1. Lake Ontario and tributaries

The Lake Ontario Counties Trout and Salmon Derby kicks off today and the timing is perfect for some great salmon fishing in Lake Ontario. Capt. Doug Stein of Grand Island reports that there have been so many fish out there, even he’s been catching them with some consistency. You may have to move around to find out where the fish are, but once you locate them you can do well. In just a few hours of fishing on Wednesday, he managed to boat four nice kings — despite Mike George being on board — and lose several others. Hogs Wild and Natural Born Killer spoons have been hot colors of late, especially for those fishing in the Scotty Tournament out of Port Dalhousie last weekend. Capt. Vince Pierleoni and his Thrillseeker Fishing Team walked away with the first place prize, which much of his fishing taking place around the red can at the Niagara Bar. As the waters warm, those fish will continue to migrate down towards Wilson and Olcott. Wes Walker of The Slippery Sinker reported some excellent catches just west of Wilson and down to the Bar area for good king action, as well as a mix of trout and cohos. They’re been catching a few trout off the piers, too. Most of the fishing has been for perch, though, in both Olcott and Wilson. And with the opening of northern pike season this Saturday, there will be more people out chasing those toothy critters. Pike have been seen frequently in both Wilson and Olcott harbors, as well as up toward Burt Dam in 18 Mile Creek. The creek is still producing some nice trout, too. Getting back to the panfish, Terry Swann in Wilson reported that the perch fishing has been very good, prompting the Farm and Garden Store and T&R; Corner Store to both sell live bait locally on Main Street. Speaking of lake fishing, if you want to learn on how to fish for kings on the Niagara Bar in the spring, check out the next Lake Ontario Trout and Salmon Assn. meeting May 8 at Cornell Cooperative Extension Niagara, 4487 Lake Avenue (Route 78), Lockport, starting at 7 p.m. Capt. Tom Kilmer of Grand Island will be the featured speaker. Back to the LOC Derby. Weigh stations in Niagara include a re-opening of a marina in Youngstown, now called Petroy Marina on Water Street. This is the closest weigh station to some of the hottest action on the lake, so we welcome the new addition with open arms. Their new phone number is 716-745-7121. Other weigh stations will be the Wilson Gas Shack in the Wilson Boat Yard; The Slippery Sinker, Olcott; The Boat Doctors, Olcott; Narby’s Superette and Tackle, Kent; Captain’s Cove, Waterport. For information on registration, check out www.loc.org or call 888-REEL-2-IN.

2. Lower Niagara River

The Village of Lewiston is ready to embrace the masses showing up for the Lewiston Smelt Festival today and tomorrow with the Niagara River Anglers cooking up some 300 pounds of the tasty baitfish tonight starting around 6 p.m. at Lewiston Landing. Village restaurants will also be cooking up some smelt throughout the two days. The run of fish continues to be strong if you’re interested in doing your own dipping. Trout fishing in the river continues to be decent, especially for steelhead. A few browns and lake trout are also being reported. Egg sacks, minnows and Kwikfish have been the best baits. Jigs will also work on lake trout off the mouth of the river, one of the best spots during the LOC Derby. If you’re fishing the LOC, you might want to concentrate on steelhead if you’re fishing the river. That was a prime spot last year for a division that was lacking in fish numbers.

3. Upper Niagara River

Trout has been a preferred specie the past week with good action going on for steelhead along the Army Corps wall and in the lock at Squaw Island. The foot of Ferry Street has also been producing some trout, including a few lake trout. Dave Manz of Buffalo hauled in some nice lakers the past week there by using flatfish. Pike season opens on Saturday and there are some good spots around the river to try. One favorite spot, according to Bill Van Camp at Big Catch, is at the Lighthouse across from Riverside Park. The Erie Basin Marina is another good spot. The Erie Canal, wherever a stream or creek flows in, is another good spot to give a go for pike.

4. Lake Erie and tributaries

Walleye season opens on Saturday, as does the early bass season on Lake Erie, so there will be plenty of fishing activity going on. The action starts out with perch, though, as some good reports continue to come off Evangola State Park in 50-55 feet of water. Beet tributary fishing has been in Cattaraugus, but it could pick back up with the recent rains. For walleye, try the night trolling along Hamburg in the shallows with stickbaits. The early bass season starts up on Saturday and remember that the daily limit is one and it must be at least 20 inches long. Most anglers practice catch and release for these true trophies. The first bass tournament of the year will be run by the Millennium Bassmasters of WNY. Check their website out at www.millenniumbassmastersofwny.com for details. The big Make-A-Wish Tournament is set for May 17th and you can find details on that event on the Web site, too.

5. Chautauqua Lake

Crappie action continues to be good off the Mayville bar area near the launch ramp. Also off the white wall in the Southern Basin of the lake. In all cases, the shallows work best in 6-8 feet of water. One inch tubes in pink, white or chartreuse will catch fish. Some like the simple approach of a minnow under a float, which also works nicely. When the second hand makes that tick after midnight, there will be walleye fishermen looking for their target. Trolling stickbaits on the outside of weed edges at Warners Bar or bay around the buoys is a good place to start. Ashville Bay is another good spot in 10 feet of water outside the weeds with a split shot and nightcrawler or a hair jig will also work for you.

6. Finger Lakes-Inland Waters

Oneida Lake — Panfish have been cooperating in places like Toad Harbor, Big Bay, Lower South Bay and Polar Beach. Use small jigs tipped with worms in the shallows. Crappie fishing has slowed a bit but should pick back up when the weather warms again.

Honeoye Lake — Dan Sharp at Honeoye Bait and Tackle sends word that things slowed down when the weather turned cold, but it should pick back up again this weekend. Crappie action went cold with the temperatures and when things warm up again, so will the fishing. Try the southwest corner or the northeast corner of the lake, depending on the winds and the sun. Jigs tipped with spikes, mousies or wax worms are the way to go.

Cayuga Lake — Salmon and trout are hitting to the south on stickbaits. Keep the stickbaits near the surface by long lining or using planer boards. Those fish are also hitting around Taughannock Point and at AES Cayuga. Laker fishing has slowed but some fish are available around the 100 foot mark.

Bill Hilts Jr. is the outdoor sports specialist with the Niagara Tourism and Convention Corporation. Contact him at bhiltsjr69@cs.com.