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
Buckeye Lake (Fairfield County) -- For channel catfish, use chicken livers and night crawlers fished on the bottom for best results. Shoreline cover offers the best locations to take crappies. Use minnows beneath a bobber fished at depths of 3 to 6 feet. Use red worms and wax worms when seeking bluegills. The eastern half of the lake offers the best bluegill fishing.
Deer Creek Lake (Madison, Fayette, and Pickaway counties) -- Conditions remain good for anglers to take channel catfish in the upper half of the lake. Use night crawlers, chicken livers, and cut baits along the lake bottom for best results. The rocky shorelines and extended points are good places to fish for largemouth bass. Most largemouth bass will measure 10 to 16 inches. Anglers may still pick up some white bass near Tick Ridge.
NORTHWEST OHIO
Maumee River (Henry County) -- White bass are being taken in the daytime using jigs and minnows. The best places are holes in the river bottom. Walleye are also being taken in the Maumee. Daytime is the best using minnows fishing in holes. Flathead catfish are being taken at stream mouths during the daytime.
Wauseon Reservoir Numbers 1 & amp; 2 (Fulton County) -- Crappie are being taken during the daytime using minnows fished at a depth of 4 feet.
NORTHEAST OHIO
Lake Erie -- With the onset of cooler weather, steelhead fishing has been excellent. Anglers are having luck using spawn sacks, and spinner lures. Success trolling with small spoons has also been reported in the Vermillion River.
Tappan Reservoir (Harrison County) -- Saugeye fishing has been very good around the bridges due to the water level being dropped for the season. Anglers are reporting using jigging spoons with success.
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. Wind protected areas around the Marblehead lighthouse and southeast of Kelleys Island in 20 to 30 feet of water have been excellent, along with the West Sister Island area and the turnaround buoy of the Toledo shipping channel. Spreaders tipped with shiners have been most productive for 7 to 12-inch fish.
For smallmouth bass, try fishing Kelleys Island shoal, Gull Island shoal, and near-shore areas around the Bass Islands, Kelleys Island and Marblehead.
Central Basin -- Walleye fishing in the central basin has been best 4 to 6 miles north of Vermilion in 40 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 less than 1 mile east of Lorain, 2 to 3 miles north of Gordon Park in 43 to 49 feet of water, 3 to 6 miles north from Fairport to Conneaut in 48 to 62 feet of water, and 2 to 4 miles north of Wildwood St. Park in 46 to 52 feet of water. Spreaders tipped with shiners are taking fish from 8 to 13 inches.
Smallmouth bass have been caught on Ruggles Reef in 15 to 25 feet of water, and in harbor and shoreline areas in 19 to 30 feet of water near Lorain, 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.
Steelheads 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 steelheads have ranged in size from 23 to 29 inches. Anglers are also beginning to catch steelhead on small spoons and spawn sacks in the Grand and Chagrin Rivers, although river flows are currently high due to heavy rains. Check with local bait shops for up-to-date river conditions.
OHIO RIVER
Gallia County -- Although the river is still a little high and muddy, fishing for striped bass and catfish is hot right now. Fish above or below the Gallipolis Lock & amp; Dam using chicken liver or night crawlers fished on the bottom.