What to Expect Fishing the Great Lake Tributaries:
Fall Season
September-November - Salmon (Chinook, Coho & Atlantic,) Lake run brown, rainbow, and steelhead trout. Some of the Chinooks can get big – In fact up to and often exceeding the 30lb. mark, so rods should be in the 9 – 10 foot range for a single hand in weights 7 through 9. Double handed rods and switch rods in the same weight class will work just fine, especially on the larger tributaries. We use a variety of methods to tempt these trophies from the lake. Drifting nymphs and egg patterns under indicators, swinging streamers on sink tips, or if the conditions are right, a dry fly!
The first fish to show up are the Chinook salmon in Mid-September, and they start by running up only the larger rivers until we get enough rain and cold nights to bring them into the smaller tribs, which usually starts in the beginning of October. You can also find a few trout and atlantics as well. It is still relatively warm so dress in light layers and be ready to take it off if need be.
Once the middle of October rolls around there are usually good numbers of Chinook and fishermen pushing up all WNY tribs, including more and more browns, Atlantics and rainbow/steelhead and Coho. Temperatures are starting to cool off, especially over night, and early mornings can be chilly.
September-November - Salmon (Chinook, Coho & Atlantic,) Lake run brown, rainbow, and steelhead trout. Some of the Chinooks can get big – In fact up to and often exceeding the 30lb. mark, so rods should be in the 9 – 10 foot range for a single hand in weights 7 through 9. Double handed rods and switch rods in the same weight class will work just fine, especially on the larger tributaries. We use a variety of methods to tempt these trophies from the lake. Drifting nymphs and egg patterns under indicators, swinging streamers on sink tips, or if the conditions are right, a dry fly!
The first fish to show up are the Chinook salmon in Mid-September, and they start by running up only the larger rivers until we get enough rain and cold nights to bring them into the smaller tribs, which usually starts in the beginning of October. You can also find a few trout and atlantics as well. It is still relatively warm so dress in light layers and be ready to take it off if need be.
Once the middle of October rolls around there are usually good numbers of Chinook and fishermen pushing up all WNY tribs, including more and more browns, Atlantics and rainbow/steelhead and Coho. Temperatures are starting to cool off, especially over night, and early mornings can be chilly.
By the end of October/start of November we are now at the peak of the run with plenty of salmon (Chinook & Coho) in both the bigger and smaller tribs. Many of the Chinook will now be spawning and you can often see many reds and paired up fish. There are now lots of brown trout sitting behind the salmon picking up loose eggs and getting ready to spawn. We will also see an increase in fall run steelhead and even a few more atlantics. Some years we see our first snow fall by now, and days can be in the 60’s or in the 30’s…so dress accordingly.
By the end of November most of the Chinook salmon have spawned out and are ready to die or have already done so. The Coho salmon, brown trout and Atlantics will be either in full spawn mode or just have finished, and the ever growing number of fall run rainbow/steelhead are now gorging themselves on loose eggs to store up energy for the long WNY winter.
Day time temps now hover around 40-50 degrees but be ready for colder air and snow!
Winter Season
December–February - Lake run brown, rainbow, and steelhead trout. From now through spring we can get away with lighter, and we often will need to, so single handed rods in the 9-10 foot range in a 6 through 8 will be again a perfect fit for the smaller tribs, and switch and spey rods in the same line weights will work really well on the bigger streams and rivers. We will also see a lot less pressure during this time and fishing in the middle of the day typically is the best time to find the most active fish.
December can bring the first batch of really cold air and big snow, but it also will bring very hungry post spawn brown trout and they will often hammer a swung streamer before it gets too cold. Steelhead may be picking up loose eggs and the occasional streamer. It's also a time when you can find fish starting to pool up for the start of the freeze.
January can be downright cold! In fact, many of the smaller freestone streams will be locked up with ice until the end of February/early March. So unless we get a warmer than average winter, the best fishing will be on the larger tributaries. Here you can focus on swinging streamers low and slow with a heavy sink tip or fish deep pockets with a nymph. Either way, everything needs to slow way down.
The beginning of February is still cold and you may find yourself walking behind the guide as he breaks a trail in a foot or two of fresh powder. Fishing this time of year can be slow because of limited open water and angler pressure in the spots that remain open.
By the beginning of March temperatures may start to warm up and if we get a few really warm days strung together, the ice will start to break up, and water levels rise. This will bring in fresh fish, and the fishing once again begins to heat up. We may even see some of the areas smaller tributaries start to open up, making for more options.
December–February - Lake run brown, rainbow, and steelhead trout. From now through spring we can get away with lighter, and we often will need to, so single handed rods in the 9-10 foot range in a 6 through 8 will be again a perfect fit for the smaller tribs, and switch and spey rods in the same line weights will work really well on the bigger streams and rivers. We will also see a lot less pressure during this time and fishing in the middle of the day typically is the best time to find the most active fish.
December can bring the first batch of really cold air and big snow, but it also will bring very hungry post spawn brown trout and they will often hammer a swung streamer before it gets too cold. Steelhead may be picking up loose eggs and the occasional streamer. It's also a time when you can find fish starting to pool up for the start of the freeze.
January can be downright cold! In fact, many of the smaller freestone streams will be locked up with ice until the end of February/early March. So unless we get a warmer than average winter, the best fishing will be on the larger tributaries. Here you can focus on swinging streamers low and slow with a heavy sink tip or fish deep pockets with a nymph. Either way, everything needs to slow way down.
The beginning of February is still cold and you may find yourself walking behind the guide as he breaks a trail in a foot or two of fresh powder. Fishing this time of year can be slow because of limited open water and angler pressure in the spots that remain open.
By the beginning of March temperatures may start to warm up and if we get a few really warm days strung together, the ice will start to break up, and water levels rise. This will bring in fresh fish, and the fishing once again begins to heat up. We may even see some of the areas smaller tributaries start to open up, making for more options.
Spring Season
March-May - Lake run brown, rainbow, and steelhead trout. Single handed rods in the 9-10 foot range in a 6 through 8 for the smaller tribs will still be a good choice, and so will switch and spey rods in the same line weights on the bigger streams and rivers.
As things start to thaw out in the beginning of March, the water in all the area tribs will begin to rise, warm, and become stained. This will bring in fresh spring run steelhead and trigger the brown trout to once again go on the feed. We work hard to make constant adjustments until we find out what the fish want.
The middle of March into the middle of April will be the height of the spring run and will be the best time to get into both drop back browns and steelhead.
As April comes to an end, so too does the spring run, and we are now spending a lot of time walking to find fish. The larger tribs may fish better than the smaller ones at this point but just because they hold more fish. Mid-May will wrap up the trib season and it will be done until we are back at it in the fall. But there is good news….the inland trout streams will be on fire!!!
March-May - Lake run brown, rainbow, and steelhead trout. Single handed rods in the 9-10 foot range in a 6 through 8 for the smaller tribs will still be a good choice, and so will switch and spey rods in the same line weights on the bigger streams and rivers.
As things start to thaw out in the beginning of March, the water in all the area tribs will begin to rise, warm, and become stained. This will bring in fresh spring run steelhead and trigger the brown trout to once again go on the feed. We work hard to make constant adjustments until we find out what the fish want.
The middle of March into the middle of April will be the height of the spring run and will be the best time to get into both drop back browns and steelhead.
As April comes to an end, so too does the spring run, and we are now spending a lot of time walking to find fish. The larger tribs may fish better than the smaller ones at this point but just because they hold more fish. Mid-May will wrap up the trib season and it will be done until we are back at it in the fall. But there is good news….the inland trout streams will be on fire!!!
