LAKE ERIE

The conditions this past week have been interesting, to say the least. With the winds kicking up and getting ready for fall, anglers have been having a time getting out.

For those who have been able to find a little time before the storms, the walleye just outside Dunkirk Harbor have been good. Anglers have been finding good number of fish in 100 feet, with the best bite coming on stick baits, trolling with lead core starting at 50 feet and down.

Yellow perch bite is definitely on off Cattaraugus Creek in around 70 feet of water, with perch anglers reporting good limits out to 40 feet.

CHAUTAUQUA LAKE

The north basin still is your best bet for walleye so far, due to the limited weed edge in the southern basin. Anglers are still doing well trolling worm harnesses and stickbaits along weedlines or 20 feet down over 30-40 feet of water. This past week saw anglers jigging along the weed edges off Lighthouse Point in 10-12 feet of water.

With temperature beginning to dip, the muskie bite will pick back up along the weed edge and creek mouths throughout the fall season.

Largemouth bass continue to be the king of the lake. Best luck has been happening in the shallower weed beds, including, but limited to, Lakewood Bar. Yes, there are still offshore weed beds that were not destroyed earlier this spring.

LAKE ONTARIO AND TRIBS

A few salmon have been reported off the pier in Olcott, but the main run has not started yet, according to Karen Evarts at The Boat Doctors. If you are trying to catch a king, start at dusk by tossing Cleos, Spinners or J-13 Rapalas. For the lake trollers, there hasn’t been a big staging event going on yet. Try for kings in 60 to 80 feet of water at first light with meat, J-plugs, flasher-fly or magnum spoons.

Better action has been out deep about eight miles out from Wilson and Olcott. It was primarily a spoon bite earlier this week for captains Tim Sylvester and Jim Gordon as they caught salmon limits on spoons. Black, red and caramel colors were working for the spoon selection. Some pike and largemouth bass were also being caught off the piers in Wilson and Olcott, usually during the day. Sidney Syracuse caught a huge largemouth drop shotting a nightcrawler off the east pier in Olcott last week while checking out the fall fishing action with her dad. Nothing reported in Olcott Harbor or up at Burt Dam yet in the way of salmon and trout action.

NIAGARA RIVER

They’re getting close for the fall salmon rumble on the river. While it hasn’t arrived in full force yet, the New York Power Authority is doing its best to make sure the fishing platform is ready to go. Word has been received that they are cleaning and inspecting the popular fall fishing location and, if everything goes as planned, they should reopen things today. Call 796-0135, ext. 45, to find out if it’s open.

There are a few kings swimming around, according to Rich Pisa of Kenmore. He hiked down into the Niagara Gorge and tossed some spinners from shore to connect with a couple nice salmon. Look for king action to slowly start to ramp up moving forward, especially if we get a cool rain. Bass fishing at the Clay Banks and along Fort Niagara has been good this week, according to Lisa Drabczyk of Creek Road Bait and Tackle. Crayfish is your best bet. Walleye action has slowed during the day, but the night bite has been decent along the Stella drift. Don’t rule out the Niagara Bar around the green buoy marker for bass and walleye, too. Worm harnesses or a simple spinner-worm rig are good baits for walleyes. Orange, copper and purple are good colors with which to start.