Sonya Kalez with her first-ever musky that she caught fishing with her husband in Chautauqua Lake last week. Photo courtesy of Dennis Young

The abundant population of Chautauqua Lake muskies are scattered in late summer. As the leaves begin to turn with the change in sun angle and cooling weather, each week of fall compresses them into more predictable zones.

October is the “sweet spot” for musky action and big fish, while November generally offers fewer fish, but potentially the biggest fish of the year.

Last week on Chautauqua Lake, the experienced Captain Vance Kaloz of All Day Musky Charters and his wife, Sonya, went out for a short musky fun fishing trip. Their guest for the day was Lake Erie Charter Captain Dennis Young of For Your Eyes Only Sportfishing, known for his no-nonsense walleye limits with lots of laughs from Dunkirk Harbor. Captain Vance, a daily musky fishing guide with expertise in both the north and south basins, has been doing very well with catching muskies this year on Chautauqua, boating a few fish that exceeded the magical 50-inch mark.

Trolling six lines, two straight back, two on each side of the transom, and one planer board on each side, Captain Vance was trolling the south basin middle lake off Asheville Bay. At 2:45 p.m., one of the outside planer boards took off. He handed Sonya the rod and said, “Keep reeling.”

Dennis Young said, “I helped clear the other five lines as Vance calmly kept repeating to Sonya to keep reeling. In a short time, he was able to clear the planer board from the line, and Sonya was in the fish fight of her life with her first-ever musky. It took some time, but it was more than a little exciting.”

The monster fish finally came to the net. The big fish measured 46-1/2 inches and weighed in at 30 pounds. That’s quite a first fish.

Sonya’s smile tells the whole story about the heart-pounding excitement of this kind of fishing.

Captain Vance uses many different types of trolling baits, including Fretthold Baits Cedar Cudas, Blue Water Baits spinner rigs and others. On this trip, the big fish ate one of the wooden custom-painted baits that Vance makes himself. He calls it the VK Musky Lures Stinger; it’s a wooden 6-inch glider-style bait, and they were using the silver-shiner color. I visited https://www.muskytackleonline.com to learn more about this bait.

It’s the water temperature change that kicks off the fall transition; it is the prime time when muskies begin their aggressive pre-winter feeding. The big fish move around, and with the shallower south basin cooling off faster than the north basin, trolling big crankbaits is a good way to find true trophy muskies. It’s now that they are most catchable. There have been a few chilly mornings over the last few days, and the Chautauqua Lake water temperature has started to change more quickly with those brisk morning exposures. Last week, the shallow bays of the south basin were reaching temperatures of 61 and 62 degrees, while the north basin ranged from 64 to 67 degrees. Of course, with the weekend forecast heading back to the high 70s and low 80s for Buffalo Bills football Sunday, we might need to wait longer for a permanent trend toward colder water. Typically, tracking data indicate that a 15- to 20-degree water temperature shift occurs from the beginning of September to the end of October. For Chautauqua Lake water temperature, anglers can check https://lakemonster.com or https://www.omniafishing.com.

Kaloz has been fishing Chautauqua Lake and western Pennsylvania for more than 30 years. He fishes exclusively for musky. Most of his fishing days are on Chautauqua Lake, but in April and May, he also fishes Pymatuning Reservoir and Conneaut Lake. He fishes more than 270 days a year, logging over 360 trips each year. He fishes for musky, trolling or casting, and teaches his clients what works best for each day to help them learn more and catch more. To book a fishing trip with Captain Vance Kaloz, call 412-580-2180 directly or visit All Day Musky Charters on Facebook. Gotta love the outdoors.

CALENDAR

Oct. 1: NYS Southern Zone Big Game early archery/crossbow hunting season opening day, ends Nov. 14.

Oct. 1: NYS Southern Zone hunting season opens for coyote, cottontail rabbits, varying hare, ruffed grouse, bobwhite quail. See syllabus for various species’ season end.

Oct. 3 to April 15: NYS Snow Goose Season. See syllabus for bag limits and rules.

Oct. 4: NYS Hunter Education, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Harmony Conservation Camp, Route 474, Panama; Visit: https://dec.ny.gov.

Oct. 5: Chautauqua Lake Bassmasters 2025 Fall Bass Open, 6:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., Boat Launch TBD, $100 Entry. Tournament Director: 716-708-0330.

Oct. 11-13: NYS Youth Special Firearms Weekend Deer Season, for 12-15 years of age, select counties, see syllabus.

Oct. 11 to Nov. 2: NYS Western Zone hunting season for ducks and coots. See syllabus for bag limits/rules.

Oct. 18: NYS Southern Zone turkey hunting season opens, sunrise to sunset, season bag limit is one bird of either sex, ends Oct. 31.