Greater Niagara Region
Frank Campbell
It is derby time on Lake Ontario and August 20 is the start of the Lake Ontario Counties Trout and Salmon Derby, as well as the Greater Niagara Fish Odyssey Derby. The LOC ends Labor Day and has a $25,000 Grand Prize. Check out www.loc.org for details. For the Odyssey, which ends on Sept. 5, there are 7 species categories, kids are free, and everything is being run off a new Fishing Chaos app that will allow you to take pictures and measure fish, as well as keep a leaderboard. Check out fishodyssey.net or the Fish Odyssey Facebook page.
Some easterly wind earlier this week rolled the lake over and charters were heading out deep to more stable water. According to Capt. Tim Sylvester of Tough Duty Charters in Olcott, he had a banner day on Sunday, before the lake rollover, that included 6 mature king salmon. One of those salmon tipped the scales at 36 pounds. Too bad it wasn’t during the Fall LOC Derby or the Fish Odyssey Derby that starts Friday. Sylvester reports that there were 2 distinct bands of fish – from 4 to 8 miles offshore and 10 to 12 miles offshore. That will probably change after the most recent winds. Karen Evarts at the Boat Doctors said that boats were still doing well out deep even after the lake rollover on Tuesday. Hot colors are blacks, purples, greens and blues. Most of Sylvester’s fish came from down deep. He was using 400-foot copper lines, riggers from 65 to 105 feet down, and divers back 180 to 240 on a No. 1 or 2 setting. Meat was working on the divers and copper lines; spoons off the riggers. He wouldn’t share much more than that with the big derbies starting up. Grand Prize in the LOC is $25,000 for the biggest salmon. The winner last year came out of Olcott when Tim Anderson of Ohio reeled in 31-pound, 7-ounce salmon while fishing with Capt. Vince Pierleoni of Thrillseeker Sportfishing. There are some big fish around as Sylvester can attest to. Wilson Harbor was producing some big perch this past week along with some bass according to Evarts.
The Deer Doctor – Peter Fiduccia from Northeast Woods and Waters TV Show – came and fished the lower Niagara River for bass last week targeting smallmouth bass. He was fishing with his son Cody and wife Kate, on the boat of Capt. Frank Campbell of Lewiston. Conditions weren’t the best, but they still managed to catch more than 2 dozen bass, with the largest being between 4 and 5 pounds. Crabs fished off 3-way rigs caught the most fish along with drop-shot set-ups using the Strike King Dream Shots as bait. Walleye can be found in the typical haunts. Use a worm harness fished on the bottom. Mike Rzucidlo of Niagara Falls reports that he’s been picking up a few bass on jigs from a boat in the upper river and more small bass onshore at Artpark. No walleyes the last few times out, but he didn’t try the night bite yet. Then on Tuesday of this week he hit 6 smallmouth on small white or yellow 1/8-ounce jigs in the upper river.
Oswego County
Report is Courtesy of the Oswego County Department of Community Development, Tourism and Planning
Lake Ontario Report:
Lake Ontario has been unstable. We’ve had ever changing wind patterns which move the water temperatures around constantly. Rainfall has been above average, and the river flows also above normal. This is usually good for our river season but can have a negative impact on the lake fishing.
Oswego:
The following report is courtesy of Captain Shane Thomas, or Salmon River Guide Services.
It’s been a rough couple of weeks to keep the kings dialed in. Fishing is starting to turn a corner as it always does in late August. More and more fish are moving closer to the rivers, staging up for the spawn. They have been getting more aggressive and the catches are gradually increasing.
A decent amount of cohos have started to show up in the coolers along with the usual kings. Kings have been biting the flasher/fly combos and spoons but plenty of captains are still getting takes with flashers and cut bait while lake trolling. The usual green glows and uv chrome colors have been doing best.
One of the biggest positives all year are the number of “brutes” taken this summer. We’ve seen some hitting the scale at the 35lb mark!
The LOC derby starts Friday August 20 and pays out 25k to the biggest king taken to anyone entered! If you’re already planning a trip it’s a good idea to get a ticket; you may be the lucky angler to walk away with a lot of loot.
Mexico:
The following report is courtesy of Captain Stephen Shen of STS Guide Service and Captain Dave Wilson fishing charters.
Fishing should pick up any day once the fish that are staged near the river mouth decide to start biting. Stinger flashers or spin doctors pulling a-tom-mik meat rigs or flies are our go-tos.
