Greater Niagara Region
Bill Hilts, Jr.
The statewide bass season opens on Saturday, June 15, as well as the Great Lakes muskellunge season on that same day, as anglers get ready to rumble.
First off, we need to emphasize the point that Lake Ontario is open for business! Despite the high water levels and State of Emergency along the shoreline with a 5 mph no wake zone within 1,000 feet of shore, the fishing is great! In the the Orleans County Open Tournament last weekend it was a Niagara County team fishing the eastern fringe waters of Niagara County to win the contest. The winner was the Dublin Up team from Wilson led by Capt. Carl Martin of Pendleton.
The Dublin Up team started fishing 10 miles west of the Oak, starting in 60 to 80 feet of water. By the time they hit the 100-foot mark they had 5 salmon in the box and started to fish for lake trout. After dropping the speed to 1.5 mph, they had a good rip on the rod and it turned out to be the biggest fish of the tournament – a 22.30-pound king salmon. They managed to catch some lake trout and steelhead for a 124-pound box, good for second place behind Capt. Rob Wescott and the Legacy Team from Hilton. Day 2 they did it again with a 121-pound box to win the event. They were targeting salmon and lake trout first thing in the morning by going 2.0 to 2.2 mph. They put 4 kings and 1 laker in the box. When they slowed the speed to 1.5 mph, they hit an 18-pound laker right away. Throw in some steelhead to round out the box after the team’s third laker and the result was their first win.
Wilson and Olcott action continues to be good to very good. Capt. Joe Gallo of Two Bulls Sportfishing reports he did well last weekend working the 110 foot water depth line from Wilson to Olcott. He had good salmon bites on a combo of high spoons and deep meat dragging the bottom. The meat produced the year’s best biggest king so far for his boat, a 27 pounder. Green flashers out 150 feet took many fish all weekend. Saturday’s north east blow dropped the water temperature 9 degrees so Sunday morning they headed north and found a warm pocket of water in 350 feet of water. They worked 21 bites off the same spoon, flasher, and meat program from the first two days with mostly mid-teen kings with 2 fish right around the 20-pound mark. The next big derby is the Summer LOC Derby set for June 29 to July 28. Check out www.loc.org.
Lower river action has been good from boats but finding a place to fish from shore had been difficult at best. The NYPA platform is under water and the gorge shoreline offers little relief from the water. Boaters are doing well on a wide variety of fish species. Steelhead and lake trout are still available according to Lisa Drabczyk with Creek Road Bait and Tackle. Walleye and bass are hitting with regularity, too. MagLips, Kwikfish and live bait like shiners will catch you fish. For bass, tubes and swim baits work well. You can start using live bait to target bass on Saturday. Remember that musky season opens June 15 in the Great Lakes, too. The Upper river and Buffalo Harbor is the best place to be for consistent musky action. Bass fishing has been very good there as well. The foot of Ferry Street is a good place to target.
And don’t forget the kids fishing contests coming up this weekend:
· The 24th Annual City of Tonawanda Kids Free Fishing Derby will be taking place on June 15 in Niawanda Park from 9 a.m. to noon. Registration starts at 8 a.m. at the Bandshell in the park. Grab bags will be handed out to the first 200 kids registered. Awards will follow at 11:30 a.m. For more info call John White at 692-6306.
· 33rd Annual Niagara County Youth Fishing Derby is June 15 being hosted by the Wilson Conservation Club, 2934 Wilson-Cambria Road (Route 425), Wilson from 8 a.m. to noon. This contest, for kids ages 3 to 14, is based on length. No trout and salmon will be judged. Youngsters may fish any Niagara County waters. All kids will receive a consolation prize. Awards presentation is at 1 p.m. For more information call Mike at 585-205-1353.
· There will be a Catch and Release Kids Fishing Derby at Wide Waters Marina, Lockport on June 16 from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. for fishing; lunch and awards will be 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. It is being hosted by Moose Lodge 617, 204 Monroe Street, Lockport.
Oswego County
Mary Ellen Barbeau of the Oswego County Department of Community Development, Tourism and Planning.
