Fish Stories
Saturday, October 3, 2020. We have decided to close Busch’s paylakes for this season on Monday, October 5, 2020. We thank our customers for the best year we have experienced in our 15+ years of operation. We will look forward to your return next spring. Here are some more pictures of customers with their catches in September. ... See MoreSee Less
4 weeks ago ·
September 1, 2020. Can you believe it is September and this coming weekend will be Labor Day Weekend. We will be open for appointments all weekend (Friday-Monday). Call 937-693-3640 and make your appointment for a nice day of fishing. Here are some pictures of fish caught in the last week or so. Mr. Busch. ... See MoreSee Less
2 months ago ·
August 21, 2020. The summer is quickly passing by. Students are heading back to school this week or next week in many districts either online or in person. This weekend is expected to be hot and humid again after several beautiful fall days earlier in the week. Labor Day weekend is right around the corner. We intend to be open all of that weekend and Labor Day itself. Call to make an appointment at 937-693-3640. The fish are still biting as this week's customers can attest. ... See MoreSee Less
2 months ago ·
Sunday, August 16th, 2020. Yesterday, our friends, John and Cheryl visited us from Kentucky. We fished in the late afternoon and evening and caught 5 catfish, several small bass and a good number of bluegill. The two largest catfish weighed 9.5 and 11.5 pounds. Also enclosed are pictures of other fishermen who fished here either Friday, Saturday or today. As you can see, fishermen of all ages can have a good time here. Remember to call ahead for an appointment to fish. Our number is 937-693-3640. Mr. Busch. ... See MoreSee Less
2 months ago ·
Friday, August 14th, 2020. I fished nearly an hour today in Pond 2 while waiting for customers to arrive. I caught two catfish and missed several others using homemade dough balls as bait. The weather forecast gives a 40% chance of rain showers or storms over the weekend. That should have a cooling effect on the high temperatures and humidity we have experienced this week. Next week is expected to be cooler with less humidity making for some pleasant fishing weather. We were fortunate today to have some regular customers, Deb and Randy, bring 10 or so family members here for a day of fishing. Deb said they caught a fair number of catfish among them. The summer is passing quickly. Call us at 937-693-3640 to make your fishing appointment. ... See MoreSee Less
2 months ago ·
Thursday, July 30, 2020. Chuck is an avid fly fisherman who comes to see us, usually with his fishing buddy, Noel, a few times a year. They always catch a good number of fish and really don't care what kind or how big they are. They get a great deal of pleasure catching fish with flies they make themselves. Chuck completed the "Busch Trifecta" catching at least one hybrid bluegill, one largemouth bass, and one catfish. He said he caught several hybrid bluegill. One was 12-inches long and another one was close to that. He caught one catfish, and a dozen or more small bass. The largest bass was nearly a pound. We got some rain today and expect more, off and on, over the weekend. That should make it cooler overall. Call 937-693-3640 for an appointment and enjoy a good day of fishing at Busch' Pay Lakes. Mr. Busch. ... See MoreSee Less
3 months ago ·
Saturday, July 25, 2020. Here are some more pictures sent to me by email or I took recently on the ponds of customers and their catches at Busch's Pay lakes. Mr. Busch ... See MoreSee Less
3 months ago ·
Friday, 7-24-20. Much of the last three weeks has been very hot and humid with little rainfall here. Earlier this week we finally received 1 3/4 inches of rain and an associated drop in temperature. I fished in Pond 2 yesterday for an hour 4:00-5:00 pm and caught three catfish. I fished in the same pond today from 3:30-4:30 pm and caught 5 channel catfish. I was using a Ky. dough ball (home made) bait. The 8 fish ranged in weight from 3-7 pounds. Our catfish are farm raised and the largest are in the 15-pound range. The weekend weather may be a little warmer than yesterday and today but still O.K., especially if there is a breeze in the afternoon. So grab your favorite catfish bait and give us a try. Remember to call for an appointment and bring cash for your entry fee as we do not accept credit cards. If you have had any trouble spending cash anywhere, bring it here, we will help you get rid of it. The picture is one of the catfish I caught in the last two days. Mr. Busch. ... See MoreSee Less
