Going to lake ovid

[MSURoss]

Anyone been out there this year yet ?

[Skulley]

The Lake Ovid Guru on this forum is our own fearless leader, Djkimmel. Everything you ever wanted to know about Ovid, but we're afraid to ask , can be gotten from him.



BD.                         

[MSURoss]

Yeah it's a slop only lake. I love fishing there. Was wondering if anyone had reports.

[djkimmel]

'Everything' except a fishing report for this year. I haven't even heard anything yet... I'm really behind.

Ovid is a good slop lake.

It's also a good pitching weeds lake. A good structure lake. A good weed edge lake. A good reservoir fishing training lake. A good wood fishing lake. Good shallow lake. Good deep lake. Even has some roadbed - bridge stuff going on.

It's a good topwater lake. A good deep crankbait lake. A good shallow crankbait lake. A good Texas-rigged worm lake. A good stick worm lake. A good jerkbait lake. A good popper lake. A good spinnerbait lake. A good Carolina rig lake. A good spot/trap lake. A good finesse or shaky head worm lake. A good creature bait lake. A good buzzbait lake. A good frog lake. A good jig lake.

I think I've caught bass on Ovid just about every way you can fish for bass possibly. I've even caught them on blade baits.

Shoot! I guess I better get out there soon. Sounds like a pretty cool lake!

[red68prostreet]

Mr. Kimmel. Is it possible to get some info about Lake Ovid. I live in Fowlerville and work in Howell. Every week here at work I offer to take a couple of coworkers fishing. One coworker lives in Owosso so I was thinking of making a trip to lake Ovid. In reading the forum it appears you are the man when it comes to lake Ovid. In the next couple of weeks our plan is to try this lake. We would launch about 4:00 PM and fish until 8-8:30 PM. Any info such as where to start and what to throw to save time would be helpful.
        Thanks,
                 Mark

[Genie]

There are no fish in Ovid.  Dan is confused.

[djkimmel]

Mr. Kimmel. Is it possible to get some info about Lake Ovid. I live in Fowlerville and work in Howell. Every week here at work I offer to take a couple of coworkers fishing. One coworker lives in Owosso so I was thinking of making a trip to lake Ovid. In reading the forum it appears you are the man when it comes to lake Ovid. In the next couple of weeks our plan is to try this lake. We would launch about 4:00 PM and fish until 8-8:30 PM. Any info such as where to start and what to throw to save time would be helpful.
        Thanks,
                 Mark

For some reason, my fuzzy (at best) memory says you recently sent me something or asked me something somewhere and I have not followed up maybe?

Anyway, I am more like the 'like Lake Ovid guy.' VinceR and some others are the Man on that lake. I still have not been there yet this year so what the weeds are specifically doing will make a difference.

But I have caught bass there a few times even with Genie (when he wasn't looking, I guess? And I'm pretty sure he was with me when I found the BIG carp on the bed that turned out to not be a carp!?!)! Ovid is a 30 year old lowland reservoir so you want to keep that in mind. The Little Maple River or part of it runs from the South end under the bridge to the North end unique and strange 'upside down hat' dam. Not sure if that is the correct technical term, but that is what I call it.

There's a lot of wood in that channel. Some of it used to be standing and some has been dumped in there. There's also a couple road beds, a bridge, some old foundation bases, a few old farm ponds and some ditches. Some of the ditches have stumps along the edge. There's even a few laydowns around the lake since it is undeveloped State Park shoreline with some natural qualities left intact. How does that sound?

I know! Pretty good to me too!

However, the weed thickness and brands will affect what the bass do quite a bit out there. Especially right about now as bass are moving from spawn probably to post-spawn. If you see a good, defined inside weed line with some depth (or shallow even around islands and points) you better be checking it out.

If you have thick milfoil already with some nice holes in the beds, you better be checking those out too. Especially South of the boat ramp and on the underwater islands / road beds to the East of the dam. I had a day out there a few seasons ago this time of year doing the pitching into weed holes that will probably be one of the few things I remember until the very end!

A lot of this lake is still sand/gravel until you get deep and even that has areas of dead weed / silt that might have wood and rock underneath it or sticking out. If you drop and underwater camera down in some of that you will floating goo. But I have still caught bass down there most times of the year and if you watch carefully... a lot of that 'goo' is actually little critters swimming around, feeding the zillions of bluegills.

