# CC saugeye...... Anybody??



## s-moore-937 (Dec 14, 2010)

In the last two weeks I have probably caught close to 30 saugeye. Out of those 30. I’ve had 2 keepers. Just about all of them were 1/2” to 1/4” short. Its like im catching the same damn fish everytime I go to the lake. Lol. Just curious how everyone else has been doing??


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## Harry1959 (Mar 17, 2011)

the same experience, but only catching a few.


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## HeaVyMeTaLFiSHinGFiEnD (Oct 2, 2010)

Harry1959 said:


> the same experience, but only catching a few.


22" has been biggest so far for me this season. Caught around 3am SHALLOW!!! Everything else has been thrown back ot barley legal.


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## Troy Dave (Jan 26, 2007)

I caught a big one a couple weeks ago while fishing for musky. It was in 2 to 3 fow around 10am


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## Lil Crappie (Jun 17, 2013)

Only 1 over 20”s this year. Too much fishing pressure? Maybe a study needs done? Might need to work harder.


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## Southernsaug (May 23, 2019)

This is interesting. Did anyone follow the thread in central ohio about size limits? I was pretty much over ruled that the limit works and there are plenty of big fish if I knew how to catch them. I been seeing the same thing a Rocky Fork, shorts everywhere and no keepers. I think the length limit only leads to over harvest of the larger fish.


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## s-moore-937 (Dec 14, 2010)

Southernsaug said:


> This is interesting. Did anyone follow the thread in central ohio about size limits? I was pretty much over ruled that the limit works and there are plenty of big fish if I knew how to catch them. I been seeing the same thing a Rocky Fork, shorts everywhere and no keepers. I think the length limit only leads to over harvest of the larger fish.


I did read where you had posted about that earlier last week, before it moved to the Central Forums.


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## BMagill (May 5, 2004)

Just started fishing CC for saugeyes this year (since I picked up the boat in April). First one we caught was 18", since then a steady stream of 13"-14.5"ers.


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## dtwarrow (Mar 30, 2007)

I am reading this and thinking, man, next year you all will have a crap ton of keepers! I am betting that is from a good spawn year (those same size fish) and they will all get bigger at the same time, probably even before this year is over if they are all barely short... 
and also betting the year before, was a crappy spawn year... it happens. Its not always fishing pressure. Just my 2 cents


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## Southernsaug (May 23, 2019)

dtwarrow said:


> I am reading this and thinking, man, next year you all will have a crap ton of keepers!


I'd be willing to bet that is not how it will be. Next year it will be a staedy stream of 13-14.75" Saugeye. I have watched it on length limit lakes for years and it never changes. The legal fish are continuously harvested as they gain size. Oh yeah, they aren't spawned they are stocked hybrids.


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## garhtr (Jan 12, 2009)

I always wondered if the small size of CC (same on Paint crk lake for me) saugeye had any thing to do with the lake being used primarily for flood control. I have much better success on lakes with open spillways, makes me wonder.
Maybe time to pull the plug on saugeye and stock some "real" Hybrids in CC or better Paint.
Good luck and good fishing !


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## Saugeyefisher (Jul 19, 2010)

garhtr said:


> I always wondered if the small size of CC (same on Paint crk lake for me) saugeye had any thing to do with the lake being used primarily for flood control. I have much better success on lakes with open spillways, makes me wonder.
> Maybe time to pull the plug on saugeye and stock some "real" Hybrids in CC or better Paint.
> Good luck and good fishing !


Saugeye are the "real hybrid"!


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## garhtr (Jan 12, 2009)

Saugeyefisher said:


> Saugeye are the "real hybrid"!











I must Disagree ! 
These are made for fly fishermen (but the saugeye are better on the table)
Good luck and good fishing !


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## Saugeyefisher (Jul 19, 2010)

Southernsaug said:


> This is interesting. Did anyone follow the thread in central ohio about size limits? I was pretty much over ruled that the limit works and there are plenty of big fish if I knew how to catch them. I been seeing the same thing a Rocky Fork, shorts everywhere and no keepers. I think the length limit only leads to over harvest of the larger fish.


I opoligize if it seemed like I was implying you just didnt know how to catch the bigger fish. I was not trying to at all. It just doesnt make since to me that a smaller lake with less pressure can be over harvested ,where the bigger more pressured lakes in columbus dont seem to be over harvested. 
In your posts you seem to be a very knowledgeable saugeye fisherman. And highly doubt it's your lack of skills or time on the water keeping you from catching bigger fish. 
I just dont think it's from overharvesting the 15's". But like I've said before, I could be wrong... I have a friend that drives down to Cowan quite often to saugeye fish. I'll have to ask him what he thinks about the topic....


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## Southernsaug (May 23, 2019)

The flood control lakes do loose a lot of fish. anytime you exchange the entire volume of the lake in a short period of time fish will egress. However, tail water fisheries are great in these and the use of those tail waters makes it worth stocking the Saugeye. The tail waters get thousands of hours of angler use and mostly from people who can't access the lakes. I'd never want to see that go away. I do a lot of tail water fishing too.


