Prime Fishing Times

Fishing Reports


GIVE ME A CALL. LETS GET THE NET WET!     Capt. Matt  (716) 550-0413


Bill Hilt's Fishing Reports

FRIDAY FEBRUARY 10,2012

  Lake Ontario and Tributaries

Tributary action continues to be decent if the fish can see your baits. Things finally cleared up last weekend to 1-2 feet of visibility and casters were catching trout again. Egg sacks, egg imitations, trout beads and jigs fished under a float and tipped with wax worms or spikes are all good best if you want to be successful. Keg and 12 Mile Creeks were both clear and producing steelhead; 18 Mile was improving daily.

Perch reports started to surface in both Wilson and Olcott when the water did start to clean up, good news for local ringback fishermen.The LOC Derby newspaper is hot off the presses as of Wednesday and give them a couple of days to get the papers around to outlets. In the meantime, you can always check the paper out in advance on their website at www.loc.org. To the east, Johnson Creek has been very good for trout, too. Some small boats trolling the shoreline have reported good success on brown trout off Sodus and Oswego, so there’s no reason you can’t pick up fish here if the weather cooperates and water clarity is good. Try pulling small stickbaits in tight to shore.

  Upper Niagara River

Last weekend was fishable but you’ll have to gauge your activity by the weather and water clarity. It was unfishable earlier this week but it could be decent by the weekend if the winds hold off. Try for trout off Squaw Island or the Bird Island Pier. Another good spot is the upper rapids in Niagara Falls. Cast spoons, spinners, egg sacks or emerald shiners.

  Lower Niagara River

The Niagara River Anglers Association will be hosting their Roger Tobey Memorial Steelhead Contest next weekend, set for Feb. 18 starting at Sunrise. Cost is $20 per person, but you must be a member of the NRAA if you’d like to participate. In addition, an optional $5 brown trout purse is also being collected for the biggest brown trout caught for the day. While most of the fishing will undoubtedly be in the lower river, contestants will also be able to fish in Lake Ontario, as well as Lake O. tributaries like 18 Mile Creek. That’s where the strategy will have to come in. How clear will the water be in the river or the tributaries? How much fishing pressure will there be? Last weekend, river fishing was hot on Saturday as water cleared and fish became active. Sunday, boat pressure and a Northeast wind made things a bit tougher. The water was too muddy again by the beginning of the week. It can change overnight. If nothing stirs things up too much, it should be fishable by the weekend again.

  Lake Erie and tributaries

All the tributaries as of this report were high and muddy. The smaller streams could be fishable by the weekend if there's no more rain or other precipitation. Egg sacs, egg imitations, trout beads or jigs fished under a float and tipped with a wax worm or spike are all good methods for taking trout. In Dunkirk Harbor, the fish platform and city pier are both good spots to cast spoons or spinners to take trout. If you prefer live bait, minnows fished under a bobber is the way to go.

Bill Hilts Jr. is a past president of the New York State Outdoor Writers Association. Hilts is an avid outdoorsman, an outdoor writer who has contributed articles to numerous national and local magazines, newspapers, and other publications. Hilts is also responsible for Niagara County Tourism Sportfishing Programs. He freelances from his home in Sanborn N.Y. Hilts was inducted in the New York State Outdoorsmen Hall of Fame in the Spring of 2007!
His column is seen in the Niagara Gazette on Fridays. The Niagara Gazette is the area's leading outdoors sports information newspaper.

NYSDEC Fishing Report


February 10 to February 17, 2012

  Lower Niagara River

Trout action was excellent last Saturday as conditions were near ideal. Currently, conditions are decent with lower river water exhibiting a cloudy green color. It is possible that windy weather could stain the water this weekend. Boaters can target steelhead, brown trout and lake trout in the Devils Hole, Artpark and Upper Stella drifts. Drifting with minnows, egg sacs or Kwikfish lures fished off of a 3-way bottom bouncing rig is the way to go. Shore anglers can target trout from Whirlpool, Devils Hole and Artpark State Parks. Egg sacs, egg pattern flies, spoons, spinners and jigs with grubs fished under a float work well from shore. Exercise extreme caution when shore fishing in the lower river, as slippery rocks, strong currents and water level changes make these areas hazardous

  Lake Ontario | Tributaries

Eighteenmile and Oak Orchard Creeks are in great shape going into the weekend. Each stream currently has moderate flow with a slight stain and about 2 feet of visibility. Anglers have been catching a decent mix of steelhead and brown trout on those creeks. Tributaries such as Fourmile, Twelvemile & East Branch, Keg, Johnson and Sandy Creeks have lower, clearing flows. All of those streams are holding steelhead, including some fresh fish.

With colder water temperatures, look for trout to hit egg sacs, egg pattern flies and hair jigs tipped with waxworms/spikes (fished under a float). The key is to drift the bait slowly and keep it at the bottom. It is also best to fish during the warmest part of the day. Anglers should expect floating slush on all streams and shelf ice on the smaller streams.


NYS Fishing Reports courtesy New York State Department of Environmental Conservation website. Visit them at NYSDEC


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. Good Luck Fishing!

The fishing hotline can also be heard at (716) 855-FISH.


Capt. Matt Yablonsky

Cell: (716) 550-0413

Email: e-mail Wet Net Charters


  A New York State Freshwater Fishing License is required for adults (16+ years old).

They can be easily obtained at any Walmart Store in New York State or at
Lewiston Town Hall, Lewiston, NY. (at the 'Red Brick School House').

Ask Captain Matt to help you get yours, when you call to book your fishing charter!