Hey Everyone,

My buddy and I are from Indiana, but would like to try fishing some in Ohio this summer...any suggestions? We catch-and-release, and would LOVE to find a body of water where we don't get swamped by powerboaters and jet skis. Thanks for any tips.

(Awesome site here.)

http://fishtalkfishingreports.yuku.com/directory

Try ohiogamefishing.com

BASS-N, check your PMs.

charter on Erie outta Sandusky Bay for Smallies. there can be a crowd in some spots. but tell ur captian u want a quiet fishing trip and he might be able to make something happen

other than that. if ur going to be in the area. try some of the lakes in North East Ohio.

Mosquitto is good but can get busy. Mogadore Resv. near Akron is electric only and full of good bass becasue of that engine rule and lots of weeds and shad......    and the portage lakes are awesome!

Thanks for the info everyone. Spring can't get here soon enough.

little_stephen,

Can you believe my sister and her husband lived right near Sandusky for years and even though I visited several times, I never got any fishing in up there. Now they've gone and moved to OK.

You can skip the state park lakes for the most part. Ski boat and jet ski heaven on the weekends. I fish them, but don't expect much other then some time on the water. The smaller HP restricted lakes are probably the best bet for quieter fishing. I'm going the kayak route in the spring and going to try some of them. I take a trip up to Lake Champlain, VT every summer for some quality quiet fishing. I can fish for hours and maybe see a couple other boats pass by. Ruins you for down here.

ive lived here all my life (Mind u ive only been heavy into fishing for a few years now) and Ive only fished Erie once. and it was for Walleye......... another of the top fisheries in the country........ but ya. erie smallies are the football fish! plump, round, and happy to eat a tube bait anytime!  ;D

Buckeye1955,

Finding the smaller HP lakes sounds like good advice. We went snow skiing in VT 2 winters ago and the whole trip I was scoping out all the beautiful streams and lakes and wondering about the fishing. Lake Champlain sounds awesome, unfortunately it would be a 16-17 hr drive for us. (By the way...I got into kayak river fishing with my brother last spring and got hooked on it. Might have to buy my own now.)

"...football fish! plump, round, and happy to eat a tube bait anytime!"

hahaha...I like the sound of that.

Champlain is a 13 hour drive for me. We drive 10 hours up to Watertown, Ny and stay the night and over the next morning 3 hours. Check in is noon and by the time you stop and get groceries you're there right at check in. On the water by 2:00. Do a search for Henrys Sportsmans Cottages or send me a PM and I'll give you the link. $750 a week for a 3BR cabin. I have lots of pics. Terrific largemouth, smallmouth and pike fishing. Well worth the drive for a weeks worth of fishing. You'll never forget a trip up there, it's that good. I was looking some today for a kayak or small lake boat. Looking at Sea Eagle 285fpb Pro. About half the cost of Hobie Cat Mirage Pro angler and alot easier to handle for one person. Comes with a Minn Kota Classic 28 electric motor too. There are a bunch of limited HP lakes in my area of Southeastern Ohio that just don't get much pressure. And no jet skis!!!!

I fish alot of tourneys at Rocky Fork in Hillsboro, Ohio. It is about an hour to an hour and a half east of Cincinnati. It's probably the best lake in southwestern Ohio in terms of quality and quantity with a few smallmouth mixed in. You will encounter some recreational boaters, but more tournament fishermen than anything. On average, the winners of tourneys pull in anywhere from 12-16 lbs depending on the time of year. The biggest weight total from a winner I've seen was 21 lbs. which came in early May of '09.

In southeast ohio by west virginia there is a state park called recreation land. Boats are not aloud any engine bigger then 10 horse. There are reported over 350 pounds and lakes in this state park. Only special form required to fish this park can be printed off from:

aep.com/environmental/recreation/recland/pdf/PERMIT.pdf

In the NE corner of OH you should go to lake la-su-ann. You have to make reservations to get on it b/c it's state run. Best LM bass population in the midwest. Everything is regulated and monitored. you have to keep a record of all the fish caught and bring back certain ones. But it is quiet due to the reservation situation and the fishing is great.

Corrrection, it's in NW Oh.  I had to check it out 'cause I live in NE Oh and had never heard of it.

Wow.. Just read a report on that place and I think I might have to check it out sometime.  2.5 hours away, but 10 HP limit(perfect for my boat), closely monitored takes, and monster gills and LMB.

Thanks NiNeR!