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Casting for shoreline 'eyes

159K views 766 replies 89 participants last post by  Weekender#1 
#1 ·
Well it is officially fall, but air temps in the upper 70's for the next week does not make it feel that way. Have my shoreline night gear all ready in the corner of the shed to grab it after dinner. Stocked up on a few new cranks and plenty of jigs and plastics................... but these warm temps have kept me at home so far. Tried getting out on some evenings right at dusk at different times this summer and had no success except for a few largemouth. Did not even spot any glowing eyes on those trips. I know ErieEye posted some success through the summer, but i couldn't seem to find them. Spose i need to just get out there and put in more time (and walking more of the shore) to figure out the when/where the walleye are feeding. Has me wondering if they return to the specific feeding zones because of the water temps or if it is the amount of sun/dark time in the spring and fall. Either way, let the fall fishing begin!
 
#61 · (Edited)
I have had some extremely good panfish success there ice fishing and I catch lots of bass there open water. I have caught some nice perch ice fishing not Willard size but 7-9" fish which still taste just as good. It's a long ways from my house and now when I bass fish I mostly go to upper Sandusky . I like bucyrus 4 and I will ice fish it again this year if we get good ice.
 
#62 ·
I was at Findlay #2 yesterday around 5pm and the ODNR was out in a Jon boat. They had a big motor and were making real good time from one side to the other! I met them at the ramp to ask what they were doing. They were placing four nets in different areas to record Walleye, Catfish and White Bass. They set them 2 hrs before sunset and pull them 2 hrs after sunset. Boy I wish I could have been there when they checked them.
 
#63 ·
laynhardwood - Yeah, i've gotten decent panfish from it for sure and one time must have went through a heard of whitebass, it was all i caught for about an hour and then gone. You touched on all the species except the one i am trying to hunt down right now till ice..... you (or anyone else) ever catch saugeye in there?

ress - That would have been very cool to see what their results are! The map pages on the ODNR site always has results from the 'last' survey but it doesn't say when it took place.
 
#65 ·
From Toledo, but have been working in Findlay all summer. Will be down here until at least the first of the year.Thinking about bringing my gear and giving the reservoir night bite a shot a couple times. Just wondering if 1 or 2 is a better option... Any suggestions appreciated. Pm if you would like
 
#68 ·
Thanks for the info. ODNR has saugeye listed on the map page and there was a mention about them in the last Ohio Outdoor News with the topo map on the back page of their paper. Outhwaite is just about 20 minutes from my door (same as Beaver Creek & Willard) so just need to give it a try.
 
#72 ·
Good to hear that someone has caught them at least, hopefully the state has kept up with some occasional stocking. If the wind is not to terrible on Saturday night, going to head down that way i think. Looking at the topo map, can see a couple areas that might be starting points. If there is a light at the boat ramp, probably try there first from the South point up to pump. The shallow section from the parking on the East side up to the corner probably be my 2nd choice.
 
#73 ·
Tried Fostoria res 5 again two evenings ago. Casted for an hour and a half. Not even a nibble. Hard to believe. Wish I had a running tally of how many casts I've made since the last saugeye I caught. The fish of a million casts? You central ohio guys that have Indian or alum in your backyard need to count your blessings.
 
#74 ·
I know.... i read those reports of limits and throwbacks and get to thinking i will hit them good on that next trip. Then i get the skunk. I'm not up to a million yet though. haha. Kind of funny, but was thinking just last night i wonder how many average hours it takes to get a keeper. I did get out again last night and not a bite either. Saw 2 decent fish sitting up tight to shore so maybe it will get better before we get ice.
 
#77 ·
I had an odd weekday off and drove out to Wauseon Reseroir(s). That wind coming across the open field and then hitting the elevated reservoir made the water look like Lake Erie on a bad day! Talk about white caps! Anyway, I talked with some of the locals who say they get some decent perch out of there, and that they're catchable in the open water with minnows pretty much all the time. I was also told there are decent populations of saugeye and white bass. It was too windy for me to give it good try today, but my interest has definitely been caught.
 
