# Is it ever.........Maumee River



## 21579 (Jan 15, 2010)

Holy crap. Am I ever going to be able to fish my low-water spots this summer? I can't remember a summer that the river has been blown up like this so often, and for so long. Maybe it's just creating some new holes to explore late this year, or next year


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## fishfray (Jul 19, 2012)

This has been a crazy June. I have not fished it since early may. All this fresh water should flush out some of the trash and will help clean the river long term. But for now it's kind of bothersome


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## Nightcrawler666 (Apr 17, 2014)

Hoping within the next 3 weeks or so we'll be out there. Should make for an interesting summer to say the least.


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## Bassthumb (Aug 22, 2008)

I don't even bother until we have had 3-4 days with no rain at all. I swear the slightest drizzle will ruin that river for a week. I live a mile from sidecut and I have not even attempted to fish it this year. I cant catch anything unless it is somewhat low with at least 6 inches vis, otherwise it is just a waste of time. A real shame too because it can be awesome when everything lines up. Our weather is ridiculous these days, I swear it didn't use to be like this. maybe 1-2 weekends a summer I can find a nice day with under 15 mph winds anymore.


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## DeathFromAbove (Oct 21, 2008)

It was on the newa the other day that the river has never been this high in the summer,ever. Spring yea, but not summer. It crested at 14 feet at Waterville yesterday with a flow of 85,000 cfs. Summer pool is 2 ft or less and a flow of around 450 cfs. 
Those fish are gonna be as strong as Arnold after fighting this current for so long !


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## Bucket Mouth (Aug 13, 2007)

I agree. This is the craziest I have ever seen the water in the summer. It's like its permanently the first week of April for the last 3 months straight. I got out one time so far. I joked w/ my buddy that I would be fishing in July 2016, at this rate that may hold true.


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## kissmybasstoo (May 5, 2013)

don't worry, your sucker holes will still produce


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## DeathFromAbove (Oct 21, 2008)

After this last rain it jumped up 6-7 feet again and it looks like its gonna crest right at or just below flood stage, with moer rain coming this weekend. I havent even taken my fly rod out of the case this year. We might not get down there at all. This sucks. I live about 10 minutes from Jerome Rd. and its like my "Home Lake". Nothing else close to Toledo where you can just run down there for a couple hours.


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## Nightcrawler666 (Apr 17, 2014)

DeathFromAbove said:


> After this last rain it jumped up 6-7 feet again and it looks like its gonna crest right at or just below flood stage, with moer rain coming this weekend. I havent even taken my fly rod out of the case this year. We might not get down there at all. This sucks. I live about 10 minutes from Jerome Rd. and its like my "Home Lake". Nothing else close to Toledo where you can just run down there for a couple hours.


I hear ya. I'm about 15-20 mins away and have had some my best fishing days of my life in the river. This summer is flying by and I haven't been able to fish it yet. Very discouraging...


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## nw1 (May 8, 2014)

Does the high river level affect the catfish like it does other fish?


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## Nightcrawler666 (Apr 17, 2014)

They've got so many ledges, holes and breaks to hang out in. The only thing it really affects is our ability to get down there and get after em. I think once it finally settles down, we'll be in for a great (albeit short) summer wading season.


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## Nightcrawler666 (Apr 17, 2014)

Btw, once it does settle down. I'd be into meetin up with some guys from here to hit some holes. So, hit me up if any of you are interested.


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## Nightcrawler666 (Apr 17, 2014)

Well, looks like the river has dipped down below the 582' mark. Anyone been down there the past couple days? Drove over 475 bridge last night and saw a couple people standing on the island and the level looked somewhat reasonable. Couldn't tell what the flow was like though...


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## DeathFromAbove (Oct 21, 2008)

The flow is still pretty high at 4100cfs. Its at about 3 and a half feet at the Waterville Bridge. If it doesnt rain we might see it down to 2 feet in a couple days. Summer pool is around 2 feet or less and under 700 cfs. I dont like it til its low and clear. Wont be long


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## tribefan0225 (Jul 22, 2011)

We fished it this evening near Grand Rapids. Water was definitely quick. We caught 2 cats and lost 2 more. It's possible to get out there if you are very careful but it definitely needs to go down a bit more before the fishing picks up.


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## MuskieDan (Nov 8, 2012)

Caught four smallies and a few kitties yesterday from Maumee to Waterville. Slow for sure, but it was just nice to be back on the river.


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## Nightcrawler666 (Apr 17, 2014)

Nice!


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## fisherboy (Sep 17, 2012)

Caught nothing at dam. Using jigs. Not even a sheephead. Did not see much action by anyone, even the ones using live bait.


