# Pike advice



## Summertimesnowman (Feb 27, 2014)

My son and I have never caught a pike and would like to search out a few. We live in the SOLON area. Any suggestions on where to go and what to use? We don’t have a boat, so shore or riverbank fishing is what we will be doing. 

Thanks for the advice!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## Kevin89 (Apr 9, 2014)

Head east down 422 to Eldon Russell park on Rapids Road. They have a trail that goes a decent little ways down the Cuyahoga. Spoons and spinnerbaits will catch them.


----------



## Searay (Feb 12, 2007)

North of Rt. 44 on Rt.82 there is access to the Cuyahoga river good for pike fishing to, big minnows or chubs under a float will do!


----------



## Snakecharmer (Apr 9, 2008)

Searay said:


> North of Rt. 44 on Rt.82 there is access to the Cuyahoga river good for pike fishing to, big minnows or chubs under a float will do!


44 runs North/ South...You must mean either East or West on Rt 82.


----------



## Kevin89 (Apr 9, 2014)

Snakecharmer said:


> 44 runs North/ South...You must mean either East or West on Rt 82.


He meant East, at the bottom of the big hill is the river and an access point on the North side of 82.


----------



## Summertimesnowman (Feb 27, 2014)

Thanks everyone!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## snag (Dec 27, 2005)

Another place is at la due on auburn road, shore fishing on both sides of road. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## Kevin89 (Apr 9, 2014)

Summertimesnowman said:


> Thanks everyone!
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


A forewarning, the Cuyahoga is snag central so I generally only throw cheap stuff.


----------



## tim sapara (Apr 6, 2019)

Kevin89 said:


> He meant East, at the bottom of the big hill is the river and an access point on the North side of 82.


The access point at the bottom of derthicks hill use to be an old farm. Good area to fish .I grew up in that area. Alot of pike all the way to hiram Rapids. Or use to be like that


----------



## kit carson (Jan 24, 2016)

Start at the rt 303 bridge in shalersville head upstream or downstream loaded with them. 

Sent from my SM-T560NU using Tapatalk


----------



## Snakecharmer (Apr 9, 2008)

kit carson said:


> Start at the rt 303 bridge in shalersville head upstream or downstream loaded with them.
> 
> Sent from my SM-T560NU using Tapatalk


Is there parking there?


----------



## snag (Dec 27, 2005)

Snakecharmer said:


> Is there parking there?


Just downstream from the 303 bridge the portage parks has a parking spot and a ramp , which can be shallow at times , haven’t looked at it this year.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## snag (Dec 27, 2005)

tim sapara said:


> The access point at the bottom of derthicks hill use to be an old farm. Good area to fish .I grew up in that area. Alot of pike all the way to hiram Rapids. Or use to be like that


Before you get to camp hi you get into posted private property on both sides of river. And yes lots of log jams. I went school with a guy who’s parents owned the property before city of Akron bought the land. Side note— back in the 70 s city of Akron thought about making another resivor in that valley, they were ready to start buying up property’s. That would have been a deep sucker.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## Searay (Feb 12, 2007)

East of 44 thx


----------



## tim sapara (Apr 6, 2019)

snag said:


> Before you get to camp hi you get into posted private property on both sides of river. And yes lots of log jams. I went school with a guy who’s parents owned the property before city of Akron bought the land. Side note— back in the 70 s city of Akron thought about making another resivor in that valley, they were ready to start buying up property’s. That would have been a deep sucker.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Log jams still up the river. Canoeing and fishing the cuyohoga brings back lots of memories!


----------



## snag (Dec 27, 2005)

Log jams throughout the river , last time up that way got zero fish, more pressure now. I use to walk back there from our house, better then. I was gonna mention that he wanted to take his son for pike, don’t know the sons age but that area is a bit rough walking and no wading it’s muddy and deep at spots , high banks and brush, poison ivy thick at spots. Similar at eldon Russell park high banks and deep, but a trail to fish from. Better to rent a kayak and float those sections and fish , much easier..


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## set-the-drag (Jan 13, 2013)

Ladue is packed. Also the hoga 422 there are guys that fish at the iron horse bar and kill them there. The owner says there are a couple Ukrainian guys that go there all the time and catch a bunch of them


----------



## Tekneek (Jul 23, 2009)

A few notes about shore fishing upstream from the 82 access: 1.) Be prepared for some serious bushwhacking if you're going to walk it. Take a machete; you'll need it, even right now and things aren't even grown in yet. 2.) Lots of swampy, lowland to push through along that side of the river, probably sink to your armpits in spots, wear waders. 3.) On average, the river runs relatively shallow upstream from 82 for a pretty good ways, and there's usually a pronounced current. I'm just downstream from Camp Hi. If I float the boat downstream to 82, I can't go back up unless I get out and drag it a bunch because of lengthy stretches of river too shallow to run the motor if the water level is anywhere near normal. Besides a few small bays and a couple large jams, lots of it is not ideal pike habitat until you get quite a ways upstream. It mellows out somewhat up my way, but that's a long haul from 82. It's much deeper with better cover downstream from 82 to Pioneer Trail but I think that's all posted. 

