Fishing Report - February 4, 2010

Published Feb. 4, 2010 at 3:54 p.m.

Rocky River was named one of the “150 Best Places to fish in America” in the June 2007 issue of Field and Stream magazine

Following a few days with high temperatures rising just above freezing, the amount of fishable water in the Rocky River is expanding by the day.  The past two mornings, slush has not been an issue in the open stretches of the river, although shelf ice is present in abundance in many areas.  As of the morning of this report, the area around the marina is locked up with broken ice and is still frozen across downstream of the marina.  Looking at the extended weather forecast, fishing conditions on the river should be good again tomorrow (Friday), but will likely become progressively more slushy by the day into the weekend and early next week.  Anglers can monitor the latest trend in river flow and temperature at the following link:        (note: icy winter conditions can sometimes make flow gage readings inconsistent/inaccurate)

Steelhead anglers who have been out the past few days have been experiencing variable success, with a number of anglers ferreting out some good fishing.   Anglers have reported catching fish this week primarily on egg sacks (pink, peach, white, and yellow colored mesh have all produced), live minnows, and black jigs tipped with bait.  Drifting an offering right along the ice shelves is a particularly effective tactic in winter, as the big trout often hide under the cover of ice.   With the air and water temperatures being as low as they are, using an ice-off type paste (available at most locals shops that cater to steelhead anglers) will greatly assist anglers in minimizing time de-icing their guides and line.  Another tip to minimize iced up line is to hold the rod tip high during drifts so that as little line as possible comes in contact with the water.

Cleveland Metroparks completed the final round of winter trout stockings of our lakes and ponds last week. These fish complement the 1,800 pounds of trout stocked in late December.  The ponds/lakes stocked this week include:  Wallace Lake (800#) and Shadow Lake (400#) stocked on Monday and Judges Lake (300#), Ledge Lake (200#), and Ranger Lake (100#) stocked on Wednesday.  There has been a very good size diversity in this shipment of trout, ranging from about ¾ of a pound up to 3-4 pound broodstock trout (and everywhere in between).  To add a bit of diversity to the mix, the trout supplier included a few dozen golden rainbow and brown trout in the shipment.

Trout fishing at our lakes and ponds has been good overall the past week.  Many of the fish continue to be caught on jigging spoons fished very shallow (between 1-3 feet of the surface), with gold Swedish Pimples being a top producer.  Trout have also been caught recently on Power Bait fished near the bottom, small jigs tipped with a few maggots suspended under a small float, and even nightcrawlers.

Local Business Highlight:  Chagrin River Outfitters.    Dan Pribanic opened Chagrin River Outfitters in 2006 in an effort to service anglers around the highly productive Chagrin River fishery.  CRO is a full service fly fishing shop that offers specialty steelhead gear, a schedule of free seminars from local experts, and guide staff that work our streams.  CRO also prides themselves in having one of the best selections of switch rods (a popular subculture of fly fishing for steelhead in our region) in Ohio.  For more information on CRO you can check out their user friendly website at (which includes contact info, hours of business, and upcoming seminar schedule):    

Upcoming Fly Tying Class.   On Saturday February 20, a fly tying class will be held at Sweetwater Landing at the Emerald Necklace Marina.  They have room for about 8-10 more folks, so if interested in details you may contact Steve at (440) 669-9928 or info@floatmaster.net

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 md@clevelandmetroparks.com .

Tight Lines,

Mike

 

Mark caught this pair of big trout at Wallace Lake recently using a red Forage Minnow jigging spoon (photo courtesy of Sheri Rocca).

 

Husband and wife Fred and Blanche enjoy ice fishing together.  They caught these fine trout on gold Swedish Pimple spoons at a Metroparks lake this past weekend.

 

Justin went 5 for 7 on steelhead last night using a black jig tipped with minnow following a month long dry spell (photo courtesy of Justin Marconi).

 

Conditions at Morley Ford on the date of this report.  OK, so who is the knucklehead who's been making footprints on the ice here?  A very dangerous idea, especially in light of the tragic fact that three kids drowned on the Sandusky River after falling through river ice last week.

 

Chris caught this 19.5" rainbow trout on a gold Swedish Pimple while ice fishing at Wallace Lake recently (photo courtesy of Sheri Rocca).

 

Patrick, among the hardiest breed of fly fishers, caught this fine steelhead on a slushy day on the upper main branch of the Rocky River.  He hooked this fish, and one other, using a pink egg pattern behind a white woolly bugger (photo courtesy of Patrick Campbell).

 

You know you are a hardcore steelheader if, well, if you are one of the anglers in this photo!  Fortunately, river conditions have improved markedly the past few days and the river is not nearly as slushy as it was earlier this week.

 

Bob caught these pan sized trout jigging a green Swedish Pimple spoon through the ice at a Metroparks lake.

 

A cluster of ice anglers at Wallace Lake this past Saturday.

 

This eagle has been spotted a few times in recent weeks very near the spot on the Rocky River where we had a successful eagle nest last year.  Let's hope for a repeat in 2010!  (photo courtesy of Dan McCutcheon).

 

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Cleveland Metroparks Fishing Fund

Cleveland Metroparks Fishing Fund helps provide a rewarding fishing experience to Northeast Ohio anglers through the stocking of rainbow trout, channel catfish, largemouth bass, and other sport fish. The Fund also supports children's fishing derbies and creation and restoration of essential habitat in the ponds, lakes, and rivers within Cleveland Metroparks.


For more information or to make a gift to Cleveland Metroparks Fishing Fund, please contact:

Karen J. Kannenberg, CFRE
Manager of Gift and Donor Development
Cleveland Metroparks
4101 Fulton Parkway
Cleveland, Ohio 44144
216.635.3217
kjk@clevelandmetroparks.com

 

 

 

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