Greater Niagara Region
Bill Hilts, Jr.
The lake fishing out of Wilson and Olcott is really starting to turn on. Brown trout have been hitting closer to the shoreline on stickbaits and spoons. Capt. Vince Pierleoni of Newfane was focused efforts in 10 to 14 feet of water around Olcott with Bay Rats and Live Targets off the planer boards. On the riggers it was Dreamweaver SS spoons producing some nice browns, but a mix of other species including an Atlantic were also caught. Lake trout are out a bit deeper. A few king salmon are starting to show up in the lake. Chris Kempf of Cheektowaga hit a nice one on Saturday, a fish he reeled in while fishing with Capt. Joe Gallo of Amherst. They were fishing a flasher-fly 70 feet down over 125 feet of water when the bruiser hit while fishing out of Wilson. He also caught lake trout in 100 to 130 feet of water on spoons and flasher-fly. In the tributaries, the action has been consistent for steelhead and brown trout according to Scott Feltrinelli of Ontario Fly Outfitters. Water quality in the creeks is pretty good. The rain recently should help bring up water levels and add a lightly stain. Karen Evarts at The Boat Doctors reports decent pier action off Wilson and Olcott for browns. Bass are starting to hit, too.
Wilson has long been known for its excellent spring bullhead fishing. However, after last weekend’s performance by Roy Letcher of Olcott and Jeff Herman of Newfane, Olcott Harbor might be vying for the bullhead title in Niagara County. The bullhead contest ran from 5 p.m. on Friday to 1 p.m. on Sunday. Letcher and Herman caught 350 bullheads and cleaned 200. The best weight of Letcher’s best 2 fish was 4.36 pounds. Red worms and night crawlers were the baits of choice.
There was a tie for second place between Brud Holly IV of Wilson and Jeff Budziszewski of Newfane with two-fish totals of 3.68 pounds each. Holly won the tie-breaker based on length of the fish. Brud was using crawlers and shrimp in Wilson-Tuscarora Park and Jeff was using the same baits in 12 Mile Creek. A total of 93 entries participated in this year’s contest, including 14 kids. Youth winner was Jace Greene of Newfane with a two fish total of 3.55 pounds. Runner-up was Olivia Lampman of Newfane with a two-fish total of 3.33 pounds.
Some ice chunks have been coming down through the river system, serving as obstacles in the upper and lower river sections. Lower river trout action has been a bit more difficult due to winds and clear conditions, although not as clear as previously according to Lisa Drabczyk of Creek Road Bait and Tackle. Minnows have been producing steelhead and browns in the river, as well as egg sacs. Cast spinners or jigs from shore. No reports on smelt yet. The Lewiston Smelt Festival will be May 3 in Academy Park in Lewiston this year. The ice boom is still in place since there was still over 400 square miles of ice in the lake as of Monday. It needs to be 250 square miles or less.
Oswego County
Mary Ellen Barbeau of the Oswego County Department of Community Development, Tourism and Planning.
Oswego River Report
According to Oz Angling Tackle:
Trout fishing is the name of the game on the Oswego River right now. Steelhead and brown trout are being caught along the entire river. Anglers venturing up near the dam are having success using jigs, egg sacs, and beads while anglers fishing the lower river are catching mostly brown trout on jigs, swimbaits, and spoons. Some anglers are starting to use night crawlers as well, which can be a big difference maker on those days when it’s a relatively slow trout bite. At the current flow, these trout can comfortably hold throughout the entire river. The lower east side behind the hotels and the entire west side of the river are all worth fishing. The water flow is currently 7,820cfs.
According to Capt. Andy Grisenthwaite of Broad Horizon Charters:
The 2019 lake season is underway! Browns are plentiful out of Oswego. We have also gotten some surprise Atlantics. Smithwicks and Yozuri’s on one side and spoons on the other have kept us pretty busy.
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:
Another day of higher water didn’t discourage a few determined anglers yesterday. Between those anglers they reported great numbers regardless of these flows. A few drop backs and a bonus brown trout to seal the deal. The release from the dam is scheduled to remain at 1500 CFS until midnight tonight. The current reported flow at the Pineville gauge is 2250 CFS, which has continued to drop over the course of the day.