In all, I think that whole section would be tough to fish from shore. A boat makes it much easier but even then, it's pretty much a downstream trip from launching somewhere north. As others suggested, Eldon Russell is a decent shore access spot. Take a big net, cause if you hook into anything decent, you'll never get it up over some of Eldon Russell's banks without one. Fred Fuller in Kent would probably be my pick for shoreline pike fishing.


----------



## Fishinaddict (Sep 23, 2014)

Go to mosquito, fish shallow for bass with spinnerbaits and squarebills, and the Pike will show. Use heavy or wire leader!


----------



## mas5588 (Apr 15, 2012)

Mosquito no doubt. There's a dang bay named for the stinking fish


----------



## snag (Dec 27, 2005)

Doesn’t pikie bay rent boats? I used to see the boats around the north side years ago. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## Fishinaddict (Sep 23, 2014)

I haven't seen any fleet of rental boats back there. There is a boat ramp back there but never used it before. Anyone know if this is a public ramp or private? I seen a bunch of bass boats launching there. How do I get to this ramp?


----------



## snag (Dec 27, 2005)

Fishinaddict said:


> I haven't seen any fleet of rental boats back there. There is a boat ramp back there but never used it before. Anyone know if this is a public ramp or private? I seen a bunch of bass boats launching there. How do I get to this ramp?


Ok I wasn’t sure on rentals, but it’s a pay ramp, I used it years ago small bait store at that time. Not a bad ramp gets busy on weekends by the Amish. Bad part you use to have to park your trailer at one spot and park your truck at another spot, I didn’t like that but they have limited parking areas. It’s down the road north past Montys off rt 88.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## set-the-drag (Jan 13, 2013)

I thought the state took it over when they made the north end a sanctuary. Could be wrong but I could swear my grandfather telling me that 88 ramps were the only public/private ramps you could use that far north. Like I said could be totally wrong


----------



## set-the-drag (Jan 13, 2013)

I won't lie I've done just as good at ladue as anywhere. These were just screwing around casting horseradish 12s


----------



## set-the-drag (Jan 13, 2013)

Damn autocorrect. Hj not horseradish lol that would be something


----------



## snag (Dec 27, 2005)

On there website it read about being a private pay ramp, the north end refuge is still a ways up the road. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## RipitHard (Sep 28, 2014)

I used to fish the Cuyahoga stretch, from Kent to the Monroe Falls Dam, 8-!0 fish days were common. Since they removed the dam, I haven't been back there. It seems to be a Kayak area only now. Does that area still hold fish??? I used to be able to launch my 16ft. Bass boat there, off of Akron-Canton Rd. It was my favorite spot in Ohio, for targeting Pike.


----------



## RipitHard (Sep 28, 2014)

Is there any launching areas by the TackleShack? I used to fish their tournaments in the 80's and 90's. (I won a couple)...Does that store still exist?


----------



## ezbite (May 25, 2006)

set-the-drag said:


> I thought the state took it over when they made the north end a sanctuary. Could be wrong but I could swear my grandfather telling me that 88 ramps were the only public/private ramps you could use that far north. Like I said could be totally wrong


Still a pay ramp, not state owned


----------



## swone (Jan 24, 2007)

RipitHard said:


> Is there any launching areas by the TackleShack? I used to fish their tournaments in the 80's and 90's. (I won a couple)...Does that store still exist?


Tackleshack sold to another guy in the early 00's. They closed up not long after. I haven't fished it since they took out the dam in Cuyahoga Falls but there are still some really deep holes in that stretch by OH 59 in Cuyahoga Falls. I have caught pike in the part of the Cuyahoga in Akron, it is very rocky and difficult to walk but there are lots of pike in there, a very fun place to fish if you're willing to cover some very difficult terrain and learn the river. Spinnerbaits and rapalas catch lots of fish, but the big ones are almost always in a backwater and I have only ever caught them with live bait floated under a bobber. The biggest I ever caught was 34". I actually hooked it on a tiny rooster tail while fishing for smallmouth in May and came back the next day and caught it with a minnow and it still had the rooster tail in its mouth. I hope you guys catch some, my dad and I had a great time fishing down there, please post pictures.


----------



## Snakecharmer (Apr 9, 2008)

set-the-drag said:


> Damn autocorrect. Hj not horseradish lol that would be something


I was going to ask what is a horseradish 12?


----------



## TIN_KNOCKER (Nov 15, 2005)

A couple of summers ago we took a canoe trip on the Tuscawaras River out of Canal Futon. Me and a buddy each caught a couple of pike along with some smallmouth bass. We were with our wives and a big group of families so we didn't get to fish it very hard, but still managed to catch a few. This was in July. Not really ideal pike fishing conditions.


----------



## set-the-drag (Jan 13, 2013)

Snakecharmer said:


> I was going to ask what is a horseradish 12?


My secret recipe!


----------



## Alwaysanglin (Nov 4, 2019)

Mosquito for sure. But there are some monsters in Ladue which is right in your backyard. We were always in a boat, but only 20 yards from shore every time. Flicker shads landed me a couple over 36 and my buddy a 42, different days. Use two rods. One as a dead stick with live minnows or bluegill under a float and pitch the other one. Good luck


----------

