CENTRAL OHIO

Alum Creek Lake (Delaware County) – This 3,192-acre lake north of Columbus is a good bet for crappies, white bass, and channel catfish now. Fishing jigs and minnows suspended by a float around woody cover in the upper end of the lake and in coves is a good way to catch crappie. Crappie must be nine inches or longer to keep. Use minnows, jigs, and small spinners in the upper end of the lake north of Howard Road when seeking white bass. White bass are also available in the creek itself, at Kilbourne. The area above Howard Road has good numbers of channel catfish; use cut shad for best results.

Deer Creek Lake (Fayette, Madison, and Pickaway counties) - In the creek above the lake just north of Cooks - Yankeetown Road, use small jigs and twisters or small rooster tails when seeking white bass. Most of these fish will measure eight to 12 inches. This is their spawning period, which causes them to be active and offers great fishing. Crappie can be caught around submerged woody cover using minnows suspended under a bobber. Crappie must be nine inches long or longer to keep. Channel catfish can be taken on chicken livers, shrimp, night crawlers and cut shad.



NORTHWEST OHIO

Maumee River (Lucas and Wood Counties) – The water temperature is 62 degrees and the water level is normal. Walleye fishing is slowing down. Anglers are still catching some male walleye between 18 to 20 inches. Good numbers of white bass are being caught and that continues to improve. For walleye, use floating jig heads & Carolina rigs with chartreuse or florescent colored plastic tails. Try fishing with minnows for white bass or use white jigs. The best places to fish are Fort Meigs up to I-475 bridge. Anglers are wading over to Bluegrass Island. Walleye fishing will continue to slow down and white bass fishing should continue to improve. Anglers should be able to catch walleye for another week or so. Right now is the time to catch both walleye and white bass.

Sandusky River (Sandusky County) – The water temperature is 63 degrees and the water levels are normal. Although some walleye are being caught the walleye run on the Sandusky is over. The few walleye being caught are in the 18 to 20 inch range. White bass are in the river with greatly improved catches. For walleye use floating jig heads with brightly colored plastic tails with 3/8 oz weight about 18 to 24-inches above the jig. For white bass, use minnows. The best places to fish for walleye is near Roger Young Park. The best spots for white bass have been near the Sand Docks.



NORTHEAST OHIO

Tappan Lake (Harrison County) – Anglers looking to do some nighttime fishing should visit this 2,131-acre lake located on US 250. Excellent numbers of channel catfish up to 25-inches are present with most averaging about 13.5-inches long. Based on 2007 creel clerk survey results, only six percent of anglers fishing Tappan Lake were fishing for channel catfish. Stink baits, chicken livers, or night crawlers fished in the shallows and on the bottom are the best baits. When conditions are murky, still try fishing for catfish since they can tolerate poor conditions when other sportfish cannot. Wheelchair accessible shoreline fishing facilities are available.

Nimisila Reservoir (Summit County) – Largemouth bass fishing at this 742-acre lake located in Akron is producing well for anglers who are fishing soft plastics or spinners. Most bass measured 12 to 15-inches according to nighttime electrofishing surveys conducted by Division of Wildlife biologists. Shoreline fishing is proving more productive that boat fishing since most fish are found in the shallow coves. Anglers should note that parking on South Main Street is limited right now due to construction. Access this reservoir two miles south of State Route 619 on South Main. A map designating other parking areas, boat launches and more can be found at www.wildohio.com



SOUTHWEST OHIO

East Fork Lake (Clermont County) – Now in pool this, 1,971 acre lake has warmed and the prospects are excellent for crappie and largemouth bass. Anglers are reporting success with minnows in about 3-6ft. of water for crappie. Largemouth are being caught on plastics; worms and lizards, Texas rigged. Both crappie and bass are being caught in brushy areas along the shallows. The water in the lake has also cleared in the past week so visibility is much better.

Lake Loramie (Shelby County) – Bluegill and crappie are being caught using small jigs with plastic bodies, red worms, live minnows, earthworms, wax worms, or meal worms as bait. Choose artificial lures colored black, green, white, pink, green, or chartreuse. Keep bait one to two feet deep under a bobber. Choose a long-shanked fine wire hook sized between #6 to #4. Cast from a boat or the shore. Good fishing opportunities are near submerged trees and brush.