3 months ago ·
July 17, 2020. The weather for this weekend is once again forecast to be hot and probably humid. Even so, fishing in the morning and late afternoon can be a pleasant experience here at Busch's Pay Lakes. The bluegill and smaller bass have been biting nearly non-stop in Pond 1 and some catfish are being caught in it and our other ponds. If you want to take your kids or grandkids fishing but have not found a place where they are likely to have bluegill and small bass biting left and right, you might want to give us a try. We provide a safe, attractive, peaceful, and comfortable farm pond fishing environment where the kids are likely to catch some fish. Here are some pictures of our customers catching fish here in the last week or so. Mr. Busch. ... See MoreSee Less
3 months ago ·
Saturday, July 11, 2020. We have four of our 12 grandkids with us this weekend and that means "watch out bluegill" here we come. The bluegill were happy to oblige when offered some strawberry chicken. The kids caught over fifty bluegill and four small bass fishing a couple of hours in Pond 1. Mr. Busch. ... See MoreSee Less
4 months ago ·
Saturday July 11, 2020. Today was a welcome relief from the very hot, humid weather we have been experiencing since the beginning of July. Catfish fishing has been slow this week, but the bluegill and bass fishing is still decent. Here are some pictures of customers and their catches over the last week or so. Mr. Busch. ... See MoreSee Less
4 months ago ·
Here is a first for us at Busch's Pay Lakes. We sometimes have customers lose their fishing poles in a pond when a fish takes off with the hook, line, sinker and pole before the fisherman can grab the pole. This has happened eight times this year that I am aware of, and we have been able to recapture each pole every time. Today, this lovely couple caught two fishing poles in two casts in Pond 1. Each pole and reel looked like they had been in the pond for a long time. Now that is a fishing story they will remember for a long time and they have the fishing poles to prove it. The fishermen are holding the poles they caught in Pond 1. Mr. Busch. ... See MoreSee Less
4 months ago ·
PLEASE TAKE NOTE: WE WILL BE CLOSED ON SATURDAY, JULY 4TH, 2020. WE WILL REOPEN ON SUNDAY, JULY 5TH. Well, summer has arrived so now we can complain about the heat and humidity instead of the cold. Personally, I enjoy the change in seasons with fall and early winter being my favorite time of the year (DEER SEASON). Of course in Ohio we can sometimes experience the weather of all four seasons in a single week. Fish are still biting. Here are some pictures of some customers and their fish catches in the last week or so here at Busch's Pay Lakes. Another big crappie was caught out of Pond 1. Mr. Busch. ... See MoreSee Less
4 months ago ·
Saturday, June 20th, 2020. I try to get pictures of our customers with their catches whenever I can. Here is a sample of people enjoying a day of fishing at Busch's Pay Lakes over the last week or so. Mr. Busch. ... See MoreSee Less
4 months ago ·
Saturday, June 20, 2020. There were a number of good fish caught today at Busch Family Fish Farm but this large crappie has to be considered the "catch of the day". We have lots of small crappie in Pond 1, but very few large ones are ever caught. Today Steve caught a large one. Congratulations. Mr. Busch. ... See MoreSee Less
4 months ago ·
Thursday, June 11, 2020. It has been another good week for us at Busch's Pay Lakes. We opened on Friday, May 22 and we have had at least one customer fishing here every day since then. Last year we sold about 230 tickets for the season. A ticket could be for a single person or a group of people. Since opening 21 days ago tomorrow we have sold about 110 tickets. Pent-up demand to get outside, good weather, and decent fishing have all contributed to our fast start. It appears that another good, cooler weather weekend is on the way. Give us a call (937-693-3640) to make your fishing appointment. Here are some pictures of fish caught here within the last week. I weighed the large catfish Mark caught today. It weighed 12.5 pounds. Mr. Busch. ... See MoreSee Less
5 months ago ·
