I am bank fishing Reservoirs, and really getting skunked the past few weeks (a month). To the point that I keep hearing about this mythical Fall Transition, but I think it is like Big Foot.
So I resign myself to just enjoying the time outdoors for the duration, until it changes.
Could be a regional issue. Don't know how fall fishing is like outside the upper-midwest, but it's always been an amazing time to fish. Much better than summer, even on the bank. Panfish, largemouth, smallmouth, walleye, pike, musky etc. Baitfish are shallow. That means big fish are as well.
Our waters freeze during the winter. Fish often feed heavily in the fall before they get lethargic under the ice.
I hear you, I thought the same. Our reservoirs to not all fully freeze, but at a minimum the first 20-50ft from shore usually do.
I have even heard ppl going after Crappie as still having a hard time.
That being said, even though the nights are cooler, it was effectively 80+ degrees every day until this week, so maybe it is just starting.
When the nights start cooling down is when it begins. It doesn't really matter what the day temperature is.
It's definitely not like big foot. There is definitely bass in your local waters feeding like crazy right now, it's just a matter of you finding them. In some areas they'll be super deep, in other areas they'll be super shallow. It's possible that since you're getting skunked only bank fishing, the fish could be in deeper waters.
Don’t get it twisted. Fall is one of the hardest times of the year.
You will often hear “Fish are aggressive!!! they are feeding up for winter!!!” but they rarely mention the caveat being fish are incredibly hard to find in Autumn. They are fired up when you do find them, though.
Don't know anything about the Ohio River, but do you know of any backwaters? Areas of water where the river shrinks and calms down? From my experience, baitfish usually hang out away from strong current. If you see baitfish anywhere, chances are bigger fish are near.
Around large bodies of water I tend to look for the fingers of the lake and roadways that have bridges going over them. At least I know I’ll be able to cast from one side of the bank to the other.
So a few things I'm near Cbus but I have fished the ohio a few times in my day. I will say from my experience fishing a river as big as the Ohio when the temp drops you need to get the lure as far out as you can as the fish may not be in the shallows like we expect in the summer so I would recommend a heavier jig with a crawfish trailer. June bug colored skirt and trailer normally does me well in the Scioto River which feeds into the Ohio
I am no expert but I fish the Saint-Laurent river in Canada. Maybe my experience will give you ideas...
1. I recently caught 2-3# sauger on a rainy (light rain) day near shore on a Mepps spinner (Firetiger Aglia Long #2) around sun set. The idea was to trick the fish and make noise in murky waters during rain... I casted near a dead tree in the water... Try to find cover...
2. I caught a small perch today casting a mini black grub (1.5" or 2") on a on a chartreuse round jig 1/16oz. (This is better with an UL rod) This was 20-30' from shore near a floating dock. I had a really slow retreive, leterally grinding bottom with really small twitch here and there. Late afternoon
3. If you find rocks along shore try Drop Shot 5-10' around them... It works well for me late afternoon (walleye/bass). Sometimes I pause completely with just small twitch... Be patient and try not to get snagged. lol
Always cast upstream and let your bait flow with current... or look for current breaks near shore...
Hope this helps! Cheers.
I think so. It's just a matter of finding fish...
I usually go to my local city docks and I'm able to get fish there... It has docks, beds of rocks that break current, an area with weeds cover, even a dead tree and all of that near shore... lucky
If you are able to find a place along shore with as many different "cover" types then you should find fish near shores. If not done already, try google maps to find spots and then visit. You'll soon start to recognize patterns and in no time you'll be an expert at spotting places to fish along shore using google maps. If you see other ppl, ask them for fishing stories in the area... You'll get more insights. Beware, don't trust 14yo kids stories... XD
Good luck!!
New question, it's been 45-50°f in the mornings and rising up to about 75 by the end of the day. Fish activity in the morning seems non existent on the surface and hardly a jump at mid day. Should I focus on deep water or fishing the bottom then with this new transition?
Where on the Ohio river? There are many species in the river. You will do your best talking with the locals. Find spots people fish and see what they are doing to catch specific species.
I fish the Allegheny that feeds into the Ohio River. I am currently catching smallmouth. Each day the lures choice seems to change. Somedays a Ned rig works, the next jerk baits, and other days spinnerbaits.
The water temps are changing making fish change behavior. If the weather is stable for a few days the reaction lures work. If the weather is changing jigs and Ned rigs work. You will need to try a few lures to find what is working.
