Fall is best time to fish on Conneaut Lake
Attempt a fishing trip to Conneaut Lake this time of year, and likely you’ll be run off the water by boaters and skiers before noon. Wait a few weeks, however, and you’ll likely enjoy a different atmosphere.
“In my opinion, fall is the absolute best time of year to fish Conneaut,” said Darl Black, who guides anglers for panfish and bass on Conneaut, and has logged decades of experience there. “After Labor Day you lose a lot of the folks that live there during the summer. They get their big power boats off the lake, for the most part, and fishermen can enjoy the lake much more during the fall. And the fish bite better.”
Conneaut Lake is located in Crawford County, just a few miles west of the Interstate 79 corridor. It covers around 925 acres and lies in a north-south configuration. The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission provides an access area at the lake’s northwestern corner. Fireman’s Beach, which was completely redone this year, provides additional access for a fee. There is no horsepower limit or special fishing regulations.
According to Black, currently the best fall fishing in Conneaut is for largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, crappies and bluegills. While the lake is known for producing exceptionally sized white bass, including the present and former state records, they’ve been largely absent in recent years. He said white bass tend to be cyclic in Conneaut, and could well rebound in coming years should a strong year class or two occur.
Northern pike are relatively common in the lake, though most are below the 24 inch minimum length limit. Black said the northern pike fishing is best during cold fall weather. Unseasonably warm weather, he said, puts off the pike bite.
Conneaut has a history as a muskie lake, including the long-standing state record. Following a period of lean years the muskie population could well be on the rebound, with reports of nice muskies taken the past couple seasons. The Fish and Boat Commission stocks fingerlings every year. Since 2014, stockings of yearling muskies have also taken place. The Fish and Boat Commission plans to survey Conneaut during the two or three years to evaluate the success of these stockings.
The walleye fishery has declined significantly during the past couple of decades. The last stocking was in 2014, and discontinued due to a poor return. PFBC Fisheries Biologist Brian Ensign said trapnest surveys conducted in 2001 and 2012 only collected four adult walleyes.
As Black explained, Conneaut features several deep basins — some dropping down to depths in the 50-60 foot range — with scattered ridges and humps separating them. Submergent weedgrowth is common in shallower zones, present out to depths of around 10 to 12 feet. Low-rising weeds taper off into deeper water. Conneaut features many submerged ridges and humps, called ‘bars’ locally. Ones that rise close to the surface typically sport submerged weedgrowth. Deeper hard-bottom humps won’t feature weeds, but still can gather up gamefish and panfish, particularly during the fall. Hard-bottom areas show up well on sonar units, providing a strong sonar return, which diminishes as the bottom transitions into muck and silt.
Conneaut’s western shoreline is particularly riddled with weed-covered points that extend well out into the lake. This includes Bathhouse Bar, located in front of Conneaut Lake Park and just south of the Fish and Boat Commission ramp. Blackbird Point is located a few hundred yards farther south. Round Bar and Ferry Bar, shallow mid lake humps, are located to the east of Blackbird.
Farther to the south, a long point runs off Wolf Island (which is actually a point of land). Smaller weed points extend into the lake both north and south of Fireman’s Beach.
Much of the Eastern Shore of the lake drops quickly into the deeper basins. Prominent weed points are near the Iroquois Club, and north of the area known as Oakland.
“In September, the bluegill bite is still going really well,” said Black, describing one of the better early fall options. “You can catch a lot of bluegills and the average size is good. Some of them are deeper, some are up on weed flats. It’s not too difficult to look around and find some big schools. Last year I found an enormous school of bluegills on a small little break in about 20 feet of water. You couldn’t believe how many bluegills were stacked up there. They were so solid it looked like a house down there.”
If you’re looking for big bass, both largemouth and smallmouth, Conneaut during the fall is a prime venue.
“If it’s early fall and the fish are active and moving around, topwater and other baits that you can use over the tops and along the edges of the weeds excel,” said Black. “As it gets colder, the tail end of October into November, then it’s basically the weed line and deeper, out to about 20 feet or so.”
Fall in northwestern Pennsylvania has much to offer the sportsman. If you’re in the region this fall, give Conneaut a try. Generally, Black finds Conneaut to be productive until around mid November.
Jeff Knapp is an outdoors columnist for the Butler Eagle