It's a no wake lake - bonus since it isn't very big, so I would just start fishing and go South of the ramp. You have the main creek channel just out from the ramp with points, wood, piles of junk, possibly deep weedlines, flats with deep holes in the weeds, maybe some pads, maybe some topped out slop weeds shallow and even some inside weed edges. Plus, they spawn along a lot of that shore. You may still see some bass on beds yet in a few places shallow, but I will tell you, a lot more of the bass out there spawn in 4 to almost 8 feet of water, maybe deeper now? Some people don't believe that but I could show them video if I felt like it, and on the rare, calm day when there hasn't been a recent storm (remember lowland reservoir) you can sometimes see as deep as 8 feet.

There are holes in the weeds out there that I have waypointed because every year about this time, like clockwork, I catch my biggest average bass out of the same holes. Usually because there is a stump or a log down there. I waypoint them because sometimes there are no weeds to make the 'hole' and I still like to catch those nice bass. This may be the first year in quite a while that I miss my chance... oh well. There's just this one hole... I'm not the only one who knows about it but it is a personal favorite. Every year, I can get a 4+ out of that hole this time of year on the dime! I keep that hole to myself and a few friends, and whomever else knows about it. You might find it? Or the other bunch of them that are also pretty good. Like I said, a hole in the weeds is often there for a reason.

Some of the main channel has secondary parallel channels with ridges in between too. I have caught bass out there just about every way you can catch a bass. I have also caught a few big pike - leftovers from the original river channel, some nice sized channel catfish and now, of course, you have to watch out for the true muskies! Quite a few of them are in the mid-40 inch range now. Some days you won't see any and other days they will hit frogs/rats, jerkbaits, crankbaits, spinnerbaits, stick worms... you name it and I have donated it to a muskie out there! Just be prepared every time you lift your lure out of the water. You may be a lot tougher than me so you don't squeal when those darn gators blast out of the water in your face!! I'm not saying that I actually do and will deny it if anyone on here claims they've heard me do it.

You can definitely catch bass in 1 foot of water and 15+ on that lake on the same day sometimes so try fishing the way you like to first as long as it works around thick weeds, if they're there this year. Near dark, you better try a buzzbait on the inside and shallower outside weed edges a little. Ovid can be an awesome buzzbait lake. It can be a great big, shallow crankbait lake too but right now I would be thinking pitching worms and creature baits into the weed holes if the weeds are up good. Holes in the weeds are usually there for a reason... I think I said that already?

If the lakes seems to be ahead of schedule - might be a little this year - then look for points in the weeds, from shore and along the creek channel too. They don't have to move very far to be in classic lowland reservoir bass spots. Sometimes, they can really gang up in small areas. I have witnesses to this. My wife and I once landed 65 bass one afternoon out there from one small clean ledge in 9 feet of water jutting out near 13 feet from an otherwise long, straight 8 to 9 foot deep weedline. That's a lot of bass from 1 spot about the size of 2 bass boats on a 400 acre lake.

Been a while since I've caught that many but from this point into early fall, it is always possible though it can be hard to pull away from the slop fishing. One thing to watch for - if a ton of bluegills are still on beds, there will always be bass nearby. If most of the bluegills are done, then you could possibly get into post-spawn bass suspended out over deeper water pushing post-spawn bluegills to the surface. You might never see bass out there busting in a school but if the bluegills are schooled up and real nervous, and you don't see some big fish-eating birds flying around and round, then the odds are, something else is making them do that. On Ovid, it is either a muskie, or a school of bass most of the time. Might not be big bass. But then again, it might be.

Okay. It is a little embarrassing when you chase 'nervous' schools of flashing bluegills around for a while without a bite only to find out they are being busted by bass that average 6 inches but on those few days, usually post-spawn, when the bigger bass are under them, and you're whacking one after another chunker on suspending jerkbaits out in the middle of the lake, nowhere near real cover, so everyone else can't figure what secret 'spot' you are on and they aren't whacking them, it makes up for all those other times you chased around the bluegills that apparently didn't have chunker bass pushing them!