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## DeathFromAbove (Oct 21, 2008)

Down to 3 ft and 2810 cfs. That last foot always takes forever
No rain in the forecast til next Tuesday, then 3 days of thunderstorms. Boom! Right gack up again


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## Dr. Walleye (Jan 12, 2014)

yrick82 said:


> Holy crap. Am I ever going to be able to fish my low-water spots this summer? I can't remember a summer that the river has been blown up like this so often, and for so long. Maybe it's just creating some new holes to explore late this year, or next year


The river is finally fishable for those cats and smallies in the low spots. Good luck to all!


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## Raylaser (Apr 8, 2015)

MuskieDan said:


> Caught four smallies and a few kitties yesterday from Maumee to Waterville. Slow for sure, but it was just nice to be back on the river.


Hey Dan: What you were you throwing when you caught the smallies??


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## Bassthumb (Aug 22, 2008)

Was gonna go down tonight to check it out.... Soon as I decide that, torrential rain....ridiculous 


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## Falltumn (Jul 28, 2015)

I've been in Toledo now for 5 years for college and the past two years I've finally got back into fishing and tried out the Maumee. I typically fish for smallmouth but have found fun in going for whites as well. I also just recently got a kayak and the river still being fairly high and swift is driving me insane. I've taken it down to the Little Miami in Dayton to fish with my cousin and it was a blast. I've read on here that some of you fish the yak on the Maumee sometimes so any help would be awesome. I'm also trying to get a decent spinning combo setup to fish the Maumee either from my yak or wading. Primarily I fish casters so again I'm kinda guessing on what I should get. I'm looking at ML F or MF 6"6 rod and possibly a president reel or something equivalent. Any thoughts?


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## Nightcrawler666 (Apr 17, 2014)

I'd lean towards the Medium action with a fast tip. 6'6"-7' is a solid length. I use a Medium 7' with a fast action. Medium-light would definitely work, but if you latched onto a big channel, flattie or large carp, you'd really wish you'd had that little extra backbone to control them.


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## Falltumn (Jul 28, 2015)

Im also going to be using it on smaller rivers, lakes with vegetation so that will probably be a safe all around bet to go with a medium. I'm looking at the fenwick hmg and 13 fishing omen black. I've read mixed reviews that the mediums act like a medium light or a medium heavy. So I guess I'll just have to go to netcraft and cabelas and test them out


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## Nightcrawler666 (Apr 17, 2014)

Shimano compres are nice spinning rods for right around $100 bucks. They've got them at bass pro. I use my medium spinning setup for weightless rigs in very dense vegetation with 30lb braid and it handles it great. Have pulled a number of large fish out of the slop with it without issue. I would urge you to check out the Mitchell pro 300 spinning reel. It's great for the price. Smooth, casts a mile and is budget friendly as well.


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## Falltumn (Jul 28, 2015)

A quick Google and the compre only comes in a 7'2" medium on tackle warehouse that I can see unless they have different versions somewhere else. I'm worried that the 7'2" might be a little long if I plan to use it on the smaller Miami rivers down south. The hmg and omen are also right at 100$. Seems to me 100$ is like a sweet spot on price for a nicer rod. I've got 14# braid, you don't think that is strong enough? I've never fished braid on my caster so I'm not expert on it. I have looked the the Mitchell and actually almost pulled the trigger on it but my cousin swears by the pfleuger presidents at the same price point with same gear ratio etc. I was just looking to venture out for a lews or bump my price up a bit for a shimano saros. Have you had any experience with those?


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## Nightcrawler666 (Apr 17, 2014)

http://m.basspro.com/Shimano-Compre-Travel-Spinning-Rod/product/1110040501176/

I have personally seen these rods at bass pro in rossford. So, if you're living around the area, you may want to swing in and take a look. I just like holding a rod in my hand before purchasing it. I don't know much about those reels you mentioned, but I do know that the president is a tried and true, highly recommended reel so, you should be good on that. As far as your line is concerned, 14# is plenty strong enough. I use 30# because it is my main setup for bass in very weedy areas and I like that 30# isn't too thin. I will say though, rocks and ledges in the maumee can wreak havoc on braided line. If you look at my posts, I just wrote up my off-hand review of P-line flouroclear for a gentleman asking about co-polymer lines on spinning gear. I will be using this in 10# test once I can make it down to the maumee for some smallies. It is a solid, abrasion resistant line with a limp profile and low memory. It does have stretch to it, but I like a bit of stretch fishing rivers.


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## Bad Bub (Jan 17, 2006)

http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Shimano_Compre_Spinning_Rods/descpage-SCSS.html they also have a 6'8" compre.


