BassFishingOhio.com

I was fishing Oakthorpe Reservoir yesterday and the one thing I noticed most was all the trash around the lake.  There was paper and junk everywhere!

Most of the lake shore is connected to private property, so can you imagine how the property owners feels looking down towards the lake and seeing all the trash?  How long does it take to pick up a piece of paper to keep the area looking nice?

Everywhere you fish nowadays people just don’t give a damn, they leave their junk right where they used it.  For example, yesterday, three kids apparently camped out overnight at Oakthorpe, when they left the fire was still burning and they just left it.  First off, there is supposed to be no fires at Oakthorpe, second how long would it have taken to just get some water and put it out?  I mean they are right by the lake!

Then you have the ATV’s!  According to the game warden, no atv’s are even allowed there but they come in, make ruts everywhere and make it rough on people who try to fish from shore.  I have seen them go right up on private property and ruin the land with the ruts they make.

Then you have the idiots that runs their outboards wide open on the lake.  First off, read the damn website from the ODNR, it is a trolling motor only lake.  I have told people that and what do they do?  Start their outboards and go across the lake.

The problem with Oakthorpe is no one cares!  Kids come there and do their drugs, it is known to them as “Reefer Lake”, I have seen drug deals go on there too.  I also seen people in their big 4 wheel mud trucks get back to check on their crops where no one else can go.

Then the weeds get so high every year that you can’t even fish from shore because when you go back to cast, the rod hits the high weeds on the shore by the ramp.  I think they might get cut once  a year, if that!

Then you have all the drinkers that go there to drink their beer and etc.  Everytime you go there you see a couple of people sitting in their vehicle  drinking.

The main problem is no one cares about this little lake!  I haven’t seen the game warden there in years!  ODNR sets a bad example by leaving the place go to hell, people think if they don’t care about the lake, why should they?  ODNR could post signs about being a trolling motor only lake and no ATV’s but they haven’t and won’t until the ATV’s sets the place on fire in the summer and burns the caretakers house down or some other house around the lake.

We need this little lake policed by the Fairfield County Game Warden, Buckeye Lake Lake Patrol Offiice and Fairfield County, Ohio Sheriff Office, if just for a little while to let people know someone actually cares.