Greater Niagara Region
Bill Hilts, Jr.
Lake Ontario And Tributaries
Some monster fish are being caught out there. Capt. Dan Evans of Wilson reported a 32.5 pound salmon hauled in by Todd Garzarelli on Tuesday. According to Evans with Lone Wolf Sportfishing, fishing for both salmon and trout has been good from 80 to 350 feet of water depending on wind direction. He was finding 48 degree water 60 feet down, stacking spoons on either side of that temperature break. Silver-green glo and black colors have been working best off copper rigs and downriggers. Spin doctors and A-Tom-Mik flies have worked best off the divers. White with green dot doctors and hammer flies are at the top of the list for him. He also hit a milestone last weekend when Harry Camardella of Wilson caught the biggest steelie Evans has ever taken off his 32 foot Luhrs, a 20 pound steelhead. With the LOC Derby starting July 1, don’t be surprised if we break the 20 pound mark for each one of the trout species and 35 for the king salmon division. Over in Olcott, Capt. Bob Cinelli was using all spoons to take a mix of salmon and trout – including a nice 12 pound Atlantic. Riggers, divers, and coppers. His best copper rigs were back 350 and 400 feet. Fish seem to be laid out west of Wilson all the way down the lake. His best fish catching depth was 65 to 80 foot zone. The Lake Ontario Counties Summer Salmon and Trout Derby is slated for July 1-31, 2016. A total of $29,000 will be up for grabs during July around the lake, including a Grand Prize of $10,000 for the biggest salmon weighed in. Four different species categories will be offering a $1,000 prize for the biggest fish in each. In addition, a weekly prize of $1,000 will also be given out to the largest salmon and $250 each to the largest lake trout, brown trout and rainbow/steelhead. And, if you are a member of the Lake Ontario Trout and Salmon Association, you can win another $500 in cash just for entering the largest salmon caught by a LOTSA member and witnessed by a LOTSA member. For $10, become a member of a group that’s fighting for every fish in the lake. Find out more on LOTSA at lotsa1.org. For information on the LOC Derby go to loc.org. Capt. Paul Czarnecki of Tri-State Charters will give a talk on fall salmon fishing at the next LOTSA meeting on July 14 at Cornell Cooperative Extension Niagara starting at 7 pm.
Lower Niagara River
Lower river action continues to be slow for bass and walleye because of the moss situation. However, you can find some spots in the river where the moss isn’t as bad, such as around the launch ramps at Fort Niagara. Minnows or crayfish work best. The Niagara River Anglers Assn. will be holding its annual bass contest on July 23. To find out more information go to niagarariveranglers.com or call 807-6111 at Creek Road Bait and Tackle.
Upper Niagara River-Erie Canal
Moss is still a problem in the upper river, too, but according to Scott McKee, president of the Niagara Musky Assn., the most is manageable for trollers and casters pursuing Mr. Toothy. The 26th Annual Erie Canal Fishing Derby is set for July 6th through the 17th. With more than $20,000 in cash and prizes up for grabs, there should be plenty of anglers lining the banks of the canal from the Niagara River to Albion. Categories include bass, sheepshead, northern pike, carp, catfish, bullhead and walleye. To find out more information contact Steve Harrington at 772-7972 or visit the derby website at eriecanalderby.com. In the Hooked on the Tonawandas tournament held June 25 and 26, some impressive catches came to the scales including a 22.4 pound carp reeled in by Matt Steffan of Williamsville; a 5 and a quarter pound Northern pike hauled in by Dan Dolan of Grand Island; Matt Melendez of Buffalo caught the biggest bullhead, a 1.22 pound fish; Richard Jopp of Buffalo led the charge with a .43 pound perch; and Sean Franklin of Buffalo placed first with a three pound bass.
Oswego County
Mary Ellen Barbeau
Lake Ontario report
Anglers are finding a variety of species in the area. Some salmon have moved in along with a good steelhead bite and some brown trout activity. Spoons along with flies and flashers are working well.
According to Capt. Kevin Davis of Catch the Drift:
We have some kings around with some nice steelhead mixed in. No big numbers but enough to have a good day on the water.
Oswego River Report
The water level has been flowing between 1,000-2,000cfs for several days. Conditions are about the same on the river. Anglers are finding a few smallmouth bass. Walleyes are active but small in size with only a handful of keepers reported. Anglers are also finding sheepshead and catfish. Worms, minnows and stickbaits are working well.
