May 27, 2021

The Rocky River and other area streams are offering good fishing conditions today and this is expected to last through the weekend given the weather forecast.  Anglers can monitor the most recent river water level, turbidity and temperature at the following links: <Rocky River flow gage data><Chagrin River flow gage data> <Rocky River NEORSD station with turbidity>.  Wallace Lake and the Ohio & Erie Canal were stocked with trout and farm raised catish recently (details below).

The Rocky River and other area streams are offering good fishing conditions today, and weekend prospects continue to look good given the extended weather forecast.  Lake-run smallmouth bass fishing is going strong with bass anglers do well on 3-4" olive tube jigs, small marabou jigs and live baits such as leeches or crayfish.  Some big carp, channel catfish and freshwater drum are being caught by anglers fishing baits like nightcrawlers, shrimp and corn on the bottom by the marina, and a few straggler steelhead are still around, as well.

Several of our lakes and ponds are offering stocked trout and farm raised catfish.  In early May we stocked 800 lbs of trout and 700 lbs of farm raised catfish at Wallace Lake and 500 lbs of trout and 700 lbs of catfish at Ohio & Erie Canal off E49th Street.  Here is a link to a video about the stocking, as well as covering tips for catching these fish: <stocking video>.  Additionally, this spring we stocked a total of 3,600 lbs of rainbow trout in the east Branch Rocky River in Strongsville and the Ohio Division of Wildlife stocked trout at Shadow Lake, Hinckley Lake and Ohio & Erie canal off E49th.  Note: the daily limit at Wallace, Ledge, Ranger and Judge's lakes is 3 trout/angler, the limit at Shadow Lake and the Ohio & Erie Canal is 5 trout/angler and the limit in the Rocky river is now 5 trout/angler (the latter with a minimum size of 12")..  Trout often bite well on small to medium size spinners/spoons/crankbaits, a small marabou or tube jig tipped with a waxworm or a few maggots, canned corn kernals fished on the lake bottom or a dime size ball of colorful PowerBait. 

The walleye bite at Edgewater Park and E72nd Street access continues to be hot for anglers trolling Bandits and similar crankbaits and casting stickbaits like P-10s and Husky Jerks from the shoreline (the latter option after dark).   A nice surprise this week has been anglers making nice mixed catches of yellow perch, rock bass and other panfish off CLE breakwalls at E55th as well as in marina areas such as Gordon Park.  In spring, sunfish, largemouth bass and northern pike can be found prowling the Lake Erie shoreline harbors and marinas.  The launch ramp kiosks have been installed at all Lake Erie access locations in Cleveland Metroparks and either a daily pass (purchased with credit card at kiosk) or annual pass (see how to obtain one below) are required.

Ohio Division of Wildlife HuntFish OH App.  HuntFish OH is an official application of the Ohio Division of Wildlife. HuntFish OH is a mobile path for Ohio’s hunters, anglers and shooters to licensing, game check, and communication with the Ohio Division of Wildlife through mobile devices.

Features include:

• Customer Account - create an account or sync with current account in Ohio’s Wildlife License System
• Purchases - convenient access to purchase hunting and fishing licenses, permits, stamps, and the Wild Ohio magazine.
• Display licenses and permits - display current and past licenses and permits on the phone
• Game check - submit game check from the phone even without a connection, and obtain confirmation code once the phone reestablishes service
• Maps - interactive maps with directions and information on Ohio’s public lands, boat ramps, lakes, shooting ranges, and license agents
• Resources - contact information, including directions and phone numbers, the latest hunting and fishing digests, and other popular resources for outdoor enthusiasts
• Weather - display current weather conditions and sunrise/sunset tables before heading out on the water or in the field.

The application requires internet access through Wi-Fi or cellular wireless connection to access some of the features.  More <here>.

Surprising a Young Angler who had his Fishing Gear stolen.  Robert "Dargan" Bristow is a young man with autism who had his fishing gear stolen when he was using the restroom at Todd Field on the Chagrin River (not in Cleveland Metroparks) last week.  The local angling community rallied and on Tuesday we surprised him and his family with donated items with a vallue of just over $3,000.  Watch the video of us surprising his at Wildwood Park <here>.

 

Cleveland Metroparks Annual Boat Launch Passes are Now Available.    2021 season Cleveland Metroparks Boat Launch Pass can be puchased online at this time at the following link:  <2021 Boat Launch Pass>.  The base price (there are certain discounts) is $30.  Note: this applies only to motorized watercraft that are trailered.

Photo Release Waivers for Fishing Blog Photos (fast and easy to complete online).  Photo release waivers can easily be completed online through Smart Waiver (takes only about 30 seconds to complete) at the following link: <Smart Waiver link>. 

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] .

Tight Lines,

Mike
 

Brayden Sr shared "Brayden  from Independence landed some fine walleyes on Saturday afternoon with his uncle and grandfather. He did it the old fashion way, Erie Dearies and a Golden Nugget" (photo courtesy of Brayden Palus).



Josh shared on Friday "Caught a spawning largemouth bedding on a timber at Edgewater Marina" (photo courtesy of Josh Johnson).



Maliya caught this beautiful black crappie at Gordon Park (photo courtesy of Maliya Mcmillon).




Sean has been catching some very nice smallmouth and largemouth bass along the CLE shoreline (photos courtesy of sean Johnson).



Ted is chasing the last of the trout as the water warms up.  He caught this beautiful golden rainbow trout this week 9photo courtesy of Ted Choukalas).



Ted caught a fine yellow perch from shore at E55th breakwall (photo courtesy of Tim Williams).



John caught these beauty walleyes straight out of E72nd marina (photo courtesy of John Burkhart).




Billy has had luck with the river smallmouth bass (photos courtesy of Billy Szabo).



Jenn shows off a fine Lake Erie walleye (photo courtesy of Jenn Greiser).



Nick caught (and released) this gorgeous yellow perch when trolling for walleye (photo courtesy of Nick Peters).




Captain Gary of dog Pound Charters has been getting clients into some beauty CLE walleyes (photos courtesy of Gary Norman).



This walleye was caught off the pier at the mouth of the Cuyahoga River at Wendy Park.  Note: this area has active construction going on by the nearest parking lot so anglers currently need to walk in from further away (photo courtesy of Jenn Brumfield).



An angler shows off a gorgeous Fish Ohio walleye.





Anglers at nearshore breakwall and marina areas along CLE have been making some fine catches of yellow perch, rock bass and other panfish this week.




















We had a collaborative fishing outing with Doan Brook Watershed Partners at Rockefeller Lagoon off Martin Luther King Blvd on Saturday.  Several atendees 9both kid and adult) caught their first fish ever, which was a real highlight.



Robert "Dargan" Bristow is a young man who had his fishing gear stolen when he used the restroom at Todd Field on the Chagrin River (not in Cleveland Metroparks) last week.  The local angling community rallied and on Tuesday we surprised him and his family with donated items with a vallue of just over $3,000.  Watch the video of us surprising his at Wildwood Park <here>.