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## Bassthumb (Aug 22, 2008)

A long long time ago I had a wealthy fishing friend that talked me into going the expensive route on spinning rods. That was 8 years ago and it was the best decision I could have made. I bought 2 GLoomis IMX for $275 each retail. They are awesome rods, light, strong, everything you could want. The main selling point to me other than quality was the trade in program. Since I am famous for breaking equipment.....my signature move is slamming rod tips with doors trying to run in the house quick before the door shuts. Stupid I know, but I break tons of rods doing it. All you do is send them the broken rod and $100 gets you a brand new rod. No receipts, no warranty claim. You can literally just snap the rod in half yourself and send it in, no questions asked. Ive done this about 3 times, and in the long run I think going this route has saved money and always kept a nice rod in my hands. Highly recommended. Save up and do it right, you wont regret it. It is a lot of money to shell out I know, I hated doing it but its worth saving for. If you do make sure you buy the IMX or GLX not their cheaper fiberglass or whatever it is one. You want the graphite.


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## Falltumn (Jul 28, 2015)

Beautiful, I appreciate it gentlemen. I've also read a lot about people using braid with a flouro leader so I guess I have more research to do. I have found that that's my biggest problem with the maumee is the rock snags.


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## Bassthumb (Aug 22, 2008)

I like using mepps spinners in the river due to the snag issue. They will catch most everything in there and you can keep them at whatever depth you want pretty much keeping them off the bottom. That being said, you are always going to catch more fish being on the bottom in that river. My personal faves for the Maumee are... Rebel wee craw, mepps (smaller version), and the very best for numbers is a simple float, jighead and small gulp minnow. That setup catches fish after fish after fish in there. Catfish love those gulp minnows.


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## Falltumn (Jul 28, 2015)

I appreciate it bassthumb. I've got a few boo yah double willows I believe they're called. Thought about taking the skirt off and throwing some sort of a soft plastic on it. The wee craw is my tried and true lure, I should buy stock in that little guy. I just started using white jig heads with white twister in the maumee and have been seeing success with the white bass a couple of months ago but haven't got a smallie on it yet, possibly fishing it in the wrong area or wrong depth. The main thing I want to learn is throwing plastics like tubes, senkos, drop shots. In that department I haven't got a clue. Thought I would stop into maumee tackle and chat with them about those setups. That's what I want to use on the spinning setup.


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## Raylaser (Apr 8, 2015)

Can't be graphite for sure, have 2 graphite rods (one steelhead spin and one casting) in addition to my older fiberglass rods as well as a St. Croix fly rod in graphite. Graphite is great but is expensive as stated but worth the investment if you can swing it. As Bassthumb said, you can break any rod if you're not careful so I guess that's the key. Once you've matched your rod, reel and line set-up based on your personal preference and the type of fishing you do, the most important thing is to protect your investment. Heck, I have a 7' Abu Garcia spin rod that is more than 30 yrs old and works great!! I've caught more fish on this rod than anything else (probably because I've had it so long, LOL!)

Regarding the braid with a flurocarbon leader, I fish that set-up a lot for trout in Northern Michigan on the Great Lakes or in the rivers and it works great! I love the increased casting distance I get from the braid and the lack of kink that you get with mono.

However, I have found that fishing the Maumee River I do much better with straight mono or fluro, seems the fish are more spooked by the braid for some reason even when I fish it with a mono leader. Gotta go with what works best and that is a combination of what you like and what works (in other words trial an error, but all that means is you do more fishing and what could be wrong with that?)


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## Bassthumb (Aug 22, 2008)

I've found senkos work great in slack water areas of Maumee. Never throw a dropshot there, you will lose the weight every cast. As to tubes, really there is no better plastic for smallies, but as a bottom bait you will get your share of snags. If your a bass fisherman learning the dropshot is crucial, it's extremely effective. I love the Yamo cut tail worm or shad shaped worm on a dropshot, but in the Maumee it just will be a headache. Jig and curly tail, spinner, bobber drift rig, rebel craw, rebel crick hopper, shallower running square bills, senkos, gulp is pretty much everything you will ever need there for summer. A really nice crank for that river is called the backstabber. It has no trebles on the bottom, just one hooked to the top. I buy the 15 ft diver and fish it in 5ft water cranking it and bouncing the bottom the whole way. You can get it at tackle warehouse.


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## midoh39 (May 8, 2005)

I know when I go back up to school next month I will be chucking a Keitech Easy Shiner, with EWG weighted hook on the Maumee. I literally just started using these this summer and the SW ohio small river smallies have been hammering them. As Bassthumb said you can never ever go wrong with tubes, but once again as he said you will lose your fair share of them.
Raylaser, have you tried a floro leader with the braid? Down here fishing the stillwater which can get very very clean I have fire green brain with a longer floro leader and they just don't seem to care, or maybe they have been that hungry lol


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## Raylaser (Apr 8, 2015)

Hey Midoh, have used both mono and fluro leads on my braid in the Maumee and it has been limited in success (now I was targeting Walleye and not Smallies so that may have been the difference). Not to say it didn't work, just seemed that mono alone worked better overall. I definitely like the braid with a long fluro leader when fishing Fall steelies from a pier or wading in a harbor in northern Michigan. I can get some great distance on my casts and that's key when wanting to get out to where the fish are roaming the outer reaches of an inlet!