#81 ·
Thanks Fisherboy!! As always you are a wealth of information!!! If it ever freezes this year might give it try there on the hard water.
 
#80 ·
From what you have learned, Wauseon sounds like a place i would visit often if i was closer. It takes time (and a lot of shore line walking) to figure out patterns in these upgrounds.

As for the walleye/saugeye, i've been skunked on my last 3 trips. Still getting nice bass each trip, but no walleye. Took my nephew out on Saturday night to Willard. About the 3rd cast in he hooked into a decent fish. I scrambled over the rocks like a mad man to him with my net to see an 18" bass. I said...... aww sheet, it is just a bass ......he looked at me like i was nuts after the fight he just went through. Made me smile and think how nuts i get about these damn walleye. Made a solo trip to Beaver Creek res with the same result..... big bass but no walleye.

Told my wife tonight that i wasn't going to go out and try again till it was at least 32° air temp and i was having to melt ice out of the eyes. This weather has been nuts. Maybe i will be able to cast from shore all winter long???
 
#83 ·
Hey Death, I can appreciate that but I catch a lot of perch and gills ice fishing and since I don't have a boat it's my only time of year to get out to the middle of the lakes and other bodies of water that I can't get to during warm weather fishing. So yeah, I'm ok with the temp drop. Sorry to all the rest of you out there that aren't hard water fishermen but a guys gotta do what a guys gotta do to catch fish,LOL!!
 
#84 ·
Did a little more checking with a local bait/tackle dealer, as well as a friend who works for DNR. Wauseon is open to ice fishing. Even without ice, there is good open water fishing through the winter. A recent state survey found very good perch numbers with a lot of fish in the 10 inch range, so there are good numbers of nice eater-sized perch. Saugeye numbers were only fair in the survey, but because of where those fish usually hangout, they are hard to count in the types electro-surveys the state does. There are also good numbers of white bass to target. Channel cat numbers are down, but the size of the fish is good. The bait/tackle guy says to throw small cranks, sticks, tubes, and spinners to catch a mixed bag. He also suggests minnows under a slip bobber for perch and saugeye. Since it's only about 20 miles from where I live, it's going to be a place I'll target frequently.
 
#85 ·
Hey Top, good info. Thanks for the leg work in getting all that info. Definitely going to make the trip out that way. It's about 40 mins from me but sounds well worth the drive now and after ice-up. Hope to see you there some time.
 
#87 ·
Right. Not from what I saw. There is a wood planked ramp that you could launch a canoe, kayak, or car-top boat from. No trailer access or parking. I used to have a 12 foot johnboat that would've been great there, so that gives you an idea of what would work. Electric motors only, too.
 
#89 ·
Got 2 last night... 21" & 23". The bigger fish took me three attempts to net before i got it and there was not much hook left in his lip. Surprised i managed to to get it. Also lost another nice one at the net and was hooked up two other times and they popped off before getting close enough to try with the net. Lots of bites and plenty of glowing eyes roaming around. Was happy to see the fish active, but they did not get moving until late. All the hookups and most of the bites were from 11:30 to 12:30. Tried lots of lures, but all bites came on the Kalin's 5" grub up in 3' or less of water casting parallel to shore.

Jaw Mouth Deep sea fish Reptile Tooth


Fish Bass Fish Barramundi Suzuki
 
#91 ·
Welcome to the site 1BigIcehole. Been fishing at several of the different upgrounds around me. Quite a few of them have decent populations of walleye, just have to put the time in to figure out where and when. Most on here seem to make the drive up to Erie shores since it is so close. Not many people fish for them on the inland lakes that i do. It is one of these................. :)


.................Not sure your where you are located and how far you are willing to travel. Green Springs, Clyde, Findlay, Fostoria, Upper Sandusky, Bucyrus, Willard, Bellevue #5, Norwalk all have them stocked. I think some of the Lima ones have them as well. Indian Lake is one of the very popular saugeye lakes and might not be that far, depending where you are located.

Here is about the best resource i know of. Click the lakes and they usually have species list.....

http://wildlife.ohiodnr.gov/public-...viewing-areas/lake-and-reservoir-fishing-maps...................
 
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