Niagara Fishing Report
by Bill Hilts Jr.
Lake Ontario and tributaries – The waters are slowly starting to warm in Lake Ontario now that the ice is out of the system – which could be perfect timing for the Lake Ontario Pro-Am Salmon Team Tournaments coming up May 24-25 and May 31-June 1. The Trophy and Classic Divisions are set but Recreational Open teams can still register at The Slippery Sinker or The Boat Doctors in Olcott up until May 19 for the first weekend; May 26 for the second weekend – cash only. This year’s double tournament could be perfect timing for the fishing – something we didn’t experience last weekend due to the late start. Best spots in the lake seemed to be either side of the Niagara Bar wherever some warmer water and baitfish could be found. Another popular area was around the 30 Mile Point area east to Shadigee Road. Warm water and baitfish combined for some of the winning fish in the Lake Ontario Counties spring derby, as well as the Wilson Harbor Invitational event. Spoons, stickbaits, plugs and flasher-fly combinations were all catching fish, with no set pattern off riggers, divers or boards. Staying away from the pack of boats seemed to help a little, too. Salmon and browns could be found in 10 to 40 feet of water; lake trout a bit deeper, outside of 50 foot depths. As of the end of the week, some surface temps were over 50 degrees and a few fish were caught in the 30-50 foot range. Alewives were starting to move in, which means the kings won’t be far behind. Pier fishing in Wilson and Olcott has been producing some trout and an occasional coho on spoons. In the harbors some perch and catcn and release bass are being reeled in. At Burt Dam, the bowfin moved in according to Wes Walker at The Slippery Sinker. They have chased out any other fish that were in the area, or so it seems. Last weekend was an exciting end to the Lake Ontario Counties Spring Derby, the Wilson Harbor Invitational tournament, and other events associated with the WHI – the Salmon Slam and $1,000 a Day events. A pile of cash was up for grabs and there were a few very big winners – starting with John Tustin of Canonsburg, Pennsylvania. His 23 pound, 12 ounce king salmon caught the first Saturday of the derby held up the rest of the week to win the $15,000 Grand Prize. He was fishing out of Olcott when they ran into boat problems. Thanks to some quick work by The Boat Doctors, he managed to get his boat back on the lake and produce the winning fish. First place in the Salmon Division was Doug Parker II of Lockport, fishing with Matt Dunn of Newfane and Marc Dunn of Lockport – with a 23 pound, 12 ounce king salmon – yes, the same weight as the fish that won the derby. Based on the rules, first fish to the scales takes top billing. They were fishing just west of the Niagara Bar. The biggest money winners of all were the second place salmon in the LOC Derby, reeled in by Nick Downey of Edinboro, Pennsylvania. Fishing with Anthony Campanella of Erie and Justin Nekoloff of Waterford, the trio hauled in a 23 pound, 11 ounce fish east of Olcott – just one ounce behind the leaders. They had just won $25,000 in the Wilson Harbor event with three fish totaling just over 45 pounds and a total score of 75 points. In addition, they earned$6,000 of the $7,000 being offered in the $1,000 a Day contest. The only thing they didn’t win was the Salmon Slam – best seven salmon leading up to the WHI for the week – won by John Van Hoff of North Tonawanda and his Terminator team. He won $3,600 – not the ten grand previously reported. Rounding out the other LOC Derby divisions was Tanner Niezgoda of Newfane winning the brown trout division with a 16 pound, 10 ounce fish caught around the 30 Mile Point area east of Olcott while fishing with the Thrillseeker Team and Capt. Vince Pierleoni. Biggest lake trout was a 25 pound, seven ounce fish caught by Mike Ehrhardt of Brockport while fishing west of Wilson with Capt. Matt Yablonsky of Wet Net Charters out of Youngstown. The only winner not caught in Niagara was a 10 pound, 15 ounce fish caught out of Henderson Harbor by Tim Queior of Dexter on opening day of walleye. Some 69 percent of all the winning salmon and trout came out of Niagara USA.
Lower Niagara River – Some decent trout fishing was being reported this past week as the waters warmed up a bit. Amazingly, the smelt run was still producing some nettings for dippers around Lewiston. Capt. Jim Taylor of Hawg Master Charters produced double digit steelies on a day that his trolling motor wasn’t working properly. It may not have been a bad thing as the swirling currents produced a spin-drift that seemed to entice to hit the minnows being offered off three-way rigs. Some lake trout are also being caught. Artpark Drift was another good area to target trout from boat, which means that shoreline casters can also do well in the gorge and along the Lewiston shoreline at the Fine Arts facility. Casting spoons, spinners or twisters can produce some trout. The stairs at Artpark should be completed by the end of the month – good news for shore fishermen. Bass fishing at the mouth – catch and release with artificial baits only – has been good on tubes. Strike King’s Coffee Tubes in watermelon gold and copper flake was best.
Upper Niagara River – Waters should finally start warming now that the ice is gone. Perch and other panfish are available in the marinas and harbors in the river around Grand Island and up toward Buffalo. Northern pike action should also improve a little. Some trout could be available by casters in the Bird Island Pier area and around Broderick Park on spoons, spinners or egg sacs.
