Slight bump up in trib flows yesterday from little bit of rain and snowmelt. Well have to wait and see how much flows will change but it should bring flows up high but not blown. It has been closed to traffic for construction since late April. 98) These unique bells seem to really trigger the Lakers. Guys are getting hook ups daily. For now, cool weather and cool water action is hanging on and theres no serious warmup forecast in the near future. Plenty of salmon are spawning now in the higher flows and some of the post spawn zombies will be flushed out along with lots of other weeds and debris. This is kind of a reset (at least when it warms back up) and with a return to some more inviting flows and stained water there should be new migrations of spring fish. And maybe into the early spring! After a cold night last night, look for a further drop in flows all around and clearing water color. And that flat downstream water on the Oak is just tougher to fish period except for good float techniques or cast/retrieve. It has definitely brought out some more guys so not sure well see the typical fall off in the mid week angler numbers. A few Kings now are in a spawning mode and likely with the next consistent cool down, therell be a whole lot more. This is the available info at this time, unless something changes, it will be enforced.. 2021. Looking out across the water and spotting fish def not as easy as it would be if flows were lower and clearer. Last night at dusk I had no problem finding some Kings crashing and boiling around at the Bridges area on the Oak and even a few at Point Breeze. Chance of even warmer unseasonable temps for next week. If an angler arrives at a parking lot and there are several cars, they should consider going to another parking lot. The highlight though, was landing everyones. Other area smaller tribs are dropping back like the Oak to low but may be hanging on to a little more color. See pictures below from July 12-13 of fish caught on Troutman 2! We encourage all anglers and users to follow the site rules for access and fishing on the Brookfield Power Company lands. Downstream fast water drifts and all the way to the downstream flat water has been quietly productive at times too, esp if youre there intercepting a pod of fresh fish moving thru. So anglers can mix it up with that turbine tunnel action at the dam or they can work their way downstream for more traditional drifts thru holes and runs. Crabs are working off 3-way rigs, as are Ned rigs and swim baits. Good luck, guys! Your email address will not be published. Check out the nice King recent catch pic above.. 2023 Fishing reports by Ron Bierstine, Orleans County Sportfishing Coordinator February 21, 2023 Not much precipitation was realized for the past weekend, so all the trib flows are on the drop and clearing for now. Catch it back on the drop with that slightly high and slightly stained flow and find fresh fish scattered thru the River, esp upstream areas. With any luck well get some measurable liquid precip to help flows out. Chance of rain/snow showers for the mid part of this week with forecasted mixed bag precipitation of rain, sleet and snow thru the end part of the week. Anglers fishing from boats should be able to maintain at least six feet of distance between one another. Acest lucru va atrage mai multe populaii de pstrv brun, cap de oel i somon de Atlantic i Pacific s urce pe aceste cursuri de ap, mbuntind condiiile pentru peti i extinznd oportunitile . They also landed 4 mature Kings, 3 steelhead, a brown, and a lake trout! (Deadline for the Open was Monday, 6/7). Changes will take effect once you reload the page. Saturday was a brief morning trip. Look for a good water flow window possibly in the Genesee while the Niagara remains a tough pill thanks to a windy open Lake Erie. Oak Orchard Tackle and Narbys is stocked for Fall salmon lures and gear. Recent precipitation for now probably not enough to keep flows any higher then low-ish when Canal water is ended. Remember use caution in interpreting the upstream USGS gauging stations on the Oak that can mean little or nothing for flows downstream of the Waterport hydro especially in considering both the turbine channel and overflow channel. Any big steelhead this time of the year in relatively warm water are going to be a challenge to land! Thin reports from anglers, so far, the beginning part of the week but thru the past weekend guys were still into a few fish. If you catch one, please release it immediately and not harm it. This week's fishing report is at https://conta.cc/3x2uky7 and features Capt. Hike some different water spots on the smaller tribs and you should find some brown trout action with a steelhead or two thrown in. Wind has subsided and we are on the backside of 3/4 1 inch of rain. Not big numbers of steelhead but a few that likely came in on the previous higher flows we had and are a good portent to upcoming steelhead action in the more traditional February or March timeframe. Forecast is for slowly warming up thru this week with chance of rain/snow showers mid week and precipitation again for end of week. The Fall LOC Derby is in its final stretch this week, ending Sept. 5th. It may just not be the big blowout event were targeting, but smaller spates of water for now. In shore warm water but it didnt stop hard strikes at dawn not much left in the fight afterwards. Look for post spawn browns to be redistributed thru the waterways and the chance