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## Falltumn (Jul 28, 2015)

I really appreciate everyones inputs and responses, it's helped me quite a bit. Guess the wife isn't going to be happy when she sees the bpro receipt! Looking to go out tomorrow evening and possibly even float the maumee this weekend so we will see what happens!


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## Raylaser (Apr 8, 2015)

Falltumn said:


> I really appreciate everyones inputs and responses, it's helped me quite a bit. Guess the wife isn't going to be happy when she sees the bpro receipt! Looking to go out tomorrow evening and possibly even float the maumee this weekend so we will see what happens!


Good luck Falltumm and stay safe out there!


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## Falltumn (Jul 28, 2015)

Wasn't able to make it to BPro tonight but did swing through Gander for a few to check out their selection. They had the omen black (not the size I was wanting) 100$ rod dropped to 70$. They also had St. Croix Premier 119$ rod for 100$ and St. Croix Mojo 109$ at 90$. I still wanna get my hands on a Compre and see what it's about. 

Heads up - If anyone has used the 13 fishing rods, Gander has a 7'1 MF Envy Black, originally a 225$ rod for 149.00$


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## BFG (Mar 29, 2006)

I use expensive rods (St. Croix) and I will never go back. Although I do not prefer the feel of the G Loomis blanks, I have many friends who love them. The difference in feel is night and day between a high quality rod vs. an average rod. I have two St. Croix Avids and wouldn't trade them for anything. I do fish a Fenwick HMX in high water situations, as that rod has more backbone than my St. Croix. 

Slow cranking original floating Rapalas in the Maumee can also be a deadly tactic, particularly at first light and at sunset. The gold/black combo in size 5 has lead a lot of walleyes, smallies, and white bass to my hands over the years. I remove the front treble...leaving only the rear. Works just fine...and less likely to hang up. 

Good luck man...there are a lot of fish in that river.


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## DeathFromAbove (Oct 21, 2008)

Bassthumb said:


> I like using mepps spinners in the river due to the snag issue. They will catch most everything in there and you can keep them at whatever depth you want pretty much keeping them off the bottom. That being said, you are always going to catch more fish being on the bottom in that river. My personal faves for the Maumee are... Rebel wee craw, mepps (smaller version), and the very best for numbers is a simple float, jighead and small gulp minnow. That setup catches fish after fish after fish in there. Catfish love those gulp minnows.


I like Mepps also. but dont like paying 4 bucks for them. If you go to Jann's Netcraft they can set you up and show you how to make your own for about 75 cents. The best thing is the ones I make are way nicer than what you can buy. You can make them match the forage base youre fishing, from perch in lakes to shiners in the river. Easy to make and a fun way to pass the winter or rainy days.The initial cash layout can be a little high as all the parts are in bulk, but it pays off in the end with some cheap but nice, quality lures.


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## Redhunter1012 (Feb 6, 2006)

I will vouch for St. Croix. I have a Legend Tourney and couldnt be more pleased. I also use a Triumph for My resevoir saugeye fishing and absolutely love them. Both are 7' ML xtra fast tip


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## Nightcrawler666 (Apr 17, 2014)

Back to the Maumee talk...haha

Decided to go down there today for a couple hours and at least gauge the flow. It was a bit quick. I'd still like to see it at about half that. Combined with the 20 mph winds, it got a little rough in some areas. But we managed without too much trouble. 

Gf caught like 6 keeper cats floating crawlers. I had 2 15" (+/-) smallies on a strike king green pumpkin bitsy tube with small inserted tube jig. Snagged a sucker right behind the gill plate too, man, I thought I either had 1) A decent channel cat. Or 2) A 18-20" smallie. A bit disappointing, but that happens. 

The water temp was fairly warm and visibility was about 1ft. It was really just nice to get out there and get my feet wet for once. Hopefully the next time we'll find something a bit bigger.


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## Falltumn (Jul 28, 2015)

I got out there at 630 Saturday morning and fished until about 11. I got 2 decent white bass right at sunrise off of a black buzz bait then and a 11" smallie off a small chartreuse spinner. I too thought the river was a little quick but overall it was beautiful. I threw a white lead head with white twister for a bit and had a decent smallie on but lost it because my line snapped. Chalked it up to the rocks weakening my line since I am using regular mono until I get my spinning setup finished and buy floro.


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## nw1 (May 8, 2014)

Nightcrawler666 said:


> Back to the Maumee talk...haha
> 
> Decided to go down there today for a couple hours and at least gauge the flow. It was a bit quick. I'd still like to see it at about half that. Combined with the 20 mph winds, it got a little rough in some areas. But we managed without too much trouble.
> 
> ...


what area were you fishing? i like fishing independence dam for cats, wondering how it looks down there.


