Adams Lake: This small lake in Adams County is good for bluegills and channel cats and excellent for stocked rainbow trout while they last.
Caesar Creek Lake: The lake was lowered for marina construction and will begin refilling April 25. Caesar Creek is becoming one of the best musky lakes in Ohio, rated "very good" this year. It's also good for bluegills, crappies, channel cats, bass and saugeyes. It's a "very good" lake for white bass.
C.J. Brown Reservoir: Channel cats got the only "excellent" tag, while everything else is considered good, including crappies, walleyes, bass and white bass.
Clark Lake (Clark County): Has the stocked rainbow trout while they last and is rated good for catfish and bluegills.
Cowan Lake: Another "excellent" catfish lake, it is also very good for bluegills and white bass. Crappies, bass and saugeyes are all considered good. This is one of the few lakes with no limits on crappies.
East Fork Lake: This lake east of Cincinnati is one of the best for crappies, earning an "excellent" rating. It's considered very good for hybrid striped bass and good for bluegills, catfish and largemouth bass. It's too early to rate it for muskies.
Grand Lake St. Marys: After all these years and all of the water quality issues, this lake is still all about crappies. The rating is very good, but, I think, should be excellent. Fish that did get "excellent" ratings are bluegills and bullheads. Bass fishing should be good.
Indian Lake: This continues to be one of the best saugeye lakes in the state. It's also good for largemouth bass, crappies, catfish and bluegills.
Kiser Lake: A nice, quiet little lake (no motors) to sit and fish from bank or boat. Largemouth bass and sunfish are rated excellent. Hybrid striped bass should be plentiful.
Lake Loramie: Catfish of all kinds and they're listed in the "excellent" column. Everything else falls under "good" except crappies, seen as very good.
Paint Creek Lake: No question about it, it's a crappie lake and has an excellent rating to prove it. It's also a "very good" lake for largemouth bass, catfish and saugeyes (in the spillway especially) and "good" for bluegills and white bass.
Rocky Fork Lake: This lake has a great reputation as a bass lake and is rated "excellent" for that species. It carries the same great rating for bluegills and crappies and is "very good" for catfish and saugeyes.
Rush Run Lake: This is another hot lake while the rainbow trout are present. It's good for bass, especially at this time of year.
Stonelick Lake: Trout, excellent while they last, then good for bluegills.
Sycamore State Park and Tawawa Park Lake (Sidney): Stocked with rainbows.
Great Miami River: "Provides excellent smallmouth bass fishing from Sidney downstream to Hamilton area. Tailwaters below low head dams (especially in West Carrolton and Hamilton) are hot spots. Best areas are from Piqua down to Tipp City, and Miamisburg down to Hamilton. Lots of rock bass, bluegill, carp, and suckers along the whole length of the river. Channel catfish fishing best from Dayton downstream to Cincinnati area. Flathead catfish numbers increase as you move downstream from Dayton to Cincinnati area. Good hybrid striped bass fishing upstream of mouth of the Ohio River."
Stillwater River: "Provides excellent fishing for smallmouth bass and rock bass. Best areas are from Covington downstream to West Milton."
Here are Walters’ top picks for southwest Ohio, (which doesn’t include Indian Lake): bluegills – Grand Lake St. Marys; crappies – Rocky Fork; catfish – Rocky Fork; bass – Acton Lake; saugeye – Acton Lake; white bass or hybrids – East Fork.
My top picks: bluegill – Lake Loramie; crappies – Grand Lake St. Marys or Paint Creek; catfish – Grand Lake St. Marys; bass – Rocky Fork; saugeyes – Indian Lake; white bass/hybrids – East Fork.
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