Little Muskingum River Fishing Guides
A remote covered-bridge river winding through the Wayne National Forest, with clear water, wild smallmouth and almost no development.
Guides on the Little Muskingum River
Claimed profiles take booking requests. Unclaimed profiles are built from public records so the river is never empty; the guide can claim or remove one any time.
No guides listed yet
Guide or outfit this water? Create your profile. Listing is free, the commission is 10% or 7% with a premium profile, and premium profiles list first on this water.
About the Little Muskingum River
The Little Muskingum is the quiet one. It runs through the unglaciated hills of southeastern Ohio, most of it inside or alongside the Wayne National Forest, and joins the Ohio River a few miles above Marietta. There are no towns of any size on it. What there are instead are covered bridges – four of them still standing on the river – narrow gravel roads, and long stretches of water where the only structures in sight are sycamores.
For a river this small it fishes remarkably well. The water runs clear over gravel and rock ledge for most of its length, and smallmouth bass are the dominant fish, holding in every riffle seam and beneath every undercut. They do not run large – a legitimately good fish here is fifteen inches – but they are abundant and they are wild, and in clear low water they demand a genuinely careful approach. Rock bass and longear sunfish share the same structure and are far more numerous than most visitors expect. Channel catfish take over the deeper holes, and the lowest reaches near the Ohio confluence pick up largemouth and carp from the big river.
This is wading and canoeing water. The river is too small and too shallow to run a powerboat, and much of the best fishing is reached on foot from bridge crossings and forest roads. Flow is the constraint – the Little Muskingum is a small watershed that goes thin in late summer, and the gauge at Bloomfield, which reports discharge and stage with no temperature sensor, is the number to check before committing to a float. In dry spells plan to wade rather than paddle. Forest service maps are worth carrying, because several of the best gravel-bar entries are unmarked and easy to drive straight past on the narrow county roads.
This water needs a real photo
The photo at the top of this page is not Little Muskingum River.
It is a regional stand-in, honestly captioned but generic — we will not put a name to a river we cannot prove. Send us a photograph you took here and it replaces the stand-in, with your credit on it.
Add a photo of this water
Landscape, not fish — the water itself. Reviewed by hand before it appears. The first one published here earns the Pioneer badge.
Fished this water? Add a photo
Reviewed by hand before it appears. Pick the water, not the spot — we never publish exact locations.
Access
Wayne National Forest river accesses - multiple walk-in and cartop points along the corridor.
Hune Covered Bridge - a traditional put-in and wade access.
Rinard Covered Bridge - access with parking and a gravel-bar entry.
Knowlton Covered Bridge - upper river walk-in access.
Lane Farm campground and access - forest service river frontage.
Bloomfield area crossings - roadside access on the middle river.
Ohio River confluence near Marietta - boat access to the lowest reach.
Seasons
Spring: high and cold early, then very good for smallmouth as flows drop through late spring.
Summer: low, clear and technical - excellent wade fishing at dawn and dusk, and often too thin to float.
Fall: the peak of the year, with clear water, feeding smallmouth and the best scenery in Ohio.
Winter: cold and slow, with fish concentrated in the deepest holes and access roads often difficult.
From the water
No logged trips yet. Be the first to put this water on your map.
Log this water
Fished it or cleaned it? Log in or create a free account to log a trip with photos and earn the waterway badge.
Questions
What is the current flow on the Little Muskingum River?
As of Sep 17, 5:45 am, the USGS gauge Little Muskingum River at Bloomfield OH reads 85 cfs. Conditions update every 15 minutes.
What species can you catch on the Little Muskingum River?
Anglers target Bluegill, Channel Catfish, Common Carp, Largemouth Bass, Longear Sunfish, Rock Bass, Smallmouth Bass on the Little Muskingum River in Ohio.
Where can you access the Little Muskingum River?
Wayne National Forest river accesses - multiple walk-in and cartop points along the corridor. Hune Covered Bridge - a traditional put-in and wade access. Rinard Covered Bridge - access with parking and a gravel-bar entry. Knowlton Covered Bridge - upper river walk-in access. Lane Farm campground and access - forest service river frontage. Bloomfield area crossings - roadside access on the middle river. Ohio River confluence near Marietta - boat access to the lowest reach.
When is the best time to fish the Little Muskingum River?
Spring: high and cold early, then very good for smallmouth as flows drop through late spring. Summer: low, clear and technical - excellent wade fishing at dawn and dusk, and often too thin to float. Fall: the peak of the year, with clear water, feeding smallmouth and the best scenery in Ohio. Winter: cold and slow, with fish concentrated in the deepest holes and access roads often difficult.
Where are the fishing regulations for the Little Muskingum River?
Regulations change by season and section. Read the current rules on the Ohio agency site: https://ohiodnr.gov/buy-and-apply/hunting-fishing-boating/fishing-resources/fishing-regulations