Upper NY, Lake Ontario Tributary Fishing Report.
Posted on October 12th, 2010
Ron Bierstine reports. The weekend’s fishing report goes something like good action, especially earlier in the weekend. The angling pressure was fairly heavy thanks to the holiday and that may have put some fish off a legitimate bite for later in the weekend. Flows held mostly steady in the Oak Orchard and retreated in the smaller area tributaries. The earlier rise in flows in the area smaller tributaries got some salmon moving in those smaller waterways. The precipitation looks like it has cleared out until possibly the end of this week, offering a clear and mild weather window thru this week and good fishing opportunities. Steelhead and brown trout are already being reported in angler catches for this early part of the tributary season, some Atlantic salmon too…
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There are salmon and a few trout in the Oak Orchad River all the way to the dam, these early fish having migrated straight thru on their kamikaze mission to get to the dam. Reinforcements had made their way upstream from the lower and middle river reaches thanks to some precipitation cooler temps and gloomy skies thru the first part of last week. The greatest concentrations of upstream fish are probably still nearer the dam, but more salmon are beginning to spawn now thanks to colder night time temps and that will place more fish downstream of the dam. Fish will fill in the fast water gravel sections just downstream of the Waterport dam either directly or from dropping back from the dam. Moderate sized pods of fish are on the move at select times. Anglers will also find fish staged up in the last of the frog water areas. The cooler weather will push fish upstream on a bit faster schedule differing from the previous slow upstream migration schedule thru the end of Sept. Warm and clear weather may stall some upstream movement.
Last week’s rainfall amounts were definitely heavier south and east of the WNY Niagara Frontier. The precipitation received here was just enough to perk things up in the area smaller tributaries and bring the flows up in the Oak Orchard from low to moderate. The area did not receive enough precipitation to affect a blowout, and now the flows are holding about steady in the Oak Orchard and retreating in the smaller waterways. I continue to see fair – good movements of fish as recent as last night right inside the Oak Orchard River mouth, evidenced by fish heard jumping and rolling on the surface. This indicates still more fish to make their way upstream and then stage up in the middle river hold-over spots or continue on thru farther upstream toward spawning areas.
Still more fish are coming thru the river mouth and downstream reaches, evidenced by hook-ups by gear fishermen at the river mouth and fish seen rolling just inside the river mouth and farther upstream at the Bridges. Cooler weather will hasten the last of the salmon movement thru the downstream reaches and the river mouth and pier fishing action in the Oak Orchard, Olcott at 18 Mile Creek and other accessible tributary mouths is hanging on with mostly salmon and some rainbows and brown trout caught. Look for a mix of both river mouth/lower river action with now better upstream fast water area action as the Kings begin to spawn and populate fast water gravel areas. A few Lake trollers are certainly hanging in there later in the season then typical, finding fish still moving in from deeper waters. River mouth shore bound casters are into Kings and some steelhead and brown trout. Small boats are plying the lower and middle River reaches casting, trolling and float fishing.
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