<b>NEW YORK</b>

<b>Adirondacks</b>

About 20 inches of ice remained on the lake, said Luke from <b>FISH307.com</b> in Lake George. Ice began to be “hairy” at access points with dock bubblers that are meant to prevent ice to protect docks. But the ice was fine at other access points and along the shoreline. Ice along the shoreline, of course, will be first to thaw. Yellow perch were nabbed from the lake’s ice, down 20 feet, on grubs or small Maki soft-plastic lures. Lake trout were hooked from the ice from any depths from 20 feet to 120 feet down in the lake. That was on anything white, like Swedish Pimples, tubes or Vibra Grubs. A few northern pike were fought from the ice, before pike season was closed starting on March 16, at the mouth of Dunham Bay, on the lake. Pike were still angled from the ice on Lake Champlain, where fishing for them is open year-round. Baits stocked include three sizes of shiners, fathead minnows, small hunts, and grubs.

<b>Salmon River and Western N.Y. Rivers</b>

Capt. Rick Miick from <b>Dreamcatcher Guide Service</b> was now fishing for steelheads four days a week on Salmon River, he said. The rest of the days of the week will book soon, and weather was fairly cold in past days. Tuesday was 20 degrees at mid-day, when he gave this report in a phone call, and the morning was 6 degrees. But plenty of steelheads filled the river, and rain is supposed to fall today and Thursday. Friday is supposed to be cold, but weather is supposed to be in the 40 degrees afterward, for as many days as are forecast. Ice somewhat cleared on the lower river that was choked frozen previously. Fresh steelheads from Lake Ontario began to swim up the river a little, because of that, joining steelheads that already swam the river. Trips hooked an average of six to eight steelheads, and some were landed. Most bit from 9 to 11 a.m. Afterward, anglers picked through the fish, probably running into a hole that held a bunch at some time. The river flowed at 335 or 385 cubic feet per second. It might’ve flowed at 435 downstream. The fish held in deep holes in the shallow river, like before. The trips caught on 8-millimeter eggs in honeydew and a couple of other colors, sometimes pink worms, and all sorts of egg sacks, including from the colors chartreuse to blue. There was no rhyme or reason, and the fish seemed to want something different, he said. Most of Rick’s trips float fish or fish the river on a drift boat. Many of the anglers fish with center-pin reels and rods on the boat. Rick is an expert at center-pinning and produced the DVD How to Center Pin with Capt. Rick Miick. Google that to find and buy the video. Many of his clients have become center-pinners. The fishing’s fun and effective. The rod and reel look like a fly-fishing outfit, but aren’t. They cast and fish differently. Ten years ago, three center-pinners might be seen on the river in a trip. Now, many are. February was the area’s coldest on record, averaging 8 degrees.

Weather became cold through the beginning of the week, said Jay Peck from <b>Jay Peck Guide Service</b>. High temperatures reached the upper 20 degrees Sunday and Monday, when he gave this report in a phone call. But weather is supposed to reach the 50 degrees, and rain is supposed to fall, today and Thursday. That will probably melt a good amount of the snow that’s left. Snow had begun to melt in warmer weather previously. Rivers that Jay fishes for large brown trout, like the Oak River, flowed too high to fish, and were muddy and ice-cold, because of the melt. Those rivers are located around Rochester, and he’ll check them for fishability later this week. The Oak will probably run high, because of a foot of ice on the reservoir that will probably keep melting. But creeks in the area, where Jay also fishes for the browns, probably won’t be affected much. Waters like the Oak will probably become a lot more “stable” next week, after much of the snow and ice melts. The trout are large because they summer in Lake Ontario. They spend fall to spring in the rivers and creeks, because of forage there. Water conditions are like Jay predicted in previous reports: Up and down, typical of spring. The conditions can and will change in spring, as weather cools and warms, fluctuating. But spring offers some of the year’s best fishing. A couple of days will fish well, and a couple won’t, and so on. Jay was beginning to latch into the trout previously, once the coldest weather of winter subsided. He fishes just as much for steelheads on Salmon River, about an hour east in New York. The Salmon flowed mostly constant, didn’t become high, like the Oak. The Salmon’s temperature was mostly constant, and the river still flowed low, like it does in winter. But the river will begin to run high, because of melting snow and ice. Ice began to melt that pretty much filled the lower Salmon previously. That enabled a few fresh steelheads, from Lake Ontario, to swim up the river, joining steelheads that already held in the river. Most steelheads gathered in the upper river, like they did in winter, because of open water from the reservoir dam then. The middle and lower river currently didn’t hold lots of steelheads, but there wasn’t a lot of fishing pressure at those stretches, which could be an advantage. For Jay’s trips, stoneflies nailed the steelheads well. When stoneflies are seen along the banks, steelheads will be grabby or will bite. The trips are sometimes swinging wet flies on the lower river. The flies are large, 2-1/2-inch leeches and small Intruders. If a day is sunny, dark colors are fished, and if a day is cloudy, bright colors are.  Jay specializes in fly-fishing and catch-and-release, and his other guides fish with conventional tackle. Lake Ontario was 23 percent covered in ice, and the Great Lakes were 50 percent covered. That was more than usual, and will delay spring fishing somewhat, and will keep weather colder than usual.

