Lake Erie, NY Fishing Update
Posted on April 28th, 2009Cattaraugus Creek is flowing at 579 cubic feet per second and is in good shape heading into this week. Color and clarity are good. Water temperature is in the upper 40s, keeping steelhead in the creek. It should be an excellent week to fish the Catt with fish both moving up and drop-backs heading back to Lake Erie. Canadaway and Chautauqua Creeks have a slight green tinge, but will clear through the week. Fish are scattered in these creeks and on the move with some little fresh fish still running in. Productive baits include egg sacs, single eggs, woolly buggers, egg sucking leeches and minnow imitations. Smaller baits and lighter lines are a must when fishing clear conditions.
Cattaraugus Creek
The first of the spring run smallmouth bass are moving into the Erie tributaries, especially Cattaraugus Creek. The tributary bass action really heats up in May! If you are targeting bass, keep in mind that only artificial baits/lures are permitted until May 2nd. Channel Catfish will also be moving into the tributaries shortly. Worms, raw shrimp or cut bait work well for hefty catfish.
Anglers are catching bullhead in Dunkirk Harbor off the main city pier and behind the Clarion. Bullhead are also biting in Small Boat Harbor. Look for smallmouth bass and yellow perch action to pick up in harbors such as Barcelona, Dunkirk, Sturgeon and Small Boat Harbors.
Upper Niagara River
Bass and panfish action will be best in areas with slightly warmer water temperatures, like the various harbors and inlets along Grand Island, Buffalo and the Tonawandas. Good locations to try include Beaver Island State Park Marina, Blue Island Marina, Big Six Creek Marina and the foot of Ontario Street. These warmer water pockets draw in bait fish which in turn draw feeding panfish and bass. If you are targeting bass, keep in mind that only artificial baits/lures are permitted at this time.
Chautauqua Lake
The crappie bite finally turned on earlier in the week. Anglers report decent catches from Bemus Point to the north end of lake. Good locations have been in the canals or areas off the canals and creeks. Catches in the south basin have been hit or miss. Minnows, tube jigs, cubby jigs or combination have been productive for crappie. If you can’t find the crappie, you can always fall back on the perch. Yellow perch catches are good on minnows in both shallow and deep areas. Long Point is a good starting point for perch chasers. The bullhead bite has been good in shallow areas on worms and chicken livers.
Inland Trout Streams
Streams are on the clear side, but in good fishing shape. Water temperatures are on the rise and trout will be more active. Anglers are having success with little spinners, salted minnows, worms and flies. Fly anglers report good surface activity on Hendrickson mayflies and blue wing olives. Nymphs such as stoneflies, scuds, pheasant tails and caddis flies will also catch fish.
Trout Stocking 2009
April 1st traditionally marks the start of trout season in New York, even though some waters are open to trout fishing year round. Numerous area streams and lakes are stocked each spring (March through May) with thousands of yearling brown, rainbow and brook trout. In addition to the traditional stocking of yearling trout, many waters also receive generous numbers of two-year old brown trout that average 14 inches in length. The following waters have been stocked as of April 24th:
Cattaraugus County: Great Valley Creek (Ellicottville), Connoisarauley Creek (Ashford), Beaver Meadow Creek (Ellicottville), Forks Creek (Great Valley), Wrights Creek (Humphrey), Ischua Creek (Franklinville), Franklinville Retention Pond (Franklinville), Mansfield Creek (Mansfield), South Branch Cattaraugus Creek (East Otto), Little Conewango Creek (Conewango), Paisley Park Pond (Randolph), Guernsey Run (South Valley), North Branch Sawmill Run (South Valley), Bone Run (South Valley), Bay State Brook (Red House), Quaker Run (Cold Spring), Red House Brook (Red House), Science Lake (Red House), Rice Brook (Carrollton), County Ponds (Randolph), Five Mile Creek (Allegany), New Albion Lake (New Albion), Case Lake (Franklinville), Harwood Lake (Farmersville), Elton Creek (Freedom), Lake Flavia (Dayton), Quaker Lake (Elko), Maples Club Pond (Otto), Haskell Creek (Hinsdale), Olean Creek (Olean).
Chautauqua County: Goose Creek (N. Harmony/Harmony), Little Brokenstraw Creek (Harmony), Clay Pond (Poland), Chautauqua Creek (Chautauqua), Twentymile Creek (Ripley), Bear Lake Outlet (Stockton), Canadaway Creek (Arkwright), Cassadaga Creek (Stockton), West Branch Conewango Creek (Villenova), Farrington Hollow Brook (Cherry Creek), Mill Creek (Gerry).
Erie County: East Branch Cazenovia Creek (Emery Park), Eighteen Mile Creek (Boston Town Park), Little Buffalo Creek (Lancaster/Marilla), Cattaraugus Creek (Yorkshire), Sprague Brook Park Ponds (Concord), Ellicott Creek (Amherst).
Wiscoy Creek Angler Diary Program
The DEC Region 9 Fisheries Office will be running an angler diary program for Wiscoy Creek in Allegany and Wyoming Counties during 2009 and is currently looking for anglers to keep diaries. If you fish Wiscoy Creek (even once) and would like to keep a diary for DEC, please call the DEC fisheries office at (716) 372-0645 or email fwfish9@gw.dec.state.ny.us . The program will run March 1 through October 31. This program duplicates one run in 2006 and will be used in conjunction with a late-summer electro fishing survey to evaluate the fishery’s overall quality. In 2006, over 115 anglers signed up for the program.
If you need more fishing information or would like to contribute to the fishing report, please call or e-mail Mike Todd (716-851-7010; mttodd@gw.dec.state.ny.us ) or Jim Markham (716-366-0228; jlmarkha@gw.dec.state.ny.us ). Good Luck Fishing!
The fishing hotline can also be heard at (716) 679-ERIE or (716) 855-FISH.