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## Saugeyefisher (Jul 19, 2010)

garhtr said:


> View attachment 311173
> 
> I must Disagree !
> These are made for fly fishermen (but the saugeye are better on the table)
> Good luck and good fishing !


Wha? Disagreement on ogf? Nahh that dont happen.... 
I will admit. I secretly agree with you,just please dont tell anyone. If I could pattern them an well as you do I'd chase wipers way more then saugeyes. I don't fish to eat fish. I love catching fish,an there q fun fish to catch!


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## Southernsaug (May 23, 2019)

No offense taken Saugeyefisher. It has been a good discussion. Like discussed previously every lake is different. Stocking numbers have been down and that hurts too. Pressure in it's self may not be the issue. I think what you have on some lakes are a lot of dedicated hard core guys who are really effective, and they can work a lake over. I know a crowd of people that work Rocky Fork like borrowed mules and they are really good at hitting those Saugeye. All of them are singing the same song, too many shorts. we all remember pre-length limit days when we found plenty of larger fish. What needs answered is has the lake changed it's forage base, has reduced stocking contributed, are fingerlings surviving, are the bigger fish there and not being caught. This takes time and effort. The change anglers can see is the L.L. and that is when things went south, but also stocking went down. Go back to say 2010-2012 era and my typical limit looked like this 1 fish 12-14 inches (usually just thrown in the box to finish a limit and go home) 3 fish 14-16 and 2 fish between 18-23 inches. I could usually do this in 4 hours or less. When I was satisfied with my limit I quit. I went Monday and I caught 17 Saugeye and kept two both about 15 1/2 inches. I lost one at the boat that was probably a 20-22", and of the 15 shorts most were only 13-14". earlier in the year most shorts were 14 1/2 -14 3/4, now those have made 15" and they're gone. I stayed on the lake 7 hrs Monday and would have stayed longer if not for storms. A lot of people are like me they want to take fish home and they stay until they get what they came for. They used to take 6 of whatever they were catching and quit. 
On the wipers; They are fun and mostly rearing space is what limits what is stocked. The hatcheries can only do so many things. I doubt Paint Creek would be a good choice, but Ceasars Creek might be. However, with one major predator (Muskie) I doubt the DNR would want another.


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## garhtr (Jan 12, 2009)

Southernsaug said:


> I doubt Paint Creek would be a good choice,


 Any particular reason ??
I always thought Paint would be a good fit for Hybrids.
I certainly doubt it will ever happen but I'd love to see it given a chance(I fish that area a lot )
Good luck and good fishing !


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## Southernsaug (May 23, 2019)

Mainly because of the high water turn over, I think it would be like the Saugeye hard to keep them in it. Although white bass do well in it.


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## Lil Crappie (Jun 17, 2013)

Saugeyefisher said:


> I opoligize if it seemed like I was implying you just didnt know how to catch the bigger fish. I was not trying to at all. It just doesnt make since to me that a smaller lake with less pressure can be over harvested ,where the bigger more pressured lakes in columbus dont seem to be over harvested.
> In your posts you seem to be a very knowledgeable saugeye fisherman. And highly doubt it's your lack of skills or time on the water keeping you from catching bigger fish.
> I just dont think it's from overharvesting the 15's". But like I've said before, I could be wrong... I have a friend that drives down to Cowan quite often to saugeye fish. I'll have to ask him what he thinks about the topic....


 They stock they’re favorite lake with more fingerlings? Oh no! That wouldn’t happen. CC does have really high water some springs? As much as 18’. Maybe something to do with it?


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## Southernsaug (May 23, 2019)

Lil Crappie said:


> They stock they’re favorite lake with more fingerlings? Oh no! That wouldn’t happen.


What makes you think that happens? From what I have heard it's a pretty rigid scoring and record system. I personally don't think this happens to any significant degree.


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## BMagill (May 5, 2004)

garhtr said:


> I always wondered if the small size of CC (same on Paint crk lake for me) saugeye had any thing to do with the lake being used primarily for flood control. I have much better success on lakes with open spillways, makes me wonder.
> Maybe time to pull the plug on saugeye and stock some "real" Hybrids in CC or better Paint.
> Good luck and good fishing !


All those saugeye on the LMR and Paint Creek (below the lake) are coming from somewhere. Had days on Paint Creek near Bainbridge where saugeye were 5:1 caught to smallmouth.


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## Fishin4meat (Apr 24, 2017)

Im seeing same trend in acton too bunch of shorts...even in spillway


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## mrdcpa (Sep 24, 2011)

I’d be interested to see if they modeled a lower creel with no size limit. If these were naturally reproducing game fish a slot would make sense but with put and take...

Or maybe only one of your creel can be over x.

I’d love to see whatever studies they do to arrive at limit info. We only know what we individually catch, anecdotally how much pressure and personally anyway no clue on mortality rates.


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