Greater Niagara Region
Frank Campbell
The access stairs near the NYPA fishing platform have finally been reopened for anglers looking to access the shoreline at Devil’s Hole. There are a limited number of parking spots at the base of the hill. The NYPA fishing facilities could be closing by Dec. 1. Call 286-6662 for updates. Speaking of Devil’s Hole and the gorge, Mike Ziehm of Niagara Falls continues to hit steelhead and brown trout his last few times out, along with incidental lake trout. They all like his chartreuse with white No. 4 spinners and white bucktail jigs. Look for shore action to pick up with the forecast of cooler temperatures and rain in the forecast. Water temperatures are continuing to drop. Lake trout season opens on Dec. 1.
Capt. Frank Campbell of Lewiston reports that boat fishing is picking up throughout the river with brown trout starting to cooperate. Top drifts have been Pine, Jackson, and the Coast Guard. The most productive baits are beads and egg sacs. Lake trout can be found in large numbers in the Artpark area, but more steelheads are showing up daily. Egg and egg imitations are both working well. At the Niagara Bar, a mix of trout and warm water species are showing up in greater numbers with bigger schools of baitfish drawing those fish into the area. Jigs and 3-ways rigs outfitted with MagLips or live bait have been most effective to entice bites. Campbell reminds boaters that there are quite a few boats on the water enjoying the good fishing. Check your surroundings before heading back upriver to make another drift. Wade Winch of North Tonawanda has been hitting the lower river every chance he gets. Fishing was good from Artpark all the way to Bar for brown trout, and steelhead with the bi-catch of lake trout mixed in this week. He was using beads in various colors in the river and on the bar. Jigging soft plastics or blade baits will also work.In the upper Niagara River at the foot of Ferry Street, Steve Brzuszkiewicz of Marilla decided to take a few casts from the shore and caught a nice perch. He saw some steelhead and walleyes caught while he was there, and they seem to be the most cooperative species for anglers. Steelhead action is leading the way. Live bait, jigs and swim baits are working.
Jim Evarts with The Boat Doctors and Tackle Barn in Olcott reports that Burt Dam still has browns, and some steelhead. Best baits are wax worms, egg sacs, wooly buggers, beads in pink and orange colors. Some perch are being caught off the East Pier in Olcott. Vic Thibault of Newfane took his foreign exchange student from Italy fishing at the Burt. 16-year-old Alberto Coccoli caught his first brown trout over the weekend and it was a lunker.
Wayne County Fishing Update
Chris Kenyon
Lake Ontario and Streams
Expected rainfall this week should open Maxwell Creek to the lake. The steelhead will enter the steam and finally we can get some streamside action. The steelies will spawn in January, so if we get a few inches of rain, start tying your egg sacs.
Bays
Some nice size perch have entered Sodus Bay. Some anglers were catching them in 7 fow. Try the north end of the bay near the islands and near the channel. Use small 2- inch grubs chartreuse with a paddle tail. Put some spikes on the hook.
If you are targeting bass in Sodus Bay, you can keep your catch until November 30th. After that it’s a catch and release with artificial bait only.
If you are a pike angler, try between Leroy Island and the east shore. You can catch the “toothy” monsters with pike minnows or cast out Cleos or Kastmaster spoons. The season is open until March 15th with a 15-inch minimum and a daily limit of three.
Port Bay has also seen some larger perch, which is normal when the water gets colder. Fish the drop-offs and try shallower water near the channel.
Erie Canal
The largemouth bass are still hitting at Widewaters on the south side of the canal. If you don’t have a boat, you can cast from the shore on the southern trails. There are also pull-off sections where you can fish from the shore adjacent to Route 31.
Launch sites for Sodus: Bay Bridge Sport Shop. Launch at the Margaretta. It’s on your right on Route 14 just past Martin’s Marina.
Launch sites for Port Bay: Barrier bar road at the north end of West Port Bay Road and the south end DEC site. The north barrier bar road is very bumpy. Take it slow.
Bait for fishing is available on the south end of Sodus at Davenports and Bay Bridge Sport Shop.
On Port Bay Jarvis Bait Farm is open on Brown Road. The signs are on East Port Bay Road at the junction of Brown Road.
Toadz Bait is near the end of West Port Bay Road.
Notable Freshwater Fishing Regulation Changes
The following list offers a summary of the most notable fishing regulation changes resulting from the adopted rulemakings described above.
- New statewide regulation for rainbow trout, brown trout, and splake in lakes and ponds. The season will now be open year-round, with a five-fish daily limit, any size, with a “no more than two longer than 12 inches” harvest rule.
