# Today Caught Bluegills at East Harbor State Park



## Erie Drifter (Apr 2, 2009)

Well the winter blues are starting to get too us, so today we drove to East Harbor State Park in the hunt for tasty bluegills and did OK! Ice was in great shape with light winds and overcast skys we caught 60 keeper gills and thru back 100. We caught almost all our fish on the bottom using wax worms and small chartruese jigging spoons 4lb test line with bobber. It don't get no better than that. There most have been 100 guys out today and all catching. We are headed to our last sportshow in Columbus, OH Feb. 11 - 14 at the fair grounds. If your not too busy come over and see us at booth #159


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## Steelhead Fever (Dec 31, 2009)

of you dont mind where where u on the harbor??? where do u walk out of?


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## BFG (Mar 29, 2006)

Nice job! 

Contemplating a walk out trip over there on Sunday. Thanks for the report. 

And before guys like Jonny get their pants in a bunch....as you can see from the pic...that place is HUGE...and the entire thing is choked with weeds....

Best of luck...might take the kid along if the wind isn't humpin' too bad.


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## NorthSouthOhioFisherman (May 7, 2007)

Lol I ended up qutting, eventually the crowds will leave after it gets cleaned out in a couple years

But I will throw this in, although the place is weeds, the fish are picky about where they live, out of the whole thing only 1/10 of it is "fishy" the other parts the fish don't hang around those areas throughout the year for reasons unkown


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## BFG (Mar 29, 2006)

> eventually the crowds will leave after it gets cleaned out in a couple years


Never happen.


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## ufaquaoiler (Jan 14, 2010)

very nicely done! im probably trying it on sunday morning through early afternoon.


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## ress (Jan 1, 2008)

I wonder if the strong east wind could break it up. The whole lake is not froozen and there will be alot of water pushed to the west end.


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## stex1220 (Mar 23, 2009)

Me and a buddy were there today Fri 02/06. We got there around 7:00am it started out real fast we had 6 keepers in the first half hour. Wax worms and Wigglers on small glow jigs. Then the sorting started I would have to guess around 1 keeper to every 6 dink. The wind picked up real bad and the water got real cloudy so we called it a day around 4:00. Took home 36 keepers threw out ALOT of dinks


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## stex1220 (Mar 23, 2009)

NorthSouthOhioFisherman said:


> eventually the crowds will leave after it gets cleaned out in a couple years


This might be true if everybody keeps the dinks like you do. The pics you post, I would have to say I would have thrown most of those back


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## olderfer (Feb 2, 2009)

NorthSouthOhioFisherman said:


> Lol I ended up qutting, eventually the crowds will leave after it gets cleaned out in a couple years


Really? 

I'm an old guy, and first fished East Harbor as a kid back in the 1950s. It was filled with weeds, bass, and bluegills. It doesn't appear that half a century of intense fishing pressure has changed things much, if at all.

Jim


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## Tailchaser (Feb 5, 2009)

A couple of my buddy's were at E/H on Thursday & said the DNR nailed a couple of guys for throwing the small fish on the ice. After hours of fishing they kicked the little fish back in there holes as they were leaving. Those fish will never survive. I know i have caught the same fish twice on occasion but then again that was rare. I don't know if keeping them in a bucket of water would help. I release all my dinks & garbage fish immmediately after each catch. East Harbor is not a stunted pond, therefore you catch all sizes. I was out there a couple of weeks ago & never caught, what I call a keeper all day.It gets a little disheartening, but, that's fishing. Know matter what you think of our law officers, the DNR were right.


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## WalleyeMike23 (Dec 9, 2009)

was also out yesterday. lots of fish most were small. i was happy just to be out catchin something. left about 1:30 wind really started blowing. got 50+ fish threw them all back. trying again sun this time with a makeshift shanty,the wind got to be to much.


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## ufaquaoiler (Jan 14, 2010)

i plan on going out tomorrow morning as long as the roads are safe. anyone wanna meet me out there?