<b>PENNSYLVANIA</b>

Bill Brinkman from <b>Brinkman’s Bait & Tackle</b> in Philadelphia splashed his boat last week on Tuesday, and fished Delaware River, he wrote in an emailed report from the store. He tested the water for striped bass, and weather became rough, wind building to 30 m.p.h., during the 4-hour trip. “I fished one rod and hooked the biggest bloodworm I could find,” he said. After fishing at five different places throughout the trip, “I could have brought that bloodworm home and sold it as new,” he wrote. Not one fish bit. “The river was a bit off color and had a little (bit) of junk in it but the problem was the water temperature was 39 degrees,” he wrote. On the previous day, that Monday, another angler landed four catfish 2 to 4 pounds on the river off Neshaminy Creek on chunks of eels. Another angler that weekend heaved in a 5-pound catfish downstream from Tacony-Palmyra Bridge on clam. A few other catfish were reported from the river, too. Striper regulations are changing this year in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, and check the regs before fishing the river.

<b>NORTH JERSEY</b>

Ice fishing seemed finished, said Kevin from <b>Ramsey Outdoor</b> in Succasunna. He saw a few ice-fishing during the weekend, forgetting where, but in the back of Budd Lake, he thought. But he wouldn’t venture onto the ice now. Some open spots were available to fish on lakes, though not much was heard about angling. This was a time of transition, but anglers will probably fish this weekend. A few catfish were tugged from Delaware River on jigs from open water. Yellow perch fishing is usually good on lakes this time of year. The perch began to spawn, and can usually be hooked on small jigheads, like 1/16-ounce, with Mister Twisters, fished under a bobber, slowly. As soon as ice clears, if a day is warm, all kinds of fish will go crazy, he said, in shallows of lakes, like 2 feet deep. At his lake, the fish, like perch, bluegills and 4-pound largemouth bass, bask in the sun there, for instance. Many trout streams are closed to fishing for trout stocking, and will be opened beginning on April 4, opening day of trout season. But fishing remains open on some trout waters, and check regulations. A few customers trout fished on Pequest River during the weekend, working midges slowly. Many streams are high, and the water is cold, making the fish finicky. They’re not giving up lots of action, but trout are around.

From <b>Meltzer’s Sporting Goods</b> in Garfield, Mark worked the shop’s exhibit at the Saltwater Fishing Expo last weekend in Somerset, he said. So he heard little about fishing. But he saw a photo of a huge northern pike reeled from Passaic River. Ice remained on Greenwood Lake and Lake Hopatcong, and ice-anglers fished Hopatcong, he knew.

Passaic River was flooded, running into the parking lot, said Joe from <b>Fairfield Fishing Tackle</b> in Pine Brook. Customers were anxious to fish, “starting to get itchy,” he said. They bought supplies, including for the opening of trout season on April 4, and they spooled reels with new line. Ice-anglers still fished on Lake Hopatcong. He saw some on Sunday.

<b>Central Jersey</b>

Customers bought fishing licenses for the year and geared up for angling, including for the opening of trout season, said Burt from <b>Efinger Sporting Goods</b> in Bound Brook. April 4 is opening day, two Saturdays from today. Braden from the shop knew about no safe ice to fish, Burt said. Trout anglers in the early season will fish early black stoneflies, maybe small blue-winged olives. They’ll also fish salmon eggs or worms. Rainbow trout, not other trout species, will be stocked, because of the trout virus at the hatchery this past year. One advantage should be that rainbows spread out in trout streams a day or two after stocking. Other species loiter longer, where they’re stocked.

Garden worms, nightcrawlers, shiners and killies are now stocked, and a few anglers bought them, said Dennis from <b>Murphy’s Hook House</b> in Toms River. A few chain pickerel were angled from the Toms River at Trilco. One small largemouth bass was managed from Lake Riviera. Those were the catches customers mentioned from freshwater. Trilco is a closed building supply, and no sign identifies the building. But locals know the stretch of river by the name, located near Garden State Parkway. Murphy’s is open daily. Murphy’s also owns <b>Go Fish Bait & Tackle</b> on Fischer Boulevard in Toms River, and Go Fish is open Thursdays through Mondays.

<b>South Jersey</b>

All the lakes opened up, said Karl from <b>Sportsmen’s Center</b> in Bordentown.  Largemouth bass were heard about that hit at Assunpink Lake on suspending jerk baits and Heddon Sonar Blade Baits. Chain pickerel were wrestled from Rancocas Creek on shiners. A 27-inch pick from the creek was the biggest in a tournament the store held. Crappies and bluegills nibbled at Pemberton Lake on small, 1-inch Mister Twisters in white or chartreuse. Delaware River wasn’t running badly from snow and ice melt farther upstream, but was cold or 38 degrees. The Trenton power plant wasn’t turned on or wasn’t pumping warm water into the river. Sometimes catches are made at the warmth from the plant.

Weather turned cold, and not much happened with fishing, said Jeff from <b>Blackwater Sports Center</b> in Vineland. Bloodworms and minnows are stocked, and a few throwback striped bass were bloodwormed on Delaware River at Elsinboro from shore that were known about. Steve from the shop for last week’s report talked about white perch that were bloodwormed on the Delaware’s tributaries, like the Maurice and Cohansey rivers and different tidal creeks.

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