# ODNR Fish Report 9/27/06



## Big Daddy

Wildlife News 
Ohio Department of Natural Resources

Division of Wildlife
The Fish Ohio Report

September 27, 2006

CENTRAL OHIO
Buckeye Lake (Fairfield, Licking, and Perry counties)  Hybrid striped bass, crappie, saugeye and largemouth bass fishing improves this month as water temperatures decline. Hybrid stripers can be caught using chicken livers fished on the bottom or trolling imitation shad crankbaits particularly in the no wake zone between Cranberry Marsh and Elm Island. Largemouth bass can be caught around Cranberry Marsh and Maple Swamp using crankbaits, Carolina rigs, and spinner baits. Channel catfish can be caught at night using prepared bait and cut bait. Saugeye can be caught on a variety of artificial baits and minnows. To catch crappie, use live minnows beneath a bobber or small jigs jigged vertically near Cranberry Marsh.

Scioto River (Franklin and Pickaway county)  Use live baits such as soft craws or small jigs tipped with minnows when fishing for smallmouth bass. Try fishing the waters below low-head dams. The Greenlawn dam is a popular fishing spot as well. Anglers may catch a variety of fish including largemouth bass, channel catfish, suckers, and carp. Check with area bait shops for the most recent conditions and fishing tips.

NORTHWEST OHIO
St. Joseph River Wildlife Area Lakes (Williams County) Fishing for rainbow trout in Lake McKarns has been very good. Anglers are catching them from both shore and boat using live baits and power baits. Some of the trout caught have been up to 25 inches in length. 

Pleasant Hill Reservoir (Richland County)  Saugeye fishing has been excellent. Trolling along the beech area using live minnows, worm harnesses, or deep running crank baits have all been successful methods of catching saugeye. Crappie fishing continues to be good. Anglers are using minnows fished under slip bobbers in water down near the dam. Late afternoon into evening has been the best time to fish for saugeye, and crappie are being caught throughout the day. 

Archbold Reservoirs 1 and 2 (Fulton County)  Saugeye fishing has been very good. Most anglers are using jigs tipped with night crawlers. The best time to fish has been in the late afternoon into the evening. Channel catfish fishing has also been excellent on a variety of baits including night crawlers. 

Lake La Su An Wildlife Area (Williams County)  Fishing for large bluegill and largemouth bass has been excellent. Anglers have a very good chance of catching a FishOhio! size sunfish -either a red ear or bluegill sunfish. Call 419-636-6189 for reservations on Mondays from 8:00am until noon. This is a great time of the year to get a reservation, and the trees will be beautiful with fall colors. 

NORTHEAST OHIO
Rocky River (Cuyahoga County)  Steelhead anglers will be happy to hear that Ohios silver bullets are flowing in the tributaries of northeast Ohio after spending the summer in Lake Erie. While many steelheads are still cruising the deeper water with the walleye, decent numbers of 25 to 30 inch fish are being retrieved from Rocky River. Anglers are experiencing good results from the Rocky River Nature Center to the mouth of the river. Spawn sacs and spoons are great choices for bait. Please be aware of where public and private properties are located. Always obtain permission before trespassing onto private property. Other locations reporting good catches include the Edgewater State Park breakwall and the mouths of Euclid Creek and Grand River. 

Cuyahoga River (Summit and Geauga counties)  Beginning at Munroe Falls to the Portage Trail bridge, northern pike are hitting in the early afternoons. Anglers are having the best of luck with pike shiners suspended below a float while fishing in slow, deep pools. In Geauga County, some of the best fishing tends to be between Russell Park and State Route 422. 

SOUTHWEST OHIO
Acton Lake (Preble County)  Channel catfish are biting on creek chubs or night crawlers fished along the bottom or between six to 10 feet deep. Fishing for channel catfish is productive anywhere in the lake. Bluegills are being caught by anglers using wax worms or night crawlers as bait. Bluegill fishing is bountiful along the banks. Crappies just starting to bite on minnows or PowerBaits Crappie Nibbles fished about eight to 10 feet deep. 

Grand Lake St. Marys (Auglaize and Mercer counties)  Channel catfish are being caught by anglers using night crawlers, cut shad, or chicken liver as bait. Fish the bait along the bottom of the lake. Anglers are having great success with #2/0 and #4/0 sized circle hooks. Keep the bait along the sides of underwater structure such as stumps. Bluegills are being a caught by anglers using wax worms as bait. Keep the bait under a bobber and near the bottom. Fish the bait along the shore, near any type of structure including the rocky areas and seawalls, and into the channels. Yellow perch are being caught on tip a jig with night crawlers, minnows, or wax worms. Fish the bait in four or five feet of water and about six-inches off of the bottom. Largemouth bass are being caught by anglers using rubber worms, spinner baits and crankbaits in the back of the bays. Shad color variations, chartreuse, glitter green, or pumpkinseed colored lures are working well. 

