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Olentangy bassin' 5/5

2K views 27 replies 12 participants last post by  tunafish 
#1 ·
Fished the Olentangy along the bike path. Ended up catching 8 SM, 1 LM, and 2 bluegills. Caught them all on tubes with an 1/8 oz head. Most of the fish were nice size. The big one ended up going around 15".

Also, found a monster dead buck along the river. Looks like it must have been hit by a car or died of natural causes. This deer is literally no more than a mile away from campus. I couldn't believe it when I spotted the rack in the weeds. Nice big 11pt. I'm waiting for it to decompose a little more and then i'm going to go back and get it and bleach the skull. It is going to make an amazing skull mount.

Can't forget about the morels I found also. I'll keep that report to myself though.
 
#2 ·
I Was Glad To Read Your Post About A Productive Outing! I'm An Older Retired Guy Who Finally Got His '08 License Monday And Headed Out For Crappie. I Tried The West Bank Just Above Griggs. Caught A Microscopic Bluegill And One Crappie Using Jig And Bobber With "crappie Nibbles" Dressed On Hook. Then I Drove Up To O'shay And Had No Lock At All! Were You Wading The Tangy? I've Had New Waders (still In The Box) In My Car Trunk For Two Years Now, But I Keep Dreaming About Piddling Away My Kids' Inheritance On A Boat! I Ride The Tangy Bike Trail Quite Often. I May Have To Pack My Rod Along Next Time. Thanks For The Post.
 
#3 ·
Good job on the fish!

A word of warning on the buck though, you may want to bury the skull or move it now. I'm sure someone will take your information and it will be gone next time you go down there. Just a heads up. And there are a few deer in that area, I've seen deer tracks in Tuttle park before.
 
#13 ·
xtrema - very nicely done! To the surprise of many people, there is a sizeable population of deer right in the campus area. Even more surprising (to some at least) is the population of coyotes right there on and around campus as well.

I have covered every bit of that river on the bike trail - about 20 miles of it. The deer use the river as a travel route, but the parks (like Tuttle, Antrim, etc.) hold deer year round. You can also find may deer/coyotes in the downtown area. I've seen deer all around the city and especially near the outskirts.

I only found spikes when hunting mushrooms off the bike trail, but I know the sponges grow in Tuttle (I'm sure on the banks too) as I spoke with an old man and his wife that had a couple dozen one time.

Bassnpro - hit that spot we talk about man; they are in there pretty good now. Another guy I gave directions to has been plucking spikes and yellow sponges off the right hand side the last several days.
 
#17 ·
nice fish. I've only fished that river once for SM and had a good outing.
 
#19 ·
Nice catch. Why cant I land a bass like that?
Me and a buddy went out today 5/7 to the Olenttangy, just north of campus. The rain was spotty and there was a nice overcast. We only managed small 4 rock bass, nothing that can compare to that LM by xtrema.
Sometime we'll have to get the club together and have Adam lead a clinic on how to catch Bass out of the 'Tangy. Would have been nice to get out this week if it wasn't for the weather.
 
#20 ·
I've been fishing the tangy this year too a little bit north of where you are. Doing well on #'s, but nothing huge. Caught a couple eyes (surprising as I've only caught 1 in the past 20 years), and more white bass than usual. Great numbers of rockies and decent # of smallies. It seems clearer than in years past. I've seen a 4+ lb smallie pulled out of the tangy, the key is to know where to fish it when the water is up....
 
#21 ·
Pizza,
The river does seem to have a way better visibility this year than the past couple. So far the fishing on the O has been good for me. I always manage to pick up a couple fish. Seems everytime I want to go I'll be fishing for a couple hours and then the water rises very quickly and turns into a muddy mess. I just seem to pick the days when they release water from the dam I guess.
 
#24 ·
After reading xtrema's original post I decided to try out my waders on the Tangy Wednesday afternoon. I beat the water to a froth all the way from Third Ave. to the dam above Fifth Ave. I only caught two (I always release everything) decent rock bass. I didn't have any "tubes" like xtrema. Closest thing I had were little crappie-sized, lead-headed, plastic-bodied jigs in various colors (white was the best). The tube in xtrema's photo looked pretty hefty. I was always told that smallmouths preferred more petite artificials. Is working upstream and casting across current the most effective method?...Anybody?
 
#25 ·
After reading xtrema's original post I decided to try out my waders on the Tangy Wednesday afternoon. I beat the water to a froth all the way from Third Ave. to the dam above Fifth Ave. I only caught two (I always release everything) decent rock bass. I didn't have any "tubes" like xtrema. Closest thing I had were little crappie-sized, lead-headed, plastic-bodied jigs in various colors (white was the best). The tube in xtrema's photo looked pretty hefty. I was always told that smallmouths preferred more petite artificials. Is working upstream and casting across current the most effective method?...Anybody?
I have had most of my luck on a 1/8 oz lead head with a white jig. I was casting slighty up stream and let it float down the river while bouncing off the bottom. I was doing a lot of retying since there is so much debris, rocks, and logs in the river but it was well worth it. I have also been throwing a hula grub with a weed guard which saved me alot of headaches. All the rock bass and SM that I landed would hit about a foot or so from the shore. Hope this helps.
 
#26 ·
I think everyone is putting too much methods and technique into it. I think I was using KVD's micro tube or mini tube...don't remember the name. Whatever you are used to using on a lake or pond...downsize by half is my general rule. Here is my techinique...If the stream is flowing from your left to your right then cast at about 10 o'clock. Let it sink to the bottom. The current should bounce it to about your 3 o'clock. Then reel it back in and do over again. You want to imitate the natural flow of the river. So casting upstream and reeling right back to you is unnatural to the fish IMO.

My rules for fishing the rivers for smallmouth. (Be careful I might patent this technique and methods :) )
1. Downsize baits
2. The current is your fishing partner. Take advantage of it.
3. Fish the bottom
4. Fish the bottom
5. Downsize again

I know 3 and 4 are the same but that's where the fish are laying. I can't stress that enough They lay on the bottom waiting for food to come to them. Its a current, they constantly have food in front of their face. Downsizing your baits is so important. That's why 1 and 5 are the same. Think small!!! I fish a 6' light action with 8 lb flourocarbon. I usually fish lighter line but that is what I'm spooled up with right now so it is what it is.

Put on an old pair of tennis shoes and just start walking. That's how I learned to fish down here. I'm from Lake Erie, where it is completely different fishing.

I learn something different every single time I go out. Next time I go, my intentions are to use a jig head and gulp leeches. If that doesn't work then I always have some other bait to fall back on.

Match the hatch (crayfish, leeches, minnows, larvae).
 
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