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## Nightcrawler666 (Apr 17, 2014)

nw1 said:


> what area were you fishing? i like fishing independence dam for cats, wondering how it looks down there.


Waterville. I do fish the dams up in Grand Rapids occasionally. Haven't been up there yet this year though.


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## Raylaser (Apr 8, 2015)

Falltumn said:


> Wasn't able to make it to BPro tonight but did swing through Gander for a few to check out their selection. They had the omen black (not the size I was wanting) 100$ rod dropped to 70$. They also had St. Croix Premier 119$ rod for 100$ and St. Croix Mojo 109$ at 90$. I still wanna get my hands on a Compre and see what it's about.
> 
> Heads up - If anyone has used the 13 fishing rods, Gander has a 7'1 MF Envy Black, originally a 225$ rod for 149.00$


I use a St. Croix #6 graphite fly rod and it's the best fly rod I've ever owned, hands-down! I've never used a St. Croix bait caster or spin caster but would have to believe the quality is superior or equal to many of the other brands you are considering. FYI, I have 2 rods from Cabela's (their brand name) one is a spin rod in an IM7 blank that I use for steelhead fishing (pier and surf casting) and it performs beautifully and is strong and light weight. I teamed it with an Okuma bait-feeder reel and it's a great combo. It really flips the lures a "mile". Just a thought for you because some guys get stuck on name-brands, and while they are usually correct in what they like about the gear, if you do some homework you may be able to save a good deal of money and buy a near comparable rod for far less and get basically the same performance (of course you also have to weigh in the replacement programs that some high-end manufacturers offer, especially if you are hard on your gear). Obviously it comes down to using the gear in real life situations before you know 100% how it performs and if it performs the way you like it. And nobody is going to give you a rod to "tryout" before you buy (would be nice though).


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## jamesryan (Aug 1, 2015)

Nightcrawler666 said:


> Waterville. I do fish the dams up in Grand Rapids occasionally. Haven't been up there yet this year though.


Grand Rapids is always packed now. Been there alot this year and can rarely fish anywhere near the dam without being shoulder to shoulder with others.

This past weekend I counted 38 people fishing just in the first 100yrds downstream of the dam


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## Nightcrawler666 (Apr 17, 2014)

jamesryan said:


> Grand Rapids is always packed now. Been there alot this year and can rarely fish anywhere near the dam without being shoulder to shoulder with others.
> 
> This past weekend I counted 38 people fishing just in the first 100yrds downstream of the dam


+1 on that. I'd only go down there at this time of the year on a weeknight. But I doubt if I'll even do that. I like my stretches of water i fish too much to deal with that. Usually have just about the whole river to myself it seems, with the exception of your occasional floaters drifting by.


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## Nightcrawler666 (Apr 17, 2014)

jamesryan said:


> Grand Rapids is always packed now. Been there alot this year and can rarely fish anywhere near the dam without being shoulder to shoulder with others.
> 
> This past weekend I counted 38 people fishing just in the first 100yrds downstream of the dam


+1 on that. I'd only go down there at this time of the year on a weeknight. But I doubt if I'll even do that. I like my stretches of water i fish too much to deal with that. Usually have just about the whole river to myself it seems, with the exception of your occasional floaters drifting by.


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## DeathFromAbove (Oct 21, 2008)

And up she goes! Hopefully it wont be to bad since these storms came out of the north and maybe missed alot of the western watershed.I got alot of water in my boat, but if its all local it will wash out quickly. I havent been down there yet. Was just getting ready to go this week.Maybe for the big fall smallies.


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## BFG (Mar 29, 2006)

Yeah I had almost 2" of rain in my gauge yesterday morning. That rain lasted forever...


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## fisherboy (Sep 17, 2012)

FWIW I have caught crap this year (after May). But I will keep trying. (& I am sick of gill fishing.)


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## Raylaser (Apr 8, 2015)

If you have access to any private ponds in the area the LM Bass have been very active, Carp too if they are in the pond you're fishing. Catching nice 12-18 inch fish that are very lively. Been using ultra-light tackle to enhance the experience! Gotta bridge the wait time somehow somewhere.


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## Weekender#1 (Mar 25, 2006)

Be sure to look at quality fishing rods at Net Craft also. If you have not been to that store hold on to your money on tackle and just have a little peak at that shop. Might be just what you are looking for. Right off the Salisbury road exit.


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## Raylaser (Apr 8, 2015)

Weekender#1 said:


> Be sure to look at quality fishing rods at Net Craft also. If you have not been to that store hold on to your money on tackle and just have a little peak at that shop. Might be just what you are looking for. Right off the Salisbury road exit.


Very good point Weekender!! Jan's is a great place if you want to get some nice, high-quality generic gear for a great price!


