# Shenango River any good?



## jonnyspeed (Mar 11, 2007)

I kayaked part of the Pymatuning Creek last year without my fishing gear (dumb) at Andy Dorick Park off of Rte 182 in Orangeville. I saw some guy fly fishing below the falls. We paddled upstream a few miles. There was lots of really good looking habitat. So what's the deal? What species inhabit that part of the river? Looking to make a trip or two back there this year if it is worth it. 

Also, are there any horsepower restriction on the river? I didn't see any signs or anything at the park ramp where we launched. Would be nice to get a bass boat up there if allowed.


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## WishinIWuzFishin (Jun 17, 2009)

Actually, that is Pymatuning Creek you are talking about. It feeds into Shenango Lake and Shenango river comes out of the lake. I have fished the creek you are talking about several times in my 12 ft boat with an electric motor, twice alone and once with my son. My son is from Missouri and wanted to try there for bass. I basically guided him while he threw everything in my tackle box at them and didn't get a sinlge hit. That was last June and it was my first time there. But it looked so good to me I went back 2 more times. Casted lures and used live bait under a bobber. Never got a single fish!! I've heard there are pike in there and am going to be trying again in the spring. I know they catch fish below the dam but that is PA and I have never bought a Pa license. I probably went upstream 2 or 3 miles and I don't think I'd try with a bass boat and big outboard. There are lots of shallow spots and downed trees. I would have went farther but I didn't want to push my luck and damage my elec. motor. I still can't believe I haven't gotten anything there yet. Looks like great fishing and certainly not many other fisherman. Good luck to you and I only live about 5 miles from there so if I can be of any other help don't hesitate to ask.


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## Guest (Jan 30, 2010)

from what i am told,the fishing above the dam is spotty, at best. the dam keeps fish from migrating into ohio. below the dam in orangeville is pa. below and down to the lake can be quite good. there are runs of crappie, white bass, and hybrid stripers that come up. northerns also infiltrate the waters early, but i have yet to hang one. later in the spring, largemouth bass make an appearance. i know of one guy who bass fishes wearing waders down there. again, the most productive fishing is below the dam, which requires a pa license.

fyi, the shenango river starts at the outflow of pymatuning lake dam. again, in pa.


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## jonnyspeed (Mar 11, 2007)

Thanks guys. I just assumed that it was the Shenango River... I live on the SW side of Cleveland so I don't know that area real well. It is such a good looking habitat, I figured at least Catfish and Bass but was hoping for Pike. That's kind of a bummer to hear that it isn't very hot. I'll probably give it a try in the spring.


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## WishinIWuzFishin (Jun 17, 2009)

I also tried fishing from shore twice I think, right there by the ramp in the park. I tried stinkbaits bottom fishing for cats and redworms under a bobber for panfish. NOTHING !!.. I can't believe there are no fish in there. One time I also watched one guy fishing out in the river standing on the rocks just below the dam(PA) and he was catching a fish on almost every cast. Couldn't tell what they were, maybe white bass, but he caught like 10-15 while I was there watching him for about 20 minutes.


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## Eriesteamer (Mar 9, 2007)

