The last week of May 2025 was a wild ride on the waters of the Buffalo Niagara Region. It was a week filled with challenging conditions, memorable moments, and a mix of fishing fortunes. From a grind on Memorial Day to a thrilling ride through crashing waves on the Upper Niagara where an 8-year-old outfished everyone, each trip brought its own story. Slow days tested patience with young anglers, while veterans and college-aged crews brought lively conversations and decent catches. Some massive winds over the weekend kept me off the water/provided opportunities to rest. Here’s a glimpse into the highs, lows, and everything in between from a week of chasing fish and making memories. Seasonal Assessment/General Observations Smallmouth in Spawn Mode: Keep it Moving The smallmouth bass are almost entirely in spawn mode – hence all the smaller fish you likely noticed in the photos. The water is still chilly (Lake Erie June Temperatures Buffalo), but right in the sweet spot for them to get their “spawn on.” As I mentioned in last week’s report, if you target bass right now, you’re going to catch some spawners whether you’re trying to or not. Please, do something like what I do – cover a lot of ground/don’t soak areas. Let them breed with as little interruption as possible. Here’s an example of what not to do: for 2 days in a row, I watched 2 bass boats from West Virginia spot lock in a small nook on the lower Niagara for hours each day. By a small nook, I mean an area no bigger than 40 sq ft…and they stayed there for hours…both days. I drifted past them a couple times. Then I fished downriver for a while. Then I came back upriver to take the boat out of the water – they were still there. Please, don’t do this. It’s super greedy/gluttonous. The main counter to my position is that people really want to catch fish. Those WV boys trailered their boat all the way up here – they’re likely thinking that they’re gonna do what it takes to bend a rod. My response? Sorry, it sucks that you planned your trip here when you did. Play the hand you’re dealt – cover water and stop beating up on the same fish over and over and over. Transition Time With the bass on beds, my program for the next few weeks will incorporate a mix of activities. Walleyes are starting to show up more often – so I’ll spend part of the beginning of nearly every session targeting them. They aren’t schooled up in our basin by any means. However, there are enough around on structure that you can catch a “family fish fry” worth in a morning before transitioning to bass fishing for a bit. Following my big humbling on Lake Ontario this past Monday, I need some revenge. By all counts, the coho bite out there has been excellent with more and more kings showing up. I’ll get that dialed this week – and it’ll become part of the weekly plan until the big schools of walleyes make their way into NY waters. Fingers crossed – we’ll start seeing that happen in a couple weeks.

Buffalo NY Fishing Report **hidden content** by brookdog | May 22, 2022 Days on the Water: 7 Who we fished with: friends/clients Where we fished: Lower Niagara, Lake Ontario, Upper Niagara, Lake Erie What we caught: coho salmon, king salmon, smallmouth bass, walleye Tactics: neds, jigs, flies, jerk baits, crank baits, blade baits; trolling spoons and stick baits Commentary for the Week of 05/16/2022 – 05/22/2022 It was a week of spring weather – rain, wind, some cold, some heat, and some sunshine. The water warmed up rapidly due to all the 80+ degree days. That heat turned the bass toward the spawn and pushed the kings all over the place. In short, we’re past peak but there are still some great days to be had over the next week or so. Tap the icon below to listen to our latest podcast or subscribe wherever you listen to your podcasts. **hidden content** iOS - Buffalo NY Fishing Report - 05/22/2022 Daily Conditions Analysis Weather Breakdown Monday – Tough day. Wind, rain, and a big drop in temperature. Most folks would opt to reschedule their trip facing those conditions. The guys that fished with me Monday (and Tuesday) have been fishing with me for years. Rain, sleet, hail, snow, they’re down for the adventure. We made it work/fish were caught. Tuesday – At least it was sunny…but the wind was a bit intense. The Upper Niagara had 2-3′ standing waves throughout the day. Opted to power fish/throw crankbaits all day. It worked…VERY well. Wednesday – Perfect conditions all around – mild temps, small breeze, partly cloudy. Fished Lake Erie – numbers were OK but the size was incredible. Picked up a walleye in the mix too. Thursday – Fished the bar in the morning for cohos. Picked up a few and saw a few busting bait. Not a ton around anymore but they’re there if you want a great meal. Transitioned to the Upper for a short crankbait session. Friday – half day trip. Spent it in the harbor bassing. Nice day until the rain showed up. Saturday – sunny and warm but big winds out of the SSW. Had a last minute cancellation but was able to fill the date with one of my friends/clients that’s been dying to catch a king so we pushed through waves onto Ontario. Mission accomplished…and then some. Sunday – Fished Lake Erie and the Upper Niagara. Forecast turned out far worse than projected. Fog, rain, and extreme wind made it tough. We had a small window in the morning where we had a steady bite then things got tough. Seasonal Assessment/General Observations Water temperatures in the river are in the mid 50s now. The last time it was this warm this early was 2012. That’s crazy considering how behind things were only 2 weeks ago. The water temperature increased 10 degrees in 10 days due to all the 80+ degree temperatures we’ve been experiencing – it’s a little unsettling watching the rapid climb. Things chilled out a little bit this past week and flattened the curve but the rise continued nonetheless. Throughout the system, smallmouth bass are starting to get on beds. Not a shocker considering they to convert to spawning when the water temps hit the mid 50s. They’ll be in full spawn mode within days – in the river that is – the Lake Erie spawn seems to be spread out a little more – probably because of the deeper/colder water. You’ll notice from the pics that although we’re still getting great numbers in the river, the size isn’t what it was a week or so ago. Biggies are still coming out of the lake but the catch rates have been a