# Findlay 2



## 25asnyder

Some one out there has to ice fish right get out there and see what the conditions are heard there are a ton of perch and walleye stocked in number two every does any one go and catch ?


----------



## ohiobuck

. Last year. They are hard to find and don't expect to get a lot.


----------



## aquaholic2

ohiobuck said:


> View attachment 251621
> . Last year. They are hard to find and don't expect to get a lot.


I took my equipment out there this afternoon ( Wednesday )...fished over the Christmas trees for 2 hrs, with the Marcum camera down. All I saw in 2 hrs was my minnow doing the hulla. Water was real clean, 8+ inches of hard clear ice just no fish as usual. AH2


----------



## ohiobuck

aquaholic2 said:


> I took my equipment out there this afternoon ( Wednesday )...fished over the Christmas trees for 2 hrs, with the Marcum camera down. All I saw in 2 hrs was my minnow doing the hulla. Water was real clean, 8+ inches of hard clear ice just no fish as usual. AH2


I tried one day last week. Marked a few fish but no takers


----------



## ress

I fished over those old trees this fall quite a bit and nothing. Not even a pull down on the bobber. Think I saw your rig parked over that area yesterday about 3pm. I'am dragging my feet about getting out.


----------



## ohiobuck

Wish they would put new trees in there


----------



## ress

Me too.


----------



## bassmaster001

Sounds like they need to stock more fish not trees...


----------



## ress

Both would be nice!


----------



## 25asnyder

Looks like there are decent fish there what fow do you fish wondering if u need to go for deeper or something those are tasty got to be a hoard of them some where in there


----------



## yonderfishin

Fishing at the Findlay reservoirs has not been good for a long time now , if you are lucky enough to locate some fish you have a chance of getting them to bite but be prepared to work for anything you catch. I finally got out on the ice to fish yesterday around 1:30 or so , my first time for the season. #2 had a lot of melt or rain water on the surface in spots , most crusted over with a thin layer of ice , even though the ice still appeared plenty thick underneath it was wet and slick and I didnt have a good feeling about it so I went over to #1 and it was better and there were a couple guys fishing way out toward the middle. I went out but not that far and put a hole in some good ice. Was getting a lot of aggressive bites on a teardrop and waxworm below a small buckshot spoon , it really surprised me because I expected it to be like it usually is.....just drowning worms , the bite was good but no hookups until I finally caught a small perch. He went back down the hole to grow some more. I baited back up and something was tearing it up again for a while and then like somebody threw a switch all of a sudden the bite was gone and I couldnt bring it back. It was fun but probably just a few tiny ones passing through making it look better than it was. I had to leave but first I decided to try a different teardrop without the buckshot spoon , had no takers on it at all for a while so I packed up and left. Was going to try it again today but its warm , raining , and probably pretty messy out there so I may not. The warm up and rain for the next week or so has probably signaled the end of ice fishing for a while until it gets cold again.


----------



## ress

If we get the 6 inches of snow their calling for this weekend and then followed by single digit temps next week it will be a lot work to get around out there in that tundra!


----------



## yonderfishin

When I looked at the weather report this morning I could have sworn I seen it say it was going to be warm and rainy for a week straight , but looking at it now we will be back to cold temperatures by the weekend. I dont know if it will be enough to get the ice back into condition but looks better than I was thinking


----------



## Weekender#1

Yes what I have seen at Findlay #2 is just no one fishing it. I saw a few holes out from the ramp area but no one on the ice. Then at number 1 there was a crowd of guys spread out. I talked to a guy that caught 17 keeper perch around where the fishing platform was docked. I took my grandson out the next evening and we had a lot of hits the whole time catching some of the perch of about 4 inches, nothing larger nor smaller. So looks like the DNR dumped some perch and in a few years we will have a perch harvest, thank god they did not dump more white bass. Indian is where the action is now, all the regular spots. Hate to tell you but last evening my son and his buddy went to Grand Lake St Mary, brought home 2 nice walleye and 8 fat crappie, fishing below the spillway. They are going back tonight.