Bet I know more on this creekthen most.I fished it way back in the 50s.I to use go up it from orangeville park in my boat.lot lilly pads up there.you can walk to them and not really need a boat.there use to be a guy up there that had a boat lunch and ramp pier what ever you want call it.he rented boats and motors.thing his name was martin not sure if last name or first name.any ways we use to rent boats and fish the whole creek. I plus the 2 others that came with me use catch lot fish of every type that was in pymatuning lake in there.there was lot pan fish.mostly what we caught.as that lake fed into it one way or other.as time when and this guy i'll call him martin as that is best I remember his name he died so did his back yard boat rental thing.lot still hit this creek guys like me.now to a sad thing.theres a creek in kinsmen that feeds into this one.back some years this creek had a bad thing going I think it was a bladder (blauter ) brass plant that was on this creek used water to cool the brass they made that gave the creek ( one in kinsmen) a bad rap as brass is poisonouse and the hot water was recycled back to the creek.if true or not beats me.and lot say the fish where poluted to not eat them if you catch them.if true or not beats me.now then if these fish where poluted and not able be eaten likely do to the creek feed into this pymatuning creek sure as shootten the fish got in to it one way or other.it now was a hit miss to eat any fish out it thus lot stop going there.like me for one.I am not sure of this but I try any ways.to this creek in kinsmen it had a real bad back up one summer when lot rain came not sure the year but quit a ways back.lot raw sewerage from ??? got in the creek there.killed lot the fish.near or maybe all them.as I say this creek feeds into pymatuning then the orangeville creek thus it poluted it to and if killed the fish there is not known by me but lot say it did.after this happen there was very little fish in the whole creek from kinsmen to orangeville.thus no one wanted fish a dead creek.or if they did and caught anything eat it with the bad rap of the brass plant and sewage back up thing.so if you fish this and you only catch cat fish thats why.as the cat fish where only fish that likely still be there.some other fish to but spotie.thus no one but a few just go there to have something to do.rather then try catch fish to eat.no one I know ever try revive this and restock it thus why you catch very little if any in it.lot turtles where in it like snappers last I knew.back some time ago there was canoe races on it that started in kinsmen and end there at orangeville.took 3 to 5 hours get there.well to end this you still can catch cats in it and if very luckey a few pan fish.but do not eat them.uck.well now you know what goes with this creek.


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## Eriesteamer (Mar 9, 2007)

hey wish what time year was this.if in spring bet he was catching trout with alwifes or simular bait.if he caught them and threw them back they where either cats or trout and he had no trout stamp.if kept them they was trout for sure.in spring the lakes high thus where you say you see him is a good place to catch trout.after it ( the lake) goes down it is a hit miss thing.nothing worth a mention to catch there.lot rocks that snag your line.I fish there lot too and know this from first hand.


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## Guest (Jan 30, 2010)

wish, white bass or crappie...both come up to the dam in numbers.


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## WishinIWuzFishin (Jun 17, 2009)

If I remember correctly it was mid to late summer. They definetly weren't trout or catfish. White bass or crappies I would guess. Thanks for the info on the creek. Pollution would explain the lack of fish. Doesn't look too bad now though. The good thing I guess is....if I don't catch anything I don't have to worry about deciding whether to eat them or not. LOL there is always a bright side to everything!!!


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## Eriesteamer (Mar 9, 2007)

back to time you say it was your wright on what fish they where. to the eat or throw back on orangeville thing it just might be reviving and hope it is.as last 10 years never heard any more on the polute thing there.and say last few years I did catch a few pan fish there but no keepers.can not see why it not revive if the pymatuning feeds it.think for sure if all the brass plant and raw sewerage thing happen long back then by now some one do something about it.last I knew about the brass plant either some one else bought it out and either change name or better the product too what it made as brass.as last time I went threw there did not see the old name where it was thus why I say things changed there.and hope for the better I miss fishing the creek.got a friend lives just a ways from it every time I go to see him there stop fish if got bait and if not watch others fish there.lot are there some days.in evening as the day wears off and is cooler.but never see then keep the fish.mostly there cats to boot.not very big ones at that.


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## Guest (Jan 30, 2010)

steamer, actually pymatuning creek never hits pymatuning lake. the creek does feed shenango.


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## WishinIWuzFishin (Jun 17, 2009)

I agree rapman but I didn't say anything because I learned real fast on here if you disagree with someone it can lead to name-calling and insulting posts real fast. I've looked at maps and from what I can see, Pymatuning creek just starts "out of nowhere". Must be an underground spring or something where it starts. It does feed into Shenango reservoir, as does the Shenango river as you mentioned earlier. From the maps it appears Shenango river comes out of PYM lake and along with Pym creek feeds Shenango reservoir Then the river coming out of the reservoir is the Shenango river. I'm retired and love to hike so maybe some day if I'm feeling real energetic I'll head upstream on PYM CREEK and see where it starts. LOL


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## Eriesteamer (Mar 9, 2007)

Well I am not a map man but think the pymatuning gets into the orangeville creek one way or other.last the creek in Kinsmen enptys in it too.look it up tell if so.if not and rest my stuff in here be crap just call me diepper as I am always on some ones ass and half time full ****.LOL


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## Guest (Jan 30, 2010)

wow, you are going for one long hike. the creek crosses rt 322 in ashtabula county and even farther north, i believe, it crosses rt. 6, about 5 miles west of andover. alot of the creek runs through the shenango wildlife area. years ago, we hunted the creek here for ducks and squirrel.