According to Whitaker’s Sport Shop and Motel:
With some mild temperatures and recent rain, it’s no surprise we have high water levels. The majority of bank anglers are fishing the upper end of the river between Altmar and Pineville where you have the best visibility and least amount of runoff. The diversions and side channels off the main river also provide another option for bank anglers. Some of the smaller local tributaries may also provide good fishing for bank anglers once their levels come back down.
Oneida Lake Report:
There is not much to report from the lake at this time as we begin to look toward the open water fishing season.
Sandy Pond Report:
There is little to report from the pond at this time.
Wayne County Fishing Update
Chris Kenyon
Lake Ontario
A beautiful Atlantic Salmon was among the catches last week in Wayne County waters. Most of the charter boats are now cruising the shoreline for browns…and the browns are hitting. Most charters are using stickbaits because they are on-shore fishing in very shallow water. Spoons tend to snag.
The trip out of Sodus Bay is a quick one. Rods are set-up as soon as you leave the channel.
The action is nearly everywhere along the shoreline. You can troll next to Maxwell or head east towards Port Bay. Today’s wind is switching to the west which will set-up a great mudline. Brown trout love stained water.
You can launch smaller boats at the Marquetta Road launch on Route 14. You can also launch at Port Bay at the south and north end of the bay. The Port Bay channel is now open.
Streams
There are a few steelhead in Maxwell Creek. Some “hold-over” browns are also being caught in the creeks, however the focus for mid-April is Lake Ontario. You can also cast from the Sodus pier.
Bays
The perch are very close to spawning, so now is the time to fish the bays. The Port Bay action is towards the south end. You can launch at the DEC south end ramp off West Port Bay Road.
The pike season starts the first Saturday in May and Sodus Bay is known for its trophy northern pike.
Crappies are being caught near the south end of Sodus Bay.
You can rent a boat at Bay Bridge Sport Shop and won’t have far to go to catch crappies and bullheads.
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
Anglers were fishing for crappies at the Port Gibson Bridge. You can fish from the shore or launch at Widewaters. The crappies are suspended and will bite any shiny jigs…just keep them small.
Orleans County
Stream Fishing Report
Orleans County Tourism and Bierstine of Oak Orchard Tackle and Lodge
Ideal fishable flows in the Oak are at about medium with 2 ft or so of stained visibility. Reports of some water level fluctuations through yesterday probably as a result of a hydro plant emergency shutdown, and today looks like the good flows are restored. A bit of rain early Monday should maintain flows so look for medium-ish flows to prevail through the week provided there is no new significant precipitation. After a couple of warm days, the forecast ahead this week looks seasonably cool so look for the good conditions to hang in without any great water temp spikes in the near future. Windy conditions are expected today.
Through the past weekend, guys reported good action Saturday and a little tougher through Sunday. Steelhead are spread through the river and mostly on gravel or adjacent staging spots around gravel. Concentrations of fish at the dam will probably be less as the calendar clicks toward spring. For this mid-week period, so far there’s lite fishing pressure at best. The other area smaller tributaries have medium flows and slightly stained water color. The latest precipitation should help maintain flows there.
In all the waterways, anglers will find a mix of spawning or staged or dropback or fresh fish. So far this spring, it looks like the action will continue to be spread out much like the previous winter was with ups and downs in the action. Remember though, the water temps warm up none-the-less through April so now, while cool-ish conditions prevail, is the time to try for steelhead. A few bass are in the mix in the lower reaches and suckers are more numerous too.
Lake Fishing Report
Orleans County Tourism and Capt. John Oravec, Tight Lines Charters
The April Spring setup of the shallow waters along the Orleans County coastline is underway! Already, charter and recreational anglers are hitting typical brown trout with bonus Lakers and a rogue king salmon. The outflow of the Oak Orchard River along with other tribs create warm fish-holding pockets right against the shoreline so spread your lines out with long line/planer board tactics in 5′ to 15′ depths and watch your rods. It’s prime time for shallow running stickbaits like challengers rapalas and bay rats in vivid colors. You will be hearing a lot more from Capt Johnny Oravec! For now, go get ’em! Fish On!