solopaddler Posted March 31, 2007 Report Share Posted March 31, 2007 I've been doing a ton of steelhead fishing recently with some pretty great results. This time of year if you're willing to drive there's always somewhere that's just rounding into form, reaching prime conditions. This past Thurs/Fri my friend Dave and myself headed south of the border for what turned out to be an epic trip. Thursday we fished an Ohio trib and had a pretty decent day. The water was low and clear, but the lower end of the river was holding a good mix of fresh and spent fish and we did quite well. Ohio stocks Manistee strain fish in their rivers, a large robust strain of steelhead that are a blast to catch. Here's me with a decent little dropback hen Here's a slightly larger dropback hen I caught a little further downriver Here's Davey battling then landing another decent hen Couple more dropbacks that hit the bank Probably landed in the neighborhood of 40 fish on Thursday between the 2 of us....very decent day indeed! Thursday late afternoon we headed east back to Pennsylvania and checked into our cabin, located right on the banks of the river. These small cabins are tailor made for fishermen. Floors are left just bare plywood so you can walk around with your cleated boots on guilt free. For 20 bucks a night it's a great little pad! Many of these were consumed on Thursday night Friday turned out to be an unbelievable day. As with the OH river we fished the day before, this PA river was running low and gin clear. Under these kinds of conditions fishing near the lake is usually more productive as there's more water to be found and usually fresh, aggresive fish. It was the right choice. They weren't big fish, small mint chrome jack's in the 3-6lb range, but just full of fight and a blast to catch. Here's Dave fighting and landing one Here's a couple that I caught, one on the pin, another on a spinner (yes they hit hardware with fury!) Here's Davey battling another I hesitate to say this, but we probably landed well over 100 of these little chrome beauties between us By the time we left Friday afternoon my arms were literally sore from landing so many! I love it when a plan comes together! Next week we'll most likely head north for a change of pace, maybe the Sauble...... Man I LOVE these fish and this time of the year! Cheers, Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattyk Posted March 31, 2007 Report Share Posted March 31, 2007 nice report thanks for sharing! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OhioFisherman Posted March 31, 2007 Report Share Posted March 31, 2007 LOL you came to Ohio? Slumming? Never fished the far eastern tribs of Erie myself, there is some steelhead action in the area around Cleveland but more crowds too. I have heard some of the tribs in PA. can be good too. Did you check out Presque Isle State park in PA by Erie? Great bass waters! The steelhead are incidental catches for me while bass fishing in the fall along the breakwalls at the mouths of tribs here, they are a lot fatter in the fall! Nice report! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wallacio Posted March 31, 2007 Report Share Posted March 31, 2007 That was an amazing trip Mike...the sleep depravation and long hours on the road were a small price to pay! Luckily we have the weekend to recover. I look forward to the next one... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whopper Posted March 31, 2007 Report Share Posted March 31, 2007 Well there's something you don't see everyday, going south of the border for some fishing Excellent report Mike! Glad to see ya have a great time! Whopper Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
solopaddler Posted March 31, 2007 Author Report Share Posted March 31, 2007 That was an amazing trip Mike...the sleep depravation and long hours on the road were a small price to pay! Luckily we have the weekend to recover. I look forward to the next one... You got it bud! Kinda glad I've got the weekend to recuperate too OhioFisherman and Whopper, it's no surprise that we fish Ohio, you guys have the most prolific steelhead fishery in the great lakes basin at the moment. You should definitely take advantage of it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ccmtcanada Posted March 31, 2007 Report Share Posted March 31, 2007 Great report and pics!!! Didn't seem like your report though cause the pics are clear....LOL. Awesome job...looked like an awesome trip! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canadian_copper Posted March 31, 2007 Report Share Posted March 31, 2007 beauty report guyz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
huntervasili Posted March 31, 2007 Report Share Posted March 31, 2007 That is a great report... I love this time of year when the reports start to flow right in... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
salpro Posted March 31, 2007 Report Share Posted March 31, 2007 Great post, great pics! Love it.....I've fished alot of US rivers, all great! I do it on the fly, but float is cool too. Have not had a float rod in my hand in 7-8 yrs. I miss it. One question though? How do u fish a spinner under a float? LOL never seen that lol. Looks like a Roster-Tail? A new pattern I must try. Thanks again for the post keep fishing sal Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canadian_copper Posted March 31, 2007 Report Share Posted March 31, 2007 whens the next road trip ??? i'll sneak in the trunk lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moosebunk Posted March 31, 2007 Report Share Posted March 31, 2007 Great stuff Solo. I might have to bug you one day for trip details to do that for the first time. Looks like a blast. Man, did we ever have different opps in March. lol. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