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## Eriesteamer (Mar 9, 2007)

I looked it up your rite as it starts up in west andover.but to the kinsmen thing I was write at least think so as my maps not very well illistrated I can not find the one by the brass works on it but know theres one there.theres a creek that runs into orangeville from kinsmen then into the shenango and another out pymatuning into the west side the lake.well I came close on the kinsmen thing but coming close only counts in horse shoes so I better play that and give up rest.bet this being true was why the orangeville thing took so long get back up.well thanks for the correction. my bad .every day I learn something new today was one them days.


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## WishinIWuzFishin (Jun 17, 2009)

Rapman: the length of my hike depends on where I start. Didn't say I was gonna start in Orangeville. I'm not that energetic. LOL. I guess you have never seen the "mouth" (don't know what else to call it) of Pym creek either huh? Man, I think thats gonna be the first thing on my bucket list. I might be the first person to ever see it. LOL. Just hope it doesn't start up there at the end of someone's septic tank drain pipe. LOL


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## Guest (Jan 31, 2010)

wishin, as you come south of 322 or north of 87, you will encounter what is called the big waters. huge swamp, beaver dams, eagles, snakes, snappers and extreme wilderness. i have an old buddy who sets turtle lines up in there. i have duck hunted back in there and it is really neat. the going is actually easier from 88 south. nice walk.

steamer, i thought you were thinking that pymatuning creek came out of pymatuning lake. you're right. there are a few creeks that empty into pymatuning creek north of orangeville.


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## WishinIWuzFishin (Jun 17, 2009)

Used to have a dog, part lab part great dane. She loved hiking even more than I did. We did a lot of exploring in the Grand river and Mosquito wildlife areas. She absolutely loved walking in the water but was scared to death to swim. It was kind of amazing to watch her....it was like she could sense when the water would be to deep and she would avoid it. The only time she had to swim was one time she tried jumping over a ditch and lost her footing when she pushed off. Only made it about half way. Turned out the ditch was like 6 foot deep. She was really in a panic trying to swim that last 2 feet. Actually it worked out really great cuz I only wore hip waders and that was just about as deep as she would go. One time she walked right by a HUGE snapping turtle in a little creek. She didn't even see it. This thing was at least 2 feet across. I saw it when she was about 5 feet from it and just prayed it wouldn't get her as she walked by. She got by just fine. Afterwards I thought I was glad I didn't yell or anything. Probably good that I didn't startle either one.


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## Guest (Jan 31, 2010)

i hear those turtles can be wicked. funny about your dog too. sometimes i think they are, in many ways, like the people i know....same fears, same reactions, etc.

hey, how'd you like the grand river w.a. man, i got turned around in there one afternoon and got completely confused. finally heard a dog barking and headed in that direction. came out about five miles from my car on 88, just before sundown. in the days before gps.


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## Steelhead Fever (Dec 31, 2009)

what month in the spring is best to go under the dam?


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## WishinIWuzFishin (Jun 17, 2009)

Like I said I've never actually fished because its PA and I've never bought a PA license yet but I live close so I do go and just watch quite often. There seems to be a lot more people fishing in spring and early summer but I see people there till probably Nov. I just moved out here a couple of years ago and am thinking about buying a PA license this year. Like to try below the big dam in Sharpsville and in Shenango reservoir.