This weekend appears to be looking good for weather and fishing at Busch's Pay Lakes. Make your appointments now (937-693-3640) and look forward to a pleasant day of fishing this weekend. We had several families with children fishing here during the week. The bluegill and crappie in Pond 1 didn't disappoint and Mom and Dad were kept busy baiting hooks, taking fish off the hooks and teaching their kids how to fish. The small bass were biting everyday and several larger bass from 1 to 3.5 pounds were caught. The catfish also made some guys happy. One of our repeat customers came two evenings and said he caught about a dozen catfish one evening and six or seven another. Here are some pictures of fish caught this week. ... See MoreSee Less
5 months ago ·
Saturday, May 30, 2020. WOW! What a beautiful day to be fishing at Busch's Pay Lake. The weather was great, not too cool, not too hot, not too windy, it was just right. The fishing was good, not too slow, not too fast, it was just right. I think most of our guests caught some fish today. The customers were all great, but some of the fish were bad. They stole a lot of bait and two rods and reels. Fortunately we were able to recover the rods and reels and the guilty fish were still on the lines. They were returned to their ponds with a warning. Here are some pictures from today and yesterday of happy customers having an enjoyable experience at our place. Mr. Busch. ... See MoreSee Less
5 months ago ·
Just a quick note to say "Thank-you" to all of customers who visited us over the last four days. There was obviously a pent-up demand for good weather and a chance to fish and enjoy the outdoors. Here are a few pictures of fish caught today at Busch's Pay Lakes. ... See MoreSee Less
5 months ago ·
Well we did open yesterday, Friday, May 22nd, and we had 15-20 people fishing both yesterday and today. That is a good day for us. We built our fishing facility to be a clean, safe and peaceful environment for family fishing fun. Based on customer comments, we accomplished that goal. Some customer want the opportunity to catch catfish (for us that is a 3-15 pound channel catfish), large hybrid bluegill (1/2 to 1.0 pound) or large mouth bass (1/2 pound to 6.0 pound). Other customers want a family experience where they are frantically helping their children or grand children catch small bluegill and crappie one after another. We appreciate our repeat customers, and new customers who decide to give us a try. We do our best to serve you in any way we can while you are here. Here our some of the fish our customers caught over the last two days. We are now open. Give us a call to make an appointment--937-693-3640. ... See MoreSee Less
5 months ago ·
Whoopee! We will open next weekend, Friday May 22, 2020, instead of the following weekend as previously planned. You can now call us and we will start taking your appointments for this fishing season. Rob and Margie Busch. Call us at 937-693-3640. ... See MoreSee Less
5 months ago ·
I made up a batch of my favorite Kentucky dough ball bait a couple of nights ago and tried it out this afternoon. I fished in Pond 3 beginning at 5:40 pm. Eight minutes later I caught a 13.25 pound channel catfish. I got him back in the water, baited my hook and tried again. Seven minutes later I caught a beautiful 6.75 pound female channel catfish. We will be opening by the end of May. I am ready. The fish appear to be ready too! ... See MoreSee Less
5 months ago ·
We will continue to be closed through most of May, 2020 due to the most recent Ohio mandate to extend "shelter in place" until May 29th. The mandate also extended the closure of our non-essential outdoor entertainment business to at least that date until further notice. We will open when we can. Mr. Busch. ... See MoreSee Less
6 months ago ·
WHEN ARE YOU GOING TO OPEN THIS YEAR? We have been getting phone calls in the last couple of weeks from some of our more avid customers anxious to give us a try even though the weather has not been very spring-like to date. Because of the Corona Virus we will remain closed at least until the end of April. We will reevaluate the situation at that time. As older adults Marge and I are "sheltering in place" as much as possible to reduce our chances of exposure to the virus. We look forward to seeing our many repeat customers and providing another good fishing experience to everyone in 2020. I've included a few memorable moments at Busch's Pay Lakes in 2019. ... See MoreSee Less
7 months ago ·