New York fishing reports
459 reports for New York — what's biting, water temps, and where to focus.
Kings stage offshore as Salmon River push builds
Strike Zone Charters out of Lake Ontario reports salmon fishing has been "very good" this past week, with browns and lake trout mixed in among schools working the 100 to 160 foot range. Preferred depths have been shifting day to day as wind moves the thermocline around, and the captains note Mag Dipsey Divers are producing when fish sit deep, with green, white, and chartreuse e-chip spoons getting bit. That's open-lake trolling action rather than river fish yet, and it tracks with where late August typically sits for the Salmon River and Oswego system: kings and cohos staging offshore before the tributary push builds through September. Our gauge on the Salmon River system shows flow holding low and stable at 49.3 cfs, with no water-temp reading available this cycle. Anglers planning a river trip should watch for rain or reservoir-release bumps as the trigger for fish to start stacking in the lower pools.
Fluke and Bluefin Bite Run Hot as Fall Transition Builds on Long Island
NOAA buoy 44025 read 74°F water south of Long Island on the latest pass, with buoy 44065 nearby at 73°F and a light 5 m/s breeze — steady late-August conditions. The fluke bite is the headline: On The Water's August 20 Long Island report calls South Shore fluking 'excellent,' and local shops back it up. Bob's Bait and Tackle in Amity Harbor says keepers are scattered among nonstop short action on bucktails and Gulp, while Taylor Renee Charters and Babylon Fishing Station both describe a hot incoming-tide bite. Bluefin tuna are running just as strong — On The Water notes 'the jig bite for bluefin continues to be red-hot,' with Bergen Bay Docks still marking fish 5 to 10 miles off Fire Island Inlet. Stripers are showing at inlets on the right tide, and Tight Lines Tackle and White Water Outfitters both report early false albacore rumors building near Shinnecock as the fall transition approaches.
Catskills and Adirondack trout streams settle into low, clear late-summer flows
USGS gauge 01415000 is running a lean 8.94 cfs this morning while the larger 01413500 station sits near 95.7 cfs, both readings pointing to typical late-August low-water conditions across Adirondack and Catskill freestone streams. No water-temperature telemetry is coming through the network right now, so plan around the flow trend and target the coolest parts of the day rather than a specific number. There's no direct Catskills-specific shop or guide intel in this cycle, but Trout Unlimited's recent piece on brown trout is a useful reminder that low, clear late-summer water calls for stealth, long leaders, and light tippet. Elsewhere in New York, Wired 2 Fish reports a public-access win below Burt Dam on Eighteen Mile Creek, a salmon-and-trout fishery, after the Town of Newfane secured a permanent public easement — a reminder that access is still being actively contested and won across the state's coldwater fisheries.
Smallmouth and walleye settle into late-summer patterns in NY lakes
Brookdog Fishing Co.'s August 23 Buffalo NY Fishing Report describes another week of steady walleye limits on the Lake Erie/Ontario side of New York, even with thunderstorms and small-craft advisories cutting into days on the water. No live buoy or stream-gauge feed came through for the Hudson Valley and Finger Lakes corridor this cycle, so confirm current water temp and flow with a local gauge before you launch. For this region, late August typically has smallmouth bass sliding onto main-lake rock and gravel structure and deeper weed edges as surface temps ease off summer highs, with the best windows early and late in the day. Walleye tend to pull back toward low-light and after-dark feeding as water clarity increases. Largemouth bass and panfish stay a dependable option around docks, timber, and remaining green weed growth. With the moon waxing toward full, expect a bump in low-light activity through the week.
Finger Lakes bite settles into late-summer sonar-driven patterns
Forward-facing sonar continues reshaping how anglers locate suspended fish, per Fishing the Midwest's Bob Jensen and Mike Frisch columns this week, and Field & Stream's roundup of FFS-specific baits echoes the same shift toward open-water presentations over blind bottom-fishing. For Cayuga, Seneca, and Skaneateles, that trend lines up with typical late-August patterns: smallmouth bass suspending over mid-lake humps, lake trout holding deep on the thermocline, and walleye sliding shallower during low light. No fresh buoy or gauge data came through for this cycle, so temp and flow readings aren't available today, but Tactical Bassin's recent summer-heat reports (shallow points at dawn, finesse presentations as the sun climbs, junk-fishing through midday) translate well to the Finger Lakes' rocky drop-offs. The waxing gibbous moon should keep some low-light feeding windows active into the evening. Check state regs before harvesting, especially around any special rules on lake trout and landlocked salmon.
