The lower Niagara River action has been the place to be for a variety of fish species. With the cooling water temperatures, salmon fishing in places like Devil’s Hole and further up into the gorge has been good to very good. Capt. Jim Gordon of Hawg Charters caught a limit of salmon on Monday this week for three anglers (9 salmon) and they also reeled in a 26-pound carp that they caught on treated egg skein off three-way rigs. Salmon fishing has been reminiscent of years gone by. In the Charity for Children event held last week in the lower river, the event produced 37 salmon and 385 smallmouth bass over two days.
Mike Ziehm of Niagara Falls has been using a three-prong approach to take his salmon from shore in the gorge. Casting spinners and jigs has been his most consistent producer for him and chartreuse has been a good color to use. He will also use salmon egg skein under a float to switch things up. The water is very clear, so he tries to hit the water early before the sun hits the shoreline around 11 a.m. and the fish head to deeper water.
Bass fishing has also been good throughout the river using live bait. Fish now seem to prefer shiners off three-way rigs or drop shot set-ups – a sign of fall fishing. There are some reports of lake trout being caught. Handle with care as the season is closed until Dec. 1. Alan Raymond with The Wicked Worm in Youngstown reports that bass are still being caught along the shoreline with a mix of walleye. Salmon are being caught on spinners, spoons, and skein.
Upper Niagara River bass fishing action (above Niagara Falls) has been off the charts according to Capt. Chris Cinelli of Grand Island. Ever since he switched over to shiners last week when Lake Erie waters flipped, the smallmouth fishing has been great. With the cooler water temperatures, it won’t be long before musky fishing becomes more prevalent. Cinelli will start to run his trips in a few weeks. Casters have been picking up a few walleyes around Freedom Park up towards Buffalo.
Salmon and trout are still available in the lake. Capt. Joe Oaks of Salmonboy Sportfishing reports that salmon and trout fishing has been good in 400-plus feet of water for an offshore bite. He has been concentrating his spoons and flasher-fly combos in 60 to 100 feet of water. Capt. Matt Yablonsky of Wet Net Charters has transitioned into the lower river for his salmon fishing, but his final lake trips last week focused on steelhead out deep off Wilson in that same 400-foot area, 60 to 80 feet down for steelhead. John Jarosz of Lake View and his sons Matt and Dave of Elma caught plenty of fish up to 11 pounds using a mix of spoons with Yablonsky. According to Karen Evarts at The Boat Doctors and Tackle Barn in Olcott, there is still quite a bit of fishing going on there, too. You have the option to choose salmon and trout off the Olcott piers using J13 Rapalas, spoons, or spinners. Blue and reds have been the best colors for spoons like Little Cleos. The creek (18 Mile) has some decent flow with a good mix of fish, in part due to Erie Canal water releases. Egg skein fished under floats seems to be the best in the creek all the way to Burt Dam. The Dam also has plenty of browns and some steelhead biting jigs and eggs (both soft and real). Some beads produce a few fish at the dam, too.
The countdown has started for the Association of Great Lakes Outdoor Writers 70th Annual Conference in Lewiston Oct. 11-15 …
Frank Campbell
Director, Outdoor Promotions
Destination Niagara USA
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