Good non boat fishing areas near Indy?

[Tactical Dave]

I have been fishing twice in my life and with my son being 3 and really liking the outdoors him and I and probably grandpa are thinking about starting to fish this year.


No truck or boat so are there any good fishing spots that you don't need a boat say within an hour or so of the Indy south side? Not looking for record fish just keepers.

 

[tom1025]

DNR: Atterbury Fish & Wildlife Area

Atterbury or retention ponds in new neighborhoods is a good place to start.

 

[1911]

There are a ton of good places around Indy, don't overlook those retention ponds either. They may be small but some have monster fish. I used to take people new to fishing to one I knew. I threw bread, cheese, hotdogs, dogfood, bagels, whatever you can get cheap(or spoiled, the fish don't care) on the surface of the water. Lots of fish would come up to the surface, first would be bluegill, then bass, then big channel cats that would smack the surface of the water. Took only a few times of me doing this till the fish realized that anytime someone was walking along the shore usually meant dinner was there. I would just stick my hook in whatever I had floating on the surface and it was easy to tell when you had a fish because you'd see the water boil.

 

[tmattern]

retention ponds are great when taking a small child, please just remember their life jacket, they may be small but usually deep and drop off fast!

 

[reddiesel]

Small country creeks under bridges are usally good for small fast bites. Not allot of size but fun for fast and furious catching. I look for stream or creeks off the beaten path.

 

[LoriW]

Definetely agree on the ponds in sub divisions. We've caught some awesome fish in them. My stepson caught a gorgeous bass on a Spongebob pole with a worm (picture in next post). Bluegill in our ponds will almost always bite a worm if nothing else.

 

[LoriW]

INGunOwners - LoriW's Album: stuff for now - Picture

 

[schick84]

You could also try the retention ponds in a business park, i mainly fish those on the weekends because of all the traffic during business hours.

 

[Brandon]

We use to fish at Fort Harrison.
Also there was a pond or large creek somewhere near South Eastway park we fished at a few times...

 

[Tactical Dave]

We use to fish at Fort Harrison.
Also there was a pond or large creek somewhere near South Eastway park we fished at a few times...

That creek is mostly dry thanks to last summer but I will do some more recon on it.

Deepest part is maybe MAYBE waist deep now.

 

[AGarbers]

If you head down south on Hwy 37 there is a public area on White River at Waverly and Henderson Ford which is just a few miles north of Martinsville. On Hwy 67 there's public access to White River where SR 39 tees into Hwy 67 about four miles north of Martinsville and on Paragon Road a few miles east of Paragon.

There's also a place that rents canoes between Waverly and Martinsville on Hwy 37 so you can float a section of White River.

 

[Brandon]

That creek is mostly dry thanks to last summer but I will do some more recon on it.

Deepest part is maybe MAYBE waist deep now.

Just to double check, are you talking about the creek in the park? I did a google check and the area I am talking about and it is a little further then I remember. Looks like it is off of Troy Ave to the south side of the road.

If this is the area you are talking about, it's been many many years since I have been by that area

 

[Zoub]

If you drive just a little farther South you can get to Martin State Forest. That park is set up well for families and small kids. Ponds, walking trails with info on trees and plants, easy car camping but it is a nice piece of forest. From there you can also drive down to the white river in Shoals and also to Hindostan Falls which has a large long grassy park along the river.

A fun way to "explore" is get a good map, pick a river and follow it as closely as you can. Any time you find a parking spot, bridge or boat launch, pull over and fish it. Head down 65 South and after Franklin you will cross some streams and rivers. The White river from Muncie down to Indy has fish in places as well.

 

[nocash84]

You might check into some of the pay lakes, they normally keep them stocked with farm raised catfish.

 

[dbrier]

We use to fish at Fort Harrison.
Also there was a pond or large creek somewhere near South Eastway park we fished at a few times...

Just to double check, are you talking about the creek in the park? I did a google check and the area I am talking about and it is a little further then I remember. Looks like it is off of Troy Ave to the south side of the road.

If this is the area you are talking about, it's been many many years since I have been by that area

Fort Harrison also has some good fishing in Delaware Lake. They even have a nice fishing pier.

 

[nm0369]

I caught a few montser smallmouth in the white river near 82nd St...I landed two in the 5lb neighborhood. You can walk the bank through that area, but it may be difficult with a youngster. That was two years ago at the crack of dawn and I've never been able to duplicate it.