Fishing Bellwood Lake in Geauga County, Ohio

• Overview

  Bellwood Lake lies in Geauga County, Ohio. It sits at 1,178 feet above sea level. It covers about 2 acres, so this is small water you can walk round in under an hour. Most waters listed here for Geauga County are larger. Start from South Russell, 2.1 miles down the road. Cleveland sits 19 miles out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. The county edge is within a short distance of the bank.

• Where to Fish on Bellwood Lake

  Without a survey to go on, judge depth from how the bank falls away. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. The shallow end warms first and pulls fish in ahead of the rest. Open biodiversity records for Geauga County list rainbow darter, redfin pickerel, bluegill, johnny darter and fantail darter. What holds for the county may not hold for this water. The shape of Bellwood Lake rewards a slow walk along one bank.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Between January at about 24°F and July at about 70°F, the water has a wide range to work through. Cold winters and warm summers give a wide working range. Hard cover is dependable here; it goes around late March. The season between ice runs from about late March to late December. May into June fishes hardest, and September gives a second good stretch before the lid returns. Plan around that when you fish Bellwood Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  Ownership and access are not documented in what we hold. The water sits inside or beside a mapped nature reserve, so expect additional rules. Pike mean a wire trace, no exceptions; big spoons and jerkbaits do the searching. Where the road in crosses private land, ask first. Fishing rules and camping rules are set separately here. Paw Paw Lake, 0.6 miles away, makes the obvious fallback. Confirm before you fish Bellwood Lake.