April 2023

The Grand is normally my go to river.  On my most productive steelhead day, I caught twelve and it was on the Grand.  Under decent conditions, I would make a reasonable wager that I’d catch at least one Steelhead.  However, it was extremely muddy when we arrived, so I decided to save this river for last hoping for better water clarity.  The river winds through agricultural areas including farmlands and wineries. The main reason the water does not clear quickly is due to the river bottom structure which is not primarily made of slate or rock like the Chagrin or Rocky. The Grand also has numerous feeder creeks which increases the sediment. Unfortunately, it never truly cleared.  I probably could have caught a fish or two with muddy conditions, but that would have taken the entire week and my goal was to hit all five rivers.

On day five, I tried to fish the Grand. Not only did I have unfavorable water clarity, I also had to contend with numerous fishermen throughout the river.  I wasn’t ‘combat fishing’ like you’ll find in the Pacific Northwest or Alaska, but more people than I care for.  Regardless, I fished for an hour before moving on to the next spot.

With that, I headed east toward the border of Ohio and Pennsylvania to the Conneaut.  I have only fished this river once before and my effort level on that visit was mediocre at best due to time constraints.

The Conneaut was clear in comparison to the Grand.  So, I tried my best to end the trip with a fish on the final day.

It’s interesting what you notice when you’re driving a camper versus an SUV.  For example, on my last visit, all I saw was a beautiful historic bridge.  Now, the first thing I notice wasn’t the architecture or historic value, it’s the fact that my rig is 11’-7” tall.  I’m not a math major, but it doesn’t take too much to figure out there would be a huge issue if I weren’t paying attention.

Long story short, it was a beautiful day to fish, but I ended up without a catch or hookup for the day.

I contemplated not posting Day 5 due to the lack of fish.  However, my wife pointed out, ‘you said 5 Rivers/ 5 Days’.  She didn’t call me an idiot for considering leaving out the final day, but I’m pretty sure it was implied…