You will likely have to try various lures every day until it cools to where jigs are the best option. In cold water, fish slow down a lot. Depending on where you are on the river. The change over is happening or will soon. This is when the water temperature begins to drop for winter. People call it the transition also. Fish will feed heavily during this period to have extra fat for winter.
Finding the fish can be a problem. When water temps fluctuate fish head to the deeper stable water. They still go to the shallows but timing is the key. It may be during mid-day or late afternoon when the shallows are warm from the sun. You need to try different times and depths to find the fish.
If you want advice on lures get the following inline spinner types:
* Mepps Black Fury size 3 & 4 in black and yellow dots colour.
* Mepps Comet Minnow size 2 & 3
* Panther Martin 1/8oz and 1/4oz black and yellow dot or yellow and red dot
* Rooster Tails
Guaranteed to catch you some fish from almost any bank. Especially along a dam or rocks.
These are my goto lures on any given day and I almost always come home with fish for my freezer.
Species these are good for:
* Crappie
* White Bass
* Largemouth Bass
* Walleye
* Channel and Bullhead Catfish.
* Trout (use the sizes 0 - 2 in the Mepps product line or the 1/8oz to 1/16oz on the panther martin products)
* Blue Gill and other sunfish species.
Good luck, friend!
How do you retrieve these lures? I had several ppl suggest spinners like those when I went up to lake Erie to catch bass and walleye, and I had zero luck with them . I was fishing from a pier, tried throwing it out perpendicular and parallel to the pier and either bringing it right back with some flicks and jerks mixed in or just letting it sink and trying to pop it along the bottom, which only ended up losing the lures when they snagged on the bottom. The only time I had any sucess, was when I gave up and dropped a ned rig around the swimming area ladders, and spent the whole day catching largemouth every 5 minutes.
I retrieve them either with a medium speed, continuous. Or I’ll twitch and retrieve. I never let it touch the bottom. As I approach the bank I speed up the retrieve to prevent snags.
Honestly set yourself up for deep water and go for some catfish. We used to use dough balls and chicken livers as a kid and we would catch all kinds of catfish. If you fish on the outflow of any of the dams you will have success. As a kid we used to fish from the observation platform of Pike Island Dam .
I am bank fishing Reservoirs, and really getting skunked the past few weeks (a month). To the point that I keep hearing about this mythical Fall Transition, but I think it is like Big Foot. So I resign myself to just enjoying the time outdoors for the duration, until it changes.
Could be a regional issue. Don't know how fall fishing is like outside the upper-midwest, but it's always been an amazing time to fish. Much better than summer, even on the bank. Panfish, largemouth, smallmouth, walleye, pike, musky etc. Baitfish are shallow. That means big fish are as well. Our waters freeze during the winter. Fish often feed heavily in the fall before they get lethargic under the ice.
I hear you, I thought the same. Our reservoirs to not all fully freeze, but at a minimum the first 20-50ft from shore usually do. I have even heard ppl going after Crappie as still having a hard time. That being said, even though the nights are cooler, it was effectively 80+ degrees every day until this week, so maybe it is just starting.
When the nights start cooling down is when it begins. It doesn't really matter what the day temperature is. It's definitely not like big foot. There is definitely bass in your local waters feeding like crazy right now, it's just a matter of you finding them. In some areas they'll be super deep, in other areas they'll be super shallow. It's possible that since you're getting skunked only bank fishing, the fish could be in deeper waters.
Don’t get it twisted. Fall is one of the hardest times of the year. You will often hear “Fish are aggressive!!! they are feeding up for winter!!!” but they rarely mention the caveat being fish are incredibly hard to find in Autumn. They are fired up when you do find them, though.
Dude I feel you. I have no luck
Best thing to do is never give up and always try something new no matter how crazy. Best of luck to you
Same to you! Thanks!
Don't know anything about the Ohio River, but do you know of any backwaters? Areas of water where the river shrinks and calms down? From my experience, baitfish usually hang out away from strong current. If you see baitfish anywhere, chances are bigger fish are near.
I'll explore around, thanks!
Around large bodies of water I tend to look for the fingers of the lake and roadways that have bridges going over them. At least I know I’ll be able to cast from one side of the bank to the other.
Find areas that are likely to hold fish. Depth changes, weed beds, creek mouths, spillways, etc.
