Wife is really liking fishing after another successful Pymatuning trip

ANDOVER – The first time we thought it was quite possibly luck. The second time, maybe we hit it just right. But, now that we’ve proven we can catch fish at Pymatuning, we’re convinced it’s one of the state’s best fisheries.

For the third spring in a row, my wife, Jean, and I camped and fished at Pymatuning Reservoir in eastern Ohio in mid-May, and once again we really enjoyed fishing the lake. And why wouldn’t we, we caught fish – and lots of them. And, not just one species, but seven (eight if you include the muskie I hooked but didn’t land).

And, we did it without a boat motor, a fish finder or electric trolling motor. Fishing out of a tandem kayak, Jean and I caught smallmouth and largemouth bass, catfish, bluegill, crappie, white bass and perch. In fact, while most of the boats on the lake were targeting walleye, it was the only fish in Pymatuning that we DIDN’T catch.

We would have loved to have caught a walleye for supper, but they were hitting worm harnesses trolled and live minnows jigged in the weeds, neither of which we had. We did try throwing some jigs and twister tails along the weed lines, but we were having so much fun catching smallies on Ned Rigs that targeting walleye wasn’t that important.

And when the bass weren’t hitting our Ned Rigs, the catfish, crappie, bluegill and perch were. And, good-sized ones, too. In fact, every perch we caught was an eater, and the gills were big and plump. And when it got dark, you couldn’t keep the catfish off your line.

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She just kept on reeling them in

The story of the trip, though, was Jean’s bass fishing prowess. Every time we went out fishing, she had it going on, catching both quality and quantity. She reeled in several 16-inch bronze backs right out from the campground in 8-10 feet of water, and when we got tired of doing that, we headed to the north end of the lake and pitched 5-inch black Yum Dingers rigged weedless for largemouth bass in the lily pads, and she banged two more quality fish.

A medium-heavy rod with braided line to a 10-pound fluorocarbon leader helped her get a good hook set on the largies, not to mention that gave her the ability to reel the fish in through all the cover.

On one windy and rainy day, we took a drive around the lake and ended up on the south end below the dam, and decided to fish the spillway where the water flows into the Shenango River. This part of the lake is in Pennsylvania, and seeing how I had purchased a yearly Pennsylvania fishing license for an earlier trip to Presque Isle in Erie, I was legal to fish the spillway.

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Spillway a hot spot for big muskie

After talking with an angler in the parking lot, I found out the spillway is a haven for big muskie, but all I had was a light rod and reel spooled with 6-pound line and a Ned Rig. And, wouldn’t you know it, but I hooked into a muskie probably 20 casts in. I knew I had something big on, and when I first saw a glimpse of it, I thought it might be a huge walleye. But as it cruised by me some 6-feet from shore, I saw that it was a muskie, probably in the 32-inch range, not long in muskie terms, but this one was thick and girthy.

At that point I was doubtful I would ever land the fish, as I not only had light line, but no net as well. I managed to keep the fish on for a while, but it finally said it had enough and jumped out of the water 2-feet and snapped the line.

Pymatuning, which sits on the Ohio-Pennsylvania border, is 14,650 acres of fishing wonderment. With a 20-HP motor limit, it’s pretty much just a fishing lake. The reservoir was created in 1933 for flood control and recreation, and is operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Because it rests in  Ohio and Pennsylvania, it is subject to management by both states, who work in conjunction to keep it healthy and well stocked.

On the water, a fishing license from either state allows you to fish the entire lake. If you fish from shore, though, you need a license from the state you are standing on. In fact, the causeway that splits the lake has road-side pull offs on both sides of the state line for shore fishing.

Pymatuning has plenty of open water, shallow, weedy bays, ways to avoid waves

Though it’s one lake, Pymatuning has several features that allow it to fish like many lakes. The reservoir has plenty of open water for trolling, has shallow, weedy back bays filled with spawning fish in the spring, weeds and man-made fishing structures scattered throughout the lake, and rip-rap shorelines that attract fish. There are multiple islands and back bays that allow you to avoid the waves when the wind picks up.

Both Ohio and Pennsylvania have state campgrounds on their sides of Pymatuning, but there also are several private campgrounds scattered around the lake. And a good thing about the campgrounds if you’re a fisherman is most of the campers there are fishermen, too, so there’s always someone to talk to as to where the fish are biting.

The Pymatuning State Park Campground has its own boat launch, as does the Ohio State Parks rental cabins. All told, there are a dozen launch ramps scattered around the lake.

There are some hikes in the area, but they’re more like walking paths, good for a family outing, but certainly not challenging.

Linesville Spillway a perfect spot for carp

While Pymatuning is filled with bass, crappie, perch, walleye and bluegill, the most abundant fish in the lake are carp. The Linesville Spillway on the north end is famous for being the spot where the bottom feeders are so thick “ducks walk on their backs.” Literally thousands can be spotted at a time, and it’s worth your time to make a stop at the spot which is a must-see attraction.

For that reason, one of the best baits to attract big muskies on Pymatuning are lures that imitate carp. Ohio’s biggest game fish has made a remarkable comeback in Pymatuning after an outbreak of Red Spot Disease (a bacterial infection) nearly wiped out the population back in the 1980s and early '90s.

Pymatuning trivia time

In its early days, Pymatuning was not just a fishing lake, but also a test lake for torpedoes. Westinghouse Electric, which was based in nearby Sharon, Pennsylvania, was testing and developing torpedoes to sink the Japanese Imperial Fleet during WWII. The plant made MK-18 torpedoes, which were electric, silent, and created no wake. More than 10,000 torpedoes were made at the Westinghouse plant.

Ten miles of open water, from what is now called Westinghouse Bay on the south end to the causeway, was perfect for the company to test any updates made to the torpedoes.

The torpedoes were not filled with explosives and were made to float to the surface after test firing.

Outdoor correspondent Art Holden can be reached at letsplabal@yahoo.com.

This article originally appeared on The Daily Record: They just kept reeling them in at Pymatuning Reservior