----------



## yonderfishin

Weekender#1 said:


> Yes what I have seen at Findlay #2 is just no one fishing it. I saw a few holes out from the ramp area but no one on the ice. Then at number 1 there was a crowd of guys spread out. I talked to a guy that caught 17 keeper perch around where the fishing platform was docked. I took my grandson out the next evening and we had a lot of hits the whole time catching some of the perch of about 4 inches, nothing larger nor smaller. So looks like the DNR dumped some perch and in a few years we will have a perch harvest, thank god they did not dump more white bass. Indian is where the action is now, all the regular spots. Hate to tell you but last evening my son and his buddy went to Grand Lake St Mary, brought home 2 nice walleye and 8 fat crappie, fishing below the spillway. They are going back tonight.



But how is the ice ? I went over to Findlay 1 and 2 yesterday and the ice looked so bad there was now way I would be out there fishing , the wind and warmer temps had it melting away pretty quick. I havent been to Indian but its hard to imagine it being much different.


----------



## ress

The snow is what melted.


----------



## Weekender#1

I wrote the reply on the Findlay Res before the thaw started and the ice was safe, now no ice is safe, cold but starting all over.


----------



## ress

3 guys out on 1 this afternoon


----------



## yonderfishin

The ice was good yesterday and today. I was fishing on #1 today , I drilled 2 places both 8" atleast. Had a few light bites when I first got there but then the bite disappeared. There is no pattern or time of day , its all about getting lucky , but in the past ....I dont know 6 or 8 years thats what it has been like there , atleast for perch. Crappie or bluegill ?....I rarely ever catch them there so they are an even bigger mystery.


----------



## sam.baer

How was the shoreline ice?


----------



## yonderfishin

sam.baer said:


> How was the shoreline ice?


All looked good , everything that thawed turned around and locked up really fast. That means there may be some pockets half the thickness of the rest but all i personally seen was atleast 8 inches. I dont want to call any ice " safe ".....but I did a lot of walking out there today and never seen anything that scared me. Thats just #1 though , I didnt try 2... The fish are another story however ,.....almost any place has to be better than Findlay.


----------



## sam.baer

Thanks for the response. Hitting it tomorrow before work (only good thing about 2nd shift). Will post after


----------



## yonderfishin

sam.baer said:


> Thanks for the response. Hitting it tomorrow before work (only good thing about 2nd shift). Will post after


I may just go out there again tomorrow myself. I can drown a few more wax worms , nothing else to do mid winter when ya only work weekends.....


----------



## sam.baer

yonderfishin said:


> I may just go out there again tomorrow myself. I can drown a few more wax worms , nothing else to do mid winter when ya only work weekends.....


Here now. First spot didn't mark anything but had the shanty up so stayed. Hour in caught this.


----------



## Weekender#1

Now that had to be fun, nice catch, what the heck.


----------



## sam.baer

I was loosing my **** lol.


----------



## AtticaFish

I am sure that was fun. Were you thinking you were hooked into a 10lb walleye? haha What did you catch it on?


----------



## sam.baer

Yeah in the back of my head I was thinking huge walleye but kept talking my self down. 

#6lindy fat boy tipped with mousee


----------



## ress

I think in the 30 yrs I've been fishing out there I've never caught a Carp!


----------



## sam.baer

Seems to be a few good carp in there, this was at different hole later on.


----------



## Weekender#1

Oh yeah there are a bunch of those bruisers cruising the local waters.


----------



## yonderfishin

sam.baer said:


> Here now. First spot didn't mark anything but had the shanty up so stayed. Hour in caught this.


I was out there for a little while in the afternoon , got a few light bites which took my wax worm as soon as I got there but after that nothing. Atleast you caught a carp though , so that had to be fun...


----------



## sam.baer

going through some more gopro footage, found out we were jigging right in front of a mudpuppy, thought it was pretty cool.


