-4 miles off shore ; usually it is around 3-4's out towards the first trench 5 - 9 miles off walnut access. Wave height changes as the wind does so be careful out there . Wind from the south ( hook is in the mouth ) gives you calm conditions near shore but increasing wave height as you get away from shore. Wind from the North do not go forth , wind from the west fish bite best , wind from east fish bite the least . The bold one I follow we can em blow days ......LOL which holds true on many different levels of the term.

I still say we should find out who to press about getting a bouy moored somewhere offshore of PI

It's a good idea to carry a radio on the lake and monitor NOAA weather forcasts and weather bulletins. I've cut my fishing trips short from hearing heads up weather reports from guys fishing to the west of me.
 
Storms can also pop up out of nowhere. Be real careful outhere.
 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AwOKYGkX5wU&feature=related
 
Youtube has a lot of storm pics from the great lakes. Do a Lake Erie / Lake Ontario storm -wave search when you get some free time.
Pretty neat to look at...... from a distance....

ORIGINAL: masterangler

 Charter Captains are out to make money. Jades their perspective....

 
How much money do they make if thier clients drown, or thier boat sinks?
 
I would say they have a better perspective than most of us due to experience. 

22 -25 I would guess covers most of them

agreed, but even when I used to run my 16 footer, 3's were fishable, not comfortably, but fishable, and not unsafe for those in the boat.  Any more than that and it was time to get off.

amen
 

When I first looked at this thread and read some of the responses,  I thought WTF???   CB, you're on the money (3 footers = nice walleye chop) Respect the weather & waves but as they say, stay on the porch if 3'ers are too much..

I would take 3' waves all day long for walleye fishing on Erie in the summer.  That means there is a nice breeze and when the temp. gets in the 90's, you won't be suffocating out there.  The eyes seem to bite better as was mentioned when there is a nice chop on the water.  Also, wave period has just as much if not more to do with comfort on the lake.  A 12' john boat could be out on Erie in 10-12' waves on a long period(8-9 seconds or more) and be comfortable all day long.  We used to fish 3-5's and occassionaly 4-6's without much difficulty on our 25' skiff craft.  Making turns in the trough can get a little sporty but as long as the captain knows what they are doing, it isn't too bad. 

It wasn't a forecast. it was a statement due to the 20knot winds. forecasts are given as a range.

wtf is right! elephanthead wasn't there. speculating as usual. goes by the "i know because somebody said so."

From NOAA's NDBCs website.

"Detailed Wave Summary



WVHT
Significant Wave Height is the average height (meters) of the highest one-third of the waves during a 20 minute sampling period.

SWH
Swell height is the vertical distance (meters) between any swell crest and the succeeding swell wave trough.

SWP
Swell Period is the time (usually measured in seconds) that it takes successive swell wave crests or troughs pass a fixed point.

SWD
Swell Direction is the compass direction from which the swell wave are coming from.

WWH
Wind Wave Height is the vertical distance (meters) between any wind wave crest and the succeeding wind wave trough (independent of swell waves).

WWP
Wind Wave Period is the time (in seconds) that it takes successive wind wave crests or troughs to pass a fixed point.

WWD
Wind Wave Direction is the compass direction (degrees) from which the wind waves are coming.

Steepness
Wave steepness is the ratio of wave height to wave length and is an indicator of wave stability. When wave steepness exceeds a 1/7 ratio; the wave becomes unstable and begins to break.

APD
Average Wave Period is the average period (seconds) of the highest one-third of the wave observed during a 20 minute sampling period.

MWD
Mean wave direction corresponding to energy of the dominant period (DOMPD). The units are degrees from true North just like wind direction. See the Wave Measurements section."


No way are honest 3' waves going to chase 20'+ boats off the lake unless they are steep (breaking) and at 2-3 seconds and even then, it is just uncomfortable, for the most part.  Rule of thumb is approx. 1' of wind wave height for every 5 knots of steady wind.  Swell height is usually different and lots of times, the wind waves will stack up on top of the swells for an additive effect when it really starts blowing. 

Newbie here, would my 12 foot jon boat be safe on this day, just wanted to know