November 17, 2022

***NOTE:  The Fishing Report Blog is back to regular weekly Thursday updates from September-May***   Anglers on the Rocky, Chagrin and Cuyahoga rivers have been pursuing steelhead trout.  Stream levels are good following the rain earlier in the week and consequently steelhead fishing has been good. Despite the wintery weather upon us steelhead opportunities will remain good through the weekend for hardy anglers.  To monitor the most recent river water level and temperature you can check the following link: <Rocky River flow gage data><Chagrin River flow gage data> <Rocky River NEORSD station with turbidity>.  Lake Erie anglers are targeting walleye, yellow perch and steelhead and anglers are targeting recently stocked rainbow trout and channel catfish at the Ohio & Erie Canal fishing area (off E49th Street down the trail from Canalway Visitor Center).

Local streams are offering good flows following the rain earlier this week and the steelhead fishing has been good, accordingly.  Hardy anglers who can endure the wintery conditions can expect good steelhead opportunities through the weekend.  Fish are being caught on an array of offerings including dime to nickel size spawn sacks (colored mesh bags containing trout or salmon eggs), live minnows, 1/64  or 1/32 oz jigs tipped with maggots, and salmon egg mimmicking beads drifted under floats in holes and deeper runs.  Fly fishing with egg patterns and streamers has also yielded some hook-ups, as have spoons, spinners and crankbaits.  A good number of the steelhead have been very impressive in size, as evidenced in the photos that follow this report.  Also, the streak continues this week and another stray salmon was caught locally (see images below).

Steelhead are also available off the breakwall at E55th Marina and off the rocks at Edgewater Park, as well as Wildwood Park, all on Lake Erie.  Casting a spoon (ie Little Cleo or KO Wobbler) or spinner (ie Vibrax or RoosterTail) at these locations are as good a bet as any for connecting with a steelhead trout, as is suspending a whole nightcrawler on a plain hook or jigs tipped with minnow or maggots a few feet below a bobber.

Lakefront areas like E55th breakwall are producing good numbers of walleye after dark, as well, with Perfect 10 and other shallow running stick-style crankbaits working well.  Walleye trolling off Cleveland remains excellent.  For anglers with access to a boat, yellow perch are another option off the east end of the Cleveland outer breakwall and by the Cuyahoga River lighthouse in about 30 foot of water, as well.  Spotty catches of perch can be made from shore at E55th breakwall and the old Coast Guard Station at Wendy Park.  Emerald shiners fished near the bottom on a crappie rig or spreader can both be effective.

In mid October Cleveland Metroparks stocked 1,000 lbs of rainbow trout and 600 lbs of channel catfish at the Ohio & Erie Canal off E49th Street and a fair number of those fish remain.  For basic tips and techniques on fishing for these fish check out a past  <Facebook Live> segment offered by my colleague Faruq from Cleveland Metroparks Youth Outdoors program. The first winter stocking of trout in Cleveland Metroparks lakes and ponds is scheduled for sometime in mid December (stay tuned to this report for developments on that).

New Paperless Launch Ramp Payment Process.  There are a few changes boating anglers should be made aware of.  Launch fees are required for the duration of the boating season.  Lots of our late season boaters are walleye tournament anglers from outside our service area so it only seemed fair to our locals.  Also, we have gone paperless for the daily launch fee process using the ParkMobile system.  Signs outlining payment options (see examples in the photos below) are clearly posted throughout the parking areas at Edgewater, E72nd/Gordon Park and Wildwood and on the pay kiosk at Emerald Necklace/Rocky River Marina.  For daily launch the fee is only for the site where paid (cannot be transferred to different launches).  Payment can be made via ParkMobile app, by scanning a QR code on the sign or by texting a number provided.  For those without a smart phone there is a phone number for payment provided.  Proof of purchase of daily fees can still be credited towards an annual tag but only if the tag is purchased in person at a Metroparks marina during the season these facilities are open (cannot be credited towards online purchase of the annual tag).  The easiest and most streamlined option for boaters planning to use the ramps more than a few times is to just purchase the annual tag at the beginning of the season.  Launch fees only apply to motorized and trailered craft and folks not trailering a boat can still use the parking lots with no fee required.

Free Virtual (Zoom) Author Interview on December 7th through the Cuyahoga County Library.  Local fly fisherman Gabriel Venditti will be interviewing fly fishing/naturalist author, Steve Ramirez, on December 7th, from 7-8:00pm.  In his new book Casting Onward: Fishing Adventures in Search of America's Native Gamefish, the author traveled thousands of miles, exploring and fishing mountain streams, alpine lakes, National Wild and Scenic Rivers, desert canyons, brackish water estuaries, and the rolling ocean off the coast of Cape Cod.  This event will be broadcast live on Zoom. Registration and an email address are required to receive the link to participate: <Register Here>.

Photo Release Waivers for Fishing Blog Photos (fast and easy to complete online).  Photo release waivers for photos sent in for the fishing report can easily be completed online through Smart Waiver (takes only about 30 seconds to complete) at the following link: <Smart Waiver link>. You only need to do this one time and any future additional photos submitted are already covered.

If you have a photo that you would like to contribute to the fishing report, or if you have any further questions regarding fishing in the Cleveland Metroparks, you may contact Aquatic Biologist Mike Durkalec at (440) 331-8017 or [email protected] .

Houa Vue caught this huge buck steelhead from the Rocky River on a crankbait and is understandably considering getting the trophy fish mounted.  You may not catch as many steelhead on a crankbait as, say, spawn or jig tipped with maggots but it's an offering that seems to elicit strikes from trophy fish.  Also, when 10 anglers have already drifted bait through a hole in a day it can be a great change up bait, and simply showing the fish something they have not seen yet can garner a few more fish (photo courtesy of James).




The Rocky River salmon streak remains intact this week!  Val caught this buck king, aka chinook salmon, caught on Tuesday morning (photos courtesy of Ken Harper).



Ron took his dad fishing on the Rocky yesterday morning and dad found success (photo courtesy of Ron Shuck).




Mike shared on Monday "Thought I would share a great day today at the pipe. 3 fresh hens and a male that was just shy of 31 inches" (photos courtesy of Mike Dentkos).




Keagan caught this bruiser steelhead on Sunday.  He only fishes Cleveland Metroparks waters (photos courtesy of Al Reinke).



Kevin caught this huge buck steelhead in the Rocky River this week (photo courtesy of Paul Goodman).



Keith, visiting from Michigan, found some jumbo perch off E72nd (photo courtesy of Keith Snarey).



Greg reported on Monday "Landed this guy today at Morley Ford.  Some big ones this year so far" (photo courtesy of Greg Palka).








AJ and his buddy Zack have had a great week targeting steelhead from E55th breakwall (photos courtesy of AJ Woolen).







Boaters please note that Cleveland Metroaprks has transitioned to a paperless launch fee payment process.  And launch fees are required the duration of the boating season.  Please see the report above for more details.