----------



## laynhardwood

I have caught a lot of mud puppies on minnows in New London. Man it is such a let down when you look out and see a flag and then it’s a darn mud puppy. Mud puppies are cool to look at but I’m good on taking them off the hook .


----------



## 25asnyder

Dude it looks like a huge honey comb of perch beds or something right there what foot of water was that in


----------



## sam.baer

18


----------



## 25asnyder

They look like perch beds I’ve caught perch off the beds in 10 fow with half a night crawler smaller bass hook and one split shot almost like cat fishing just waiting to see the line move I’ll bet you hit that spot right about the time the gills start fanning their beds you might be surprised


----------



## Derbyfreak230

Has anybody been fishing the res since the warm up we had. Thinking about trying this weekend just curious on the ice conditions before I drive an he to get there. Thanks


----------



## ress

No fishing. Ice looks good but spud as you go.


----------



## odell daniel

yonderfishin said:


> Fishing at the Findlay reservoirs has not been good for a long time now , if you are lucky enough to locate some fish you have a chance of getting them to bite but be prepared to work for anything you catch. I finally got out on the ice to fish yesterday around 1:30 or so , my first time for the season. #2 had a lot of melt or rain water on the surface in spots , most crusted over with a thin layer of ice , even though the ice still appeared plenty thick underneath it was wet and slick and I didnt have a good feeling about it so I went over to #1 and it was better and there were a couple guys fishing way out toward the middle. I went out but not that far and put a hole in some good ice. Was getting a lot of aggressive bites on a teardrop and waxworm below a small buckshot spoon , it really surprised me because I expected it to be like it usually is.....just drowning worms , the bite was good but no hookups until I finally caught a small perch. He went back down the hole to grow some more. I baited back up and something was tearing it up again for a while and then like somebody threw a switch all of a sudden the bite was gone and I couldnt bring it back. It was fun but probably just a few tiny ones passing through making it look better than it was. I had to leave but first I decided to try a different teardrop without the buckshot spoon , had no takers on it at all for a while so I packed up and left. Was going to try it again today but its warm , raining , and probably pretty messy out there so I may not. The warm up and rain for the next week or so has probably signaled the end of ice fishing for a while until it gets cold again.


is it just me or did the state give up on upground resevoirs, they drained my favorite, killdeer, then I read bad reports from a lot of the other towns. How about stocking these lakes for the locals.


----------



## odell daniel

sam.baer said:


> Here now. First spot didn't mark anything but had the shanty up so stayed. Hour in caught this.


that'll wake you up when nothing is happening


----------



## carp

I believe all reservoirs go threw good and bad years! Bresler in Lima was a premier reservoir in the 80's-90's so was Findlay! But things change and other reservoirs become hot. Not sure whether ODNR impacts these changes or not? I used to fish Findlay all the time with great results, but again that was years ago!


----------



## AtticaFish

I do not personally fish Findlay but do fish several other of the UG's. I think the biggest problem right now with them is that they (cities) are getting really aggressive with weed control. I have seen weeds almost completely disappear in a few and the fishing has gradually went down and down in those lakes. There are still fish in them with out a doubt, but they can be tough to pattern when the whole lake is just a giant empty fish bowl.


----------



## Johntom0013

sam.baer said:


> going through some more gopro footage, found out we were jigging right in front of a mudpuppy, thought it was pretty cool.


That is so cool. I used to see quite a few of them when working on a lighthouse in Erie..


----------



## ErieEye

Attica nailed it. As the weed beds have disappeared in these reservoirs the fishing has suffered. However it's not really a matter of the cities doing weed control. The weed beds dying off over the years is moreso a side effect of the cities treating these reservoirs with copper sulfate to control algal blooms. Copper sulfate is not only toxic to the algae, in high enough concentrations it would kill every living organism in these reservoirs. Just another side effect of the excessive phosphorus runoff draining from our farm fields.


