Crappie or Bluegill fishing...

When I make my first trip in the Spring for the walleye fishing, I'll literally be on the water sun up to dusk. Being on my own, I'll be here to fish, sleep, and fish some more. If I find success chasing walleye, and want to mix it up to fill out my days… is there any good pan fishing to be had? Say in the bays or such… assuming I'll be around the reefs for walleye.

I'll be in my 17 Lund, so super long trips are a little tough. Part of this is also in the event wind kicks me off the big lake one or more of the days I can make the trip. Some pan fishing, or even catch and release bass or anything as a backup would be nice.

we fish in the marinas next to dock poles and there is crappie, bluegill, large mouth we use a minnow under a bobber

Google East Harbor State Park. Plenty of inshore water to fish there and also west harbor....bluegill bass crappie. Also your not terribly far from the walleye spots. You can always put in closer to the jigging spots and trailer back to east harbor. If your planning on mainly trolling you can catch fish all around the islands and that's not a bad run at all from east harbor. And they have camping there also.

Also wouldn't be a bad idea to post a open seat on your boat and you can always get a couple guys to go. ..helps offset costs of fuel and get local knowledge or ask if anyone has a open spot on their boat.

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Originally Posted by cycleguy

When I make my first trip in the Spring for the walleye fishing, I'll literally be on the water sun up to dusk. Being on my own, I'll be here to fish, sleep, and fish some more. If I find success chasing walleye, and want to mix it up to fill out my days… is there any good pan fishing to be had? Say in the bays or such… assuming I'll be around the reefs for walleye.

I'll be in my 17 Lund, so super long trips are a little tough. Part of this is also in the event wind kicks me off the big lake one or more of the days I can make the trip. Some pan fishing, or even catch and release bass or anything as a backup would be nice.

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Good question and insight... It is pretty typical to limit out on Walleye in less than an hour. Many times the boat ride to the reefs and back to the dock is longer than time spent fishing. Of course the limit in the Spring is only 4 fish, and when the jig bite is on that's roughly 20 minutes of fishing... Then fun fishing begins...

A lot of guys cull their fish, which I think is just wrong! Unless the one you are keeping is bigger than the one you are throwing back (just kidding). I mean, unless the fish you are throwing back is healthy and still alive and able to live.

Seriously though. It is good to have a back-up plan for other species unless you just want to catch and release walleye all day or go back to the camper.

-Matt

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Originally Posted by cycleguy

When I make my first trip in the Spring for the walleye fishing, I'll literally be on the water sun up to dusk. Being on my own, I'll be here to fish, sleep, and fish some more. If I find success chasing walleye, and want to mix it up to fill out my days… is there any good pan fishing to be had? Say in the bays or such… assuming I'll be around the reefs for walleye.

I'll be in my 17 Lund, so super long trips are a little tough. Part of this is also in the event wind kicks me off the big lake one or more of the days I can make the trip. Some pan fishing, or even catch and release bass or anything as a backup would be nice.

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Accepting money food drinks or something else inlew for a seat on the boat or help pay for gas is considered a charter in Ohio and other states and must have a guide license.The DNR reads these posts!

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Originally Posted by grayleef

Accepting money food drinks or something else inlew for a seat on the boat or help pay for gas is considered a charter in Ohio and other states and must have a guide license.The DNR reads these posts!

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Sharing expenses is not considered a charter! So back off, they do it all to time and openly on the OGF site which by the way has several members of the ODNR upper staff and directors as active members! There are also several active USCG members on that site. The boat is not for hire so long as the owner is not making money, therefore no licences are needed with the exception of regular fishing licences and boat registrations.

In reply to Wakina, I was getting gas last spring at the pump on Turtle Creek. My fishing pardner and I were splitting the cost of the fuel so I handed him my share of the money so he could pay. The girl pumping the gas said the DNR will ticket you if they see cash changing hands because they consider it a charter. Doesn't seem right to me but that is what I was told.

Myself and wakina are right...I've worked on many charter boats and know the rules. Some people apparently think they know the rules better....you cant except a sandwhich on a boat without it being a charter?? Come on now. And splitting expenses is totally legal. Youre telling me you've never split gas expenses in a vehicle?

Thanks for the info all….. On splitting the cost with someone, we even have threads on a few local sites dedicated to ride/ trip sharing. If it works, I'd welcome someone in the boat… sharing expense would be a nice plus as well.

If I was ticketed for legitimately sharing some expense… I'd welcome the chance to take that to court. Intent wins in that situation every time.

Heard the same thing in the past at a different location. What my friend did that day after being told this was to hand his share of the money directly to the gas dock attendant, he took the money and my friend asked him what the difference was if we paid the bill separately(each paid the attendant for our shares) or if we combined the money before paying. He said that the boat owner(me) did not touch any of the money that my friend was contributing to the days fishing. Next question was, How many tickets had he seen written for this? The attendant said none but had been told that by some one else!

On a different day at the same marina my son-in-law gave me a $20 bill for gas while an ODNR Officer who had boarded my boat was preparing to count our perch and walleyes while everything was still on board, the ODNR Officer said nothing, he was looking directly at me asking about where our location had been on the lake when we caught the perch, as the money exchanged hands right in front him.

