Fishing Season: Spring into Summer

Rocky River - OH

Fishing Outlook & Conditions

Water Temp:

52

Orvis Westlake's Tip of the Week

The spring Steelhead run is all but over but the Smallies are in and have been doing a great job helping us forget about too early end of Steelie fishing. Look for fish to be ready to play and in any area of depth.

Directions open in app

Map of Rocky River

Water Flow Data

5-Day Outlook as of 4/23/24

The river is in good shape. The Smallie fishing has been great and should continue to be so.

Techniques & Tips as of 4/23/24

Early morning top water poppers then transitioning to bait fish patterns like clousers and slider buggers should get good results. As late spring and early summer sets in and the water warms bouncing crayfish patterns off the bottom is always enticing to a hungry Bass or panfish.

Local Species Available Spring into Summer

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    Smallmouth

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    Carp

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    Panfish

Orvis Westlake's Recommended Fly Patterns

"Must-have" fly fishing patterns in descending order of importance:

Name: Colors: Size(s):
Senyo's AI Intruder White, Chartreuse, B 2, 4, 6
Senyo's Egg Raider Orange, Pink, Chartr 2,4
Meg A Egg Sucking Leech Orange, Pink, Chartr 4, 6
Lynch's Double D Streamer Brown, Olive, White 2, 4, 6
Princess Nymph Pink 10,12
Krystal Bugger White 6, 8, 10
Schultzy's S3 Sculpin Olive, Black
Bead Head Flash Zonker white/Olive, White/Gray 6, 8,10
Mojo purp/blck 4, 6

Senyo's AI Intruder

The leech-like profile of this steelhead streamer will have fish in a frenzy.

8.99

Item #9R98

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Orvis Westlake's Recommended Gear

Description: About Rocky River

The Rocky is a medium-sized tributary of Lake Erie similar in character to its Eastern neighbor, The Chagrin River. It receives excellent runs of Lake Erie steelhead from October through April in most years, and its close proximity to Cleveland’s Eastern and Western suburbs make it a very popular destination for fly anglers. In 2007 Field and Stream Magazine named the Rocky River one of the 150 best places to fish in America. The Cleveland Metroparks provide excellent public access along the Rocky and its branches, and several fords along the river force migrating steelhead to pause in their upstream movement, creating excellent fishing opportunities. Like the other shale-bottomed rivers in Northeast Ohio, the Rocky rises and falls dramatically after a precipitation event, so monitoring its flow in cubic feet per second is critical to being successful as an angler. Also like the other northeast rivers, it fishes best with a slight green stain, which usually corresponds to flows between 150 and 350 cubic feet per second. During the summer months, the Rocky provides excellent warm-water fly fishing opportunities for smallmouth bass, carp, and panfish. A 9 ft. 5 or 6 weight rod is perfect for casting the flies needed to bring these fish to hand.

Nearest Airport:

Cleveland Hopkins Int'l Airport (CLE), Cleveland-Akron-Canton (CAK)

Hatches:

This fishery is based on subsurface activity, and there are no key hatches of note. Baitfish and sculpin patterns are the primary forage to imitate on this river. Crayfish imitations always fish well. Stoneflies, woolly buggers, and egg patterns are great when nymphing.

Best Time to Fish:

Any

Best Stretch:

Lower and middle access points

Best Access:

http://www.dnr.state.oh.us/Portals/9/pdf/rocky.pdf