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## Eriesteamer (Mar 9, 2007)

In the early spring the waters up thus deaper and thats when the trout come up the creek to near the dam.To the main dam or big one as you say that is best one to use to Last I knew they stock the creek in front the dam with trout and you see fishermen elbow to elbow fishing for them.to license less they changed it you need pay another 5 for a trout stamp to keep them.if no stamp you need throw them back.things change but last I knew was what it was.If you live in Ohio like I think you do cost lot to get a Pa license.I was told that a Pa out state license was way higher then an Ohio for same.Lot up near Erie buy the Ohio one as theres more fish on Ohio side then the Pa.To weather that be beats me I never look it up see if so.but bet one is higher then other.to Erie theres this perching thing and if on Pa side theres non I know of thus why lot buy the Ohio license.
I hate eat trout and if that be your dish know where get them by the bucket full in spring even though think 3 or 4 is limit all that catch them take them home by the bucket full.they stock this lake every year with 3,000 and these rainbows are streem not lake fish and once the water get 70 they will died lack oxygen.thus why no one as park rangers care how many you take as it takes about a month after they stock it to get that 70 degree temperature thus if no one catches them there doomed any ways.also why the got restock it every year as they know there dead or caught and in some ones freezer or belly.if not soon will die as the water gets over70 in summer way to hot for them be all means.


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## Greydog (Mar 24, 2007)

There is also a nice run of perch out of Shenango Reservoir up to the dam in Orangeville. A couple springs ago I saw a guy with a striger of perch that were as big as Lake Erie jumbos. Caught on jigs and minnows. This is on the PA side.


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## Guest (Jan 31, 2010)

strange how that little bit of water can hold such a diversified number of fish. i hear of some really nice northerns being caught real early, and the walleye do move up, but it is during the closed season also. later on in the spring, the channel cat fishermen make an appearance.

i have to admit that every time i go there, i am a day too late. i have caught white bass and crappies, but not in the numbers i hoped for. and it can get real crowded.


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## hilltopjack (Jan 21, 2009)

My buddy and I fished this creek three times last year in his canoe, and between the two of us he caught one pike. It was a monster though. I never got one bite in three trips we tried everything we could throw at 'em. Like others have said on this thread I've sat and watched guys reel 'em in left and right on the PA side below the dam. One of these days I'm going to break down and buy a PA license.


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## ktk9804 (Mar 30, 2011)

glad to see little catching on the ohio side of pymatuming creek here.....the reason i can not say  
just its only 3miles from my house and spent a lot of summers and falls kayaking there a lot and i don't kayak for fun


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## fishinnick (Feb 19, 2011)

Wow, this is an old thread lol. 

I really wanted to explore the Ohio side of Pymatuning Creek more this past summer but never got to doing it. I fish the PA side quite a few times a year for panfish(crappie, gills, and perch mainly), carp, and of course the white bass and hybrid run. Some largemouths in there but not a ton I noticed. 

The Shenango River though I fish all the time. From the Shenango Lake dam down is the best stretch for pretty much everything. Big hybrids, white bass, smallmouths, pike, muskies, catfish, walleye, trout, carp, panfish, it's a great multispecies fishery. And lots of each of those species too(except for muskies, but they're in there, got a nice one this fall).


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## Doboy (Oct 13, 2008)

fishinnick said:


> Wow, this is an old thread lol.
> The Shenango River though I fish all the time. From the Shenango Lake dam down is the best stretch for pretty much everything. Big hybrids, white bass, smallmouths, pike, muskies, catfish, walleye, trout, carp, panfish, it's a great multispecies fishery. And lots of each of those species too(except for muskies, but they're in there, got a nice one this fall).


Right-on Nick.
Pa warden Morris was at our club's monthy meeting Thursday. He said that the Shanango 'Shock test' yeilded 24 different species of fish,,,
Every bluegill, both crappies, both bass,,, eyes etc.etc. AND SOME HUGE ONES to boot. "One Outstanding fishery".
New boat launch at Harbor Road & rt422.
Lower Mahoning just as good.
Other Pa news;
Trout regs changed at State Lake. (State Lake stocked, nobody fishing! )


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## papaperch (Apr 12, 2004)

While PA's non-resident lisc. is kinda steep. Fishing Shenango makes it worthwhile. 