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## Falltumn (Jul 28, 2015)

I stopped in netcraft for the first time last week actually and spoke with a gentleman. He was a really big St. Croix fan so I'm not sure if he would be a little biased (maybe for good reason) but he said that the new avids are great rods but he doesn't like them as much as the older ones.

He also said that although he personally hasn't used the omen, he said they can barely keep them on the rack and most people that buy one come back to get more.

More to the point of the thread I went out with the wife to waterville and caught a little 10" smallie on white jig head. Tried throwing multiple colos, tubes, spinners, buzz baits to no avail. I've never been that far upstream but it seemed riverbottom may not have been to smallmouth liking. Huge slates.


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## DeathFromAbove (Oct 21, 2008)

There are some holes up there but you cant see them with high muddy water. Ive got a couple nice spots at weirs, but i cant even find them until the water goes down Just little small holes that congregate fish, but now you cant see them


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## Thumper (Mar 7, 2013)

Hey Yrick82 - rivers about as low as its been all year right now - went last night & this morning and was able to get out to some of the holes I've been trying to get to all year and did pretty good - Time to go get em ! - Thumper


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## DeathFromAbove (Oct 21, 2008)

Thundersstoms next 3 days. Yea Just cant get a break this year.


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## Bucket Mouth (Aug 13, 2007)

I got out yesterday, fishing was slow.  Caught a sheep, a white bass, and snapped my rod. Meh.


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## KaGee (Sep 8, 2006)

Bucket Mouth said:


> I got out yesterday, fishing was slow. Caught a sheep, a white bass, and snapped my rod. Meh.


Man that sucks!


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## Thumper (Mar 7, 2013)

I tried it yesterday too but all I caught was MOSS all day - LOL


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## fisherboy (Sep 17, 2012)

As usual lately it sucked for me. 1 lousy sheephead. But I was glad to get that!


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## Raylaser (Apr 8, 2015)

Thumper said:


> I tried it yesterday too but all I caught was MOSS all day - LOL


The moss is definitely a mess out there right now. Got a lot of that too. Spent the afternoon on a small pond and had a blast. All C&R.


















Nice way to pass the day and help bridge this slow time of the year until "good" fishing picks up again! Attached a few sample pics.


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## nw1 (May 8, 2014)

Fishing is definitely heating up...got seventeen cats last trip.


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## meathelmet (Aug 4, 2008)

The rain did help with the moss and the fishing is heating up.


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## Dr. Walleye (Jan 12, 2014)

fisherboy said:


> As usual lately it sucked for me. 1 lousy sheephead. But I was glad to get that!


Keep at it Fisherboy! You'll get those kitty cats! We've been down to the Maumee recently and doing really well floating crawlers for cats. Some bigguns out there!


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## Raylaser (Apr 8, 2015)

Dr. Walleye said:


> Keep at it Fisherboy! You'll get those kitty cats! We've been down to the Maumee recently and doing really well floating crawlers for cats. Some bigguns out there!


Hey Dr. Walleye: Are you floating the crawlers under a bobber or bottom bouncing with an inline weight? Just curious what's working best right now. Thanks!


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## Falltumn (Jul 28, 2015)

Went out early this evening and had a blast. I'm finally finding some holes and rapids I like to fish and pulled 3 good smallies and (I believe a drum) out with itsy tubes! Water felt great and I'm happy the algae is down a bit


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## Raylaser (Apr 8, 2015)

Falltumn said:


> Went out early this evening and had a blast. I'm finally finding some holes and rapids I like to fish and pulled 3 good smallies and (I believe a drum) out with itsy tubes! Water felt great and I'm happy the algae is down a bit


Hey Fall, not asking for your honey hole location, but were you fishing in Lucas or Wood Co.? Just curious approx where you are getting smallies right now. Currently I've been going up to the Raisin and catching them there. Not much luck with them on the Maumee ever! Have caught plenty of drum, cats and walleye but never hit a SM yet. Thanks for any intel you have (if you like you can PM me some details). Thanks!


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## DeathFromAbove (Oct 21, 2008)

you gotta walk to get away from the crowds I'll walk a mile, mile and a half to fish.Dont wanna say where on here Falls coming I believe we get some Lake run smallies in the fall..Just way to tall and fat for river fish


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## Raylaser (Apr 8, 2015)

DeathFromAbove said:


> you gotta walk to get away from the crowds I'll walk a mile, mile and a half to fish.Dont wanna say where on here Falls coming I believe we get some Lake run smallies in the fall..Just way to tall and fat for river fish


Thanks DFA!!! Anytime you want to PM me I'm always available and able to keep a secret!!!


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## DeathFromAbove (Oct 21, 2008)

Use a bobber Too many snags otherwise


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## Raylaser (Apr 8, 2015)

DeathFromAbove said:


> Use a bobber Too many snags otherwise


Thanks DFA, that's what I figured but wanted to verify. Can't fish anywhere in the Maumee without snagging some of that sponge-like seaweed and of course there's always the ever-present "monofilament seaweed" clusters that are hung-up all around every submerged bit of structure out there, LOL!


