# Lake Hope



## drew7997 (Sep 3, 2012)

Camping at Lake Hope at the end of August. Is the fishing any good there during that time of year? I would hate to bring my boat all the way from Akron when it would not be. 

From Drew on my Droid X

LMB:7 largest-13"
Gills: 
Crappie:


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## cane pole (Nov 27, 2011)

I have caught some decent bass there in Aug. during a full moon using top water baits. Trolling motor only. Decent being one and a half to two and a half lbs. Bunch of one - two pounders.
Good luck


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## lang99 (Mar 6, 2009)

Hope is a fun lake and also one of the most beautiful lakes around. It is pretty clear. It has some good laydowns to flip. my favorite thing is to head towards the back and frog fish the lilly's. I have never caught any monsters but have caught some decent numbers. I watched a teenage kid catch a monster bass, cat fishing at the boat dock one night. It was all of 5lbs if not 6lbs, he was going to keep it but i talked him into releasing it.


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## drew7997 (Sep 3, 2012)

Thanks for the replies. I appreciate it. Electric only. Got it. I'll have too look up the size limit. Its probably c&r for me anyway. 

From Drew on my Droid X

LMB: 7 largest-13"
Gills: 
Crappie:


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## JignPig Guide (Aug 3, 2007)

In August I recommend three things about Lake Hope: fish the lily pads with whatever you want, deep crankin' the ledges, or pitchin' jigs into the laydowns.


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## drew7997 (Sep 3, 2012)

Good recommendation jignpig. Thanks. I'll keep those in mind when I'm out there. 

From Drew on my Droid X

LMB: 13 largest-13"
Gills: 
Crappie: 5 largest 9"
Other: 1


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## drew7997 (Sep 3, 2012)

All,
If I could inquire on some personal local Lake Hope Campground knowledge.
I performed some research and wanted to have it verified.I'd like a blind verification as well.
What camping sites are shady that have a flat grounds suitable for tent camping? I was there once before about 8 years ago and just remember hills on every site... Need shade for the dog and flat for the wife! lol. thoughts?


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## drew7997 (Sep 3, 2012)

No camping recommendations? Anyone? 

From Drew on my Droid X

LMB: 13 largest-13"
Gills: 
Crappie: 5 largest 9"
Other: 1


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## FishNerd (Apr 22, 2013)

Most of the campground is shaded at least part of the day, it's on a steep ridge in a densely-forested area. I can't give you recommendations on all of the potential best spots, but if you go to the State Park website and reserve spots there, try to get close (but not too close, if you know what I mean) to the bathrooms. If you don't want to reserve ahead of time, they usually have plenty of spots in August, drive around the campground and look for a spot that works best for you.

Here's a link to a PDF of the map of the campground:
http://www.dnr.state.oh.us/Portals/2/parkmaps/lakehopecampmap.pdf
I've stayed twice in spot 170/169 (we got two spots next to each other for several people to camp together), it's a decent spot with a raised, slightly sloping area thats good for a tent and the parking spot is good for a truck/boat (more on that later). The upsides is you only have neighbors on one side there. The other spot I stayed in is the spur in the far right of the map with campsites 50-61. The ground is bare (yes, be warned that you're gonna want some padding if you're tent camping, all the campsites are pretty wore out and lots of bare rock around, it's a rocky area), but there's plenty of trees and that area is close to the showers and has it's own bathroom. When my girlfriend and I stayed there in early August a few years back there was no one there! We had the whole area to ourselves, so we spread out over like three campsites lol. 

I will mention this, the campground is NOT close to the lake, you'll have to drive down a rather steep switchback to get to and from the grounds. Also, check the size of the parking area for your campsite. Some of them are pretty short and the asphalt is raised up to a foot above the surrounding campsite, so if you've got a boat...check ahead of time to make sure your truck/boat will fit!

South of the park along 278 there's a bait and camping supply shop. It's well stocked and they have firewood, don't buy it at the park!

The Lodge at Lake Hope is open now, wasn't when I was there but I hear it's nice.

That all being said, Lake Hope is a very nice lake that's not as crowded with boats as some, it's long, skinny, and clear, but I've had good luck catching catfish, crappie, bass, and sunfish when I've been there. If you want an idea of what's in there, go down by where you can rent canoes and look into the water by the dock, which is unfortunately a no-fishing area. You'll likely see a few monster catfish and bass wanting to be fed!


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## Just Cruz N (Jun 1, 2013)

For what it's worth, we camp at Happy Hills Campground which is just a short ride N on 278 to 56. Nice place with clean and well taken care of bathhouses/restrooms, pet friendly, and nice campsites.

We take our compact pontoon down there at least 2X a year.... fish Lake Hope a lot. We have watched each year as the general size of all fish has increased. Nice cats, bass, saugeye, and panfish. They've done a nice job of managing that lake!

From there you're not too far from Lake Snowden, Dow Lake, and Burr Run. We tend to hit most if not all of these when we're there but we enjoy Hope the best because of the quiet and small # of boats. 

You can try Lake Logan at the 664 exit of rt33 but we call it the "dead sea".... we dropped in there 3 years ago to find TONS of crap floating, numerous places where it looked like oil spills (rainbows in water), overloaded with big 'toons and we didn't chart or catch anything. It may have changed since then but I couldn't tell you. 

We DO ALWAYS go to the 664 exit for the Millstone BBQ which is IMHO the best I've found.... ABSOLUTELY a MUST STOP every time we're down there!

Good luck and enjoy!!


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## drew7997 (Sep 3, 2012)

Thanks for the replies Just Cruz and Fish Nerd. I appreciate it. 

I'm familiar enough with the camp that the sites are not near water. 
We always hit Millstone bbq as well. Best ever. Wish they would come to Akron! Lol
Anybody else have any shady/flat campsites? 

From Drew on my Droid X

LMB: 18 largest-13"
Gills: 
Crappie: 6 largest 9"
Other: 1


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