solopaddler Posted March 31, 2007 Author Report Share Posted March 31, 2007 Great post, great pics! Love it.....I've fished alot of US rivers, all great! I do it on the fly, but float is cool too. Have not had a float rod in my hand in 7-8 yrs. I miss it. One question though? How do u fish a spinner under a float? LOL never seen that lol. Looks like a Roster-Tail? A new pattern I must try. Thanks again for the post keep fishing sal Actually, I knew we'd likely be fishing the estuary so I brought a spinning rod along to throw some hardware for a change of pace. It's not impossible to throw lures with a float rod, but spinning gear works much better! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steverowbotham Posted March 31, 2007 Report Share Posted March 31, 2007 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aniceguy Posted March 31, 2007 Report Share Posted March 31, 2007 You got it bud! Kinda glad I've got the weekend to recuperate too OhioFisherman and Whopper, it's no surprise that we fish Ohio, you guys have the most prolific steelhead fishery in the great lakes basin at the moment. You should definitely take advantage of it! Something I ll be taking advantage in a few........... Nice fish there guys Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glirw Posted March 31, 2007 Report Share Posted March 31, 2007 +1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishindevil Posted March 31, 2007 Report Share Posted March 31, 2007 WOW...thats a very detailed report guys,man you guys sure caught alot of fish and had a blast doing it,great looking fish and nice scenery in those pics,thanks for sharing .....cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FishFinder Posted March 31, 2007 Report Share Posted March 31, 2007 Awesome! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pigeontroller Posted April 1, 2007 Report Share Posted April 1, 2007 Great report and pics! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OhioFisherman Posted April 1, 2007 Report Share Posted April 1, 2007 Mike, Whopper is I am guessing 150-200 miles from Lake Erie, I am disabled and walking on dry level ground is a bit of a challenge, in a river I would be swimming. They are pretty fish, but my love was bass fishing, hard to beat Erie smallies. Chagrin, Rocky, and Vermillion rivers East and West of Cleveland also get pretty good runs of steelies, they are more in my area, and I know guys that fish for them. My walking and wading days are pretty much over. They do stack up at the river mouths in the fall, millions or billions of emerald shiners gather around the breakwalls and the steelies are feeding on them and whatever else is near by. No doubt that they are fun to catch, and a mixed bag is possible with smallies, and walleye. A boat gives you more opportunities. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
solopaddler Posted April 1, 2007 Author Report Share Posted April 1, 2007 Mike, Whopper is I am guessing 150-200 miles from Lake Erie, I am disabled and walking on dry level ground is a bit of a challenge, in a river I would be swimming. They are pretty fish, but my love was bass fishing, hard to beat Erie smallies. Chagrin, Rocky, and Vermillion rivers East and West of Cleveland also get pretty good runs of steelies, they are more in my area, and I know guys that fish for them. My walking and wading days are pretty much over. They do stack up at the river mouths in the fall, millions or billions of emerald shiners gather around the breakwalls and the steelies are feeding on them and whatever else is near by. No doubt that they are fun to catch, and a mixed bag is possible with smallies, and walleye. A boat gives you more opportunities. Hey bud, sorry to hear your wading days are over, but it definitely sounds like you're compensating in other ways . You sure do live in a great area for fishing, the south shore of Erie is incredible! As it turns out, as far as the Chagrin goes, well I'll most likely be back fishing that little beauty the weekend after Easter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CLofchik Posted April 1, 2007 Report Share Posted April 1, 2007 <cries softly> If only Ontario would spend 1/4 on stocking compared to what the Ohio DNR does.......................... What's the name of those cabins you were staying at? I'm ready for a long weekend away from "all the crap". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Master of Bait Posted April 2, 2007 Report Share Posted April 2, 2007 Fantastic report! Great to see the wild action south of the border. Hopefully we'll see other great reports from our side of the fence. I LOVE SPRING! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OhioFisherman Posted April 2, 2007 Report Share Posted April 2, 2007 LOL good thing you are waiting till after Easter mike, cold and a chance of snow here Wednesday thru Sunday. Actually not compensating, not fishing much, LOL just thinking about it! Used to wade the upper parts of the Chagrin as a kid fishing for smallies and catching bait. I don`t think the trout make it up that far though, it`s been a lot of years, maybe? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whopper Posted April 2, 2007 Report Share Posted April 2, 2007 (edited) Mike the area that you were in is about 4 1/2 to 5 hours northeast of me. I've got a couple friends that fish up that way but have never been there myself. Besides Lake Erie and parts of the Ohio River most of our best fishing is on the inland streams and rivers here in Ohio as far as catching fish. Looks like the weather here is going to turn sour after today for the next week, good luck on your return trip. I will be about 125miles west of you that weekend on the big pond. Whopper Edited April 2, 2007 by Whopper Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now