Just in case it is the other possibility (those pesky muskie) don't start out with your most expensive or prized lure first. You don't always get them back. I always picture this one really big muskie, telling stories to all the other littler muskie gathered around in front of a log where all my lures I've ever lost are hanging like trophies... "I got this rare Fred Young wood Big O on a sunny day in July 'bout 3 years ago. I was hangin' out at the road bed saddle bustin' gills when this beauty goes wobblin' by... well, I had to have it so I..."

You get the picture (I should ask Bill McElroy to draw it up for me!).

[djkimmel]

See if you can get a map from the State Park people there. They have more detail on their local map than the general MDNR map online. Not sure with their budget crisis if they still print and hand them out or not?

You can do okay out there fishing it like a lake all the time, but you'll do better if you fish it like the reservoir it is. Ovid taught me quite a few things about reservoir bass over the years that we don't have a lot of other places nearby to learn from.

Maybe someday, the 'ditch guy' will come forward and tell me it was him. That one day so many years ago, watching him catch bass after bass, far from shore in the middle of 'nowhere' changed me as a bass angler as much as any other single thing that has ever happened to me over all these years. I left the shoreline and found a much bigger world out there than I new existed before! Still love the shoreline. But there's so much more to love now plus the shoreline!

[red68prostreet]

Dan, I didn't know you were going to write a book about Lake Ovid. I may have to pass on going there as I'm not sure I can live up to the expectations with all the detailed info you provided. I really appreciate the effort you put into this response along with the effort you put into GLB everyday.

I may see you at the KVD/Lions event on tues. I hope I can get a ticket at the gate.
Thanks again,
Mark

[djkimmel]

Dan, I didn't know you were going to write a book about Lake Ovid. I may have to pass on going there as I'm not sure I can live up to the expectations with all the detailed info you provided. I really appreciate the effort you put into this response along with the effort you put into GLB everyday.

I may see you at the KVD/Lions event on tues. I hope I can get a ticket at the gate.
Thanks again,
Mark

Sometimes, writing brings out fond old memories. Plus, it's cheaper than therapy (no monetary copay!). Ovid is like any lake. It can be real good and it can be tougher than you expect. It has been a little slower the past 3 years and I haven't fished it as much but I still enjoy the complexity and variety of it. I always recommend it and sometimes people do think I've oversold it. Just see the sentence about being like any lake.

Most people won't expect you to catch a hundred, especially if they have fished it the past few years. Who knows? You might hammer them. There's still plenty of bass in the lake.

If you are serious about tomorrow at KVD/Lions, I think I have someone who has a ticket available to sell to you tomorrow. I don't know if they are sold out or not yet? A lot has happened in the past few days but someone did have 1 ticket available earlier today and asked me if I knew anyone who still wanted one.

[red68prostreet]

  Fishing report from Lake Ovid. My buddies and I hit the lake about 4:00 PM yesterday. We fished frogs, worms, jigs, red eye shad crankbaits, kellys worm ( they catch everything ) with no luck. For the heck of it I tied on a 12" giant zoom worm. 2nd cast I caught a 4 lb 11 oz big ole fish. I think it was lonely as it was the only fish caught. I am trying to post a pic but can't figure out how.
   It's funny how fishing works. I have a fully decked out 521VX Ranger with all the modern electronics know to man and caught one fish. The two kids at the boat ramp fishing with bobbers had a bucket full of bluegill and two keeper bass. I may need to go back to basics or rethink this whole fishing thing.

[MSURoss]

Dont feel bad that lake has got me more than once

[Genie]

Told you - no fish in that lake.

[djkimmel]

Genie! He mentioned 3 keeper bass right up there ^

[djkimmel]

  Fishing report from Lake Ovid. My buddies and I hit the lake about 4:00 PM yesterday. We fished frogs, worms, jigs, red eye shad crankbaits, kellys worm ( they catch everything ) with no luck. For the heck of it I tied on a 12" giant zoom worm. 2nd cast I caught a 4 lb 11 oz big ole fish. I think it was lonely as it was the only fish caught. I am trying to post a pic but can't figure out how.
   It's funny how fishing works. I have a fully decked out 521VX Ranger with all the modern electronics know to man and caught one fish. The two kids at the boat ramp fishing with bobbers had a bucket full of bluegill and two keeper bass. I may need to go back to basics or rethink this whole fishing thing.

Check out the General Support message board way down at the bottom for several options on how to include pictures including a nice tutorial video Cheetam made for us a while ago.