little lower lately. It’s an interesting pattern I see year after year both with smallmouth bass and steelhead – the biggest/oldest/most mature fish show up to the spawning grounds first, followed by their younger peers. It makes me wonder where the biggies go when the younger fish arrive. Figuring that out is always on my mind but it’s hard to do recon with clients in the heart of the season. Stated differently, there’s always a little experimentation going on but my priority is to keep rods bent unless someone requests something different (like monster hunting). I only spent a couple days fishing Lake Ontario this past week. Cohos are still available on the bar – it’s wild watching them blast bait on the surface. The Niagara is still dumping emeralds into Ontario so although the coho bite is waning, you can still pick up a limit with a little bit of work. Over the past few outings, we’ve seen numerous kings and cohos smash bait right next to the boat…like…I looked down off the side of my boat, and watched fish come up, eat, and swim back down…awesome. Because the Niagara is running fairly warm now, pursuing king salmon action in the river plume isn’t a reliable play. The fish are spread out a little more so covering water is key. Looking Forward to the Week of 05/23/2022 – 05/29/2022 Weather Breakdown Fishing Conditions Looking Forward This upcoming week is looking OK. The beginning looks great. The middle looks dicey with a lot of rain and wind. Memorial Day

Days on the Water: 6 Who we fished with: friends/clients Where we fished: Lower Niagara, Lake Ontario, Upper Niagara What we caught: steelhead, lake trout, king salmon, smallmouth bass Tactics: Lower Niagara – 3-way rigs with beads, jigs, or live bait; Lake Ontario – trolling spoons and stick baits; Upper Niagara – blade baits, swim baits, drop shots Commentary for the Week of 04/11/2022 – 04/17/2022 Things are heating up quickly – water temperatures broke into the 40s on boat Lake Erie and Lake Ontario (and the water in between). We caught our first king salmon and our first smallmouth bass of the season. It’s only going to get better from here. Bass are getting caught on Lake Erie and the Upper Niagara. The lower Niagara continues to be slow for steelhead compared to previous years but if you put in a little work, you’ll catch fish. Lake Ontario is fishing well for cohos and lakers with an occasional king in the mix (watch out for all the floating wood – it’s like a minefield out there). Tap the icon below to listen to our latest podcast or subscribe wherever you listen to your podcasts. **hidden content** iOS - Buffalo NY Fishing Report - 04/17/2022 Daily Conditions Analysis Weather Breakdown Monday – Fished Lake Ontario – gorgeous day. Wind didn’t kick in until late. Did well on lake trout and boated the first king of the season. Tuesday – Had some engine trouble the evening prior so I had to reschedule my trip for the day. Collins Marine got her up and operational in a few hours, so I was ready to fish the following day. Wednesday – Started off on Ontario – lots of floating timber and dingy water color made it tough. Converted to fished the Lower Niagara. Big SW winds had the current raging. Converted to the Upper Niagara. Caught a few bass. Thursday – Big winds out of the west made things tough. Devils Hole was raging faster and bigger than I’ve seen it in a long time. Tough day but we caught fish. Friday – rescheduled the trip. Wind advisory and small craft advisories were in place starting mid morning from Lake Erie to Lake Ontario – winds were huge out of the SW. Could’ve gambled with a very early morning session on Lake Ontario but had a dad and young daughters on the calendar – not a great idea. Saturday – Perfect day to fish Lake Ontario. We did well on lake trout and boated a couple cohos too! Sunday – fished the lower Niagara – slow day Seasonal Assessment/General Observations I don’t know what to say about the steelhead run this year – it should be in full swing right now and it isn’t. In fact, the steel we boated this week were on the small side – which is typically a sign that the run is getting close to the end. I’m concerned about future years as are many of my colleagues. It’s important for us to figure out what happened – mainly to learn if this is going to become a trend going forward. However, I’m not hopeful that we’ll ever reach a consensus about the issue. I have some theories but I’ll save that for a blog or a conversation on our podcast. On the bright side, our water temperatures are heating up nicely. Smallmouth bass are starting their pre-spawn feeding frenzy – and that’s only going to get better in the upcoming weeks. In the Upper Niagara, they are setting up along current breaks and ambushing emerald shiners (the river is LOADED with them) – packing on weight so they can get through the spawn. I love fishing for them this time of year because you can cast nearly everything in your tackle box and the bass will attack it. As I mentioned in the daily breakdown, salmon are starting to show up too. It seems like they are covering the entire water column on most days. I’ve been sticking around that 50-100 FOW water range and using the brightest spoons and stick baits in the collection. Just like the bass action – things are just getting started. The next couple of weeks are going to be awesome. Looking Forward to the Week of 04/18/2022 – 04/24/2022 Weather Breakdown Fishing Conditions Looking Forward This upcoming week is looking pretty good. Temperatures will make a brief reversion back to the cold stuff in the beginning of the week followed by a general warming trend as we get closer to next weekend. As with last week, wind will continue to be the biggest obstacle. Unfortunately – without ice cover – huge winds out of the southwest/west will generate big waves on Lake Erie. Those waves will stir up the water, fill it with sediment/mud, and send it downstream into the Niagara making the fishing tough. With that forecast in mind, there’ll be a lot of last-minute calls about when and where we’ll fish. I’ll certainly spend some time on the upper Niagara and Lake Erie early in the week followed by some Lake Ontario sessions later on. I’ll also give steelheading a brief commitment on a couple of days (I’m not ready to give up on them). We’re booked daily and you know me – covering water throughout the fishery is the goal this time of year.