Ohio Fishing Report

[bassman]

Deer Creek Lake (Fayette and Pickaway counties) —This lake provides good largemouth bass and crappie fishing. Fish shoreline cover and riprap for largemouth bass; throwing creature baits, tubes and crank baits is popular. When crappie fishing use a minnow suspended under a bobber for best results. Crappie must be nine inches or longer to keep. When fishing for catfish using cut shad, shrimp or catfish baits can be productive.
Western Basin—Over the past week walleye fishing was slow for anglers that were casting. Trollers are still catching fish, but the action is a littler slower than past weeks. West of the islands the best fishing has been between West Sister Island and the turnaround buoy of the Toledo shipping channel, between the northern cans of the Camp Perry range and West Sister Island, and northeast of Niagara Reef. Around the Island area Kelleys Island has been best with most of the fish being caught from northwest or northeast of the Island. Drifting with bottom bouncers and worm harnesses or casting mayfly rigs has been productive. Trollers have been catching fish on spoons with divers, or worm harnesses fished with inline weights, snap weights, bottom bouncers, or divers. The best spoon colors have been pinks and purples.
Yellow perch reports have been rare recently. Try the green can west of Catawba, the airport reef east of Kelleys Island, Lakeside or Cedar Point for summer yellow perch. Perch spreaders or crappie rigs with shiners fished near the bottom produce the most fish.
OHIO RIVER
New Richmond to Meldahl (Clermont County) — Water levels are up, around 28 feet, strong current but water clarity is decent. The water temperature is about 75 degrees. Catfishing is best at night. Try cut bait, chicken livers, dead shiners and shrimp. Sauger are being caught in the late afternoon and evening. Anglers are reporting success on crank baits, Rapala Shadrap or Xrap.
Riverbend to Downtown Cincinnati (Hamilton County) — Water is high and running fast. Conditions are making fishing slow. Anglers are catching a few Channel catfish on cut shad and chicken livers.
Water levels in the river continue to fluctuate daily due to rainfall events. Anglers have been catching catfish in some areas of the river using cut baits as well as live bait including baitfish, crayfish and worms, but angling pressure has been light.