Local Sports

Fishing the way it was meant to be

From Dunkirk Harbor’s Central Avenue Pier to the peaceful waters of the Cassadaga Lakes, summer reminds us that the best fishing is often the simplest. You don’t always need a $100,000 fishing boat, sophisticated electronics or a tackle box full of expensive lures to enjoy some of the best fishing Chautauqua County has to offer.

Sometimes all it takes is an eight-year-old with a fishing rod, a can of worms and an afternoon to spare.

That scene played out last Sunday on the north side of Dunkirk’s Central Avenue Pier, where Max Morales and his mom, Sara, spent a few hours doing exactly what generations of anglers have done before them. Max dropped a worm straight down beside the pier wall and watched his bobber disappear almost immediately. One after another, healthy sunfish came topside, each one greeted with a smile that reminds us why so many of us fell in love with fishing in the first place.

They certainly weren’t alone.

A walk along the pier found nearly 20 other anglers enjoying a beautiful summer day on Chadwick Bay. Some cast small jigs tipped with soft plastics. Others drifted live minnows beneath bobbers in search of yellow perch. A few worked crankbaits and swimbaits for smallmouth bass while families, visitors and diners seated outside Pier 64 paused to watch the action unfold below.

That’s exactly what the City of Dunkirk envisioned as it continued investing in its revitalized waterfront.

The Central Avenue Pier has become much more than a place to launch a boat or admire a Lake Erie sunset. It’s where grandparents introduce grandchildren to fishing, friends gather after work, and visitors discover that some of the harbor’s best catches are available without ever leaving shore.

Throughout the summer, anglers fishing from the pier can expect to catch bluegill, pumpkinseed sunfish, yellow perch, rock bass, freshwater drum, smallmouth bass and the occasional channel catfish. During spring and fall, even trout and the occasional walleye cruise close enough to shore to surprise anglers casting stickbaits or small spoons.

For youngsters and beginners, the recipe is wonderfully uncomplicated. A light spinning outfit, a small hook, a split shot, a float and a garden worm are often all that’s needed. Drop the bait alongside the concrete seawall where shade attracts schools of panfish, or cast a minnow beneath a bobber toward deeper water for perch. Those looking for a little more action can toss small tube jigs, curly-tail grubs or inline spinners to tempt bass patrolling the harbor.

It is, quite simply, fishing the way it was always meant to be.

For anglers seeking an even quieter experience, the Cassadaga Lakes offer a completely different pace.

The three interconnected lakes -- upper, middle and lower Cassadaga -- are tucked among forests, cottages and wetlands, creating one of Western New York’s most peaceful freshwater fisheries. Public access at the New York State DEC launch on Dale Drive makes it easy for anglers with boats, kayaks or canoes to spend a day exploring miles of weed edges, lily pads and shaded shorelines.

Those lush weed beds are home to healthy populations of largemouth bass, musky, crappie, bluegill, yellow perch and bullheads. Early mornings find bass cruising the edges of lily pads where weedless frogs, Texas-rigged worms and spinnerbaits shine. Families fishing with worms or minnows beneath floats rarely have to wait long before bluegills and perch begin biting.

Cassadaga isn’t known for large tournament crowds, and that’s part of its appeal. Still, its healthy bass population occasionally attracts local competitive anglers. Last weekend the Chautauqua Lake Bassmasters visited the lake for their Points III event. Peter Conley claimed first place with 12.59 pounds, followed by John Conley with 11.77 pounds and Tim Wilde with 10.93 pounds. The club returns to Chautauqua Lake this Sunday for its Points-IV tournament out of Bemus Point.

On Chautauqua Lake last Saturday, with 23 boats registered and fishing from Prendergast Point boat launch, congratulations to Houston Hooper and John Werrin on winning the Chautauqua Lake Bassmasters second Open Tournament. They tallied a hefty 22.39 pound bag (five fish), also winning big bass with their 4.69 pounder. Second place went to Evan and Brandon Bach with 17.70 pounds, and third place was Stan and Dave Miketa with 16.32 pounds.

Whether you’re watching a youngster catch his first sunfish from the Central Avenue Pier, filling a stringer with perch along the harbor wall or quietly working a lure through the lily pads at Cassadaga, summer fishing in Chautauqua County offers something increasingly rare -- a chance to slow down.

Sometimes the best catch isn’t the biggest fish.

It’s the memory you take home.

Gotta love the outdoors.

Outdoors Calendar

July 31-Aug. 1: 21st Annual Con Club Walleye Team Derby, $300 registration fee, 3 fish bag, 2 days; info: 716-366-8836.

July 31-Aug. 2: Youth Archery Summer Camp, Elma Conservation, 600 Creek Rd., Elma. Pre-registration required.

Aug. 2: Ellington Rod and Gun, "Don't Know Partner Trap League," 1045 Hagerdon Hill Rd., Ellington; Info: 716-287-3987.