Cod and Sea Bass Blown Out, Upstate Trout Fishing Good
The cod bite turned on in a big way around Block Island. The party boats found good schools of codfish, and kept them close by chumming with clams. Fresh skimmer clams pinned to the bottom were the ticket to tempting the cod. Fish larger than 30 pounds were being caught occasionally and 20-plus pounders were caught with surprising regularity. On Thursday, however, gale-force winds and giant seas kept the cod fleet at the dock. It looks like the seas and winds should settle down enough by Saturday for the fleet to get out once again. There’s no telling what this weather will do to the codfish, and how the fishing will be, but there’s only one way to find out.
The sea bass bite had been good as well. Anglers targeting offshore wrecks and structures were hauling up easy limits of big black sea bass. Once again, these trips were haulted on Thursday due to high winds.
Lake Ontario and tributaries
From below zero temperatures to 60 degrees in the matter of a week. Throw in some extreme wind conditions and Mother Nature has kept anglers guessing as to how, when and where they can go fishing. The back bay in Wilson Harbor had some ice cover, but with the amount of rain we received and the warm temperatures on Tuesday and Wednesday, hard water anglers will have to wait for the cold temperatures to set things back up again. One of the best open water spots will be 18 Mile Creek in the Town of Newfane. In 18 Mile Creek, steelhead and the occasional brown trout are both available for casters around Fisherman’s Park. Best bait has been a small jig fished under a float and tipped with a wax worm. That said, with all the rain that has been pouring down mid-week, look for all the streams to be high and muddy going into the weekend. That’s the bad news. The good news is that this will undoubtedly attract new fish into the systems so when things settle down and start to clear, go after them! Lake Ontario tributaries are eligible in the Niagara River Anglers steelhead contest on Feb. 16 so keep that in mind. Check out www.niagarariveranglers.com.
The warm weather this week created some snowmelt that raised the water level in the Salmon River. This was enough to heat up the steelhead bite. Whitakers in Pulaski reported good action in the DSR and around Altmar.
Lower Niagara River
In the lower river, shore fishermen and boat drifters can target trout from the gorge to Artpark. Boaters have the advantage because fish are spread out all the way to Lake Ontario. However, if the water turns dirty, which it was starting to change over on Wednesday, the shore fishermen have the advantage in that the clearer water is usually in tight to shore in the gorge area. If the winds cooperate, the Niagara Bar has been a good spot for lake trout and browns. Minnows or banana baits like Kwikfish or Mag Lips can catch fish all winter long using a three-way rig to get your baits to the bottom. Remember that the Niagara River Anglers Assn. is holding its annual Roger Tobey Memorial Steelhead contest on Feb. 16 and both shore and boat anglers are eligible to compete. Check out www.niagarariveranglers.com.
Upper Niagara River
With the water turning muddy on Wednesday and 50-mile-per-hour winds in the forecast for Thursday, you can pretty much rule out any fishing for a few days. If the waters do clear, you can try for trout at the head of the river or around the upper rapids areas.