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Thanksgiving is a wonderful time to reflect upon and appreciate the many blessings that enrich our life.  We live in a beautiful region, in a free country and enjoy public access to numerous fisheries.  Upstate New York boasts a superb  fishery; lake run fish,  wild trout, warm water  fish and every variety of waterway from canal to creek to Finger Lake.  Based on the quality and diversity of our fisheries, you might say that NYS anglers enjoy Thanksgiving every day!

Mike and I were fortunate to receive a Thanksgiving blessing from our wives this morning and we snuck out for some pre-turkey angling.  We checked out a number of local spots, East of Rochester.  No surprise in the low water level, as we still need rain.  We saw a few fish at each spot and managed to stick several, but they sure were spooky.  Dropping down to 6 lb test and smaller egg/nymph patterns also improved our odds.  Playing with different colored egg patterns or various nymphs helped too.  At some spots, we would sneak up and stay low to the ground.  Other spots required a stealthy cast w/ no weight.  Several times, a simple cast would spook a pair of shallow water browns or the odd steelhead.  There are a few fresh browns slowly moving in, but most appear to be waiting for more water before actively spawning.  Several of the steelhead we witnessed already appear roughed up by their scuffles to obtain eggs from browns and salmon.   Of the three creeks we visited, only Irondequoit showed us a pair of live salmon, marginally hanging on in a shallow riffle.  My hunch is that there are plenty of browns in Lake Ontario still waiting for an increase in the stream flow.  Let’s hope we get some rain soon and I can’t wait to see how conditions change as we move into December.

Thursday’s rain pushed a little more water into our local tributaries.  Sometimes, just a little raise in the water level and a slight change of color will help move in fresh fish from Lake Ontario.  I left work early Friday afternoon to scout a small residential creek, West of Rochester.  The water was higher and darker, good signs for fresh fish.  After walking nearly half a mile of creek, I saw only three browns.  I also noticed plenty of stream bank stabilization work, completed recently.  Let’s hope the retaining boulders and bulldozer work helps this fishery.  Of greater concern, is the lack of water and diminishing returns of fish I’ve observed over the past two years.

A friend called and told me about his stream side fishing for steelhead, East of the City.  I couldn’t resist his enthusiasm, nor argue with his results.  So, I drove 25 minutes East to check out a smaller creek, before joining him.  Walking the bank, I quickly spotted a pair of steelhead, tight against a log.  It’s uncanny how often lake run fish return to their roots and hang out in brush.  On the second cast, the larger fish intercepted my egghead/wooly bugger and the small stream antics began.  After a quick photo, I decided to visit my third stream of the day.

My friends fishing report was accurate and helpful.  This was my best location, as I landed a nice 7-8 lb brown, three steelhead, several smolt and two chubs.  I was working against fading light and only fished 3 holes.  Greater depth and structure (drop offs/boulders/log jams/troughs) all worked as barometers to help find these fish.  Hot pink and chartreuse were the popular egg colors for my egg sucking wooly buggers.  As the water continues to drop, these fish will move back to the Lake.  I’m looking forward to more rain.  Happy Thanksgiving and tight lines!

There are still a couple salmon hanging around, the weather is warm (61 degrees), the water is low but the fish are still active.  Yesterday afternoon I decided to venture out to Irondequoit Creek to fish for a couple hours.  There were a number of fishermen looking for the remaining salmon that made the 20 mile trip down the creek from Lake Ontario.  I found two salmon living in a hole with a handful of small browns.  It looked like they only had a couple days left.  I decided to let them be and move on to a larger pool and try my luck with resident browns.  I was able to catch a couple on some variations of a pheasant tail nymph.  I located a 15″+ brown and hooked him 3 times but was unable to keep him on my line. Oh well, it was still a great day to get out before the weather turns ugly.

With such a sunny forecast  I invited my father to fish with me this afternoon.  My father taught me to fish and I feel fortunate that we are able to fish together.  Our goal was to enjoy the warmer day, get outside and perhaps find a fish or two.  We went to a local Lake Ontario Tributary where I saw a few browns mid-week.  To my surprise, I couldn’t locate any of the fish scouted several days ago.  Next, we drove to a second creek that previously contained a number of browns and steelhead over the past few weeks.  Again, these fish must have dropped back to the lake and the water was nearly a foot lower.

On our third creek I located some jittery browns.  I fished without weight, trying nymphs and olive, then brown streamers.  Many refusals to my flies.  Switching to 6 lb test and a tiny, realistic egg fly, I was finally able to convince a smaller brown to take my offering.  These were some of the more spooked, less aggressive lake run browns that I have seen.  Let’s hope we get some rain.  My hunch is that there are a bunch of browns and steelhead waiting to push further into our tribs, given a decent water level.  My advice is the fish the larger tribs, as they have more water and less spooked fish.

This Veteran’s Day I decided to take my 5 month old into the woods for a nice hike.  He fits snugly in the chest pack  and we scouted a couple of smaller tribs.  The water continues to drop and the few browns and odd steelhead are even more jittery.    We really could use a steady rain.  A number of steelhead have moved back to the lake or dropped back down.  I managed to see two live salmon, but rotting carcasses were more prevalent.  With the low water, very spooky browns and connected to our baby, I elected not to fish.  I did see a couple of smaller dead steelhead and one or two dead browns.  Most likely from angler mishandling.  Let’s protect these fish and keep them in the water as much as possible.  It’s also fun just to watch these fish.  Or, share them w/ a non-fishing friend or spouse who also likes to get outdoors this time of year.

Finally, thanks to our veterans and their unselfish commitment to our nation.  I’m especially proud to have a number of angling friends who admirably served our nation and appreciate their service.

Upstate New York could use a soaking rain to help move more fish into the Tributaries of Lake Ontario.  Salmon carcasses now litter rocks and the browns have started to move into the lower stretches of creeks.  Most browns can’t go very far w/ the low water.  There are also a few steelhead mixed in.  A good friend reported a 33″ plus bright steelhead mixed in with a few salmon, below a local waterfall.  I’ve fished a few times the past week and am finding scattered browns in the deepest holes, and they are easily spooked.  The steelhead are much more aggressive and more likely to pounce on a fly.  With this clear water, try scaling down the size of your fly, presenting a more natural (less flashy) offering and consider avoiding split shot altogether.  It’s uncanny how a large, lake run fish can take in a tiny nymph or pea sized or smaller egg pattern.

This afternoon I fished the Genny for the second time this season, targeting steelhead.  No angling pressure at all on the Eastern side of the River and we only saw salmon.  The DEC was on the Maplewood Park side netting salmon for sampling.  I liked the conditions (dropping water/decent visibility/salmon present/no pressure/security watching the Seth Green Parking Lot/DEC patrolling our side, etc).  That said, I couldn’t locate a fish and bailed out after nearly two hours.  This is my second trip to the Genny w/ no success.  To save the day, we scooted over to a small Monroe County trib and target browns, with the odd steelhead.  Spooky fish, but nice to see them take a fly or two in the low water.   Here are pictures of two of the fish that we landed today.

Now is the time to head to Lake Ontario tributaries for a chance to catch multiple species.  Late October and early November typically offer king salmon, brown trout and steelhead.  Salmon are making  a last push to spawn, browns are staging in deeper pools and steelhead are ready to feast on eggs.  It is a treat to target multiple species, often within the same pool.  This is also the time when smaller creeks fish well after rain.  Smaller creeks may not offer as many fish as larger waters and you may have to hike between holes.  At the same time,  reduced crowds and fine sight fishing may be an upside to smaller tribs.  Good luck and go fishing!