Species: Smallmouth Bass, Largemouth Bass, Rock Bass, Bluegill, Crappie, Walleye, Channel Catfish, some Musky and Carp.
Access Points and Maps: In Shelby County, starting with and heading upstream, TWP- 49, TWP-135, Main Ave. Sidney, State Route 29, State Route 47, Pasco Montra Rd., Port Jefferson, Canal St., Pence Rd., Tawawa Maplewood Rd., Logan Shelby Rd. In Logan County State Route 235, State Route 47, TWP-21, TWP-207, TWP-13, State Route 274, State Route 235, State Route 720, Indian Lake Dam. You can get a map with the most current information from the Miami Conservancy District at https://www.mcdwater.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/GMR-WebMap-2017e.pdf. This map covers all areas referenced on this page.
Flies: Nymphs, such as Pheasant Tails, Prince nymphs, Caddis nymphs and Hellgrammites, all work well on the Great Miami. Surface flies, like Sneaky Pete’s, Deer Hair Poppers, and Caddis patterns, along with terrestrial’s like grasshoppers, ants, and cricket patterns make a good choice during the summer. Streamer patterns imitating minnows, shiners, and Sculpins work using a sinking or floating line. Other productive patterns are San Juan worms, crayfish patterns, leeches and frogs.
Equipment: 8’ to 9.5’ fly rods in #5 – #8 weights are best. Leader and Tippets in sizes 3x – 4x and 5x are recommended.
Seasons and Miscellaneous Information: The season is from April to October for most of the species found in the Great Miami River. However, Walleye and musky are in this stretch and some late fall and early fishing is available. Most of this section is private property and permission should be sought by the landowner. However, you can float parts of this section as the bridges are state property and access should not be an issue.
