The Waterways
Ohio River
The Ohio river has been an important waterway since the beginning of America for several reasons. Most notably, it was and still is important for transporting goods. Every year, 230 million tons of cargo are transported on the Ohio River via barges. The Ohio river was originally a difficult river to travel on with large boats because of rapids and shallow water. During the summer, there were sections of the river that were shallow enough for people to walk across. Because of this, the river was damned which allowed for boats to navigate the Ohio river more easily. This changed the river from a naturally flowing river to one that was controlled by dams. The river now contains 21 pools controlled by 20 dams. Prior to the river being dammed, it was supposedly very beautiful. It probably looked similarly to the Little and Great Miami rivers, just on a larger scale. Prior to its damming and when it was still largely undeveloped, Thomas Jefferson named it "the most beautiful river in the world". This is very significant because he traveled to lots of wilderness areas. The Ohio river is known for being a highly polluted waterway. While this used to be the case, it has cleaned up in recent years and is no longer as bad. In terms of fishing, the Ohio River is known for its winter sauger runs and massive catfish commonly surpassing 50 pounds. While this may sound huge, it's nothing compared to the monsters that were pulled out of the river in the 1800's. These commonly surpassed 100 pounds and unconfirmed reports of ones surpassing 200. Every winter, saugers used to run upstream hundreds of miles prior to the dams in order to spawn, but now they just spawn below dams and at creek mouths.
Great Miami River
A 170-mile-long river that originates at Indian lake (man-made) and empties into the Ohio River west of Cincinnati. This river is similar to the more well-known Little Miami River, just larger in size and less visited. Unlike the LMR, the Great Miami has very few public access areas, which makes it difficult to visit. It is known for its smallmouth bass and saugeye fishing, which are known to reach significantly larger sizes compared to fish in the little Miami. The river played a large role in providing water for the lower section of the Miami and Erie canal, which connected the Ohio River to Lake Erie. The river was also important for industries in cities along the river, most notably Hamilton. It served as a water source as well as an easy source for waste removal, but this stopped in the 1960's and 70's when people started advocating for clean water.
Little Miami River
A similar river to the Great Miami in most aspects, just on a smaller scale. This river is very commonly used for recreational activities like fishing and kayaking, especially during the summer. The majority of the river is less than 3 feet deep with occasional spots that are slightly deeper. With a select few spots being much deeper. Most notably being where the East fork Little Miami connects to the Little Miami across the river from terrace park. One difference between the GMR and LMR is the amount of development in the surrounding areas. Unlike the GMR, the LMR has lots of suburban housing on the river, especially around Milford and Terrace Park.
Brookville Lake
Brookville lake is a man-made lake that was created in 1974 by the U.S Army Corps of Engineers to provide flood control to the surrounding area. The 2,800-foot-long dam was created on the east fork of the Whitewater River near Brookville, Indiana. Considered the cleanest in Indiana, this lake is very clean, clear and deep, which provides excellent fishing for species including smallmouth bass, crappie, and walleye. Clear water is not common in lakes in this area, causing unique fishing opportunities. Walleye as especially abundant because the state of Indiana uses the lake as a hatchery for walleye. Up to 30 million walleye eggs are taken from the lake each spring, and in return 10 million walleye fry are stocked yearly. The presence of trout in the spillway is what makes Brookville especially unique. The spillway takes water from the bottom of the lake, which is cold and clear enough to provide a suitable habitat for brown and rainbow trout year-round. This is one of the few locations in this region that contains a reliable trout fishery.
East Fork Lake
A 2,160-acre man-made lake created in 1978 to provide flood control. It was created by damming the east fork Little Miami River in Batavia, Ohio. The lake has many common fish species in it, but it is known for its excellent crappie fishing. I have fished here several times during the spring for crappie and I can confirm that this is true. The spillway is also an excellent place to fish for crappie. The lake tends to be crowded with boaters during the summer, but during other seasons the lake is calm and peaceful.
Mill Creek
Mill creek is a large creek that runs through the center of Cincinnati. When industry began in Cincinnati, people decided that Mill creek would be a good place to dump all their waste because they had nowhere else to put it. This is why there are lots of old factories around mill creek. For a long time, it was one of the most polluted waterways in the country and it even caught on fire. Now the creek is significantly cleaner, but still far from clean. Fish are able to live in it, but they are mostly carp and the fish that aren't carp are noticeably discolored, which is a sign of poor water quality. Another problem with the creek is channeling. This was done by replacing the bank of the river with concrete to make it so the water could flow more quickly. This works well for flood control, but it makes these areas of the creek almost uninhabitable due to fast water flow. Luckily work is being done to restore the creek such as removing overhead dams to increase oxygen levels. There are also organizations such as the Mill Creek Alliance that do things like organize cleanups and invasive plant removal.
Oxbow Wetlands
Multiple Oxbow lakes located near the mouth of the Great Miami River. An oxbow lake is a type of lake that consists of an old river channel. There used to be lots of these along rivers in this area, but they were mostly destroyed in order to create farmland, prevent flooding, and for other reasons. This was going to happen to the Oxbow wetlands in order to make a barge terminal, but Oxbow Inc. raised money and purchased the land which is now being preserved. The Oxbow wetlands are an excellent location to go to enjoy nature because it is beautiful and never crowded. Just keep in mind that the road is dirt and sometimes muddy after it rains. I have seen birds here that I haven't seen anywhere else in the area such as seagulls, pelicans, and blue-winged teals. The fishing is also excellent, especially for crappie. There's also bass, catfish, carp, and other fish that commonly live in the area.