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River Committee Findings
November 2005
The purpose of visiting
riverside landowners was to inform them of the Ohio Central Basin
Steelheaders (OCBS) and gauge their thoughts regarding anglers on their
property. We did ask them if they minded fishermen, in general, fishing in
their sections of river. By opening a line of communication between
landowners and the OCBS our hope is to break the ice so that our members, as
well as fishermen in general, would be welcomed when they approach
landowners for permission. Incidentally, at no point in the conversations
did we ask for our own permission to fish their properties.
The
following are our notes regarding landowner visits in the specific
watershed:
Vermilion River
We coordinated a meeting
with Lorain County Metroparks Operations Supervisor and informed her about
OCBS and the steelhead fishery. During the conversation we informed her
that Vermilion would likely get much of the pressure from Michigan
steelheaders because of being the farthest river west. Attracting out of
state anglers is good for both Ohio and local economies. One thing of
interest that became of the meeting was that we found out that you need a
special users’ permit to guide on all Lorain County Metropark property.
Rocky River
On our first visit to Rocky
River we distributed gift bags of coffee to the landowners upstream of
Lewis Road on the West Branch (which is 100% private). We talked to the
landowners as far upstream as the first bend and found most of the
landowners did not have any problems with fishermen. We offered the
coffee as a gesture of goodwill from fishermen, as there is heavy fishing
pressure throughout that section of river property.
On our second trip to Rocky
River we formed three groups, one of which had an Ohio Division of
Wildlife (ODNR) representative, in an effort to be most efficient. We
talked to landowners on the east and west side of the west branch and
found that most of the people were willing to talk to us and had no
problem with fishermen. Here are some of the spots that we did find that
fishermen may have problems fishing:
- Sunset Memorial
Cemetery: no fishing
- East bank
- Four areas that are
posted about midway between Lewis Road and Waterstreet Park. “No
Trespassing” signs are present.
Chagrin River
We talked to landowners
between Daniels Park dam and the Gates Mills dam (mostly adjacent to
access points) as a proactive measure as a result of the January 2005
flood that collapsed Daniels Park dam. We felt it necessary to survey
this section because of the increased pressure that will inevitably be
coming to this area. Here were some of the findings:
- Many landowners were not
home at the time this survey was conducted
- We had good feedback
from landowners that we did talk to
- There is no fishing on
the old Sherwin property (downstream of Eagle Road, east bank)
- Gates Mills police said
fishing in town is not a problem – for now
- Upstream of Rte. 84
through Waite Hill is being enforced for trespassing on a regular basis
Grand River
We talked to one landowner
at the end of Brant Road access and he said that there would be no parking
or fishing at the Brant Road access.
Ashtabula River
We visited landowners
upstream of State Road bridge Indian Park access. Most of the people were
very receptive to fishermen and just wanted the anglers to ask permission
before they fish. One thing that the members should be aware of is that
during deer season this area is heavily hunted.
Conneaut Creek
On our first visit we formed
four groups that worked the entire river from State Rte. 7 to the PA
border. Our second visit we also distributed gift bags of coffee to the
landowners that were adjacent to access spots (bridges and parks). Our
findings on both visits were mostly positive but there are some areas that
are posted and private such as:
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