SOUTHEAST OHIO

Muskingum River (Muskingum County)  Channel catfish in the 12 to 15 inch range have been biting on cut bait, bluegill, chicken livers, and night crawlers. Anglers have had success near the Y bridge area and Riverside Park - look for deep holes and sand or gravel bars. Most flathead catfish anglers prefer using live baits such as chubs and sunfish. When flathead fishing in the tail waters, try fishing in the deep holes just below fast to moderate current. Smallmouth bass anglers have had success fishing the river from Armcoat Steel to Ellis Dam. Cast near submerged structure in deeper pools and around the rock piles at the dam using jigs tipped with minnows or yellow or white twister tails. For additional access near the Ellis pool, a public boat launch ramp with associated parking has been constructed just south of the city of Coshocton north of St. Rt. 83 near the city's wastewater treatment plant.

Dillon Lake (Muskingum County)  Over the weekend, anglers reeled in several nice largemouth bass on spinner baits, twister tails, river worms and shallow-diving crankbaits. A 12-inch minimum length limit on black bass is in effect. Average bluegill size is seven inches, fish along shorelines with a wax worm suspended under a bobber. Dillon Lake is 1,403 acres with unlimited horsepower.

Monroe Lake (Monroe County)  Lake conditions are clear and normal. Anglers are reeling in largemouth bass on crankbaits, plastic baits and a variety of other artificials. Fish for bluegills at two to three feet using wax worms suspended under a bobber.

LAKE ERIE 

**The walleye daily bag limit is six fish. A 15 inch minimum size limit for walleye remains in effect for the entire season. The Lake Erie daily bag limit for yellow perch is 40 fish. The daily bag limit for black bass on Lake Erie is five. The minimum size limit for black bass on Lake Erie is 14 inches. The steelhead trout bag limit is now two. The minimum size limit for steelhead is 12 inches. **

Western Basin

Fishing effort directed towards walleye has greatly decreased as western basin anglers are switching to perch fishing. Some success has been reported on Kelleys and Gull Island shoals, in Ohio waters near Middle Island, and to a lesser extent around Rattlesnake Island and F can on the Canadian border. Drifters are using mayfly rigs or weight forward spinners, while most trollers are using worm harnesses or spoons with jet or dipsy divers. 

Yellow perch fishing is improving in the Western Basin. Over the past week the Toledo water intake, C and D cans of the Camp Perry range, Niagara Reef, Rattlesnake Island, Lakeside, Cedar Point, and Kelleys Island have all produced some limit catches. Perch spreaders with shiners fished near the bottom produce the most fish. Yellow perch are averaging 8 inches long. 

Smallmouth bass should start moving shallower as water temperatures drop heading into fall. Fish rocky drop-offs and reefs around the Bass Islands and Kelleys Island along with nearshore areas from Catawba Island to Sandusky Bay to find active fish. Tube jigs and drop shot rigs with goby imitations are the most popular set-ups for smallmouth. 

Central Basin 

Walleye fishing in the central basin has also slowed down with anglers switching over to perch. A few walleye have been taken at the north end of the sand bar between Vermilion and Lorain, seven to nine miles northeast of Geneva in 60 to 70 feet of water and seven to nine miles northwest of Ashtabula in 60 to 70 feet of water. Fish have been caught on worm harnesses trolled with dipsy divers. Fish are suspended and anglers are fishing down 35 to 50 feet. Yellow perch fishing is excellent in the central basin from one to three miles north of Huron to Lorain, four miles north of Euclid in 49 feet of water, two miles northeast of Rocky River in 38 feet of water, two to three miles north to northwest of Fairport in 51 feet of water, and two miles north of Ashtabula 45 feet of water. Fish have ranged from seven to 11 inches. Perch rigs with shiners fished near the bottom have produced the most fish. 

Smallmouth bass fishing has been excellent along the shoreline from Fairport Harbor to Conneaut in 15 to 25 feet of water. Fish have been caught on goby color tube jigs, goby color drop-shot rigs, jigs tipped with minnows or leeches, or by trolling crankbaits. 

The best white bass fishing has been one-half mile north of Eastlake CEI power plant. Anglers are using agitators with white, yellow and green twister tails. Shore anglers are catching white bass at the Eastlake CEI, Mentor Headlands lighthouse, Wildwood State Park, Rocky River, Avon Lake and Lorain piers using agitators with white, yellow and green twister tails or small spoons.

Steelhead are beginning to move up into the rivers and creeks and anglers are catching fish in the Rocky River, Chagrin River, Grand River, Geneva State Park, Conneaut Creek and along the Conneaut west breakwall. Shore anglers are using small spinners and spoons, and jigs rigged with a split shot under a light bobber. 

Lake Erie surface temperatures range from 67 to 69 degrees.

To view the predicted weather forecast for Lake Erie visit: http://weather.noaa.gov/cgi-bin/fmtbltn.pl?file=forecasts/marine/great_lakes/le/lez160.txt 

OHIO RIVER
Belmont County  Both flathead catfish and channel catfish are being caught using chicken livers fished on the bottom. Rains in the upper Ohio River watershed may trigger catfish to feed even better. Water temperatures are in the low 80s. Heavy tackle and line is suggested when pursuing flathead catfish.

Gallia, Lawrence, and Scioto Counties - River conditions are high and muddy.


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