CLEVELAND, Ohio – Last week’s unrelenting gale-force winds and cold temperatures shut down fishing around the northern Ohio coast, including world-class steelhead trout streams that host very good numbers of trout.
A warming trend is forecast for next week as well as some rain that should open the rivers for a few days. It will be a guessing game when the rivers will settle and clear, and when they will be fishable again.
Temperatures will be in the 50s and maybe flirt with a 60-degree day or two early next week, but then typical winter temperatures hovering around the freezing mark will be more common, with light rain or light snow showers .
Small drift bags tied with bright mesh colors and worked in deep pools under a float will be most productive for steelhead trout as the clear waters from the Vermilion River to Conneaut Creek, including the productive rivers Rocky and Grief. Also good baits include tiny plastic tubes or plastic egg imitations or a very light marabou jig tipped with worms, a thick wax worm or live fish.
Dan Armitage ends popular outdoor show: After more than 26 years and 1,352 radio shows, Dan Armitage of Worthington, Ohio is finally retiring after the broadcasts this weekend. Armitage will spin off the Columbus-based Buckeye Sportsman Radio Network, a syndication of nearly 20 stations around the Buckeye State.
Buckeye Sportsman programs aired primarily early on the weekend during what is known as “fishing and hunting drive time.” This is the time of day, often before dawn, when outdoor enthusiasts head to the woods or waters for a day of adventure. Armitage and his expert guests had become the friendly and informative voices listeners could count on every weekend to entertain them as they drove to their destinations.
Armitage will continue to write outdoor articles for a myriad of magazines and host fishing seminars at area sport shows aimed at young anglers, his specialty. He also has a children’s fishing book in the works.
Cleveland Boat Show changes on tap: The Progressive Cleveland Boat Show will have a new look when it melts into Cleveland’s much-revamped Center IX for the four-day show Thursday and Friday, January 12-13, from noon to 9:00 p.m. ; Saturday, January 14, from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.; and Sunday, January 15, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m
Adults are $20. All military and seniors 60 and older receive a $15 discount at the door only. Children under 6 are free. For tickets and show times, visit clevelandboatshow.com
The Saló Nàutic in the new layout IX is located on the east side of the complex, instead of the west entrance. Visitors to the Boat Show should enter Center IX through the new lobby on the east side, which leads into the center of the Boat Show which is surrounded by boats and exhibits.
More than 400 powerboats and sailboats will be on display, ranging from the smallest inflatables to fishing machines and high-powered cruisers. There will be 300 complementary displays of fishing and boating supplies, marinas and clubs, nautical apparel and gifts, marine services and dock living products.
Show-goers can hop aboard a paddle board or kayak in the paddling center’s pool, or hook a lively trout in the trout pond. The expanded Fishing Expo section will feature fishing professionals on the Toyota Tundra Fishing Stage or from the top of the giant Berkley Aquarium presented by Vic’s Sport Center.
Rainbows released by Cleveland Metroparks: A large batch of over 3,000-foot-long rainbow trout have been released by Cleveland Metroparks into Wallace, Ranger, Shadow, Ledge and Judges lakes. More trout will be released in late January or early February.
After last week’s brutal winter storm shut down Northeast Ohio fishing, warming temperatures and rain will require ice anglers to take extra care. Ice cover on small ponds and lakes may not be 4 inches thick this weekend, the standard for a single angler walking on new ice. Check the ice thickness early and often to make sure you’re safe.