Here are just a few examples of what takes place openly on a very public open forum that I had referenced in my last reply to this thread. Ask Fishermans Wharf if the ODNR monitors the site where the below links are located since post on this site led to getting sited for over bagging.

http://www.ohiogamefishing.com/threa...-trade.293026/
http://www.ohiogamefishing.com/threa...n-seat.292870/
http://www.ohiogamefishing.com/threa...nesday.291657/
http://www.ohiogamefishing.com/threa...1-6-16.291637/

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Originally Posted by cycleguy

Thanks for the info all….. On splitting the cost with someone, we even have threads on a few local sites dedicated to ride/ trip sharing. If it works, I'd welcome someone in the boat… sharing expense would be a nice plus as well.

If I was ticketed for legitimately sharing some expense… I'd welcome the chance to take that to court. Intent wins in that situation every time.

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You need to check US COASTGUARD Reg.section 2101 oftitle46 sec.506,507 if you are a recreational boater you are allowed to share expenses for a day on the water as long as it is not a mandatory requirement to pay for fuel cost for a boat ride.The way loomis82 put it sounded like pay or no go.

My apologies to cycleguy! It seems that we as a group have high-jacked your thread and question. Once again my apologies!

WOW.... I went to the Columbus Fishing Expo today and came back to read all of this. We finally got a little excitement in the forums this Winter. Lol.. I wondered when I read that post about getting a buddy to go to save on costs, if someone would say something.

I am not a charter and I take friends fishing all the time. I have looked into this several times and found that Wakina is correct. Now, to the defense of the original guy who posted about this, Old Wheezer, he simply said what happened to him and what a "girl pumping gas" told him.

I have had 2 charter captains tell me the same story that if the Coast Guard cares and wants to press the issue then they split the group up and ask questions individually... I am told that they will ask, "Where you required to pay for anything for the trip? Where you required to bring anything (such as bait or ice) to be used by everyone on the boat? Where you required to pay for fuel?...etc.."

Everything that I have been told is that it is perfectly fine for people to share costs if it is their choice to do so, and it is not "required" by the boat owner.

And, yes, Wakina is right, we apologize for hijacking this thread... but it has been fun.

-Matt

That is all good… all conversation is welcomed. I dream of the day I get on a bite that is so good limiting early is a concern. If that was the case, coming all the way here for the experience, I can play catch and release for a long time before getting tired of a special time. Not culling,releasing healthy fish prior to hitting a limit. Too much respect to do it any other way.

Having the pan fishing back up plan for weather… or whatever is huge for me… TY again.

More questions to follow for sure - for now, still reading every post on here, so keep it up all.

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Originally Posted by cycleguy

That is all good… all conversation is welcomed. I dream of the day I get on a bite that is so good limiting early is a concern. If that was the case, coming all the way here for the experience, I can play catch and release for a long time before getting tired of a special time. Not culling,releasing healthy fish prior to hitting a limit. Too much respect to do it any other way.

Having the pan fishing back up plan for weather… or whatever is huge for me… TY again.

More questions to follow for sure - for now, still reading every post on here, so keep it up all.

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Just a suggestion here but I always put the first 4 nice fish in the cooler and then funfish for awhile before I head in. The reason is that yes I go to catch fish to eat and want to get enough so I can have a few meals the following winter so I box the first 4 nice fish. The jig bite can be fickle and they can shut down so fast that it is almost unbelievable that you cannot buy another hookup, it is like someone turned the stop biting switch on and they are done. From almost as fast as you can catch them to nothing in as little as 15 minutes. So be aware.

I don't cull either if I am going to keep it, it goes in the live well with it's throat cut to bleed out then on the ice. If not keeping it it goes from net to lake as fast as possible!

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Originally Posted by cycleguy

When I make my first trip in the Spring for the walleye fishing, I'll literally be on the water sun up to dusk. Being on my own, I'll be here to fish, sleep, and fish some more. If I find success chasing walleye, and want to mix it up to fill out my days… is there any good pan fishing to be had? Say in the bays or such… assuming I'll be around the reefs for walleye.

I'll be in my 17 Lund, so super long trips are a little tough. Part of this is also in the event wind kicks me off the big lake one or more of the days I can make the trip. Some pan fishing, or even catch and release bass or anything as a backup would be nice.

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Yellow Perch are pan fish too, yes? Do you have a fish finder? I always try for both Walleye and Perch in the spring just to see what happens. If we hit a limit of Eyes and have the time, next step is to check for Perch, with frozen shiners. Hit 'n miss but worth the effort, move around.

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Originally Posted by Mark

Yellow Perch are pan fish too, yes? Do you have a fish finder? I always try for both Walleye and Perch in the spring just to see what happens. If we hit a limit of Eyes and have the time, next step is to check for Perch, with frozen shiners. Hit 'n miss but worth the effort, move around.

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Never thought about them. When out on the ice for the first time last year… I asked around about perch, and everyone seemed to say they were not around that time of the year? That would be fun, as it would again be something new. Any tips on that thought process, that early in the year?

Lots of crappies to be had in those marinas over by the reef complex. Turtle creek has some beautiful crappie cover in it.

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Originally Posted by cycleguy

Never thought about them. When out on the ice for the first time last year… I asked around about perch, and everyone seemed to say they were not around that time of the year? That would be fun, as it would again be something new. Any tips on that thought process, that early in the year?

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I've heard the same thing about the perch. Was told that the snake fish take off when every single walleye in the lake is over in the western basin.