Cowan Lake (Clinton County) - Crappies are being caught all around the lake close to shore by using jigheads tipped with a crappie minnows. Bluegills are being caught close to shore by anglers using a waxworm on a small #6 or 8 fine wire hook as bait. Fish the bait under a bobber and about three to six feet deep. Fishing has been very productive when the weather is overcast. Saugeye are being caught by anglers using a chartreuse jig tipped with a waxworm or nightcrawler on a #2 sized hook and jigs tipped bass minnow. Fish the bait seven to eight feet deep along the rocky bottom. Fishing is good from a boat or canoe by drifting with the currents.





SOUTHEAST OHIO

Piedmont Lake (Belmont County) – Anglers report catching saugeye in the 15 to 16 inch range by trolling jigs and minnows over the rock point across from the Reynolds Road boat ramp. Black crappie nine to 10 inches have been reeled in using a minnow fished under a bobber in six foot water depths fishing from the shore near Township Road 356.

Dillon Lake (Muskingum County) – Successful catches of channel catfish are in the 12 to18 inch range. Try using worms fished under a bobber in five to ten feet of water along the north side of the dam in 16 inches of water. Fish for bluegill using wax worms, meal worms or night crawlers under a bobber in four to six feet of water. Crappie fishing has also been good fishing over structure using minnows. Anglers are catching largemouth bass that are eight to 15 inches using minnows, plastics, and green or orange crankbaits in five to ten feet of water near woody structure retrieved slowly. The north side of the dam has been the best bet for largemouth.





LAKE ERIE

**The walleye bag limit is 6 fish per day. The minimum size limit for walleye is 15”.**



**The black bass (largemouth and smallmouth) season is closed to possession (catch and release only) from May 1 through June 27. Beginning June 28 the daily bag limit is 5 fish with a 14” minimum size limit.**



**The steelhead trout daily bag limit is 2 through May 15. From May 16 through August 31 the bag limit is 5. The minimum size limit for steelhead is 12 inches.**



**The yellow perch daily bag limit on Lake Erie is 30 fish per day.**



Walleye fishing has been excellent at times in the past week. As spawning wraps up jig fishing will end, but currently fish are still being caught on jigs. The best jig fishing continues to be in Maumee Bay, nearshore from Crane Creek to Locust Point, around “K” can of the Camp Perry range, and on the reefs of the Camp Perry firing range. The best jigs have been purple, chartreuse or orange hair jigs tipped with shiners. Drifting with worm harnesses or casting mayfly rigs will be productive as fish move off of spawning grounds and into surrounding open water. Trollers are catching fish around Rattlesnake Island, North Bass Island, on the Canadian border from North Bass Island to Gull Island Shoal, and around Kelleys Island. The best trolling lures have been worm harnesses with inline weights or snap weights, and both shallow and deep diving crankbaits in Pink Lemonade and Wonderbread color patterns.



Based on the nearshore forecast the water temperature is 55 off of Toledo and 50 off of Cleveland.



Anglers are encouraged to always wear a U.S. Coast Guard-approved personal flotation device while boating.



To view the predicted weather forecast for Lake Erie visit: http://weather.noaa.gov/cgi-bin/fmtbltn.pl?file=/raw/fz/fzus61.kcle.glf.le.txt


To view Lake Erie boating information, safety tips, and launch ramps visit: http://www.dnr.state.oh.us/default/tabid/2062/Default.aspx



To view the latest steelhead fishing reports visit: http://www.ohiodnr.com/Home/FishingSubhomePage/fisheriesmanagementplaceholder/fishingfairportsteelhead/tabid/6166/Default.aspx






OHIO RIVER

At the R.C. Byrd tailwaters anglers report catching largemouth bass using olive and brown plastics fishing close to shore near the rip rap. White bass in the nine to 14 inch range have been reeled in using white or orange twister tails. Best methods have been casting downstream into the current from the cement platform near the dam. Sauger have been hitting salt and pepper or plain white twisters as well as white spoons. Cast from the rip rap out of the faster current into 10 to15 feet of water. Sauger are averaging eight to 12 inches, but many have been over 15 inches.