for some fresher steelhead. Mexico Bay has seen an invasion of salmon. There is some icing especially in downstream slow water spots and some bank ice. And, a big shout-out and congratulations to Crazy Yankee for winning this past weekends 2021 Niagara Pro Am! Looks like a good head of turbine water with overflow levels diminished. Stay tuned and keep tabs on the weather and water flows and get out there when you can. Flows in the Oak are high with about 2 ft of visibility. Some rain showers and gloom and breezy conditions today (Tuesday). Otherwise its a little tough to report on average fishing conditions. One guy catches a fish, another guy quick runs the fish over to the turbine channel cradled in a net. Mike LavenderfromIntimidator Sportfishingreported that the ups & downs continue on Lady O and this past Saturday was an UP judging from young Jeremiahs smile! New open Lake steelhead creel limits should help overall survivability too. Fishing Report. Flows in the other smaller waterways are about medium and slightly stained, likely offering up a nice fishable window for now. Other area smaller tribs should be retreating toward medium or lower to moderate and slightly stained. Without overflow levels now, some might be inclined to call it only slightly high. Boat angling easily the least expensive bargain for big salmonid angling chances where you get to feel the strike and experience an honest battle without heavier trolling gear. Water temps for now are already in the the high 30sF on the Oak and probably going higher with the forecasted warmup thru the end of this week. Water color is real nice at slightly stained 2 ft of visibility so drift chances for now are the best theyve been so far this late winter/early spring period. Think something like flows going from low to not so low. There were some hook ups thru the past weekend right before this latest rise in flows. No lunch will be offered and no fly fishing tourney will be held. As of today flows were high consisting of something close to wide open turbine flows and a little bit of overflow water. A dropping and clearing water scenario is a contrast for what youd rather see as rising or high flows for best chances at fresh fish migrations. He cites that the Salmon showed up earlier in the season due to a number of factors, including a warmer winter, less ice on Lake Erie and an earlier Spring. As quickly as flows were restored in the Oak over the past weekend the fishing likewise perked up again with some steelhead hooked and a few knarly Kings clinging to a hopeful life. Look for drop back fish to be living there for now, with the other most productive spots being right at the dam or overflow channel pool. Spawning fish like this can be found in the gravel runs if you choose to target them or else find the real action in adjacent holes for the staged or drop back fish. The previous cold temps sure did clear up the water color with just a nice stain of about 2 ft of visibility. Windy too, with rain showers but at least no snow from the latest storm here on the WNY Lake Ontario Plain. Anglers started out with a tough bite yesterday but reported better later in the day. Our Cannon Downriggers parked at 30 & 40 with spoons back 30 were our hottest setups. Fishing pressure light and angler reports thin. For now trib water temps are on their greatest fall so far this fall season. Light fishing pressure mostly, with a few more guys out for this weekend. The steelhead were strong and vigorous and silver so hopefully indicating good health and smolting. The Olcott pier project is completed for land lubbers there to get back out there or the Oak Orchard piers. Stay informed with the below web page. The derby ends on Sunday at 11:59 p.m. Here is a terrific morning catch of Oak Orchard River-bound king salmon from 21-26# from 110 ft of Lake Ontario ledge water. When it cools down eventually its going to feel downright chilly. Rick Hajecki from Crazy Yankee Sportfishing. To view the final results, visit the LOC Derby website. Flows in the Oak are staying high with some stubborn overflow water that should be receding by about today leaving just the full cranking turbine flows. Today it was mostly sunny and 53. Our final report is courtesy of JCapt. Any snow will be likely south of the area. Today was probably my last charter of the year, and if so it was great to end on a high note for the season!! Ron is in salmon jail but managed this med male at dawn at the Oak Orchard river mouth Sept 6 on a glo spoon. The 12th Annual Women Conquering Outdoors Adventures is set for Sept. 11 at the North Forest Rod and Gun Club in Lockport, Call Colleen Gaskill at 628-9023 for more info. Some crimson males and brighter hens are what anglers are finding nearer the dam and also in the overflow channel. Look for flows to stay similar since the Canal feed is scheduled to continue thru the first part of Dec.Any significant precipitation could cause flows to go higher. Good looking nice active fish all around. Still on the cool and breezy side today with another brief warm-up forecast over the next couple days. Chance of rain again on Wednesday. Stay informed with the below web page. Peach of a day today and it looks like guys are more seriously getting out there this week. And then theres always that concentration of fish and people at the dam. Lots of young browns bodes well for future trib fish and this bigger rutted out fish begs the question where were you last fall?! Chance