compared to perch?

More chicken-y. Seriously though, they have more of a fish taste than Perch, if that makes sense.

Terrible. send me all those silly crappie for proper disposal via a cornmeal breading and boiling oil

JLE

Mmmm. Now I want to go perch fishing.

Crappie  are lighter in texture than perch..  hope that helps...

Milk flour, corm meal, paprika, hot oil in skillet .. Yum!

Sunfish and bluegills are great...pan-fry 'em with some good marinade. Not much meat on 'em, but they're stupid easy to catch....so think of them as the "wings" of  the water.

I think bluegill and crappie are about the best eating fish!  I sure do love some catfish and saugeye though, cant say I've ever has perch.

I'm new to fishing, as in I've never been but would like to start. What would be a good rod & reel setup to get started fishing these here in Ohio?  Are there some state parks that are good for fishing them?

It's a broad question, because fishing is like hunting - recommending a gun depends on what you're hunting (and where). However, a good spinning reel/rod combo can be had in the $40-50 range, and will serve you well for most fishing in this state...move up to a better stick or baitcaster as you get more comfortable and want to take on jig & other fishing styles. Stick with the big name brands (Shimano, Daiwa, etc. and you'll be fine).





All the state parks offer good stream and lake fishing, but there are creeks and rivers everywhere full of good fish...all depends on what your goal is. Game fish, good eats, sit-on-the-bank and chill fishing, etc. This dictates too how you fish, with what bait, on and on.





Here's a basic guide that might help to get started and consider what you're in it for:





http://www.fishingloft.com/fishing-for-beginners.html





Where are you at in Ohio? I've fished a lot of it, might be able to better recommend a place to start knowing that.





 

I'm in the Columbus area -- I intend to prepare and eat what I reel in; catch & release doesn't appeal to me right now (maybe one day).  I'd be interested in going out with some pals, camping and fishing on the shore or maybe in a canoe, then cook it up by campfire, or bring it home to freeze for later.  Reading about bluegill, crappie, sunfish, and perch all sound delicious.

I'm close to ya - just east in Granville. Lots of good fishing around, even right in town. Alum Creek is a good spot with a lot of honey holes. Mohican SP is a great place to fish & camp, lots of really good fishing on the Mohican & Walhonding, and it's not a far drive at all - hour and a half up Rt. 3. Fishing for that type of stuff is pretty easy...most of the better eating fish in Central Ohio respond well to live bait and modest gear...and are in abundance when game fish are more elusive - meaning more fun for you and better results.





You might head to Ollie's right now - last time I was in there they were blowing out Shakespeare spinning combos really cheap. Decent little rigs for $20-30. Not great equipment, but plenty serviceable for what you're after and if you don't abuse them will work great. Although it's not popular wisdom, when you're starting having good line & top quality hooks is more important than your reel & rod...setting your fish is more important than reeling them in - up until you're casting jigs and so forth and need to operate by feel. For casual fishing, you don't need top shelf stuff. Our forefathers got by with sticks of hickory and thread, afterall. Most of it is understanding where they are, and what makes them strike...and bluegill are the needy whores of the water. They'll put most anything that fits in their mouth if you dangle it in front of them.





My time is for shit right now, unfortunately...I've been itching to fish this year but have only been out once, but once I get moved and my job situation figured out I'll be back at it - look me up I'd be down for some fishing and I know the creeks around this area pretty well.





 

this is right on a good flower with fresh peppercorn mixed into the flour and a little salt fry em up and eat away catch alot to feed a few as stated easy to catch so no problem there

Thanks, swingset. I ordered a Shakespeare beginners kit from Cabela's tonight since they have promotion today for $10 off and order of $50. It comes with a rod, reel, and tackle kit. I'm excited to get out there and try it!

I'm nowhere near either of you (Hamilton Area) but this sounds interesting. What are the odds of making this a "thing"?

That'd a good idea - Ohio HTF fishing expedition! Maybe early fall...great camping weather and good fishing. Mohican SP would be ideal for that...they have ample places to camp (primitive or car camping, etc.), it's beautiful there too. There's even fishing/canoe liveries if you wanna get the fish by boat.



