By most all accounts the trolling action has been real good. Kings off the waters of Point Breeze are good looking, plump, hefty fish. And its been mixed bag chances too with steelhead and some hawg lakers being hooked up. For the beginning part of this week, the wind has turned prevailing westerly again, but just previous there was enough easterly winds keeping things coolish in the mid depth zones - some guys caught salmon as close as 75 fow and steelhead in 120 fow. You can check out the weather buoy off the Oak Orchard for temp and depth info but during the medium east winds we just had recently it was showing the temp break had moved up from approx 50 feet down to just 20 feet down. Ahead for this week it looks like fairly typical summer weather with highs around 80°F and chance of passing storms. The serious heat (wasn't that bad here on the WNY Lake Ontario south shore!) of a few days ago seems to have moderated.
Capt. John Oravec from Tightlines Charters has been finding good Kings and some hawg lakers. He released a 20 pounder because there was no more room in the cooler! Captain John says, "boats have been working 120 - 200 fow off the pumphouse. The general word on the docks is HOT KINGS! Aboard the Troutman2, the morning action is fast and furious with glo spoons 35 - 50 ft down trolling 120 fow east of port. Dropback steelhead are scattered for miles off the Orleans County coast as well."
For the civilian rec crowd, I wouldn't say there's been a whole lot of pressure. Good for the guys who are getting out there though! Serious rec angler Mark L didn't have his trusty fishing partner so he went it alone and almost couldn't handle all the rods firing. In 2 days fishing he found good biters that must have been active and real hungry. He said the fishing "has been insane!" One evening he hooked 15 fish and lost others because he was getting triple bit while fishing solo. Tough problem to have, I guess!
Father's Day weekend showcased some great fishing from the Point Breeze waters all the way east to Bald Eagle. Fathers and sons and daughters all got out and reeled in some big Kings! Salmon and some of the summer big fish are showing up in good numbers with expected bigger fish yet to come for the later trolling season! The previous weekend featured just some lite to medium E winds that the trolling fleet managed just fine. So far this week, we are into some serious heat forecasted to last through the week. Be sure to be wary of passing storms and heed the marine forecasts for winds and lightning. Winds should be more prevailing at southwesterly going forward. There's been plenty of good action out of Oak Orchard but let's highlight some of the other action taking place just east of Point Breeze in Kendall.
On Fathers Day, Captain Lou B. of Get the Net Charters fished with the Kostek family. And he has the T-shirts from the kids to prove it! "Currents were tough today and getting the trolling speed dialed in was a challenge. We caught fish from 100 out to 300 fow. It was mostly a spoon bite and the right temp was not as deep as the past few days. Riggers were parked at 90 - 95 ft and divers were out 250 and 270. A Warrior blue green dolphin was the MVP."
Captain Rob W. of Legacy Charters says the salmon bite continues to be on fire on the Orleans County shoreline. "Lots and lots of Kings around with a few Atlantics and steelhead in the mix too. Offshore has been the best for us and on Sunday the 200 - 350 fow range was best. Spoons and flasher flies put fish in the box for us, however cut bait has been the best producer of the biggest Kings." Shawn and son Ryan and friend Dave swapped from their usual tributary pursuits for some trolling/boating action. They'll be back for both I bet!
What's your excuse for missing the good action so far?! Come on out if you can and make some summertime and family big fish memories soon!
Great job for the participants and organizers for the King of the Oak (KOTO Fri June 7) and the Oak Orchard Open (Sat & Sun, June 8 & 9). There was a small craft advisory for Saturday so the Oak Orchard Open tourney was a first day blow off and came down to a one day fishing strategy for Sunday. And the Lake was still kind of ornery Sunday but most teams toughed it out, stayed safe and had good one day action. You can bet charters and recs alike are looking forward to the rest of the season ahead for top notch trophy trout and salmon action At the Oak and Point Breeze!
The weekend action kicked off Friday with the first leg of the KOTO. Not a bad fishing day compared to the conditions that would come on Saturday. First place went to Capt. Mike Lavender team Intimidator, 2nd place to Bob Stevens team Sunrise II and 3rd place to Tom Riley team Shenanigans. Something like 31 teams got out to fish the KOTO which was a nice turnout. Capt. Mike L. of Intimidator Charters had a big 24+ lb King for 1st place big fish and the best 3 fish box worth 63 points. At the end of the trolling season, who will be crowned King of the Oak? Stay tuned and get in on the action and maybe you'll be crowned King of the Oak. You're sure to have some great fun trying anyway!
Saturday for the start of the Oak Orchard Open was a blow off day... Bummer. But its safety first and teams took the day to regroup and organize and make some strategy for what was looking like a one day Sunday shootout!
Sunday's weather was better but still no daisy. Hey, it was getting pretty calm after weigh in don't you know! The first part of the day, wind was stiff and the competition stacked for the 30 teams participating. There were 22 Pro teams and 8 Am teams. Again what a nice turnout - consider coming out in 2025! The good scoring teams did well with real nice Kings and rounded out their trout scoring with some decent steelhead. In the Pro division 1st place went to Vision Quest, 2nd place to Screamer, and 3rd place to Yankee Troller. In the Am division 1st place went to Roll With It, 2nd place to Howell at the Sky and 3rd place to AA. Most fishing teams didn't run all that far from port given the Lake conditions and they found good fishing west and east of port from about 150 - 400 fow. According to Cpt. Rick Hajecki of Crazy Yankee Sportfishing "that water is holding a lot of salmon and steelhead. Brown trout are found in the shallower water and the best thing to do is watch the Oak Orchard buoy info out front and look at where the thermocline hits bottom for the browns."
So it was a nice unofficial start to the At the Oak season with good action for 2 of the 3 days available. All the signs are shaping up for a good trolling season. Come out and make your own great fishing and fun memories on Lake Ontario At the Oak and Point Breeze. Next weekend Father's Day would be a great time to start!