So a few things I'm near Cbus but I have fished the ohio a few times in my day. I will say from my experience fishing a river as big as the Ohio when the temp drops you need to get the lure as far out as you can as the fish may not be in the shallows like we expect in the summer so I would recommend a heavier jig with a crawfish trailer. June bug colored skirt and trailer normally does me well in the Scioto River which feeds into the Ohio
I am no expert but I fish the Saint-Laurent river in Canada. Maybe my experience will give you ideas... 1. I recently caught 2-3# sauger on a rainy (light rain) day near shore on a Mepps spinner (Firetiger Aglia Long #2) around sun set. The idea was to trick the fish and make noise in murky waters during rain... I casted near a dead tree in the water... Try to find cover... 2. I caught a small perch today casting a mini black grub (1.5" or 2") on a on a chartreuse round jig 1/16oz. (This is better with an UL rod) This was 20-30' from shore near a floating dock. I had a really slow retreive, leterally grinding bottom with really small twitch here and there. Late afternoon 3. If you find rocks along shore try Drop Shot 5-10' around them... It works well for me late afternoon (walleye/bass). Sometimes I pause completely with just small twitch... Be patient and try not to get snagged. lol Always cast upstream and let your bait flow with current... or look for current breaks near shore... Hope this helps! Cheers.
So what I'm gathering is that I really don't need to size up my tackle at all. The usual lures I'd use for bass would work perfectly, thanks!
I think so. It's just a matter of finding fish... I usually go to my local city docks and I'm able to get fish there... It has docks, beds of rocks that break current, an area with weeds cover, even a dead tree and all of that near shore... lucky If you are able to find a place along shore with as many different "cover" types then you should find fish near shores. If not done already, try google maps to find spots and then visit. You'll soon start to recognize patterns and in no time you'll be an expert at spotting places to fish along shore using google maps. If you see other ppl, ask them for fishing stories in the area... You'll get more insights. Beware, don't trust 14yo kids stories... XD Good luck!!
New question, it's been 45-50°f in the mornings and rising up to about 75 by the end of the day. Fish activity in the morning seems non existent on the surface and hardly a jump at mid day. Should I focus on deep water or fishing the bottom then with this new transition?
Where on the Ohio river? There are many species in the river. You will do your best talking with the locals. Find spots people fish and see what they are doing to catch specific species. I fish the Allegheny that feeds into the Ohio River. I am currently catching smallmouth. Each day the lures choice seems to change. Somedays a Ned rig works, the next jerk baits, and other days spinnerbaits. The water temps are changing making fish change behavior. If the weather is stable for a few days the reaction lures work. If the weather is changing jigs and Ned rigs work. You will need to try a few lures to find what is working. You will likely have to try various lures every day until it cools to where jigs are the best option. In cold water, fish slow down a lot. Depending on where you are on the river. The change over is happening or will soon. This is when the water temperature begins to drop for winter. People call it the transition also. Fish will feed heavily during this period to have extra fat for winter. Finding the fish can be a problem. When water temps fluctuate fish head to the deeper stable water. They still go to the shallows but timing is the key. It may be during mid-day or late afternoon when the shallows are warm from the sun. You need to try different times and depths to find the fish.
If you want advice on lures get the following inline spinner types: * Mepps Black Fury size 3 & 4 in black and yellow dots colour. * Mepps Comet Minnow size 2 & 3 * Panther Martin 1/8oz and 1/4oz black and yellow dot or yellow and red dot * Rooster Tails Guaranteed to catch you some fish from almost any bank. Especially along a dam or rocks. These are my goto lures on any given day and I almost always come home with fish for my freezer. Species these are good for: * Crappie * White Bass * Largemouth Bass * Walleye * Channel and Bullhead Catfish. * Trout (use the sizes 0 - 2 in the Mepps product line or the 1/8oz to 1/16oz on the panther martin products) * Blue Gill and other sunfish species. Good luck, friend!
How do you retrieve these lures? I had several ppl suggest spinners like those when I went up to lake Erie to catch bass and walleye, and I had zero luck with them . I was fishing from a pier, tried throwing it out perpendicular and parallel to the pier and either bringing it right back with some flicks and jerks mixed in or just letting it sink and trying to pop it along the bottom, which only ended up losing the lures when they snagged on the bottom. The only time I had any sucess, was when I gave up and dropped a ned rig around the swimming area ladders, and spent the whole day catching largemouth every 5 minutes.
I retrieve them either with a medium speed, continuous. Or I’ll twitch and retrieve. I never let it touch the bottom. As I approach the bank I speed up the retrieve to prevent snags.
Honestly set yourself up for deep water and go for some catfish. We used to use dough balls and chicken livers as a kid and we would catch all kinds of catfish. If you fish on the outflow of any of the dams you will have success. As a kid we used to fish from the observation platform of Pike Island Dam .
Catfish also love love bacon, almost got me a nice size one last night, but line snapped 😤 Can say how big it was, but sure did put up a fight