# ODNR Fish Report 7/5/06



## Big Daddy (Apr 6, 2004)

Wildlife News 
Ohio Department of Natural Resources
Division of Wildlife

The Fish Ohio Report

July 5, 2006

CENTRAL OHIO
Indian Lake (Logan County) - Saugeye are beginning to move deeper. Try fishing the top of the thermocline at the old Indian Lake (east side) portion of the lake. Many good largemouth bass can be caught using plastic worms and tube baits. Channel catfish should also be active. Fish the channel openings containing current. Pieces of fresh gizzard shad or chicken liver make the best bait. 
Scioto River (Franklin and Pickaway counties) - A large variety of fish provides good fishing opportunities in downtown Columbus and along much of the river south to Chillicothe. Try using small spinners, soft craws, tube jigs and hellgrammites fished below small rapids when seeking smallmouth bass. Doughballs and live bait can be used to take carp when fishing along the bottom. Traditional baits, such as night crawlers or chicken liver, may be fished along the river bottom to catch catfish.

NORTHWEST OHIO
Maumee River (Henry, Wood, Lucas Counties)  This time of the year fishing the Maumee River is like fishing in a grab bagyou never know what treasures you might catch. You might catch walleye, crappie, channel catfish or even a trophy flathead catfish! Try fishing in the deep holes using minnows. The areas below the Grand Rapids and Independence Dams usually hold a lot of fish. For flathead catfish, small bluegill usually makes the best bait. Channel catfish and a variety of other species will bite readily on worms. You may also catch smallmouth bass, northern pike, and a variety of other species fishing in the Maumee River in the fall. 
Pleasant Hill Reservoir (Richland County)  Fishing for channel catfish has been excellent for shore and boat. Shrimp or cut baits have worked the best. The best areas have been Baron Rd., near river mouth. Boat anglers should try fishing for largemouth bass. For largemouth bass, fish the prominent points of the shoreline in the evenings using crank baits. 
Killdeer Reservoir (Wyandot County)  Walleye are being caught in eight to 12 feet of water in the early morning. They are hitting on night crawlers or leaches fished around the islands. Channel catfish are being caught along the west shore, off the bottom at night, still fishing with night crawlers. Final, smallmouth bass are being caught in the morning off shorelines around the entire lake either casting or bobber fishing with leeches or crayfish crankbaits.

NORTHEAST OHIO
Spencer Lake (Medina County) - Eight to over 18 inch largemouth bass are hitting on buzz baits at this fifty-acre lake located two miles east of Spencer off State Route 162. Electrofishing results concluded that there are more six to eight inch bass than there are whoppers in this lake, but don't let that get you down! It'll be worth the wait once you reel in something to brag about (if it's at least 21 inches, that qualifies for a Fish OH! award). Channel catfish are also biting on shrimp or liver in the evening hours. Leaving the bait on the bottom is best since that's where catfish spend most of their time. And don't forget to keep your bait geared towards the size of fish you want to catch. A bigger fish will bite on a big chunk of bait. This lake is electric motor only and wheelchair accessible. 
West Branch (Portage County)- Walleyes, crappies, striped bass, and muskies are all hitting at this angling gold mine. Anglers are pulling in six to eight pound walleye on jigs with minnows or twister tails. Crappies in the 12 to 14 inch range are biting on jigs tipped with minnows and bass are hitting on night crawlers, live minnows, and artificial baits. Trolling with grandma lures is the ticket to the catching muskies over 42 inches. (Over 3,000 muskie fingerlings were stocked in 2003.) The hot spots are under the Rock Springs Road Bridge or the fishing pier, east of the boat ramp near the marina. Unlimited horsepower, wheelchair accessible.
New Lyme Lake (Ashtabula County) - Excellent for its channel catfishing, this small, 43 acre lake provides good fishing from both shore or by boat. Creel survey results from 2004 concluded that many catfish harvested are an average of 14 inches long. A stocking program of 1,000 to 3,000 yearling channel catfish since 1990 is proving very successful. Anglers should slowly drag chicken livers along the bottom in late evening hours for best results. Electric motors only. 

SOUTHWEST OHIO
Rocky Fork Lake (Highland County)  Crappies are being caught by anglers fishing live wax worms or crappie minnows. Fish the bait at least 18 feet deep. Use a fine wire hook in the size range of #6 to 8. Bluegill and sunfish are being caught by anglers using wax worms or night crawlers as bait. Place the bait on a #6 fine wire hook and cast into areas with submerged trees and brush. Keep the bait under a bobber or slip bobber and between three feet deep. Fish the bait along the shorelines and docks. Channel catfish are being caught by anglers using shrimp, soft craws, or night crawlers as bait. Use a #8, 1/0, or 2/0 long-shanked hook. Keep the bait under a bobber and off of the bottom and fish the bait close to the shoreline. Largemouth bass are being caught by anglers fishing around the boat docks in about three to four foot of water and in the coves with bass minnows or spinner baits.
Paint Creek (Highland County)  Crappies are being caught by anglers using crappie minnows, small jigs, or plastic twister tails as bait. Smoke is the best color. Keep the bait four to five feet deep. Defiantly fish the bait around any type of woody structure such as downed trees and overhanging brush. Channel catfish are being caught in the flats in five to nine feet of water near where Rattlesnake and Paint creeks entering into the lake. Anglers using cut shad or night crawlers as bait are having the most success. Largemouth bass are being caught by anglers using shad colored crankbaits. Cast along the main lake points. Bluegills are being caught by anglers using wax worms as bait. Fish the bait in shallow water that is three to four feet deep. Good fishing spots are back in the coves. 