Notice: Due to high water levels, a local state of emergency order for a “No Wake Zone” has been established for boats 1,000 feet from the Lake Ontario shoreline and tributaries. All motorized boats within 1,000 feet of the shoreline and within these waterways must operate at idle speed.
Lake Ontario/Oswego River Report
According to Capt. Troy Creasy of High Adventure Sportfishing Charters:
The wind was an issue early this week but a respectful number of kings are being caught on our outings. We had a client from Pennsylvania on Sunday and we caught two of our biggest kings of the year. We included a few smaller ones and boxed out on lake trout. Lake trout are hugging the bottom in 130 to 170 FOW and browns, although very scattered, are being caught near the harbor in 15 to 30 FOW. Spoons have been the ticket for everything although a few guys are running cut bait. Green glows early, black and silver patterns and yellow when we see the sun.
According to Oz Angling Tackle:
Sunday provided an action packed morning on the river for a couple of anglers. They brought to hand a nice mixed bag of warm water species using crayfish and worms. It was the first time using a centerpin for one of them and he was not disappointed! Smallmouth bass, rock bass, carp, and freshwater drum along with walleye have been providing some good action this week.
Notice: The bridge to Leto Island is closed, and there are mandatory personal flotation device (PFD) zones on the river. For more information, visit our website at visitoswegocounty.com and click on 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.
Salmon River Report:
According to the Douglaston Salmon Run:
We had three clients fish the run on Sunday. All were experienced fishermen and were swinging flies from the top to the bottom of the run. The first pair reported five smallmouth bass between them, up to 17″ primarily from the upper section of the run with a solitary bass from the middle section. Our last angler walked the entire run and, although he reported seeing many bass finning in the shallows throughout the run, he was only able to hook chubs. The water flow has increased to 1500cfs through midnight tonight.
Oneida Lake Report:
Anglers enjoyed the beautiful weekend weather on Oneida Lake but the wind was an issue early this week. A good number of walleye were reported with bucktail jigs working well. Anglers are finding perch in 15-20 FOW across the lake and anglers are finding a pickerel bite in many areas. Remember bass are still catch and release until the season opens June 15.
Sandy Pond Report:
Due to Lake Ontario’s high water level, the DEC North Sandy Pond boat launch is closed. With the high water we have not had many reports from the pond.
Wayne County Fishing Update
Chris Kenyon
Lake Ontario
It’s blowing today with west winds clocking-in at 15 to 17 with gusts plus 20 mph. This is a blow-off day.
Before the latest wind, the salmon were in 140 to 160 feet of water down 50 to 60 feet. The kings have still been favoring spoons, however cut bait has been working.
Riggers, wire and planer boards have been the set-ups for charter boats.
Bait fish are scattered so it has been a search and fish routine. Straight out form Sodus Bay and Hughes’ Marina have been the best starting points.
Bays
Wayne County still has a no-wake condition. The Wayne County Sheriff’s Office declared a State of Emergency on Sodus Bay, East Bay, Port Bay and Blind Sodus Bay effective 12:01 a.m. Saturday May 11.
SODUS BAY – IDLE SPEED ONLY CAUSING NO WAKE WITHIN 1000 FEET of shore.
PORT BAY, EAST BAY and BLIND SODUS BAY – IDLE SPEED ONLY CAUSING NO WAKE.
Bay fishing has been excellent. There are challenges launching with the high water. You can still put your boat in at Bay Bridge at the south end of Sodus and Margaretta Road at the north end on Route 14.
If you are fishing Port Bay…put-in at the south end DEC access. Just be careful because the docks are under water. The ramps are not completely flooded; however, it can be a tricky launch.
Crappies are still being caught at the south end of Port Bay. The pike are also at the end of the bay.
Pike fishing between the islands of Sodus Bay has been productive. Some walleye are also being caught, although Sodus is not defined as a walleye bay.
Check out the rest of the Wayne County Tourism web page for the locations and hours of local bait and tackle shops. waynecountytourism.com.
Erie Canal
The bass boats were fishing near the Port Gibson Bridge on the north side of the canal. They were targeting “anything that bites.” The temps were in the 80’s Sunday so everyone was fishing.
The official season for keeping bass starts the third Saturday in June…June 15th. And DEC’s free fishing weekend is June 29-30th. No license is required for fishing in New York State.