----------



## yonderfishin

odell daniel said:


> is it just me or did the state give up on upground resevoirs, they drained my favorite, killdeer, then I read bad reports from a lot of the other towns. How about stocking these lakes for the locals.


Most people agree the reservoirs are nothing like they used to be. I dont think they are stocked and managed as well as they used to be , many are over fished since the limits for many species are the same as lake Erie and the number of fisherman has grown as the local populations have , and water treatment has upset the food chain. There are probably many reasons but budget cuts are at the top of my suspect list


----------



## DeathFromAbove

I think alot of the problems stemmed from some idiot in the ODNR who thought it was a great idea to fill these Upgrounds with White Bass/perch. Those things are minnow/fry eating machines. Then they stock Walleye/Saugeye fry into an environment where in most upgrounds there is basically no cover. Big bowls with little weeds and a riprap shorelines. The poor fry dont have a prayer. Not to mention the White Bass slaughtering the forage base for the rest of the game fish population, and you have fisheries declining to nothing


----------



## aquaholic2

DeathFromAbove said:


> I think alot of the problems stemmed from some idiot in the ODNR who thought it was a great idea to fill these Upgrounds with White Bass/perch. Those things are minnow/fry eating machines. Then they stock Walleye/Saugeye fry into an environment where in most upgrounds there is basically no cover. Big bowls with little weeds and a riprap shorelines. The poor fry dont have a prayer. Not to mention the White Bass slaughtering the forage base for the rest of the game fish population, and you have fisheries declining to nothing


yep.... I was there one day when big brother showed up at the ramp with a tanker full of thou$and$ of dollars worth on tiny walleye fry... flung the hose into the water and opened the valve....We got about a 15 second blast.... many of the itsy bitsy walleyes floated on the surface.... a few wiggled off. I had just caught several wb in that area before he came.... I'm sure they fry were all eaten that afternoon....I asked why they didn't stock bigger fish that had a better chance and his quick answer was that id cost too much.....(in other words screw you guys....here is our required stock)


----------



## ress

I only drove up on 2 yesterday and the ice nearly gone!


----------



## aquaholic2

ress said:


> I only drove up on 2 yesterday and the ice nearly gone!


Question about larger HP outboards on #2... I have a newer 40hp mounted on my 16.....can I still use the boat there...with the electric as primary... do they ticket if you idle back in with the 40...?


----------



## OhioGregg

aquaholic2 said:


> Question about larger HP outboards on #2... I have a newer 40hp mounted on my 16.....can I still use the boat there...with the electric as primary... do they ticket if you idle back in with the 40...?


Unfortunately, I don't think that would fly. I wish they just had a speed limit, say 10mph. I have a older 50 hp Merc on my boat. Last summer I went to Findlay & Bressler over in Lima using this boat. I raised the gas motor and removed the fuel tank. Added a battery in its place and put a elec. trolling motor on the rear.

We managed to cross both places several times without problem. Battery was getting weaker by the time we headed back to the ramp. My backup would have been the front mounted trolling motor, and its battery. It worked, but would have been so much nicer to just start the big motor and just drive at a slower steady speed.

Years ago I had a 14 footer with a 9.9hp that I used there. Not sure what the speed was, (didn't have GPS on the fish finder or phone back then ) but it was a lot faster than 10 mph. I'm sure there are some that would push that limit and ruin it it for everybody, as is usually the case. As far as ticketing goes...not sure. I can't recall ever seeing a DNR officer or anybody there. Someone who goes there a lot more than me might have some answers.


----------



## ress

Using "Anything" over 10 hp on #2 will get fined. Period. The Div of Watercraft are there more than people think. I know the city has a person working there and DNR comes around too. Plus there are many fisherman that follow the rules and would call in boat numbers that break that law.


----------



## ErieEye

aquaholic2 said:


> Question about larger HP outboards on #2... I have a newer 40hp mounted on my 16.....can I still use the boat there...with the electric as primary... do they ticket if you idle back in with the 40...?


