September 12, 2024

***NOTE: The Fishing Report Blog is back to regular weekly Thursday updates from September-May***  As the days get cooler as we approach fall, highlight species targeted by anglers along the Rocky River and other area streams include smallmouth bass, carp, panfish, and channel catfish with a watchful eye looking for the first returning steelhead trout as temperatures cool. 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 primarily targeting walleye and inland lake/pond anglers are primarily pursuing largemouth bass, channel catfish and panfish.
 
Some reports of early steelhead being caught around Cleveland are coming in already. As the weather continues to cool, steelhead first begin to show up around off the rocks at Edgewater and E55th, Wildwood Park and in the northernmost river sections closer to Lake Erie (the Rocky River marina area is one such spot). Casting a spoon (ie Little Cleo or KO Wobbler) or spinner (ie Vibrax or RoosterTail) at these locations are a good a bet for connecting with an early steelhead trout. These same areas can also produce walleye after dark as the temperature cools, as well, with Perfect 10 and other shallow running stick-style crankbaits working well.
 
Along the Cleveland shoreline white perch and a few yellow perch have made appearances at spots like E55th breakwall and have been biting on bits of worms or small minnow fished on the bottom on a crappie rig. The best bite is often in the morning and late afternoon. Please note that Wendy Park at the old Coast Guard station is closed for repairs and will reopen to the public in roughly August 2025.
 
In addition to anxiously anticipating some early returning steelhead, anglers may find a mix of other species in the Rocky, Chagrin and Cuyahoga rivers. Smallmouth bass are the most sought after among them and bite best in deeper, rocky pools. A ned rig or dark olive or brown tube jig 3-4" length are both proven producers of bass in the river. "Smallies" also bite well on live bait (ie: minnow, crayfish, and leeches), lures (ie: spinners and minnow plugs), and flies (ie: crayfish patterns, Clouser minnows, dark brown or olive sculpin or muddler minnow patterns).  Channel catfish, common carp and panfish are among a host of other species also available in local streams.
 
Anglers at our inland lakes and ponds are catching catfish, largemouth bass, and panfish. Wallace Lake, Ledge Lake, Shadow Lake, and Beyer's Pond are just a few other spots worth poking around in late summer. Hinckley Lake is currently drained for a dam rehabilitation project and will not be refilled until sometime in 2025.
 
Steelhead Expo at the Rocky River Nature Center Saturday, September 28. The Steelhead Expo is a great way to kick off the steelhead season and will be held at the Rocky River Nature Center on Saturday September 28. This event is a collaborative effort between the Ohio Central Basin Steelheaders and Cleveland Metroparks and will offer a full day of expert speakers and seminars, vendors, and other related information to usher in the fall steelhead season. There is no charge for the event but OCBS, a non-profit sportman's group which is very active in the local fishing and conservation communities, is offering a raffle as a fundraiser so donations or participation in the raffle is encouraged. Location info here: <Rocky River Nature Center>.
 
Fall Family Fishing Fest will be held Saturday, October 12. Come out and join us for Fall Family Fishing Fest at the Ohio & Erie Canal Reservation on Saturday, October 12 from 10 - 2:00 p.m. This event is free and we will have a limited number of fishing poles to loan out, as well as bait. We will be stocking 600 lbs of channel catfish and 1,000 lbs of rainbow trout at the Ohio & Erie Canal in anticipation of the event. Although anglers of any age can participate, prizes in several categories will be reserved for kids 15 years old and under. Thank you to Ohio Division of Wildlife and Ohio Central Basin Steelheaders for supporting this great event with grant funds.
 
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


 

Kingsley and her grandmother had a fun outing catching sunfish at Wallace Lake (photos courtesy of Joyce Smith).




David shared ”Caught my personal best channel cat at Wallace Lake! Strawberry Jello dough was the ticket.” (photo courtesy of David Kushman).





John has been catching some walleye out of Rocky River and got a bonus Fish Ohio qualifying channel catfish, as well (photos courtesy of John Burkhart).





Wes shared “My buddy Ernie and I fished out Cleveland this morning. Headed out of E72nd to 38 FOW and got 8 or 9 fish. The bite died so we headed out and found some marks in 41 FOW. Nothing fast and furious, but we managed the rest of our two man limit. Nice sized fish. It was the same as yesterday, they would not touch the golden shiners. All but one fish came on frozen cured Emerald shiners.” (photos courtesy of es Janke).




Bob caught this bruiser channel catfish at Wallace Lake (photo courtesy of Bob Brunner).





This single minnow brought me incredible excitement! It is a southern redbelly dace - a native minnow species that requires small streams with cold water and is declining statewide. We were sampling a tributary of the Cuyahoga River that I only knew of one observation of the species from and that was a single specimen that Ohio EPA turned up in a survey 16 years ago. Since then NEORSD and Cleveland Metroparks have conducted a bunch of surveys in this creek over the years and sampled THOUSANDS of fish without seeing this species again. Then, this week, just out cherry picking a few specimens to freshen up our nature center live fish displays and this lil guy shows up out of nowhere. There must be a persistent population further upstream where the stream gets tough to access. This little living jewel was released unharmed right after the photo.




Here’s an opportunity for local anglers to assist researchers with information and make an easy $50 in the process. It’s a win-win! You can scan the QR code above or go to this <link>.