Fall Fishing in Ohio at its Finest
Whether you want to accept it or not, fall fishing in Ohio is here. The air has an all to recognizable fall chill and smells of changing leaves abound all across the state. The best way to deal with the inevitable fact that winter is quickly approaching from a fishing perspective is to realize that fall fishing opportunities can be pretty good.
There are plenty of fall fishing options in Ohio. Steelhead are embarking on their yearly migration from Lake Erie into the tributaries, trout are becoming more active, and bass and panfish can be caught in predictable locations. The challenge is often finding places to fish, or more importantly, places to fish in the fall that provide different species to catch in one place.
The Best Fall Fishing in Ohio Destination
Many fall fishing opportunities exist in Ohio; however, few rival the opportunities that exist at the Briarwood Sporting Club. Briarwood is at the top of the Ohio fishing club list and one of the finest sporting clubs in the eastern United States The club is also one of Ohio’s best fall fishing destinations. Anglers can catch many different species in over a hundred acres of lakes and four different pristine streams.
Membership at Briarwood Sporting Club gets you access to all these waters where you can catch anything from bass to trout. This centrally located club in Ohio is known for some of the best trout fishing in Ohio on the fly and generally all-around exceptional fall fishing opportunities.
3 Primary Fall Fishing Opportunities at Briarwood
An angler has his or her choice between several species of trout, largemouth bass, panfish including crappie and perch, and even large game species such as walleye and muskie. However, there are three species in particular that make Briarwood one of the best fall fishing destinations. Here they are and how to catch them.
Early Fall Bass Fishing Tips
Bass are now transitioning from their summer patterns to fall areas. Their main focus during this transition is cover and food. Largemouth bass will begin to school together around remaining green lake vegetation to target baitfish. It is common to see bass boiling on the surface chasing baitfish near this vegetation during fall, which provides a great opportunity for topwater baits. Another good largemouth spot to fish is any type of structure. Brush piles, stumps, sunken logs, and rocks all hold bass during the fall. One of the more important early fall bass fishing tips is to completely exhaust a piece of structure. Again bass are starting to school together in the fall so if you catch one bass off a brush pile or log chances are there are a few more around.
When you are fall fishing in Ohio for largemouth bass, these three lures rise to the top.
- Swim jigs – Swim jigs work well around structure and vegetation, exactly where bass will be lurking. Swim jigs are one of the best fall fishing lures to imitate baitfish. Choose colors like bluegill, perch, or white depending on the main forage in the lake.
- Spinnerbaits – Spinnerbaits put off a ton of vibration and flash to catch a feeding largemouth’s attention. They can also be fished at various speeds and through cover easily depending on how bass are feeding on a particular day. Spinnerbaits in bright color variations such as chartreuse and large double willow blades are staples all the way up to winter.
- Soft Plastic Jerkbaits – When fish are schooling on baitfish during the fall, nothing catches bass better than a soft plastic jerkbait. It can be fished weightless or weighted depending on how the baitfish are moving. It can also be jerked fast or slowed down weedless in and around dense vegetation or on top of brush near the shore.
Catching Fall Trout at Briarwood Sporting Club
Trout, much like bass, are foraging more and more each day as the water chills. Fly fishing then, of course, begins to heat up again in the fall. Fall insect hatches begin in late August and continue at various levels through October. Although, the bulk of a trout’s diet this time of year is subsurface. Streamers and minnow imitations capitalize on this and are highly productive and consistent during fall months.
Streamer fishing is better on overcast days and during the morning and evenings when larger trout are feeding intensely. The best fall fishing flies in the subsurface category are woolly buggers, sculpins and minnow variations in white and black. Fish these streamers fast through riffles and along bank edges. The faster the better since you are looking for quick reaction bites.
Perhaps fly fishing is not your chosen method to catch trout. An ultra-light spinning rod matched with a small minnow jerkbait can be just as productive when fall trout fishing. Fish it through the same water you would rip a streamer to catch large feeding rainbows and browns.
Autumn Panfish Tactics
Fall fishing in Ohio for panfish can be a relentless catch after catch. Crappies and perch are easy to catch in the fall. Both species can be located in large schools around offshore structure. Some of the best fall fishing occurs once these schools are found. Other panfish species such as sunfish can always be caught in good numbers near vegetation along the shore, however, they too will be moving towards deeper water as the days get shorter.
Regardless of the species of panfish you are fishing for, the most productive fall fishing lure is a small jig tipped with either live bait or a soft plastic. Natural colors of soft plastics like tubes and curly tail grubs will produce when fish on a jig in schools of crappies and perch. Upsize your lures (over 2-inches) for getting more bites from bigger crappies and perch. Sunfish are more reactionary and lures in flashy colors work better than natural colors.
Ready to put these fall fishing tactics to the test? There is no place better than at a top Ohio fishing club like Briarwood Sporting Club. Membership gets you access to high-quality lakes and streams that provide the best fall fishing in Ohio. The investment is not only for fishing experiences that are second to none, but it gets you amenities no other club has to offer. Start your fishing adventure today with the Briarwood Sporting Club.
