Make good use of the time you have left this season

This week’s cold nights and tardy dawns are stark reminders that our favorite season is winding down and fishing opportunities are dwindling.

No need this weekend to set the alarm clock for 4 a.m. to beat the sunrise. That’s nice for catching up on sleep, but not a good indicator about the number of Saturdays left in 2007 that will be nice enough to launch the Ranger.

With time running out, it’s important to maximize this year’s precious remaining fishing days. Here are a few recommendations:

Walleye anglers look forward to autumn as prime time for dragging jigs and hopping metal blade baits off the long points of area reservoirs.

With water levels dropping, the tapering sand and gravel bars that jut from the banks become more evident at Berlin, Mosquito and Pymatuning.

Berlin anglers find pretty good fall walleye action on the points north and south of the U.S. 224 causeway. At Mosquito, the action tends to be better on the bars at the south end, while Pymatuning is productive on the breaks south of its midsection causeway.

Feasting on shad

This time of year, the walleyes are feasting on shad. Jigs tipped with minnows are a pretty good bet, along with shad-colored crankbaits. As the water continues to cool, the more vertical presentations with vibrating metal blade baits become even more productive.

The region’s bass populations also are hot for the shad, which tend to school in big congregations as the water cools. Many shad move up into creek arms, and the bass follow, often moving into very shallow water to pick off the baitfish on flats.

Berlin, with its numerous tributary streams, is a classic example of a place where the shad-bass pattern works. Anglers can catch largemouths, along with smallmouths, off rocks and stumps well back in such arms as Mill Creek, Island Creek and Willow/Yellow Creek.

Shenango also offers excellent fall bass fishing. The fish often gather around the numerous bridges and causeways, where shad feed on the algae-covered rocks. Anglers should target the windy sides of such places, with crankbaits, topwaters, jigs and plastic worms.

Should improve

Mosquito’s largemouth fishing was slow for much of the long, hot summer, but it will be improving over the next several weeks as the water cools and the lake level continues to recede toward winter pool. Spinnerbaits, topwater lures and soft plastic baits worked around the weed lines that parallel the east and west banks will produce nice catches.

Mosquito also is the king of area crappie lakes. The fish, which roamed loosely around the deeper cover for much of the summer, are starting to group up in feeding schools that follow the shad. Good fall crappie spots include the state park marina, the southeast side’s yacht club, the Ohio 88 causeway and the outside edges of weed lines.

Milton and Berlin also offer excellent fall crappie fishing. Milton’s boat docks and Interstate 76 bridge pilings are good places to catch crappies. Berlin’s steep banks between the railroad bridge and Ohio 14 are good bets, particularly around the tree tops that hang out over the deep water.

West Branch also produces nice fall crappies. Check out the east end’s marina, the Rock Spring Road bridge and causeway, and the fallen trees around the channel bends in the main lake area.

jwwollitz@aol.com