WEEKLY OHIO FISHING REPORT

WEEKLY OHIO FISHING REPORT
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The weekly fishing report provided by the Division of Wildlife of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources.
CENTRAL OHIO
Kiser Lake (Champaign County) -- Hybrid striped bass and largemouth bass fishing improves this month as water temperatures decline. Hybrid stripers can be caught on chicken livers fished on the bottom. Largemouth bass can be caught on a variety of artificial baits fished around brush cover and downed trees. Bluegills can be caught using wax worms around the stone "T" fishing piers. No motors are allowed including trolling motors.
Oakthorpe Lake (Fairfield County) -- This 41-acre lake in Fairfield County provides the only fishing for redear sunfish in the public lakes of central Ohio. Use insect larvae, small worms, or crickets suspended by a bobber. Excellent opportunities exist for largemouth bass. Try plastics, live baits, and spinner baits around shoreline cover and the drop-offs on the western side of the lake. Crappies up to 12 inches can be taken in these areas using minnows suspended by a bobber. Electric motors only.
NORTHWEST OHIO
Delta Reservoir No. 2 (Fulton County) -- Trout are being taken during the day on grasshoppers or flies on the surface.
Auglaize River (Paulding County) -- The temperature is 69 degrees and cloudy. Good numbers of crappies are being taken during the morning hours on minnows fished under a bobber. The best spots are near the mouth of Flat Rock Creek and the Little Auglaize River.
McComb Reservoir No. 2 (Hancock County) -- Channel cats are being taken at the bottom on beef livers. One hour before sunset and after dark are the best times. Saugeye are also being taken after dark using minnows.
NORTHEAST OHIO
Pymatuning Reservoir (Ashtabula County) -- Walleye reports are very good for evening and night fishing. Trout are being spotted in many of the counties creeks and rivers, however, catching reports have not yet picked up. This should change in the upcoming days.
Lake Erie (Ashtabula County) -- Anglers are having success trolling for perch and lake trout in the harbor near Conneaut. Also, many anglers are reporting excellent smallmouth success fishing near Geneva off of the rocks.
Ladue Reservoir (Geauga County) -- Anglers are successfully catching 8 to 10 inch crappies under bridges. Reports of walleye success are being reported by drifting near the dam.
r or minnow.
SOUTHEAST OHIO
Turkey Creek Lake (Scioto County) -- Family fishing opportunities for catches in the 12 to 14-inch range using white spinners. Sunfish in the 4 to 7-inch range were also being caught using wax worms with bobbers. Tightline fishing for channel catfish in late September and through mid October can be effective.
Scioto-Brush Creek (Scioto Co.) -- Flows are currently running strong, but earlier catches of spotted bass using imitation crawfish and smoke-colored tubes have generated angling success.
Salt Fork Lake (Guernsey Co.) -- Mid to large crappie are being caught using minnows, small jigs with green or white twisters tipped with a minnow or with night crawlers. Saugeye and walleye are also being caught with jigs tipped with minnows or night crawlers. Consistent catches of largemouth bass in the size range of 8 to 16 inches using a Jig 'N Pig or artificial worms (motor oil, purple, black).
Hammertown Lake (Jackson Co.) -- This lake recently yielded a 48 inch long, 55-pound flathead catfish to a lucky angler using night crawlers.
LAKE ERIE
Western Basin -- No walleye fishing reports have been received in the past week. If the weather stabilizes walleye fishing should improve in the Bass Islands area and in the area between Kelleys Island and the Huron River. Perch fishing in the western basin has continued to be excellent when conditions have allowed. Best areas have included northwest of Kelleys Island in 22 to 40 feet of water, between the Marblehead lighthouse and Kelleys Island, and the areas west of Green and Rattlesnake Islands. Spreaders tipped with shiners have been most productive for 7 to 13 inch fish.
For smallmouth bass try fishing Kelleys Island shoal, Gull Island shoal, and nearshore areas around the Bass Islands and Marblehead. Tube jigs and soft craws have been used to catch fish between 16 and 20 inches.
Central Basin -- Walleye fishing in the central basin has been best east of the sandbar 4 to 5 miles northwest of Lorain in 40 to 45 feet of water, 5 to 7 miles north of Vermilion in 40 to 45 feet of water, and 8 to 12 miles north of Geneva and Ashtabula in 70 feet of water. Anglers have been trolling dipsy divers with spoons (most color schemes with copper, blue, gold and fire tiger have been best) for fish from 16 to 28 inches.
Yellow perch fishing continues to be excellent in the central basin. Best areas have been from Cranberry Creek to Vermilion in 30 to 35 feet of water, 1 to 2 miles east of Lorain in 30 to 35 feet of water, 3 to 4 miles north of Gordon Park in 43 to 50 feet of water, from Fairport to Conneaut in 48 to 62 feet of water, and 3 to 4 miles north of the Chagrin River in 41 to 46 feet of water. Spreaders tipped with shiners are taking fish from 8 to 12 inches.
Smallmouth bass have been caught in harbor areas and along the shoreline in 19 to 30 feet of water near Conneaut, Ashtabula, Geneva, Fairport and Cleveland. Fourteen to 18 inch fish have been caught on green tube jigs, crank baits, jigs tipped with shiners, and crayfish. Steelhead have been caught by trollers using dipsy divers with spoons 8 to 12 miles north of Ashtabula and Geneva in 70 feet of water. The steelhead have ranged in size from 23 to 29 inches. Steelhead are also beginning to show up at creek and river mouths.
OHIO RIVER
Ohio River (Belmont, Monroe, Washington, Athens, Meigs, Gallia, Lawrence, Scioto counties) -- High and muddy from recent heavy rainfall, however catches of sauger are being reported in the upper tail waters which include Pike Island Dam, Hannibal Dam, and Willow Island.