 

I would totally be up for a fishing get together

Ok, I'll get that ball rolling...but no shooting at the fish everyone.







BTW, how's everyone in the SBF house? Haven't talked to ya in a while!



 

May I explode the fish once my patience runs out?

Well, given that this is ARFcom and I've met enough folks to know, I figure shooting, exploding and violating sexually are all legit options as far as the fish are concerned...and that's before the drinking starts.



 

For NightFox:

One sure way to limit your catch is to use hooks that are too large.  When I am setting up a rig for a first-timer, who just wants to catch a lot of panfish, I like to use what are known as "egg hooks".  These are small, circular hooks, about the size of your pinky nail.  These small hooks let one use small pieces of bait, which helps prevent fish from stripping bait from your hook.  Tie it to your line, about a foot or so below a small float (depending on what depth the fish are at), and crimp on a small split-shot sinker halfway up the line.  I tip the hook with pretty much anything small - a lot of panfish will hit on a bare hook, even.  Maggots, or waxworms, or bits of earthworm work well.  If you don't like dealing with insects, you can use a piece of lunch meat, hot dog, or prepared bait that comes in a jar.  Since the bait is small, the fish tend to just take in the whole piece.  Since the hook is small, it goes in with the bait.  Otherwise, you find yourself reeling in an empty hook more often than you would like.

Also, it helps to have a pair of hemostats, or jeweler's need-nose pliers.  If you hook a fish deep in its mouth, these make it a lot easier to get the hook out.

There are obviously other ways to catch them.  I like to use a fly rod, myself.  However, this is probably one of the easier ways to get some fish on your hook, with minimal frustration.

Good advice - always match your hook to the mouth swallowing it - works in the dating world, too.



 

Unfortunately, that is a subject I will have to defer on.

Fantastic. My packing list for this shindig shall consist of the following:

(QTY 1) Tub of Tannerite
(QTY 1) Crate of .556 ammo
(QTY 1) .556 ammo dispensing apparatus
(QTY 2) XL Bottles of warming KY Jelly
(QTY 1) Frozen Cornish Game Hen
(QTY 1) Fish hook
(QTY 1) Hammer

They are superlative. Pan fried FTW.

Ps: Eat the tail if you fry it. But just the tip. It's crunchy and delicious. No sarcasm

All is well at our homestead.  Been doing a lot of fishing with the boy this summer, been fun.

check out antrim park, its stocked with trout 2-3x a year and has tons of fish.

i rarely caught trout there minus the week they stocked but i used to see them in the evening all the time, they would swim by in small schools to taunt me.
i mostly caught bluegill and bass.

i dont eat crappie unless i catch them late fall or early spring, the meat gets mushy in the summer.
tried lemon juice and other old timer tricks and none worked well enough for me so i just toss them back.


we should hit ohio power for a camping/fishing trip.

I've fished Antrim when it was just a quarry as kid in '71.

Six lane 315 was far off in he future.

7 to 8 lb Large mouth were common, 5 to 6 lb Smallies were common also.

White Crappies off the East bank sunken trees - prolific.

Now the Bluegills, monster bull heads were everywhere, you could pick them off the beds with no problem.

The North end is shallow, in some places slag piles are only four feet deep. There is also two gravel bars that run 40 yds. out from the shore that always produce in April and May.

First gravel / rock bar is on the North shore, approx. ten yds. East past the center of the E / W corners. It runs straight South for at least 40 yds.

Second gravel bar is on the East bank, 45 yds. south of the NE corner This bar runs straight out for 25 - 30 yds. and then turns south.

50 yds. south of this bar, lays an off shore hump that runs parallel  to the shoreline. This hump is one long weed bed only 15 yds. from the shoreline and approx 30 yds long.

South end of the quarry is mostly unproductive except for the shore line weed beds.

We used to swim across the North end and there's one big rock where you can stand out of the water.

Hope this helps.

I'm in on this one.

I love eating bluegills/sunfish, crappie, and perch.  Reading this thread has made me hungry.  

Are there any good fishing areas in the Dayton area?

eastwood lake is a fairly clean lake..  about the only one I would eat fish from...., unless you can get into some of the private gravelpits in the area