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## Nightcrawler666 (Apr 17, 2014)

The moss wasn't too bad on Sunday when I went down for a bit. Did well with a few decent smallmouth on green pumpkin tubes. Girlfriend got a few cats and lost a really nice smallie when it jumped the 4th time. She was pretty salty about it, I had to rub it in and tell her that was bigger than any I've gotten out of there so far this year.


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## Raylaser (Apr 8, 2015)

Nightcrawler666 said:


> The moss wasn't too bad on Sunday when I went down for a bit. Did well with a few decent smallmouth on green pumpkin tubes. Girlfriend got a few cats and lost a really nice smallie when it jumped the 4th time. She was pretty salty about it, I had to rub it in and tell her that was bigger than any I've gotten out of there so far this year.


Dude, don't make the girlfriend mad cuz you will pay for it a lot more later!! Besides, if you are lucky enough to have a girlfriend that likes to fish, don't mess with that. Much better to have someone that likes to fish with you than someone who complains that you are away from her too much because you're fishing. LOL!


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## Nightcrawler666 (Apr 17, 2014)

Raylaser said:


> Duded, don't make the girlfriend mad cuz you will pay for it a lot more later!! Besides, if you are lucky enough to have a girlfriend that likes to fish, don't mess with that. Much better to have someone that likes to fish with you than someone who complains that you are away from her too much because you're fishing. LOL!


Hahaha! Yea I know, I am very fortunate to have one that enjoys going as often as she does. And, she is understanding when I want to go solo as well. But, there's a lot of back and forth between us. Lots of jabs and digs at one-another. She just needs to know who the champ is from time to time.  Haha! We've been friends for like 8 years before we even started dating so, she knows how it is and what she signed up for.


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## Raylaser (Apr 8, 2015)

Nightcrawler666 said:


> Hahaha! Yea I know, I am very fortunate to have one that enjoys going as often as she does. And, she is understanding when I want to go solo as well. But, there's a lot of back and forth between us. Lots of jabs and digs at one-another. She just needs to know who the champ is from time to time.  Haha! We've been friends for like 8 years before we even started dating so, she knows how it is and what she signed up for.


Sounds like the perfect relationship. Guess she's a "keeper" to use the vernacular. Ha, Ha! 
God Bless you both and hope it stays as good as it is now!


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## Bassthumb (Aug 22, 2008)

Went down for an hour each of the last two days. River looks great, no bites, no fish activity seen. Nothing.


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## Raylaser (Apr 8, 2015)

Bassthumb said:


> Went down for an hour each of the last two days. River looks great, no bites, no fish activity seen. Nothing.


Bummer!! I was going to go down after work tonight but that report has me headed north the the Raisin. Thanks Bassthumb (I Guess, LOL)


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## Falltumn (Jul 28, 2015)

Went out again this evening for a couple hours to no avail. It was 63 and raining, made for a chilly Wade. I'm just starting to learn how the river acts throughout the year and I couldn't believe how much higher and murkier the water got from two days ago just from that little pop up shower today. It rained for maybe 5 minutes at my workplace on Toledo so maybe we got more rainfall upstream. There we're fish jumping all around me. I tried top water, suspending and bottom but just couldn't get them to bite. I couldn't make it to my holes either, wading up to my belly button was enough for me. How you had better luck on the raisin laser?. Never been up that way, how big is the river compared to the maumee? And any chance for some decent access spots to drop/retrieve a kayak?


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## spikeg79 (Jun 11, 2012)

Falltumn said:


> Went out again this evening for a couple hours to no avail. It was 63 and raining, made for a chilly Wade. I'm just starting to learn how the river acts throughout the year and I couldn't believe how much higher and murkier the water got from two days ago just from that little pop up shower today. It rained for maybe 5 minutes at my workplace on Toledo so maybe we got more rainfall upstream. There we're fish jumping all around me. I tried top water, suspending and bottom but just couldn't get them to bite. I couldn't make it to my holes either, wading up to my belly button was enough for me. How you had better luck on the raisin laser?. Never been up that way, how big is the river compared to the maumee? And any chance for some decent access spots to drop/retrieve a kayak?


it wasn't from that pop up shower yesterday it was from the showers on Sunday, some parts west of the Toledo area got 1/2-1 inch of rain I think the news said.


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## Raylaser (Apr 8, 2015)

Falltumn said:


> Went out again this evening for a couple hours to no avail. It was 63 and raining, made for a chilly Wade. I'm just starting to learn how the river acts throughout the year and I couldn't believe how much higher and murkier the water got from two days ago just from that little pop up shower today. It rained for maybe 5 minutes at my workplace on Toledo so maybe we got more rainfall upstream. There we're fish jumping all around me. I tried top water, suspending and bottom but just couldn't get them to bite. I couldn't make it to my holes either, wading up to my belly button was enough for me. How you had better luck on the raisin laser?. Never been up that way, how big is the river compared to the maumee? And any chance for some decent access spots to drop/retrieve a kayak?