I know a guy that was fishing fostoria res 6 a few years ago. He just started his engine up to drive his boat onto his trailer and got busted. Years ago we used to run a 25 on these reservoirs with no problem. That's not the case anymore.


----------



## ejsell

DNR does patrol Findlay, they've stopped and talked to me a few times when I was out. Once was to survey what I was catching. The other times just to chat. I was kind of surprised they never asked for my license.

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk


----------



## odell daniel

AtticaFish said:


> I do not personally fish Findlay but do fish several other of the UG's. I think the biggest problem right now with them is that they (cities) are getting really aggressive with weed control. I have seen weeds almost completely disappear in a few and the fishing has gradually went down and down in those lakes. There are still fish in them with out a doubt, but they can be tough to pattern when the whole lake is just a giant empty fish bowl.


sounds like upper sandusky


----------



## OhioGregg

I can remember back in the late 1980's early 90's fishing at Findlay when they had the "Derby" or whatever they called it. Think it was held in June sometime, might have been a fathers day or free fishing day, to get more folks out fishing. They still had the nice restrooms up there.
There was always several DNR folks around for that. Even inspected my boat that day. Used to have prizes for each fish species caught, both from shore and boat. Youth and adult. I often wonder if they still did that today, would any one catch anything other than a white bass or stray catfish. Took a fair sized Walleye to make the board. Would catch a few, then when we come in, and see the size listed so far. Wouldn't bother checking them in. LOL Ahhh the good old days.
Back in those days, we usually only fished Findlay #2 and Killdeer. Well, Killdeer is sadly no more and Findlay just seems to be the states largest bath tub. I guess time has past me by.


----------



## ejsell

OhioGregg said:


> I can remember back in the late 1980's early 90's fishing at Findlay when they had the "Derby" or whatever they called it. Think it was held in June sometime, might have been a fathers day or free fishing day, to get more folks out fishing. They still had the nice restrooms up there.
> There was always several DNR folks around for that. Even inspected my boat that day. Used to have prizes for each fish species caught, both from shore and boat. Youth and adult. I often wonder if they still did that today, would any one catch anything other than a white bass or stray catfish. Took a fair sized Walleye to make the board. Would catch a few, then when we come in, and see the size listed so far. Wouldn't bother checking them in. LOL Ahhh the good old days.
> Back in those days, we usually only fished Findlay #2 and Killdeer. Well, Killdeer is sadly no more and Findlay just seems to be the states largest bath tub. I guess time has past me by.


They could do a white bass tournament and a giant fish fry. Around dusk in the summer you can catch one on every cast from the shoreline.

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk


----------



## thistubesforu

I guess what I don't understand is why you guys keep fishing there. If it truly is that bad fish somewhere else!! Not every upground res can be a mini Lake Erie. I fish all the bodies of water around my area some are good for panfish others bass and occasionally walleye out of some of them. If Findlay was closer I'd go there for the white bass. I don't like to eat them but they sure are fun to catch on light tackle.


----------



## AtticaFish

Have to agree, each body of water has its dominant species..... and that may change season to season. All you can do up here in the NW is puddle jump from city to city to find what species you are looking for. There are 12 different city reservoirs all within a 30 minute drive from my door and no 2 are even close to the same.

- still wish some weed beds would come back though -


----------



## ress

Weeds nearly choked #1 last summer. It was the tall grass type. Tough stuff. Some of them had to be 20' tall.


----------



## Rustynails

Aw man, getting ready to change the lower unit oil and I look out and it's snowing like heck. I had decent fishing last year on #2 but I did hit it alot. No it's not like it was twenty years ago but when I can leave the house and be on the water in 15 minutes, I'll take my chances.


----------



## ress

It was just 8 yrs ago that limits of Yellow Perch were being taken. My best day from shore was 23 10" plus fish. Many , many fish were taken over those couple years. Has not been the same sense. Many reasons why.


