Fly Fishing Tips & Tackle

Fly fishing clinics, seminars in Ohio gear up anglers for fly fishing

Winter is loosening its icy grip on Northeast Ohio's steelhead trout streams, and area clubs and fishing shops are trying to put anglers into a stream-fishing mood by rolling out an array of clinics and seminars.

The Steelheader's Ball and the national Fly Fishing Film Tour return next month.

Chagrin River Outfitters in Chagrin Falls features local steelheading stars Jeff Liskay and Jerry Darkes at a free session on spey rods and tube flies Saturday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Noted Pennsylvania and Montana fly-fishing guide Eric Stroup is on the shop's stage March 13 at 11 a.m. with the presentation, "Seven Simple Lessons to Catch More Trout."

Stroup, who owns Pennsylvania's Spruce Creek Fly Co., is a regular here over the next few weeks. Stroup will entertain fly-fishers 7 p.m. Tuesday at a meeting of the Emerald Necklace Chapter of Trout Unlimited at the Cleveland Metroparks Rocky River Nature Center in North Olmsted.

FISHING REPORT
Some of the steelhead trout streams, especially the Rocky River, are opening up and a few trout are being caught. The ice fishing has been fair with lots of water and slush on the ice after rains earlier this week. The Coast Guard is warning western Lake Erie ice anglers that strong winds today could cause large breaks in the lake ice.

Trout streams, lakes The Rocky River has some open water and a few steelhead trout are being caught on spawn bags, jigs and live grubs and a variety of flies. The river was high and muddy early in the week, but is dropping and should be in good shape this weekend. Anglers report a fresh run of trout.

The lower Chagrin River is ice-covered, but there is open water upstream and the water levels are dropping and clearing. Extreme cold over the weekend could bring slushy conditions early, but warmer weather is in the forecast.

Conditions on the Grand River are still very difficult. The hot flies on the Chagrin have been a bright Zonker, Prince nymphs with orange dubbing and small black stone flies. Fly-fishers swinging flies have been casting leech, sculpin and goby patterns.

The Cleveland Metroparks ice fishing for stocked rainbow trout has been slow to fair on Wallace Lake. Suspending small jigs with Power Bait or live grubs under a small float has been the top technique.

Inland lakes, reservoirs The farm pond ice fishing for bluegills, bass and crappies is still good all around the area. Good lakes for ice fishing include LaDue and Spencer, where bluegills and some crappies are being caught, and Mosquito Lake, where the walleye and crappie fishing has been fair to good.

Lake Erie The ice along the Ohio mainland of Lake Erie is somewhat shaky after this week's rains and higher temperatures, but a few walleye are still being caught off Metzger's Marsh. Beware of the strong winds in the forecast, which can cause shifting ice. There is still solid ice along the west side of South Bass Island, with walleye biting best very early and very late in the day.

The East Harbor bluegill bite is still on. Fishermen are catching some big bluegills, but releasing lots of small bluegills.
-- D'Arcy Egan

The North Coast Fly Fishers fly-tying marathon and open house is from 6:30 to 10 p.m. Wednesday at the Lake Metroparks Penitentiary Glen in Kirtland. The Firelands Fly Fishers have a free fly-tying session at 8 p.m. Wednesday at Gander Mountain in Sheffield, and a program featuring noted local bamboo fly-rod maker Jeff Wagner at 6:30 p.m. on March 10 at the French Creek Nature Center in Sheffield.

The new Orvis store in Woodmere has a lineup of free fishing seminars, including a dry fly presentation by John Miller from 6 to 8 p.m. March 11. Orvis presents the Western Trout

Experience at noon March 13, and a seminar on choosing the right fly rod at noon March 20.
To benefit area steelhead streams, the Lake Metroparks hosts the Steelheader's Ball on March 20 at Pine Ridge Country Club in Wickliffe.

The Fly Fishing Film Tour shows off its 2010 fly-fishing adventure, "Rivers of Many Fish," from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. March 30 at the Cedar Lee Theatre in Cleveland Heights. The film features Kype Fishing publisher George Douglas. Stroup is at the Cedar Lee Theatre to talk fly-fishing and hold a book signing for his latest effort, "Common Sense Fly Fishing."

The big social events of the season for fly-fishers are the dinners and fly-fishing talks held by the Trout Club of the Cleveland Museum of Natural History.

The club's annual banquet at the museum is April 17, with the "Land a Fishing Adventure" event featuring a wealth of gear and trips as raffle and auction items. A dinner March 17 features fly-fishing writer and rod builder Hoagy Carmichael on "Fly Fishing for Atlantic Salmon." The dinners are open to nonmembers.

For tickets, call Karen Menn at 216-2231-4600 (Ext. 3278).