The Lake Trout is the largest member of the Char family, a name that most North American anglers don’t often hear at all, as every species except for the Arctic Char is named as a trout. The Lake Trout’s massive size is what makes it one of the most unique freshwater fish in North America, as it lacks the same growth hormones that the vast majority of all fish species in the world carry. It essentially means that the fish never stops growing for over 60 years, as long as it can maintain a happy life in its environment. It’s a truly gargantuan fish, with the largest recorded (official) trout being 72 pounds, caught in Great Bear Lake in Canada. However, there have been several caught that have been much larger, some upwards of 30 pounds larger at 102 pounds. These fish have all been caught largely in gillnets, while the official record was with rod and reel. These absolutely massive Lake Trout start to suffer from their own size, losing most of their strength and agility because they are so heavy, which is what typically makes it so rare for one to reach such a gigantic size (nonetheless their extreme age). In their environment, they are typically the apex predator, with the only exception being exceptionally large Muskellunge or Northern Pike. Their range is spread throughout the United States, with concentrations in the Great Lakes, Atlantic Northeast, extending all the way through the entirety of Canada and into Alaska. For many villages in the frigid waters of Northern Canada and the barren wilderness of Alaska, the Lake Trout is one of the primary sources of food. It has a tendency for preferring the deepest and snowiest parts of the American North, known for sitting at the bottom of frozen lakes and taking advantage of the other species who can’t withstand the cold. When fishing for Lake Trout, it is essentially the same as fishing for large salmon, depending on the time of year. In extremely deep lakes with cold water temperatures at the bottom year-round, Lake Trout will almost never venture shallower unless they have to– in this situation, vertical jigging with jigging spoons from an ice fishing hole is one of the best ways to catch them, often tipped with fathead minnows. Without any ice, just regular spoons will do the job, or anything flashy that can sink to reach the depths they reside. In frigid Alaskan and Canadian rivers, Lake Trout act no different than the rest of their family, which is where fly fisherman find their best action. On the grand scope of things, the Lake Trout is the ultimate species to catch in the salmonidae family of North America, only being beaten on a fisherman’s bucket list by the Siberian Taimen, a true monster of the east. If there comes a time that Lake Erie is frozen over, you might have a great time on the ice, fishing for a Great Lakes predator.

Perhaps even more of a fan-favorite than the famous Walleye of Lake Erie or the Sauger of the Ohio River, the seasonal winter Steelhead Trout of Ohio’s north could arguably be considered the state’s most beautiful fish, and the most fun to catch. They are an angler’s dream in the making, as they make their seasonal runs to spawn in the freezing cold and graveled bottoms of Ohio’s northern rivers. The famous “Steelhead Alley” as it is called, is a stretch of rivers and streams that are all tributaries of Lake Erie, a supplier of cold and relatively clear water which trout will always prefer. What many don’t know is that the Steelhead is not an ordinary Rainbow Trout, and neither is it native to the Great Lakes. While not invasive, the Steelhead was introduced in the 1800s from the Pacific Coast, and it would primarily spend most of its time in the ocean, only returning to its birthplace to reproduce and die, like other species of the trout and salmon family. In the environment of the Great Lakes, Lake Erie is the Steelhead’s ocean, and Ohio’s northern rivers are its spawning grounds. The Steelhead is a notoriously harsher fighter than your typical Rainbow Trout because of its above average size to the rest of its species, and because of its ocean-going roots. Compared to the relatively slow Walleye which relies on using the cover of darkness to find baitfish, the Steelhead behaves as any other trout and loves to snack on insects, fish eggs, and small fish which can’t compete with its speed. Although not quite as brutal as the Ohio River’s famous Wiper, the Steelhead is known for its ability to throw the hook- a true trout ability. Rivaled only by perhaps the Largemouth Bass, Steelhead are known for their acrobatic abilities and their smarts. A great hookset, and an even better drag in your reel will be required for this silver flash, as it’s almost guaranteed that hooking a Steelhead will cause them to leap out of the water several times. It’s this fighting nature that makes them a huge attraction for Ohio’s streams, as it brings in fly fishermen who are confident, and seasoned with their skills. The Steelhead can be caught on the golden standards of trout fishing, such as the spoon, spinner, artificial salmon eggs, and of course the floating fly. If you want a taste of cold water sport fishing without leaving the state of Ohio, there’s no better fish to replicate the beautiful streams of the north than the Steelhead Trout. 

When it comes to Ohio’s most famous fish, the Sauger is easily in the top five. Although heavily overshadowed by its extremely close relative the Walleye, the Sauger has many differences that sets it apart from its close relative, most notably in behavior and size. The Sauger is well known as a coldwater fish to anglers, despite preferring slightly warmer water than the Walleye, and being able to tolerate warmth extremely well. It's this preference for warmth which makes it more of a river fish than a lake one, a complete opposite of the Walleye. When the water temperatures plummet in November, the tides turn in the Sauger’s favor, and the Wiper’s time is over. They feed aggressively on the many small shiners and minnows which overpopulate the Ohio River, and overall focus on smaller fish than what the Walleye would. Also somewhat different to the Walleye, they are largely known to be solitary fish, only coming together whenever a group of baitfish has been found. The Sauger is most known for its delicious flavor which is very similar to the Walleye, although distinctively different– some describe it as being sweeter and that’s what sets them apart, but they are still a very mild and flaky white fish to eat, which is what makes them so popular on the dinner table– they aren’t fishy! Other than the differences and similarities which have already been detailed, the Sauger and Walleye share just about everything else in common. They attack the same lures as a Walleye, have the same reflective glass eye as the Walleye (apparently the Sauger can see even better!) and prefer the same environment as the Walleye, with the only difference being the water temperature. If there’s any angler who wishes to catch a Sand Pike, it’s just Walleye fishing– but smaller!