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## fxs (Aug 31, 2007)

Tailchaser said:


> A couple of my buddy's were at E/H on Thursday & said the DNR nailed a couple of guys for throwing the small fish on the ice. After hours of fishing they kicked the little fish back in there holes as they were leaving. Those fish will never survive. I know i have caught the same fish twice on occasion but then again that was rare. I don't know if keeping them in a bucket of water would help. I release all my dinks & garbage fish immmediately after each catch. East Harbor is not a stunted pond, therefore you catch all sizes. I was out there a couple of weeks ago & never caught, what I call a keeper all day.It gets a little disheartening, but, that's fishing. Know matter what you think of our law officers, the DNR were right.


"nailed" for what? No size or creel limits on bluegill.


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## BFG (Mar 29, 2006)

> "nailed" for what? No size or creel limits on bluegill.


I would say something along the lines of "wanton waste."

If you catch a fish...let it die...then kick it back in the hole after it is dead...you are going to get a ticket. No different than guys limiting out on the big pond with their fish in the cooler then they hook up with a triple and all three are 5# fish...so they toss back three 16" fish out of their cooler. Seen it happen...wasn't happy at all.



If you hook one deep put it in your bucket and make the most of it.


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## Erie Drifter (Apr 2, 2009)

Just drive back to boat lauch area follow signs can't miss it


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## Erie Drifter (Apr 2, 2009)

Today bluegill fishing was real slow, northeast winds muddied up the East Harbor pretty good wait a couple days. Also went thru Catwba State Park there was not car or ice fisherman in the whole park, seen lots of open water. Had some friends fly to Put-N-Bay caught 34 walleyes some 8 and 10 pounders 2 shy of there limit.


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## Tailchaser (Feb 5, 2009)

Yep killin' fish for no reason even though there is no limit. Then it becomes a form of litter. Let the fish go & grow. In a lot of states you can't even clean fish & throw the entrails back into the same body of water.If you go up north & fish salmon streams were the females die & also a lot of males, you better not clean them & throw back the carcas. You would think that turtles , crabs would get a easy meal. The DNR will give you a citation.


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## NorthSouthOhioFisherman (May 7, 2007)

olderfer said:


> Really?
> 
> I'm an old guy, and first fished East Harbor as a kid back in the 1950s. It was filled with weeds, bass, and bluegills. It doesn't appear that half a century of intense fishing pressure has changed things much, if at all.
> 
> Jim


When did this "intense" pressure start? In my time I have been out on 8 inches on a saturday and only been one or two people there, now its "intense" IMO



stex1220 said:


> This might be true if everybody keeps the dinks like you do. The pics you post, I would have to say I would have thrown most of those back


I guess I will have to post a ruler next to mine now, I can keep what I want, a 6.5in bluegill tastes the same to me


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## Hook N Book (Apr 7, 2004)

Is that Captn. Jim...?


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## luckylure69 (Sep 20, 2007)

yeah jonny. them fish you catch are tiny. ida thrown all of em back


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## NorthSouthOhioFisherman (May 7, 2007)

luckylure69 said:


> yeah jonny. them fish you catch are tiny. ida thrown all of em back


Lol I'm just not as lucky as you, those ten inchers only go past those holes when your there


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## See Oh (Dec 23, 2009)

NorthSouthOhioFisherman said:


> I guess I will have to post a ruler next to mine now, I can keep what I want, a 6.5in bluegill tastes the same to me


Good post!


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## olderfer (Feb 2, 2009)

NorthSouthOhioFisherman said:


> When did this "intense" pressure start? In my time I have been out on 8 inches on a saturday and only been one or two people there, now its "intense" IMO
> 
> Does SUMMER fishing count, too -- or only winter?
> 
> Jim


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## NorthSouthOhioFisherman (May 7, 2007)

olderfer said:


> NorthSouthOhioFisherman said:
> 
> 
> > When did this "intense" pressure start? In my time I have been out on 8 inches on a saturday and only been one or two people there, now its "intense" IMO
> ...


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## luckylure69 (Sep 20, 2007)

i heard they were comin out with a commercial on the tv to advertise fishing at east harbor even more


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## Steelhead Fever (Dec 31, 2009)

Ok guys lets stop this arguing this is not what this site is for...... and talk fishin! how is it out there?


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