Today may not be your idea of fine fishing weather, but sunny days already have inspired many anglers to visit our lakes and rivers, and better weather is returning Tuesday.

Warm weather starting in February and continuing into March has activated Northeast Ohio walleyes, crappies, steelhead trout and largemouth bass. It’s still officially winter, but the conditions are clearly early spring-like. Lots of fish are on the prowl for food to build fat reserves for the coming spawning activities.

Steelhead anglers John Breedlove and Chris DePaola see a couple more weeks of good fishing, while walleye pro Sammy Cappelli says the fishing is ahead of schedule. Multi-species specialist Tyler Woak is working his successful gameplan on late winter crappies on a number of Northeast Ohio reservoirs.

Lake Erie and its tributaries are well ahead of the calendar in terms of steelhead and walleyes.

“The Manistee strain of steelhead is a spring spawner and with the warmer-than-normal weather, it has them thinking it’s spring,” Breedlove said. A resident of Girard, he has a short drive to great steelhead fishing in Ashtabula and Conneaut.

He and DePaola believe the steelhead fishing is reaching full stride and will soon taper off as the big, spectacular-fighting trout retreat to Lake Erie.

“We had open water most of the winter and the steelhead fishing has been good,” said DePaola, of Austintown. “Fresh fish trickled in after each rain or snow melt. The past week we had unseasonably warm weather and I anticipate the fishing is about to peak. Check the river gauges before heading north. I think the season will come to an end soon.”

Breedlove noted that in “normal” years, the season can last as long as the end of April, “but if the warmer-than-normal weather continues, the trout will be gone a lot sooner than later.”

Cappelli says the great weather has jump-started the walleye fishing in local reservoirs.

“I was out at Mosquito and Berlin, not fishing, but saw the walleyes are starting to roll,” said Cappelli of Poland. “The next two weeks should be good and hopefully the ODNR gets the nets out soon or they will miss the spawn. The water temperatures are already in the low 40s. I believe the spawn will be earlier this year.”

Erie is “on fire” from Lorain to Huron, Cappelli said.

“Tons of walleye are being caught on Bandits 60 to 100 feet back in 35 to 45 feet of water,” he said. “New Bandit colors have been crazy good.” He recommends colors PB Free, Black Scarlet, Ledge, Geneva, Black Koi, Backlash and Catawba. Buyers can get a 15 percent discount on Lurenet.com using code Sammy15.

The Youngstown-Warren area is a hot bed of crappie fishing, especially during Lent, as knowledgeable anglers work to put fish on the table. Few are as savvy about crappies as Tyler Woak of Niles.

“The crappies are shallow at Pymatuning, where the best fishing has been on the north end, the Red Cross and Linesville areas,” Woak said. “Since the recent warm-up, the fish started moving closer to their spawning grounds.

“The same goes for Shenango, three to seven feet around sticks and structures. Berlin is having a great year for size and numbers, and could be a sleeper for those looking to get away from the big crowds.”

Mosquito Lake always is hot for spring crappies. This year is no exception.

“Mosquito is starting to heat up on the north side of the causeway on the rocks at night. For some reason, Mosquito is a night-bite lake and with the warm water, it should be a great spring.”

Woak recommends a 1/32-ounce jig and Bobby Garland body under s slip bobber. “It’s my go-to rig. Also, for Mosquito, I like a slip bobber with a small live minnow. I cast five to 10 feet off the rocks. No need to go deeper.”

Based on the promising reports from Breedlove, DePaola, Cappelli and Woak, there is little doubt it’s time to get the 2024 fishing season started.

Jack Wollitz is the author of “The Common Angler,” a book featuring stories about experiences that help define the “why” behind anglers’ passion for fishing. Email Jack at jackbbaass@gmail.com.