- Statewide Atlantic salmon regulations will now allow for a year-round open season.
- Ice fishing is permitted on all waters in New York unless specifically prohibited with the exception of Essex, Franklin, Fulton, Hamilton, Herkimer, Lewis, St. Lawrence, Warren, and Washington counties where previous rules remain.
- New specific dates replaced floating dates for statewide season openers to include:
- May 1 – Walleye, Northern Pike, Pickerel, and Tiger Muskellunge.
- June 1 – Muskellunge. (Note that in 2022, DEC will allow for the fishing of muskellunge beginning the last Saturday in May to accommodate previously planned fishing trips);and
- June 15 – Largemouth and Smallmouth Bass.
- A five-fish daily walleye limit in Oneida Lake.
- A new regulation to limit the growth of the walleye population in Skaneateles Lake. No daily possession limit; 12-inch minimum size limit, open year-round.
- The statewide sunfish daily harvest limit has been reduced from 50 to 25 fish: and
- The statewide minimum size limit for crappie has been increased from nine inches to ten inches.
Orleans County
Feels like we are moving into the “second” season on the Oak and nearby tribs. Most of the the major salmon action is behind us which leaves most guys in serious pursuit of browns, steelhead and Atlantics. As the calendar approaches this mid and end of November, and holidays approach, and big game seasons open, and the weather cools down, its fairly typical that fishing pressure becomes more manageable. I’m seeing guys spread through the Oak and in most cases with enough elbow room to move around and try some different drift spots, especially in the later parts of a day.
Flows in the Oak are hanging in at nearly slightly high from Canal feed so there is good flows to encourage fish migrations – and recent upticks in steelhead action could be evidence of that. It’s a fair to good steady pick on brown trout for guys putting in enough time in a day with good dead drifts of egg patterns or beads, with some swinging streamer action thrown in too. Check out the female brown in the pic below, a good typical Oak fish.
For the other area smaller waterways, it looks like flows to the west at Johnson are recently lowering while there’s another uptick in flows to the east at Sandy. Good time to hit the better flows and we are hearing of decent action once again there at Sandy. Remember that is a long watercourse compared to most other area tribs, so the fish could be anywhere along the length of the trib or moving steadily up now that Canal feed is likely raising flows once again.
The weather is still seasonably warm so the fishing conditions remain real agreeable. Forecast is for a fishy gloom something like over the next week with chance of measurable precipitation by the end of week with slightly lower temps. No lake effect snow is expected here on the WNY Lake Ontario south shore and the precipitation for this mid week may only be showers at best.
Oswego County
Oswego County needs water. The Salmon River has been running at 185cfs and the Oswego just dropped down below 1500. Hopefully the forecasted rains can help increase these flows.
Request a Free Fishing Map for Salmon River!
Designed to slip into your pocket, this map covers popular public and private fishing locations, as well as boat launches. The best news: it’s completely free!
Contact the Oswego County Tourism Department:
Tight lines!
Salmon River, Pulaski NY
• Click Here of the 10 day Forecast
• Click Here for the Current CFS at Pineville
Steelhead have been spread out throughout the entire river. They have been in pods of 10-50 so stay on them when you find them and keep changing baits to generate bites.
Overall, look for deeper, fast-moving water with overhead cover. We recommend:
- beads in 8 and 10mm sizes
- egg sacs in blue, white and peach
Tight lines!
Oswego River, City of Oswego
Click Here of the 10 day Forecast
The fishing off the wall was fantastic before the big water drop. So we expect it to be good again, as soon as the flows go above 2200.
Beads and jigs fished under slip floats have been the delivery of choice. But anglers wading the flats have been reporting less than impressive numbers of fish. Most fish seem to be in the deep channel or rapids above the bridges.
Please Consider the Following Year-Round Notice: There are mandatory personal flotation device (PFD) zones on the river. The Oswego Fire Department offers loaner life jackets at no charge through its “Loaner for Life” program. For more information contact the fire station at 35 E. Cayuga St. by calling (315) 343.2161.
• Check the current water flow
And be sure to read the recent news release about fishing access on the West Riverwalk.
Free Oswego Fishing Guide
The updated Oswego County Fishing and Hunting Guide is now available online and in print. The guide features a new cover and an expanded listing of fishing guides and charters.
The 67-page guide includes a detailed overview of fishing opportunities on eastern Lake Ontario, Oneida Lake, the Oswego and Salmon rivers and a variety of other tributaries, as well as the more than 40,000 acres of public lands available for hunting.