Upstate New York Fishing Report – March 19, 2020

At the moment, fishing is a great option for anyone looking to get some fresh air while avoiding crowds. Of course, if you have any symptoms, or have been exposed to anyone who has displayed symptoms or tested positive for COVID-19, please stay home, and definitely don’t visit your local tackle shop.

Greater Niagara Region

Bill Hilts, Jr.
Fishing the waters in Niagara Falls USA has been one of the few constants in this time of uncertainty in the world. Fishing in the lower Niagara River was on fire this week as double digit catch days were the norm for boaters drifting a mix of minnows, egg sacs and Pautske fire dye minnows. Capt. Matt Yablonsky of Youngstown and Capt. Frank Campbell of Lewiston reported banner days on the water this week, nearly all steelhead. Three-way rigs bouncing the bottom was the way to go, especially upriver as far as Devil’s Hole. If the winds are switching to the southwest, throw on a MagLip or Kwikfish. Speaking of winds, there will be something severe blowing in on Friday that could mess things up again, including some heavy rains. Shoreline casters are picking up some fish, too. Mike Rzucidlo of Niagara Falls hit some steelhead on spinners this week in the gorge. There was 4 to 5 feet of visibility being reported.

Some bullheads were hitting in Wilson and Olcott and Lake Ontario was hitting the magical 40-degree mark. Trolling the shoreline for brown trout and other fish is an option, as is casting the piers with spoons, spinners or stickbaits. The Wilson Conservation Club announced this week that they are cancelling their Bullhead Contest set for April 3-5 due to the coronavirus. Not because of the fishing, but because of the weigh in and afterparty. There have been good numbers of steelhead and brown trout in some of the main streams like at 18 Mile Creek and Burt Dam after last week’s rains. Best baits have been egg sacs, wax worms and beads tipped with waxies or run clean according to Ken Jackson of Sanborn. Rain in the forecast will help the small to medium streams out for sure.

April 1 is the opening of the inland trout and salmon season. Hyde Park Lake, Gill Creek and Oppenheim Park Pond will be stocking on April 8 starting at 10 a.m. For other stockings call the hotline at 358-2050.

There are a few cancellations or postponements we should report on due to health concerns. The next Lake Ontario Trout and Salmon Association (LOTSA) meeting set for April 2nd in Amherst, complete with a new flea market option, has been cancelled. The LOTSA folks have even cancelled public involvement with the pen rearing project installation on April 4th in Olcott. That said, LOTSA board members will be doing all the work to get the job done in preparation for receiving the salmon and trout.

The Niagara Musky Association announced last Friday that they will be postponing its popular Awards Banquet set for April 4 at the Pearl Street Grill in Buffalo. The group has also cancelled its April 7 monthly meeting that was scheduled at the Eldredge Club in Tonawanda.

The Antique Fishing Tackle Show set for April 4 in Lockport has also been cancelled for the time being. It may be rescheduled in the future. We will do our best to keep everyone updated on events such as derbies and tournaments. And, of course, the fishing. Stay safe out there!

Oswego County

Mary Ellen Barbeau of the Oswego County Department of Community Development, Tourism and Planning.

Oswego River Report

According to Oz Angling Tackle:
The water flow had been running over 10,000 CFS but this morning has dropped to 8,690 CFS. Anglers are finding a good fresh chrome steelhead bite in the upper river lately. Egg sacs and beads have been producing best results as some early spawners are starting to drop eggs. Marabou jigs, pink worms, night crawlers, and Gulp minnows have caught fish recently as well. More browns and walleyes have been reported in the lower river.

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:
It was a real mixed bag of reports Tuesday but overall it seemed like the fishing was better in the morning before the rain began making its way to the area. Even though a few guests worked hard for a bite or two they still had some success. Others reported doing pretty well actually. Our bait anglers reported that egg sacs outproduced other baits. Our fly fishing guests reported that stone flies were top producers with glo bugs and wooly bugger type patterns also taking strikes. The majority of the fish caught were still chrome but we had a few more ‘grey’ colored fish caught on Tuesday than previous days. The water flow is currently 750 CFS at the dam and 1120 CFS at Pineville.

Oneida Lake Report:

Anglers are now looking toward the spring open water fishing. Just a reminder that walleye season is closed from March 15 to the first Saturday in May.

Sandy Pond Report:

Activity is rather quiet now on the pond as ice fishing has ended. Just a reminder that walleye and northern pike seasons are closed from March 15 to the first Saturday in May.

Wayne County Fishing Update

Chris Kenyon

Streams

The steelies continue to create fishing action in Maxwell, Salmon, and Furnace Creeks. They have been hitting anything bright, usually bright red beads. Or go with the real stuff…egg sacs.

There is plenty of parking for Maxwell anglers.

The current has slowed a bit and the flow is perfect for fly or spin fishing.

Check the Wayne County Facebook page for a pic of an Elmira angler who netted a nice 7-pound steelhead at Maxwell, Sunday, March 15th.

Next-up for anglers is close-to-shore fishing for browns in Lake Ontario, however right now focus on the steelhead in the streams before they head out into the lake.

Bay Bridge Sport Shop at the south end of Sodus Bay has everything you need for stream angling.

Bays

The perch are hitting in shallow water…both Sodus and Port Bays. Four to six feet works. Bright white jigs are working, anything that matches the hatch, which is currently small minnows.

Remember while your fishing from your boat, that you need to wear your pfd until May 1st.

If you need tackle and bait Bay Bridge Sport Shop and Davenports at the south end of Sodus Bay are always opened. They both have live bait if you like fishing with small minnows.

They also have plenty of fresh spikes.

Check out the rest of the Wayne County Tourism web page for the locations and hours of local bait and tackle shops.

Erie Canal

Anglers were fish from the shoreline near Port Gibson. Fishing was slow. The water in the canal need to warm-up for the crappies to bite.

Orleans County

Orleans County Tourism and Capt. John Oravec, Tight Lines Charters
Might as well go fishing! Come get social with some steelhead! We had light showers last night and this morning. Breezy and warming temps are coming today. Temps are forecast near 50° F through the end of week with a chance for soaking rain Friday and more wind and colder temps for the upcoming weekend. More rain would be welcome to keep tributary flows up or make for another high water event for fresh fish migrations. Upstream swamp headwater supplies for the Oak are lowering. Flows in the Oak are about medium and mostly clear. Easily driftable conditions through the whole river-course and the clearer water will call for lighter leaders and tippets. Of course that clearing water color makes for spookier fish and that usually means an on and off bite.

Through the past weekend and beginning part of this week, guys were getting a few hook ups on a mix of fresh and darker fish through half day efforts or so. Still fairly consistent action at the dam and along with no great amount of suckers evidenced yet – that’s a good sign of action hanging on. Another spate of water with warming temps afterward should quickly fire up some spring action.

The other area smaller tributaries have moderate flows and slightly stained water color going toward clear. Better action was on previous higher water and guys should be able to still get into some fish. Look for a few fresh fish and mostly post spawn fish for now. When flows might perk back up, there could be some fresh fish migrations. There’s still the chance for holdover or fresh run browns in the tributaries and casting chances on the Lakeshore.