When my cousin was alive he loved fishing Shenango. If you like big crappies this would be my lake of choice. Last few years I fished Shenango , I think 2009 , it gave up some of the biggest crappies I have seen overall. Back in the late 60's and early 70s pymatuning seemed to have the largest crappies, Then mosquito took over for quite awhile. But now its shenango hands down for the big crappie with an occasional striper to add to the excitement.

I loved fishing this lake at night as did my cousin. 12-14 hour trips was the norm when we went at night. Since he has passed I just can't bring myself to fish there anymore. Never thought it would affect me that way but it has.


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## fishinnick (Feb 19, 2011)

Doboy said:


> Right-on Nick.
> Pa warden Morris was at our club's monthy meeting Thursday. He said that the Shanango 'Shock test' yeilded 24 different species of fish,,,
> Every bluegill, both crappies, both bass,,, eyes etc.etc. AND SOME HUGE ONES to boot. "One Outstanding fishery".
> New boat launch at Harbor Road & rt422.
> Lower Mahoning just as good.


Yep. Catching a handfull of whites and big hybrids, a few walleye, some crappie, smallmouths, a trout or two, and maybe a pike all in the same day wouldn't be out of the norm for a spring outing there. My record is 9 species in a day. Lots of cats in the summer too. I live about 20min from there, and I probably fish that river alone more times than I fish in all of Ohio lol. I could really blow up this thread w/ Shenango pics if anyone would want me to  



Doboy said:


> Other Pa news;
> Trout regs changed at State Lake. (State Lake stocked, nobody fishing! )


???????????


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## Doboy (Oct 13, 2008)

fishinnick said:


> . My record is 9 species in a day. Lots of cats in the summer too. I live about 20min from there, and I probably fish that river alone more times than I fish in all of Ohio lol. I could really blow up this thread w/ Shenango pics if anyone would want me to
> 
> 
> *WHY, HECK YA! ,,, as long as you don't mind sharing!
> ...


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## streamstalker (Jul 8, 2005)

Doboy said:


> fishinnick said:
> 
> 
> > . The way I figure,,,,
> ...


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## fishinnick (Feb 19, 2011)

Doboy said:


> My record is 9 species in a day. Lots of cats in the summer too. I live about 20min from there, and I probably fish that river alone more times than I fish in all of Ohio lol. I could really blow up this thread w/ Shenango pics if anyone would want me to
> 
> *WHY, HECK YA! ,,, as long as you don't mind sharing!
> No need for "spots".*




Ok, here it goes....
(mods, this might eventually need to be moved to the out of state forum???)









Pymatuning Creek Pike

















































Had many doubles this day, never had a day like it since


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## Doboy (Oct 13, 2008)

MAN! Those pics put a smile on my face! Everything I catch is +- 12"???
Nice job
Thanks

You know,,, We're having a ball with the NC Ohio River guys vrs. the Greenup crew!
lol,,, maybe we can start a healthy River fishing competition between the Shanango and the Mahoning???? (I'm kinda sure Shanango would rule, but)
There's some 42" Musky pics at 'Reds'. I think they came from the lower Mahoning last spring. I'll try to gank some copies.
AND 'We' have the walleye pics that Ezbite posted,,,, I think he caught like 8-10 in one night, up around Niles????
Let the games begin!


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## fishinnick (Feb 19, 2011)

Thanks!!! Although not as good as the Shenango imo, the Mahoning is a pretty good fishery from my experiences and what I hear. Don't have that much experience on it though but I really want to fish it a little more this year. Just hard to pass up the Shenango with it only being a few minutes farther!:B

That musky is the only one I caught out of the Shenango although I hooked a few others while fishing for walleye, pike, and stuff over the years. This year I really want to try to target them more, especially on the upper river closer to Pymy. The fishin on that stretch(below Pymy) is pretty good too, but you don't get the drag screaming hybrids up there though like you do farther down below Shenango Lake.


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