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 along the top bar on the home page. 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:
Anglers are reporting an influx of salmon and brown trout in decent numbers over the last few days off Oswego and in Mexico Bay. There does not seem to be any consistency in water depth; look in 70-80 feet of water on out to 200 feet. Browns are taking spoons and salmon are responding to flies/flashers and cut bait/flashers.
According to Fat Nancy’s Tackle Shop:
Tuesday was a great day on the water with plenty of steelhead off Nine Mile Point in 160 feet of water. The hot baits were Michigan Stinger hawgwild and green e-chip with Atommik ultra green glo fly.
Salmon River report
According to the Douglaston Salmon Run:
It was a quiet day on the run yesterday. One angler fished with us and reported catching nine smallmouth bass in the morning. The hot weather we had really warmed up the river temperature which was 72 degrees with a flow of 185cfs.
Oneida Lake Report
According to Bartel Road Bait & Tackle:
The walleye bite has been interesting to say the least. It seems like early morning is best with many anglers using sonar and bladebaits. 24-32 feet of water appears to be the average depth. There are also some folks catching eyes on worm harnesses as shallow as 15 feet. The bass are gorging themselves on the recent mayfly hatch and good numbers are being taken on shoals using either live crayfish or drop-shotting plastic baits.
Sandy Pond report
According to Woody’s Tackle:
The pond is getting heavily weeded making it difficult to fish in most areas.
Wayne County Fishing Update
Chris Kenyon
Lake Ontario
It was calm this morning, and then a west wind came to town. Not bad, actually pretty decent for Lake Ontario fishing.
The kings are starting to show-up in Wayne County waters. They are in 200 to 250 feet of water down 80 to 100. They are hitting spin doctors and flies off riggers and straight back 200 feet on copper.
The steelhead are still on the top 40 feet and lakers are down in 300 feet of water; It has been a mix bag of trout and salmon.
You can still catch browns in 50 to 80 feet off the boards, but that has to be a 5 am start.
Bays
Some of the big perch are still in Sodus Bay, however some are being caught west of Sodus Point in the shallow water of Lake Ontario.
Pike are hitting between the islands of Sodus Bay. They are hitting pike minnows. There are plenty of largemouth bass close to weedlines in all of the Wayne County bays.
Use 14 to 20-pound test line and haul them out of the cover. Most bass anglers will release their catches.
If you need to rent a boat they are available at Davenports, Bay Bridge Sport Shop, and Warren’s Hook, Line &Sinker at Sodus Point.
Crappies are still suspended in 15 feet of water at the south end of Port Bay.
Don’t forget the Wayne County Youth Derby which started June 11th and runs until July 24th. All the info is on the front of our county web page.
Check out the rest of the Wayne County Tourism web page for the locations and hours of local bait and tackle shops. 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
A bass tournament on the canal proved how big the largemouth fish are…five and six pounders were being caught in the Widewaters section. There are launch sites in Clyde, Lyons and Newark, or you can fish the shoreline.
Orleans County
Orleans County Tourism
Let’s start out with derbies.
This Friday July 1st starts the LOC Summer Derby which runs through July 31st.
There is $29,000 in cash up for grabs with a $10,000 Grand prize.
Then there is the 26th Annual Erie Canal Derby which runs from July 6th to the 17th this year.
In this event a boat, motor and trailer is the grand prize and in the youth division a canal trail bike is available.
Fishing on Lake Ontario has been good to exceptional over the past week.
Winds have been fairly kind to us and that has kept the fishing in closer to shore, mainly the 90 to 150 feet of water range.
Most anglers are reporting a good mix of fish, mainly Chinook salmon, Lake trout and Steelhead trout with some reporting some exceptional size fish in each category.
With the great weather predicted through the weekend and well into next week, fishing should continue to improve.
On Lake Alice Large and Smallmouth bass and Carp seem to be providing most of the action.
Reports have the Bass mostly at legal size with few undersize fish being seen.
The Erie Canal from Middleport to Brockport is in the process of being de-watered for some emergency repairs in two locations but the portion from Middleport to Albion should be reopened by the end of next week.
The 4th of July is when we celebrate the birth of our great nation and a great way to celebrate is to take a kid fishing, hiking or any other activity that helps our youth to enjoy all that the great outdoors has to offer.