Snow Flies

Last night we received our first significant snowfall of this fall.  It's hard to believe that just a few days ago it was 70 degrees here.  This is without a doubt going to affect the fishing.  As the weather starts getting colder we will need to start to transition from our fall tactics over to our winter tactics.  It is going to stay pretty cold for the next few days here in WNY so the snow is probably going to stick until around Thursday and Friday.  Until then the fish are going to definitely be sluggish.  With the water temperature dropping significantly it is a good idea to start to fish once the sun has been up for a few hours to let the water heat up a little bit. 

For the Lake Ontario tributaries the flows are pretty low and clear.  Larger tribs like 18 Mile and the Oak have some salmon still hanging around but mostly they are moldy zombies with maybe a few fresher fish mixed in.  As for the other smaller tributaries the fish are spread out and can be hard to find as well as spooky.  The chance for Cohos is pretty good with an excellent shot at steelhead and browns.  Getting good slow drifts with egg patterns and nymphs has been the trick lately but this cold calls for a downsize in tippet and fly size.  If the fish seem totally unwilling to go for anything a woolly bugger swung of dead drifted is always a good bet. 

It's only a matter of time now before the Erie Canal will start being drained which will bump up the flows in some tributaries significantly as well as show us anglers if there are any late run browns and what the winter steelhead fishing might be like.  More good news is the fishing pressure on all the tribs has lessened quite a bit since gun season for deer has opened as well as the cold weather has scared off the fair weather fisherman.  

If you haven't checked out my YouTube channel it can be entertaining as well as educational (follow the link below).  As always thanks for reading, tight lines, and have a wonderful Thanksgiving!


Current Stream Information:

18-Mile Creek (Burt):  November 21st, 2016

Mod fishing pressure

Low Clear Flows

62 CFS

Cattaraugus Creek:     November 21st, 2016

Low Flows

313 CFS

33.3- 47.3

Oak Orchard Creek:   November 21st, 2016
Mod Fishing Pressure

Med Clear Flows

57 CFS   

Salmon River:           November 21st, 2016
550 CFS

My YouTube Channel