for more downpours thru tonight with strong winds and an advisory forecast thru tomorrow. The trout follow the salmon looking for an egg meal. So far we are prob looking at some fish from earlier higher water and new fish trickling in on medium-ish flows instead of one bigger batch of fish on a blow out event. All the water is open to fish with some bank ice here and there in slack water areas. In subsequent years ahead when runs are made up of multiple year classes of fish the returns and fishing prospects could be even better! So, we moved out to 250-300 FOW and things got better. This latest rise in flows and continued cool down should kick off better brown trout migrations in the Oak setting up good drifting chances into November and maybe into December with reasonable weather hanging in. Other area smaller tribs are dropping back toward low and clear and warming thru this week. Increased flow releases on Eighteenmile Creek (Niagara County), Oak Orchard Creek (Orleans County), and Sandy Creek (Monroe and Orleans counties). All the trib flows are on the retreat from the last rain. It will be held out of all NY harbors in Lake Erie from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. A fish fry and Picnic to follow at the Southtowns Walleye clubhouse located at 5895 Southwestern Blvd., Hamburg starting at 2 p.m. No significant icing on any waterway. Josh Dunkelburger of Olcott reports some walleye and carp were being caught off the NYPA fishing platform this week. My anglers have been relaying positive feedback from restaurants from the Point thru Albion and Medina. Ron Bierstine task force member. May 21st is the scheduling for the canal opening. May 21st is the scheduling for the canal opening. And lest we forget brown trout where world-class waters such as Niagara River, Oswego River, Oak Orchard Creek, Eighteenmile Creek, Sandy Creek and Maxwell Creek provide peak fishing opportunities in November and December. Look for those smaller waterways to open back up again slowly like thru the end of this week or weekend. A brown or two mixed in. Port Bay water is very warm and there has been weed growth near the south end. The other area smaller waterways are about mod with water color of about 2+ ft of viz. Nights are cooling down tho, even with the current warm day temps and that has at least made for good fishing action early and late. High flows can limit the movement of fish, and lower flows can restrict them. Most fish came from 50-90 down (44 degrees to 60-degree water) under 74-degree surface waters. It has been closed to traffic for construction since late April. That could push more fish into the river plume and into the channel. No major accumulations beyond a few inches expected here on the WNY big Lake Ontario Plain. Click to enable/disable _ga - Google Analytics Cookie. Instead of the big gully washer of backside blown out conditions, it may be the backside of only slightly high flows that youll want to target after smaller runoff events from snowmelt. More green or fresher fish still being encountered then zombies. Chance of fresh steelhead on the backside of the last higher flows or at least the past falls browns and steelhead should be redistributed. The fair action now is hopefully a good sign for action yet to come thru Feb/Mar. Action has been a little more measured then say 2 3 weeks ago when it seemed we got a small run of fresh steelhead. Good drifting and swinging chances there too with warming water temps and the chance for some fresh fish. The season ends November 30th with a catch and release from December 1st till June. Im so sorry, sorry you needed a helmet to fish with me 20. Capt. The other area smaller waterways offer as good or better action by virtue of smaller water courses with the fish probably more concentrated. Tuesdays fishing was EPIC despite it being a bit breezy. The hope is this cold weather will be a good thing for later winter and spring steelhead action. Bob Songin of Reel Excitement Charters "At the Bar Recap 2021" video. On the west side of Shadigee just past Flat Top, they hit their first King and the further they went, the better it got. Flies and egg imaginations have been the best baits for the salmon. See you on the water! The first will be a 1 day event July 10th. The nuances of fish migrations is an inexact science and we cannot predict the future. Coupled with the rise in flows, hopefully, that will bring on some more brown trout migrations in the Oak. Theres no significant icing anywhere that we are aware of. We have an aerial map highlighting the PFD zone just downstream of the dam and on the overflow channel on the Oak. Like we said, Zane Smith of New Brighton, Penn. The other area smaller tribs have slightly high flows with stained visibility of about 1 foot. Hike and hunt around the smaller waterways in the lower flows like at Sandy and Johnson and you should find some browns too. Check out loc.org. This weeks fishing report is from Capt. Flows are mod or almost med and mostly clear. Most successful trollers are still a bit off shore at least in the 80+ FOW range or more for best action (pictured below). For now these are the lowest flows of the whole fall season and are more typical of average fall flows. There has been light mixed precipitation thru today with highs in the 30sF. There are always some exceptional fish caught in the trib season, just check out the pics below and in the archives. Riggers were parked at 75 & 85 ft with fixed