Hey Falltum, never made it the Raisin last night, had something come up. As far as the river itself, it has a vast number of places you can put in a kayak easily. The fishing varies from one place to the next. There are a good number of nice smallies in the 10"-17" range throughout the system. Probably your best options for wadding and kayak would be from the Grape Dam on downstream until you get to Monroe near the mouth of the river. There it widens and gets much deeper for boat traffic so kayak only in some of those spots. Much of the upper reaches are shallow and easily wadded. Directly upstream of an empoundment will be deeper of course. I've only just started to explore this river so by no means an expert but there are some good threads about it on the Southeast Michigan Streams and Rivers blog site, here's the web address: http://www.michigan-sportsman.com/forum/forums/south-east-michigan-streams-and-rivers.26/ 

If you get a chance to try it I think you will find it to be a nice alternative to the Maumee when things are slow there. Let me know if you get up there how you do. Here's a nice 14" SM I caught there last week.


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## dwa66 (Feb 13, 2012)

yrick82 said:


> Holy crap. Am I ever going to be able to fish my low-water spots this summer? I can't remember a summer that the river has been blown up like this so often, and for so long. Maybe it's just creating some new holes to explore late this year, or next year


I feel the same way. just when it looks like it might go down. we get rain


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## meathelmet (Aug 4, 2008)

Maumee produced a good range of smallies today. Overcast with little rain and then it got nice for the rest of the day.


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## Nightcrawler666 (Apr 17, 2014)

I had big plans to hit my smallie spots this morning at 7am, but woke up sick as a dog at 6. After about an hour of writhing, I'm must've fallen asleep...next thing I know, it's 11:30 and getting hot. So much for those plans. I power washed the house and split wood all day instead. Productive, but nothing compared to that big smallie I was chasing in my dreams...


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## Dr. Walleye (Jan 12, 2014)

Falltumn said:


> Went out early this evening and had a blast. I'm finally finding some holes and rapids I like to fish and pulled 3 good smallies and (I believe a drum) out with itsy tubes! Water felt great and I'm happy the algae is down a bit


Sorry it took so long to respond. Crawlers under a large weighted bobber.


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## fisherboy (Sep 17, 2012)

Drove to BW today & looked. Guess you can drive down to the river. Also looks like no camping there next yr unless they start soon. & no it was too hot to fish


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## nw1 (May 8, 2014)

Anybody doin' any good?? haven't been out much, i'm guessing the cats are starting to slow down?


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## meathelmet (Aug 4, 2008)

nw1 said:


> Anybody doin' any good?? haven't been out much, i'm guessing the cats are starting to slow down?


I fished Grand Rapids Dam, Otsego Park and Weir Rapids with only a few fish. Probably the cold weather turned them off. Hopefully next couple of consistent temp days with get them fired up again.


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## Bucket Mouth (Aug 13, 2007)

I went out on Saturday and banged out 9 smallies and 4 farm animals between 2 different locations. 5 of the smallies were pigs, and one of the sheephead might have been the biggest I ever caught. That thing was every bit of 25" and maybe longer.


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## Raylaser (Apr 8, 2015)

Bucket Mouth said:


> I went out on Saturday and banged out 9 smallies and 4 farm animals between 2 different locations. 5 of the smallies were pigs, and one of the sheephead might have been the biggest I ever caught. That thing was every bit of 25" and maybe longer.


Hey Bucket, obviously not asking where you were fishing (unless you want to PM me (wink-wink) LOL! But any intel on what you were throwing? Thanks!


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## Bucket Mouth (Aug 13, 2007)

Kalin's sizmic grub and curly tail grub. Nothing fancy.


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## Raylaser (Apr 8, 2015)

Bucket Mouth said:


> Kalin's sizmic grub and curly tail grub. Nothing fancy.


Cool, thanks!


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## meathelmet (Aug 4, 2008)

Raylaser said:


> Cool, thanks!


Grubs and tubes work good for me ... dark in the morning and lighter as the sun gets higher


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## Raylaser (Apr 8, 2015)

meathelmet said:


> Grubs and tubes work good for me ... dark in the morning and lighter as the sun gets higher


thanks for the intel Meathelmet


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## DeathFromAbove (Oct 21, 2008)

Go to Maumee Tackle and get some 3 inch Kalins grubs in Lake Erie Green


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## Raylaser (Apr 8, 2015)

DeathFromAbove said:


> Go to Maumee Tackle and get some 3 inch Kalins grubs in Lake Erie Green


Cool, thanks for the specifics!!!


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