----------



## Rustynails

Good point ress, lots of reasons why and probably can't blame any one thing. For a lot of years i mainly fished for crappie and did well in#2. But I also did well at bucyrus, fotroit, upper and a whole lot of other places. Seems it's off pretty much everywhere nowadays. Now I'm more interested in walleye, sauger.
While im thinking about it, any of you guys ever been in the dunkirk quarry lately? Used to have great days there.


----------



## ejsell

Rustynails said:


> Aw man, getting ready to change the lower unit oil and I look out and it's snowing like heck. I had decent fishing last year on #2 but I did hit it alot. No it's not like it was twenty years ago but when I can leave the house and be on the water in 15 minutes, I'll take my chances.






thistubesforu said:


> If Findlay was closer I'd go there for the white bass. I don't like to eat them but they sure are fun to catch on light tackle.


That's why I go there with a fly rod. Conviently close they are fun to catch and I do occasionally get a nice bass to mix it up a little. Eventually I'm hoping to land a walleye on it. I've had at least one hooked.


Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk


----------



## ress

Saw div of wildlife today at 2. Looked like they were dragging a net. 3 guys on board with a buoy about 100 ft behind the boat. Rope off each side of the stern. Watched with binoculars for 15 mins then left.


----------



## ress

Docks are in today. Sure is nasty out there today.


----------



## ejsell

Looks like they took more "structure" out over the weekend.

https://socialfindlay.com/car-pulled-out-of-findlay-reservoir/








Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk


----------



## ress

I always got snagged there. Thought it must have been a lost anchor.


----------



## Bucket Mouth

anyone care for a little 5W30 in their water? Delish!


----------



## Had a Bite

That's the only thing getting pulled out of that water. I know there are fish in there, but I wish the didnt glue their mouths shut before the stocked them.


----------



## Redhunter1012

Fished for 5 hours today. I'm by no means a Pro, but I'm fairly good at capturing a fish or twelve when I go out. I never had a bite. I trolled cranks, harnesses, Deeries. Vertical jigged, tried for perch, etc.... Not a bite all day. 

Findlay sucks


----------



## Rustynails

What he said ^^^


----------



## tmorrow

They need to just shut it down with no fishing for a few years and stock the piss out of it. Has so much potential.


----------



## ress

A couple weeks ago I casted a few off the floating dock and the rez worker that I know stopped. He had a 5 gallon bucket full of the weeds that are growing near the ramp on 1. He was throwing them in at different spots hoping some where they'll catch and start a weed population in there. He said that the manager years ago had all the weeds killed off. The new manager says let the weeds grow. It's better for a body of water to have controlled weeds than not to have any weeds. He got to see the creel survey that the state did in the spring. Disappointment from years past.


----------



## ress

Good sign on 1 today. Pulled 3 5 inch perch off the boat dock area. Slip bobber at 13 ft with small worm and hook. Fished for 30 mins.

Sent from my LGLS990 using Tapatalk


----------



## yonderfishin

ress said:


> Good sign on 1 today. Pulled 3 5 inch perch off the boat dock area. Slip bobber at 13 ft with small worm and hook. Fished for 30 mins.
> 
> Sent from my LGLS990 using Tapatalk



Thats a good sign. The dink perch caught this past winter as well. Its just a shame that some put those tiny perch in a bucket and take them home. Im all for taking a few decent sized perch , not 30 but a few , ....but there are some regulars who keep anything and everything. The perch dont even have a chance...


----------



## ejsell

Fished 1 and 2 today. Thousands of small bait fish around the weeds in 1. Water is way, way down, a little green tint but clear. Didn't catch anything there. Number 2 was very green with algae. Tons of schools of white bass were cruising the shoreline. Some of the schools were 30-40 fish but I saw some really huge schools cruise by. I did catch 2 nice sized white bass and a small sunfish. The bass were attacking but not really biting.

Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk


----------



## ress

Been a awful year out there for me. I think most would agree.


----------



## Weekender#1

Perch are ON, Wax Worms


----------