cheaters 10 ft above. The working mans big trout and salmon trip is still here, and its not even a contest compared to the other exotic, far off angling destinations. The other area smaller tribs have a fair amount of icing. Fishing pressure is real light, only a few anglers on the water. Chance of mixed bag precipitation and snow thru tomorrow and early Thursday. Another warmup is forecast thru the mid week with highs in the 40sF and another chance at rain Thursday. A dropping and clearing water scenario is a contrast for what youd rather see as rising or high flows for best chances at fresh fish migrations. There are still Kings around, about in a one qtr green fish to three qtr old moldy ratio. Given somewhat of the late start to the salmon action, Id have to say that we might only be amidships in the run.Look for Kings arriving into start of November. Dave Chilson and company keep the LOC leaderboard updated on an hourly basis. Oak Orchard rivermouth King, second week Sep 2018. Canal seasonal feed and winter drainage water is done or nearly done and the trib levels remain up thanks to the natural run of the river contributions. The 2021 New York State fishing guide can be found at https://www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/7917.html for downloading and printing at home. A fall cool down on the backside of the weekend rains is upon us! Leaf fall is underway so expect daily water level fluctuations thanks to turbine rack cleaning at the dam. Click on the image above to subscribe to our weekly fishing reports. At the release time and thru the following early AM cormorant predation was largely kept in check. The other area smaller tribs should be going from mod/med flows to slightly stained med/slightly high flows. Action reported pretty good around the Archers Club yesterday and then slower today. There were a few Monday morning oh-dark thirty hook-ups at the Oak Orchard Rivermouth. McCoy Fishing Line Torpedo Divers A-Tom-Mik Mfg. We need 2 cookies to store this setting. Thats on the ground now and will make for the next spate of water when that melts. Flows in the Oak down just a touch, maybe some of that love from Canal water being shared with Johnson Creek is responsible for that. Its unknown if flows will stay as low as I saw today on recon, but likely flows will remain real low or optimistically may go up to less low. But in all likelihood the greater accumulations will be SW of here with the chance that the WNY Niagara Frontier may not get all that much. Downstream spots on the Oak for the past weekend may have been tougher on what was dropping and clearing flows, although we did not hear from many guys. Most of the area snowpack has now melted although some remains in protected areas. The Oak Orchard Pen Rearing Association receives steelhead and salmon from the NYSDEC placed in net pens in the Oak lower watercourse each spring. Most guys upstream- ish report good action while those downstream like in the flat water report tougher action. When flows are reduced temporarily, it reveals pretty good numbers of fish. Upstate and Western New York Fishing Report - October 14, 2021 by OTW Staff October 14, 2021 Gary and Charlie Tharaldson with a couple of nice keepers from their annual father-son trip to the Salmon River. And, a big shout-out and congratulations to Crazy Yankee for winning this past weekends 2021 Niagara Pro Am! With the flows observed today anglers should be able to cover all the fishy water pretty effectively. Try trolling straight out from Sodus Bay west to Ontario searching for kings down 50 over 150 fow. Hopefully the fishing pressure overall is likewise spread out like the fish. Since we are not getting cold temps and/or snow, hopefully we can get rain along with the warm temps to help maintain flows. With the final weekend of the Lake Ontario Counties Fall Derby approaching, it is important to be in the contest if you are on the water. Not sure yet how much of a change in flows in the Oak well see, but with the precip received so far it shouldnt be bad enough for a blow out. By continuing to browse the site, you are agreeing to our use of cookies. Landing a nice salmon today at the dam. For now flows in the Oak are mod and slightly stained and no icing. A good WNW wind thru last night probably moved more fish near shore or into the tribs from Lake Ontario but dont look for those fish to loiter in estuary or rivermouth spots at this point in the season. Rainfall could amount to 0.5 inch or more. Come get in on some hard striking fresh fish action at the river mouth and downstream areas. On the backside now of higher flows from about a week ago something like med to slightly high flows in the Oak and med in the smaller area waterways. The Clubs cooperation with out of the area fishermen is truly above board and greatly appreciated by all! Thanks to this forecast, flows in the Oak and other area smaller tribs will be (again) on the way to high, blown and dirty. Small boat trollers and casters both in on the action with glow hardware and/or plugs. Avoid surfaces that are touched often, such as doorknobs, handrails, and playground equipment. . Flows will likely retreat in the overflow channel thru the mid and end part of the week while turbine flows remain high. Click to enable/disable Google Analytics tracking. All the waterways are wide open to fish with no icing to worry about for now. Look for some hook-ups by covering that different water and putting in a few