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Valley offers fish with attitude
The words that describe fishing in Northeast Ohio and western Pennsylvania are intriguingly similar to the words that can be used about the characteristics of the people here.
Tough. Gritty. Proud. With a bit of an attitude. They all describe towns like the one in which you live. They also describe your neighbors. And they certainly paint a very vivid picture of the lakes near Youngstown, Warren and Sharon, Pa., as well as the fish that swim in them.
The toughest, grittiest and most hard-headed of the fish native to our Mahoning and Shenango river valleys is the smallmouth bass. This year, one in which oversized smallmouth bass are getting attention all over the U.S., it is fitting that we celebrate the bruiser smallmouths that are close to home.
Truth is, we have some excellent smallmouth water in and around Mahoning County. Berlin and Milton have strong smallie populations, and the Mahoning River itself is getting better every year as anglers continue rediscovering the excellent fishing it provides.
State record-size smallmouths were caught in 2016 in New York and Michigan. A fish topping 9 pounds was caught by an angler in Indian River, Mich., while fishing a nightcrawler off his dock. In New York, a tournament angler landed a smallie heavier than 8 pounds while dragging a tube.
Ohio’s record smallmouth bass was caught in 1993 from Lake Erie. The fish weighed 9 pounds, 5 ounces.
While the Mahoning and Shenango valleys aren’t likely to yield any smallies approaching the Ohio record, they most certainly have bronzebacks that will surpass 5 pounds. It’s likely there are at least a few smallmouths in our local waters that would pull the scale into the 6-pound range.
Big smallies are the stuff of legend among bass anglers. They are remarkable in many respects, most certainly in the visual impression they make.
A 3-pounder is a good fish by almost anyone’s standards. They may not turn heads out on Lake Erie, but darn few smallmouth anglers would say no to the opportunity to spend a day winching in 3-pounders.
On Berlin, Milton, West Branch and Shenango, 3-pound smallies are noteworthy. They most definitely get attention among anglers. My bass friends and I have caught numerous fish in that size range, and they always are welcome, whether fishing for fun or in tournament competition.
A 4-pound smallmouth, by comparison, seems to be twice the size of a 3-pounder. The impact 4-pounders make on anglers is significant enough that they are often awestruck.
So imagine when a 5-pounder attacks your bait. You should see the face of an angler who first experiences the huge bass on the end of the line. Words alone cannot describe it.
We are blessed to have healthy smallmouth populations in our nearby waters. Fortunately for us anglers, they also aren’t especially difficult to catch. And when they strike, they hit with the force of a Penguin linebacker and fight like Boom Boom Mancini.
Smallmouth bass are pretty special. Tough. Gritty. They are the fish with an attitude, like most of us Youngstowners.
Best of all, they can turn an ordinary fishing trip on an ordinary weekend into an experience an angler will never forget.