***Tuesday April 10 afternoon update: This morning 600 pounds of rainbow trout were stocked in the East Branch Rocky River at six locations between Rt 82 (Royalton Road) and the ford (river crossing) just south of Wallace Lake.***
In spring, highlight species targeted by anglers in Cleveland Metroparks include steelhead trout, stocked rainbow trout and coho salmon, walleye, largemouth bass, and panfish. The Rocky River and other area streams are dropping and clearing rapidly just in time for weekend steelhead anglers. Don't miss the annual Barbie Rod Steelhead Derby and accompanying cookout and huge raffle this Saturday morning (details below). To keep a handle on stream conditions anglers can check the most recent river water level, temperature, and clarity (turbidity) at the following links:
<Rocky River USGS flow gage data> <Chagrin River USGS flow gage data> <Rocky River NEORSD station with turbidity>. (Note: the NEORSD station sustained some ice damage and is being repaired). On Tuesday we stocked trout in the East Branch Rocky River in Millstream Run Reservation. Also, plenty of trout remain at Wallace, Shadow, Ledge, Judge's, Hinckley, and Ranger lakes
. The Lake Erie marina and harbor areas also offer steelhead trout, northern pike, largemouth bass, and panfish in spring.
Area streams are dropping and looking to clear just in time for the weekend following heavy rain this week. Lately the streams have offered a diverse mix of fresh pre-spawn, spawning, post-spawn, and skipper steelhead of all sizes. Fish are very well distrubuted all throughout the Rocky, Chagrin, and Cuyahoga rivers and smaller tributaries, such as Euclid Creek at Wildwood Park, drop and clear more rapidly and offer good prospects while the larger rivers are elevated. In stained water a brightly colored spawn sack about the size of a nickel has been the top producer, although bright or contrasting colored jig (tipped with maggots) and fly patterns also catch muddy steelhead under such conditions. Anglers can look forward to very good steelhead fishing as the river levels continue to recede and clear.
The white sucker run is underway on local streams, with Morley Ford north of the Lorain Road bridge being a hot spot. A leadhead jig with twister tail, nymph flies or worm and small sinker fished near the river bottom will all take their share of suckers. Suckers are perfect for kids and less experienced anglers, although experienced anglers can find the fast action they afford to be lots of fun, as well. For some anglers, harvesting suckers for use in making fish patties is a spring tradition. Recipes can be found online if you want to give this a try.
Cleveland shoreline breakwalls, marinas and harbors on Lake Erie have been rough and muddy from waves this week, but this time of year anglers have a shot at catching steelhead, along with northern pike, largemouth bass, and panfish at these locations. Productive spots include Edgewater, Wildwood, and East 72nd/Gordon Park boat ramp areas. For steelhead a medium size Little Cleo spoon (or similar) or jig tipped with minnow or maggots suspended under a float are top producers. For northern pike and largemouth bass a white and silver spinnerbait is often a producer.
On Tuesday we added another 600 pounds of trout to the 1,200 pounds stocked in mid March in the East Branch Rocky River between Route 82 (Royalton Road) and the river crossing ford about a mile south of Wallace Lake. Of the six spots we routinely stock, Bonnie Park (on both the upstream and downstream side of the dam) recieves the lion's share of these fish. We will continue stocking trout in the river up until the end of April.
Our inland lakes are offering very good trout fishing opportunities at this time. Last Monday 291 coho salmon were stocked in Wallace Lake as a bonus spring fishery. Stockings like this are made possible by proceeds from the Cleveland Metroparks Fishing Fund. On March 29th the Ohio Division of Wildlife stocked 816 rainbow trout at Shadow Lake and 2,759 rainbow trout at Hinckley Lake (these fish avarage about 3/4 lbs each). Additionally, we stocked 6,000 pounds of trout this past winter, as follows: January 22nd Shadow (1,500 lbs), Ledge (1,200 lbs) and Judge's (300 lbs) lakes and on January 24th Wallace (2,800 lbs) and Ranger (200 lbs) lakes.
Trout and coho salmon typically bite well on PowerBait, jigs tipped with a few maggots/waxworms, and smaller spinners (such as Rooster Tail). Please note the current seasonal trout/salmon regulations: Lake Erie and all streams 2/day minimum size 12" (this includes steelhead), 3/day no size limit at Wallace, Judge's and Ranger lakes, and 5/day no size limit at Shadow Lake and Ohio & Erie Canal. Please note: Ledge Lake is posted as catch and release fishing only until further notice.
5th Annual Barbie Rod Steelhead Derby Fundraiser is This Saturday! *UPDATE: THE RIVER IS DROPPING RAPIDLY AND RIVER CONDITIONS ARE PROJECTED TO BE GOOD FOR THE DERBY!* This Saturday April 7th we will be hosting the fifth annual Barbie Rod Steelhead Derby on the Rocky River. Trophies, prizes for three largest steelhead, raffles, and a cookout are all part of the day's festivities for this fun event where anglers must fish for steelhead with a kiddie fishing pole! I didn't think we would be able to top last year in terms of the amazing prize packages, but lead organizer Mark Warren and his friend Greg Young have already rounded up prizes and
<sponsors> for the event that exceed last year- and they are still adding to them weekly! Proceeds from the fundraiser event go to support the Cleveland Metroparks Fishing Fund. A
<website> has been set up for the event, as well as a Facebook page. Local angler Andy Wahl put together this outstanding
<video> detailing last year's event. Don't miss this fun event for a great cause!
Can't Attend The Barbie Derby But Still Want In On The Great Raffle? The great news is that you can order tickets for the raffle online, and don't even need to be present to win one of the fantastic prize packages! The person that won the grand prize Majestic Reel last year was an online raffle ticket purchaser. You can also attend the cookout (for a fee if not already in the derby) and raffle gathering in person without being required to partake in the Barbie rod competition. And 100% of proceeds from this event go to the Cleveland Metroparks Fishing Fund. More on the raffle
<here>.
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