SOUTHEAST OHIO
Lake Hope (Vinton County)  Located in the Zaleski State Forest region, this scenic lake can be fished from both shore and boat. Family fishing is a great activity at Lake Hope with shoreline and boat access near picnic and shelter areas. Both bluegills and crappies can be caught on minnows or worms. Late evening fishing for channel catfish should be done with chicken liver weighted to hold on the lake bottom. A variety of artificial baits will catch bass in the one to one and a half-pound size range.
Ross Lake (Ross County)  Bass fishermen should use a variety of spinner baits or plastic baits. Bluegills can be caught on night crawlers and red worms and channel catfish 12 to 15 inches in length will hit on chicken liver or night crawlers. 
Turkey Creek Lake (Scioto County) - Channel catfish are being caught from the dam at this small lake in Shawnee State Park. Most fish are in the 20 to 24 inch range and are being caught on the bottom using chicken livers.
Tycoon Lake (Gallia County) Sunfish in the five to eight-inch range are being caught fishing more than two feet deep using redworms and wax worms fished below a small bobber. Bass fishing is best at dawn and dusk using top water baits. Light colored buzzbaits seem to work best but jerkbaits are also catching bass. Channel cats are being taken from both dams using night crawlers and liver with the best fishing at dusk and after dark.

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 fish after June 23. The minimum size limit for black bass on Lake Erie is 14-inches. The steelhead trout bag limit is five. The minimum size limit for steelhead is 12 inches. **

Western Basin
Walleye fishing continues to be excellent with many limits being caught. Fishing has been best north of West Sister to the Canadian border near Middle Sister, two to four miles north of B can of the Camp Perry firing range, and along the Canadian border west of North Bass. Drifters are using mayfly rigs or worm harnesses with bottom bouncers, while trollers are using worm harnesses with inline weights or bottom bouncers and jet or dipsy divers with spoons.

The best yellow perch fishing in the western basin has been around Ballast Island and east of Kelleys Island. Perch spreaders with shiners fished near the bottom produce the most fish.

Central Basin 
Walleye fishing in the central basin has been good. Fish have been caught three miles offshore from Vermilion to Lorain, five miles north of Cleveland in 42 to 48 feet of water, six miles north of the Wildwood State Park in 60 to 64 feet of water, two to four miles northeast of Fairport Harbor in 45 to 65 feet of water, and two to four miles northwest of Geneva in 50 to 65 feet of water. Fish have been caught on worm harnesses or bloody nose, watermelon, killer bee and copper back spoons trolled with dipsy or jet divers. Fish are suspended and anglers are fishing down 20 to 40 feet.

Yellow perch fishing has been excellent less than one mile out of Lorain, two miles north of Willowick in 38 feet of water, two miles north of Bratenal in 32 to 35 feet, two miles northeast of Ashtabula in 24 to 36 feet of water, two miles north of Conneaut in 36 to 42 feet of water. Fish have ranged from seven to 11 inches. Perch spreaders with shiners fished near the bottom produce the most fish. Shore anglers are catching yellow perch at Mentor Headlands pier and Fairport Harbor pier. Anglers are using spreaders with shiners.

Smallmouth bass fishing has been excellent from Fairport Harbor to Perry in 10 to 24 feet of water. Fish have been caught on tube jigs, jigs tipped with minnows or leeches, or by trolling crankbaits. 

White bass fishing has been good 1/2 mile north of Eastlake CEI power plant. Anglers are using agitators with white jigs.
Shore anglers are catching white bass at the Eastlake CEI pier using agitators with white/yellow twistertails and small spoons.

Lake Erie surface temperatures range from 69 to 70 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
Lawrence County - Channel cats and drum are being taken on chicken liver and night crawlers fished on the bottom. Flatheads are being taken using cut bait (shad, skipjack, and small bluegills). A few hybrid stripers are being taken on cut bait fished on the bottom tight-line style. 
Monroe and Belmont counties  Freshwater drum, channel catfish and flathead catfish are being taken on creek chubs night crawlers and cut baits fished on the bottom near shore at dawn and dusk. Some sauger were caught over the weekend using jigs with a twister. Fish tail waters and water confluence areas for the best success. 
Washington County  Flathead catfish are being caught at the confluence of the Ohio and Muskingum Rivers near the Layette Hotel in Marietta. Bluegills have been the most productive bait.


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