Greater Niagara Region
Frank Campbell
Memories of the 70th Anniversary Conference of the Association of Great Lakes Outdoor Writers are being re-lived on social media outlets as the media professionals share their stories on the water while fishing in area waters earlier this month. What a fall it’s been!
Change is on the way, though. Just how fast it happens is up to Mother Nature. As we move deeper into fall, salmon fishing is winding down, and we are looking forward to welcoming trout action to the lower Niagara River. In the meantime, anglers can enjoy a variety of species, from bass and walleye to trout and salmon. The most active species shift almost daily, but the exciting part is that your next cast could yield a personal best fish.
In the lower river, smallmouth bass are being caught on live bait and bait imitations according to Alan Raymond with the Wicked Worm in Youngstown. He’s still seeing a decent amount of salmon and brown trout swimming around the docks every day. A few browns have been caught near the Coast Guard drift. Salmon are still available and they are being caught on treated salmon skein, and beads (size 14mm). He is also seeing some trout action but it’s just getting started.
In the Niagara Gorge, Mike Rzucidlo of Niagara Falls was back at it targeting salmon from shore, using his homemade No. 4 spinners. Because of the super clear water conditions, he had to decrease in pound test for his fishing line and that made a difference. Guide Mike Marisa of Niagara River Adventures has been working salmon skein treated with Pro-Cure under floats and casting Thundersticks to hit double-digit salmon from shore, but there has been a crowd of fishermen working the shoreline.
Karen Evarts at The Boat Doctors and Tackle Barn reports that one of the most difficult things to do right now is keeping up with tying egg sacs for anglers trying to take advantage of the fantastic fishing at Burt Dam and 18 Mile Creek. The focus continues to be on brown trout, but king salmon and a few steelhead are still in the mix. Beads and jigs will also work. Pier action has been good, as well as in the harbor. She noted that over in Wilson there have been some salmon, brown trout and bowfin in 12 Mile Creek. Perch, bass and bowfin are also available near the creek mouth.
Matt Vogt of Newfane reports there are plenty of trout and salmon available now at Burt Dam, but there are plenty of people, too. Kings, browns, and steelhead are up for grabs. The flow of the creek has improved since he was last there. The water was slightly cloudy but clear enough to see fish here and there. He caught one salmon on an egg sac and netted a steelhead for another angler.
Capt. Chris Cinelli of Grand Island has started his pursuit of fall muskellunge, but the waters are too clear for any consistency. Local fly-fishing expert Rick Kustich of Getzville worked the waters in the upper river with some of his hand-tied flies, and he did have five follows – but no hook-ups. Cinelli insists the best is yet to come. In the meantime, bass fishing continues to be outstanding according to Cinelli. Golden shiners fished off three-way rigs are doing well, producing plenty of smallmouth bass.
Wayne County Fishing Update
Chris Kenyon
Streams
The lack of rainfall is not opening our streams. Maxwell Creek still has a small opening, however there is not enough flow to give the fish a chance to swim upstream.
The best bet is to pier fish Wayne County channels and cast out heavy spoons. If the bays are calm, you can also fish from your boat next to the outlets.
Casting from the piers works. Keep your spoons bright with chrome and chartreuse colors.
Sodus Bay has the longest pier, however any outlet to the lake will have fish. Port Bay is an example of a small channel opened to the lake.
Bays
Bay fishing for perch is starting to pick up with the deeper water in Sodus Bay holding some larger fish. Look for 20 to 25 fow straight out from Third Creek, or fish deeper water around the northern islands.
It’s the same for Port Bay. Fish the deeper pools between the channel and Graves Point. Live bait works the best, however you can still catch perch with a 2-inch white grub with a yellow tail. Place your sinker at the bottom of your rig to try and eliminate the gobies biting of the jigs tail.
Erie Canal
There was a bass tournament at Widewaters on Saturday. The boats launched at the county park where there was plenty of room for the trailers.
The anglers were targeting the largemouth bass.
The sections of the canal that are not drained will hold a wide variety of species.
If you drive along Route 31 you can see the sections that are still holding water.
The Erie Canal is now open and will close on October 14th.
There is an excellent DEC site that lists all the boating launch areas in Wayne County: dec.ny.gov/things-to-do/boating/launch-sites/wayne-county
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. On 1298 Route 104 is Ontario Country Max and 625 E Main St. is Palmyra Country Max.
Orleans County
Orleans County Sportfishing Coordinator Ron Bierstine:
Wow what a nice stretch of fall weather! Maybe you’d want it a little gloomier for best fish migrations, but the warm and clear and dry weather sure is agreeable for getting out there. And anglers have been, so expect some angling pressure at times. Long range forecasts thru November really are calling for continued above average temps. No precip in the near-term forecast.
For this mid-week period the fishing pressure does seem to have eased some. And end of Oct does sometimes bring a lull in a transition from salmon to trout anglers. Salmon pursuits should be far from over tho – we may only be slightly more than halfway thru “runs” so far. There are still good chances at green salmon as more and more Kings go into a straight up spawning mode. Some fish are still moving up from downstream and from the Lake. Anglers are finding Kings nearer the dam on the Oak and some scattered in downstream fast water areas.
Many guys are taking advantage of the Sportman’s Archers Club of St Mary’s parking access. With increased angling pressure around that spot the bite is going to turn on and off or perk up with fresh movements of fish. It might be first light or later on or again near dusk. Stay patient and keep drifting! Your chances only get better with less harried fish so a walk away from the crowds can help.
Flows are still good at about med but clear on the Oak. Flows in Johnson look up a tad likely from Canal bolstered flows while Sandy may be down a touch just before its scheduled for an upcoming Canal bolstered flow increase. An increase in flows in Sandy could be just what’s needed for more consistent action there.
Oswego County
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The steelhead have entered the chat in a big way!
Salmon River, Pulaski NY
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Steelhead first entered the river during the rain event two weeks ago and spread out throughout the river. Since then, there hasn’t been much movement, but we’ve seen a good influx over the last three or four days.
Anglers concentrating on the lower third of the river have seen the most success.
As is typical for early season, the steelhead are focused on feeding on loose salmon eggs. Baits that imitate individual salmon eggs are working best, including beads, flies, and small egg sacs.
Oswego River Report
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The river is teeming with trout, from the lake to the dam.
The low water has made it a wading angler’s dream! Look for fast-moving water and fish with single egg patterns.
Fishing from the walls has been much slower with the low flow. Behind Bridie and the lower sections have been producing as well!
REMINDER! The brown trout limit on the river is 1. The limit is 3 fish in combination, but only one brown trout and one steelhead/rainbow may be included in that total of 3.
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. Click here for the current water flow.
Cormorant Reporting
Courtesy of NYS Sea Grant
New York Sea Grant announces new survey tool to track birds’ populations and impact
In August, New York Sea Grant, a collaborative program of Cornell University and the State University of New York.
Read more about the project here
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