Greater Niagara Region
Bill Hilts, Jr.
Lake Ontario and tributaries
May … it was the best of times. June … it was the worst of times. The super hard northeast wind last Sunday messed the lake all up and the cold water is everywhere. East wind most of the week was still creating problems. Your best bet will be to seek out warm water discharges like the Niagara River, off other rivers and creek mouths or head out deep for stable water – those seem to be your only options for salmon and trout. Combine that with the fact that Pro-Am tournament teams are not sharing information with the high stakes this weekend and you are pretty much on your own if you are heading out onto the lake. In a weather-shortened, fishing-challenged contest, it was Team Thrillseeker led by Capt. Vince Pierleoni of Newfane who rose to the top of the 12-fish Classic Division and Yankee Troller and Capt. Rich Hajecki of Rochester setting the pace in the five-fish Trophy Division as the 31st Annual Niagara USA Lake Ontario Pro-Am Salmon Team Tournament held its first weekend of competition May 30-31 out of the ports of Wilson and Olcott. It set the stage for an exciting second weekend of action June 6-7 for round two with a tight field of 28 teams vying for nearly $100,000 in prize money between the two weekends. The tournament has a long history of exciting fishing contests and challenging conditions. This year involved its own kind of challenges, first with the fact that an east wind on Friday changed the lake fishing entirely. Strong southwest wind on Saturday moved things back around again, forcing teams to change strategies. Rounding out the top seven were: Vision Quest, Runnin’ Rebel, Free Spirit, Mother Moose, 5 More Minutes, and White Mule. In the Trophy Division, what competitors call the “short box,” the best five fish are weighed in separately. Leading the way was the Yankee Troller team with a total score of 122.71 points. They won $2,500 for their efforts. It was another tight race with first through seventh place separated by just 13 points. Second place was Thrillseeker; followed by Screamer (last year’s big Trophy Division winner), Hideout, Tall Tails, Shark and Vision Quest. Big fish was a 21 pound king salmon caught by Black Jaw. In the Recreational Open Division for Saturday, Tom Pearse of Grand Island and the Summer School Team won the day with a three-fish score of 74.70 points. They also earned Big Fish honors with an 18.26 pound king salmon. The total prize package was a check for $650, a Scotty downrigger, a Moor Subtroll unit and a variety of lures and subscriptions from sponsors. For more information on the tournament check out www.lakeontarioproam.net. In the harbors of Wilson and Olcott, warm water fish are turning on including bass, pike, perch and other panfish. Carp are available, too. Things are finally starting to settle down after the record-breaking rainfall last Sunday. The Summer Lake Ontario Counties (LOC) Trout and Salmon Derby is set to kick off next Saturday, the same dates as the Orleans County Open Tournament, both slated for a June 13 kickoff.
Lower Niagara River
River action was decent for a mixed bag of fish, but the dreaded moss is starting to rear its ugly head. John Antone of Lewiston fished in Devil’s Hole and caught 12 smallmouth bass using a Cabela’s Blue No. 4 spinner in the morning. He repeated the effort in the afternoon/early evening. He also hooked into a musky who won that battle. Remember that musky season opens the third Saturday in June. Joe Oliverio was dragging a three-way rig around the river and catching a mixed bag of trout and other species. Things will slow down even more when the moss becomes more of a nuisance.
Upper Niagara River
Not too much has changed from last week with a mixed bag of fish being reported – walleye, bass, pike and a mix of panfish. No reports on the Erie Canal but there are a few big fishing contests coming up – the Hooked on the Tonawandas set for June 27-28 and the Erie Canal Fishing Derby kicking off on July 1. Another big event is the City of Tonawanda Youth Fishing Derby on June 20 out of Niawanda Park in Tonawanda. Just show up around 7:30-8 am.
Oswego County
Mary Ellen Barbeau
Oswego River/Lake Ontario report
According to Larry Muroski of Larry’s Oswego Salmon Shop:
After having very fishable levels for several days, the recent rainfall in the area has spiked the flow to 11,200cfs as of this morning. This makes shore fishing very difficult along the river. As conditions hopefully improve over the next few days, look for walleye from the railroad bridge north and smallmouth bass throughout the river. Remember bass are catch and release only until June 20. Nightcrawlers, leeches and stickbaits remain the baits of choice. Rock bass are in near Wright’s Landing.
Lake Ontario report:
Reports are indicating that fishing is good on the lake. We had some wind last weekend and a good deal of fog earlier in the week but conditions have settled down and look good for the weekend.
Pulaski Area/Salmon River
According to Capt. Kevin Davis of Catch the Drift:
A good brown trout bite continues. The recent northeast blow has really scattered the salmon so we have been concentrating on the browns. We did catch three or four rainbows mixed in with the browns.
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. The Oswego Fire Department offers loaner life jackets at no charge through its “Loaner For Life” program. For more information contact the fire station, 35 E. Cayuga St., at 315-343-2161.
Pulaski Area/Salmon River report:
According to Dave Wood of Woody’s Tackle:
The brown trout bite has been good in 50-60 feet of water out off the Salmon River. The recent wind moved the lake trout toward Nine Mile Point. Look for them in 90-100 feet of water off the high rocks. Browns are responding to trolled stickbaits and lakers are taking cowbells and peanuts.
Salmon River:
The river activity has quieted down as is typical this time of year. No new reports at this time.
Oneida Lake report
The walleye bite continues on the lake with anglers targeting 15-20 feet of water. Shad raps and jigs tipped with worms are working well. There is a decent night bite with anglers casting stickbaits from shore. Catch and release bass season is producing some nice fish in shallow water. The bass season opens on June 20.
Sandy Pond report
According to Dave Wood of Woody’s Tackle:
The weed growth is not an issue as yet on the pond. Northern pike are active and bluegills are schooled to spawn near the weed beds. Anglers are finding a few walleye in the mix trolling stickbaits.
Erie Canal
Fair Haven / Cayuga county
Captain Werner Stenger
Prior to the weekend storms steelhead and kings were found from 100 to
200 FOW from surface to 50′ down. With the temperature drop and bait moving closer these fish may move in as shallow as 20′. I’ve been observing plenty of largemouth bass on their beds in the marina.
Season opener just over two weeks away should be perfect timing to target some very hungry fish. See you on the water.