hours. Boaters are asked to use the Oak Orchard State Marine Park on the WEST side of the River on Archbald Rd. Back to some winter like weather and temps for now. Click here for the Brookfield Varick Fish Safely brochure. As the cooler weather continues, expect to see a large influx of both steelhead and brown trout moving up stream to feed on the remaining salmon eggs. The Oak Orchard Harbor is in the process of being dredged which started last week (8/25) and is expected to finished mid September. Be sure you contact NYSDEC with comments on the predation from over-abundant cormorants and the impacts on the young stocked salmonids. Spring will offer up only so many cold water chances! Fishing pressure fairly heavy thru the past weekend and even thru yesterday but for this mid week period now with wetter weather looks quite a bit less., Tom and his crew from Pennsylvania joined us Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning. Best chance at hookups is going to be covering different spots on the same trib and/or moving around to different tribs. Still no real cool down afoot and the forecast ahead thru the weekend and maybe some of next week looks warm. Click the image to subscribe to our weekly fishing reports. Good chance for some icing conditions coming on there. Stream Conditions - Fish Oak Orchard Fishing Updates Click to subscribe to Orleans County's Weekly Fishing Report (written by Ron) weekend Sat Feb 25. The other area smaller tribs comparitively to the Oak anyway, have better looking flows at low to mod and slightly stained viz. Capt. Many thanks to local stakeholders for their efforts of securing, feeding and monitoring the fish. In our fishing conditions tabs below we use a simple system to describe the water flows on the Oak and oftentimes other area smaller trib flows too. Its a semi serious band forecast to set up off Lake Erie. The current leader (7/13/21) in the Summer LOC Derby is Mike Paddock from Albion with a Salmon weighing in at 31.07 lb. Greater impacts expected SW of here but the south shore of Lake Ontario may get some accumulations. New migrations of fresh fish could come anytime during this part of the season with good flows or especially with any bump up in trib flows. If an angler is fishing upstream, they should fish downstream of the other angler or consider fishing another day. Consider how wet its been for months now, the high water tables, saturated fields and brim full swamp headwater supplies and youll come to realize the typical slow rise and quick fall of trib levels is going to occur more like quick rise and slow fall. Very good. Walleye fishing has been good on the Niagara Bar. Slight warm up for the weekend with chance of rain end of weekend and then cold for start of next week. 2.79K subscribers Oak Orchard River Fishing at Waterport Dam "Guess What We Caught" June 2, 2021. The bite was not hot and heavy but we picked at a few steelhead as we approached the 30 line. DEC has received a few reports of dead fish on Sandy Creek and Johnson Creek, likely due to fishing mortality, but has not received any reports of abnormally large numbers of dead fish from Oak Orchard Creek. Even without any significant new precipitation, look for flows in the Oak to stay up thanks to strong swamp headwater supplies. Hopefully they can move to and get in and out of the smaller area tribs that they are dredging next with minimal impact on salmon and trout migrations. No icing, even in the downstream frog water just yet. Keep informed from the NYS Canal web for changes and restrictions with canal waters. It may just not be the big blow out event were targeting, but smaller spates of water for now. Thru the past weekend we heard of guys getting steelhead hookups nearer the dam including a few good fish. Anglers seeing and having hook up success on browns is encouraging we are likely on a trajectory to out pace last years brown trout action already. For now after the past weekend it looks like flows are back down some in the Oak to about med or slightly high and less stained. Overflow levels are diminished. For more details including payouts, visit their website. If you stayed patient and made some drifts or swings when the good flows returned by mid Apr you could be rewarded with a hungry drop back steelhead. There is some icing up in spots but theres still drifting slots to be found. Mike Grager from Get Hooked Sportfishing: Today we had a young army veteran out for his first time fishing salmon on Lake Ontario!! 3.5. We started the morning in the same water we had been fishing. Theres a lot more lake fishing for the next 2 months so contact a charter and schedule a trip of your lifetime! Out of winter hibernation just to keep the pinners honest a med fresh pretty steelhead comes to the dead drift. No major chill down seen in the near term forecast and there is some rain or showers going over to snow showers forecast for Thursday and Friday. Fishing pressure is over-the-all pretty light and manageable. Service 3.8. Pier fishing continues to be the place to cast in Wayne County. Bob Songin of Reel Excitement Charters Lake Fishing Video Report on Facebook. First fish took a deep meat rig. The Line/Lure used was Copper line, Pro Troll and Meat. Coldish days in the low 30s F and 20s at night look to be dropping trib flows to the east at Sandy quicker then flows to the west at Johnson. To the east look for a quicker turn for lower and clearer flows and doable drifts then to the west.