Fishing is starting to pick up on the west end of the lake which is a great sign as the majority of those fish will be headed towards the salmon river. This point of the season most fish have a one way ticket to the east.
Tight Lines!
Wayne County Fishing Update
Chris Kenyon
Lake Ontario
The salmon bite is on with some 25 pounders being netted both east and west of Sodus Bay. Some of the kings are starting to turn a darker color.
Over the weekend the bite was kings, steelhead and some close to shore browns. Charter boats were trolling in 300 to 500 fow. Find the bait and fish the hooks.
The kings have been caught on spoons and flasher-flies. Meat rigs were not working over the weekend, however, now is the time to try everything you have.
The “Big One” is coming up. Just three more days until the LOC Fall Derby. You catch the largest salmon, and you walk away with a cool $25,000.
Dave Chilson and company keep their leaderboard updated on an hourly basis. Register now and see your name at the top of the list!!!! www.loc.org
LOC Fall Salmon Derby Aug 20th – September 6th
$67,400 Total Cash Pay-Out
$25,000 Grand Prize
For the largest Salmon
Bays
Bass and pike have been the latest catches from Sodus Bay. You need to start fishing early and beat the recreational boats. The cross boat wakes on Sodus will really knock you around.
The bass are in weed cover near the south end and off the many points in the bay. The best place to launch is Bay Bridge Sport Shop at the south end of the bay.
The pike are between the islands at the northeast region of the bay.
Port Bay still has perch biting. Usually, this time of the season they are in the lake, however the abundance of bait has kept them in the bay. Use white 2-inch rubber tipped with perch eyes or spikes.
For Port Bay anglers, launch on the north barrier bar off West Port Bay Road. The road is bumpy so trailer your boat slowly. The south DEC ramp is still closed.
The 2021 New York State fishing guide can be found at dec.ny.gov/outdoor/7917.html for downloading and printing at home. Production of hard copies is finished and have been delivered to License Issuing Agents. Hard copies can be requested by emailing FWFish@dec.ny.gov.
Erie Canal
Canal water is higher this week, however you can still launch safely at Widewaters and Clyde. The catfish bite is on. They like shrimp. Fish the pools. Bass are hitting on the south side of canal waters where the weeds are thick.
Keep informed from the NYS Canal web for changes and restrictions with canal waters. Keep informed about 2021 canal hours. (There will be no fees for the 2021 canal boating season.) May 21st is the scheduling for the canal opening. Hours are 7 am till 5pm. Stay informed with the below web page.
Safety Precautions from DEC
While enjoying the outdoors, please continue to follow the CDC/New York State Department of Health guidelines (leaves DEC’s website) for preventing the spread of colds, flu, and COVID-19:
- Try to keep at least six (6) feet of distance between you and others.
- Avoid close contact, such as shaking hands, hugging, and kissing.
- Wash hands often or use a hand sanitizer when soap and water are not available.
- Avoid surfaces that are touched often, such as doorknobs, handrails, and playground equipment.
When fishing, DEC recommends avoiding busy waters and following the guidelines on DEC’s website about fishing responsibly in New York State. If an angler arrives at a parking lot and there are several cars, they should consider going to another parking lot. If an angler is fishing upstream, they should fish downstream of the other angler or consider fishing another day. Anglers fishing from boats should be able to maintain at least six feet of distance between one another. For more information about the benefits of being outdoors safely and responsibly, go to DEC’s website.
New York State is open for fishing and DEC encourages anglers to recreate locally at a nearby waterbody. New York’s lakes and streams offer great opportunities for fishing in a wide array of settings across the state. Even during the current COVID-19 public health crisis, getting outdoors and connecting with nature while angling in New York’s waters is a great way to help maintain mental and physical health.
Orleans County
This week’s fishing report is from Capt. Tom Murray from Catch’n Hell Charters
Bro-Weekend was a success for the Meyer family from Eastern PA and NJ (pictured)! The morning started out great but Lady O offered up some serious chop by noon.
They scored 4 king salmon (17-20 lbs) and a trophy sized steelhead weighing in at 16 lbs. They fished a little west of port between the 27-29 lines of latitude. The fish were biting on a deep rigger set at 120, flasher/meat rig and wire dipsey, 280-300 out, gold 42 second paddle with mirage fly, NBK paddle mirage fly, 600 hundred copper with a Jill bill meat rig. A great time was had by all and they’re looking forward to returning next year!
