Ohio reservoirs set up for a classic October smallmouth and walleye pattern

What's biting

What's next

Expect the cooling trend to hold, with the 49°F readings showing where the water is heading. As temperatures fall through the low fifties, baitfish tend to stack up and predators follow them, so reaction baits should stay productive. Per Tactical Bassin, a bladed underspin is worth tying on when fish are pushing bait. Tactical Bassin also has a full fall jerkbait seminar for anyone refining retrieves, bait action and color for changing water conditions.

For walleye, Fishing the Midwest describes a plain rig of a bottom bouncer with a snell and nightcrawler that works in the cooler water of spring and fall. It is a simple way to cover water when fish are not tight to structure.

First Quarter moon means a half-lit sky through the evening, so plan on dusk and the first hour after dark for walleye, and mid-morning once the sun warms the shallows for smallmouth, crappie and bluegill. Check state regs before harvesting.

Context

Late October is typically the turn from the early-fall transition to the full fall feed in Ohio's inland reservoirs. Bass and walleye tend to follow bait onto points and shoreline transitions as surface temperatures drop below the mid-fifties. Crappie and bluegill often shift toward deeper cover as the weeds die back. Fishing the Midwest notes that finding living green weeds is a good starting point in fall, since baitfish and gamefish relocate to the weeds that are still alive.