Fair Haven / Cayuga County Fishing Report
by Werner Stenger
Still a great time to be fishing out of Fair Haven. Brown trout are still in abundance and with cooler water temperatures this pattern should last for a while. Bait is just starting to migrate in, so the
bigger browns as well as kings and lakers should follow. The rains we receive this week should keep the creeks flowing stained warmer water into the lake to hold them close to shore.
With that run off the bullhead bite continues and an increasing number of crappie are showing in the shallows preparing to spawn. We will be doing and evening Walleye trip this Friday so hopefully we will have some firsthand information on that for next week’s report.
Wayne County Fishing Report
by Christopher Kenyon
Lake Ontario – A strong south wind earlier in the week pushed the warm water out and the browns were hard to find. There has also been an abundance of bait fish so the browns have extra full stomachs. That makes fishing tough.
However, browns and cohos are still hitting, so set-up early and fish the shoreline. Any color works. Monkey puke is a good one. Fish west of Sodus Bay or west of Port Bay. Predicted rain (what’s new) will create more mudlines for this weekend.
Bays – Bullheads are still hitting at the south end of Sodus Bay and there have been a few walleyes hooked near the islands.
Bass season opens the third Saturday in June and the Wayne County bays have a very productive largemouth season. Try fishing Blind Sodus Bay for some hefty bass.
Don’t forget the Wayne County 5-Grandslam and Merchants Challenge Youth Derby which is happening right now. Click on Grandslam for more information.
Check out the rest of the Wayne County Tourism web page for the locations and hours of local bait and tackle shops at www.waynecountytourism.com.
We have a brand new Wayne County Fishing Brochure. This publication features where to go, what to use, and what to catch. Call our office for a free fishing packet, including the new brochure. 1-800-527-6510. We also have a new publication on Great Lakes fishing.
Erie Canal – The small bass boats are fishing the canal near Port Gibson. The catch is crappies and bluegills. The canal will be the place to fish for bass as soon as the season opens.
Oswego County
This report courtesy of the Oswego County Department of Community Development, Tourism and Planning.
Oswego River/Lake Ontario – According to Larry Muroski of Larry’s Oswego Salmon Shop. with the rain the region has had over the last few days, the water flow is up again to 14,900cfs. More rain is expected tomorrow. This flow limits areas to fish but anglers are doing well along the West River Walk near the old Coleman’s building. Walleye continue to respond to stickbaits, leeches and nightcrawlers throughout the river. Anglers are also finding a decent bite by boat in this area. The bridge to Leto Island is closed, and there are Mandatory Personal Flotation Device (PFD) zones on the Oswego River below the Varick Dam. For more information, view the Oswego County Tourism web site at www.visitoswegocounty.com and look for the fishing report under fishing and hunting.
Lake Ontario – When conditions have permitted anglers on the lake, the fishing has been good. With the warmer temperatures and sunshine, earlier in the day has seen the most action. Brown trout continue to be the most active with some lake trout, steelhead and walleye in the mix. With a drop in temperature and a change in wind direction over the next few days, we will have to see how things set up. Spoons and stickbaits continue to be working well.
Salmon River/ Pulaski Area – According to Garrett Brancy of the Douglaston Salmon Run, it was another busy day in the Run! Anglers reported steady action from top to bottom with plenty of fish landed, including steelhead, some lunker small mouth bass, a domestic rainbow, an Atlantic salmon, and even a few suckers and fallfish. Water temperatures continue to rise, but today will be the last day of this warm streak with air temperatures reaching the low 80s. Friday will bring more seasonable weather with temperatures topping out in the 50-60s. Water flows will remain at 750cfs through midnight tonight.
According to Whitaker’s Sport Shop and Motel, the few anglers that we spoke with yesterday reported that the bright sunshine and high heat made for slow conditions. The best action was in the morning before it got hot and the water temperature reached into the 60’s. With the water level coming down and plenty of sunshine over the last couple of days the fish have been dropping back quickly. Keep in mind that the dropbacks typically like the faster water and tend to be suspended in the water column. If you’re fishing the upper end of the river make sure you have bug repellent. Anglers have reported with the warm temperatures you will need it.
Pulaski Area – According to Dave Wood of Woody’s Tackle, typically this time of year the trout are transitioning to deeper water. Early in the morning anglers are targeting 8-10 feet of water and 15-50 feet later in the day. The wind has been from the south over a period of time and a change in direction, which is expected tomorrow, would be to our advantage.
Oneida Lake – The wind is an issue again today. When conditions allow, anglers have been reporting a good walleye bite as the lake waters warm up. Looking in 10-20 feet of water jigging with bucktail jigs tipped with a nightcrawler and trolling with worm harnesses seems to be working. Anglers are finding a few bullhead around the shore of the lake.
Sandy Pond – According to Dave Wood of Woody’s Tackle, with the warmer water, the walleye bite has definitely picked up on the pond. The same bait, worm harnesses, crankbaits and jigging with bucktail jigs tipped with a worm continue to get the job done. Anglers are still finding some crappies taking live minnows under a float and small light jigs under a casting bobber.