Niagara anglers secure access as Erie's late-summer bite holds
Western New York's fishery access got a real win this month: per Wired 2 Fish, the Town of Newfane secured a permanent public easement protecting angler access to Burt Dam on Eighteen Mile Creek, ending a dispute that had put one of the region's more popular salmon-and-trout stretches in Niagara County in question. On Lake Erie itself, late-August conditions typically keep smallmouth bass working deep humps and rockpiles, walleye holding to open-basin trolling patterns, and yellow perch schooling tight over rock and gravel structure. More Great Lakes anglers are leaning on forward-facing sonar to locate suspended fish rather than blind-fishing structure, a shift Fishing the Midwest has been tracking as walleye crews adjust long-standing jigging habits. The Chinook salmon and steelhead push up the Niagara tributaries hasn't started yet, which is typical for this point in August. No live buoy or gauge readings came through for this region this cycle.
King salmon push builds on Lake Ontario ahead of tributary run
Salmon are here — that's the read from Strike Zone Charters (Lake Ontario) this week, which reports very good salmon fishing with browns and lake trout mixed in on the open lake. Per Strike Zone Charters, the productive band has been 100 to 160 feet of water, with preferred depths shifting day to day as wind pushes the thermocline around. Mag Dipsey Divers are working when fish sit deep, and green, white, and chartreuse E-Chip spoons paired with Atomic-style attractors are getting bit. No fresh buoy or gauge readings came through for the Salmon River or Oswego River today, so we're leaning on this on-the-water report rather than instrument data. For anglers planning a tributary trip, this offshore staging activity is typically the leading edge of the run that eventually pushes kings and browns up into the Salmon River and Oswego River mouths as water temperatures ease into fall.
Bluefin jig bite stays red-hot as fluke fishing peaks off LI
The jig bite for bluefin tuna is red-hot within reach of inshore and nearshore boats, and ocean fluke fishing is running excellent off the South Shore, per On The Water's August 20 Long Island and NYC report. On the East End, Trophy Hunter Montauk Charters called the bluefin bite "close and excellent" after weighing two fish in the Montauk Boatmen's tourney, while Tight Lines Tackle noted the jig bite has generally outfished trolling for bluefin running 35 to 60 inches. Fluke are producing keepers from the Fire Island and Jones Beach reefs on the South Shore and around Shinnecock and the Pocketbook out east, though shorts still dominate the box on many boats. Porgy fishing is strong in the Sound, with Shamrock Charterboat reporting excellent scup action on worms and clams. Striped bass remain the soft spot, with surf reports out of the South Fork calling the bite fairly limited for late August.
Late-summer low water pushes Catskills, Adirondacks trout to dawn and dusk
Flylab's newest post opens with the exact scenario playing out across Catskills and Adirondacks trout water right now: creeks running low and warm enough that trout are sliding into deeper pools and feeding mostly at the margins of the day. No fresh buoy or gauge readings crossed our desk this cycle, so treat flow and temp as typical late-August low-water conditions until you check a local gauge yourself. Trout Unlimited's latest brown trout feature is a good reminder that browns get fussier as pressure and low water stack up, rewarding stealthy approaches and precise drifts over searching casts. For stocked rainbows and holdover browns, Gink and Gasoline's case for worm patterns still holds, especially after any rain bumps flows and color. Expect the best action in the first and last hour of daylight, with midday better spent scouting than fishing.
Finger Lakes smallmouth hold steady as tributary flows run thin
A USGS gauge feeding the Finger Lakes system read 64°F with flow down to just 7.45 cfs early Sunday morning, a classic late-August signature after weeks without a big recharge event. Skinny, warm tributary flow like this typically pushes bait and fish out of the feeder creeks and into the main lake basins, where smallmouth bass tend to be the most reliable bite across Cayuga, Seneca, and Skaneateles through this stretch of summer, working rock piles, points, and deeper drop-offs once the sun gets up. Lake trout and landlocked salmon generally slide below the thermocline this time of year, often 60 to 80 feet down, putting them out of reach without downriggers or leadcore, while yellow perch keep schooling over deeper basin flats. We did not get a direct Finger Lakes shop or charter report in this cycle's feed, so treat the species notes below as seasonal expectation rather than a confirmed hot bite, and check with a local shop before making the drive.
Niagara Access Win Sets Stage for Western NY's Fall Run
Water temps sit at 73°F on the regional USGS gauge (04231600), with flow holding near 1,420 cfs — typical late-August conditions for Western New York's Lake Erie and Niagara-area waters. The bigger news locally isn't on the water: per Wired 2 Fish, the Town of Newfane just secured a permanent public access easement to Eighteen Mile Creek below Burt Dam, ending a dispute that had threatened angler access to one of the region's most popular salmon and trout stretches. On the water, smallmouth bass remain the dependable summer target as Erie's warmer shallows push fish toward deeper structure, while walleye action typically leans toward low-light and after-dark presentations while temps sit in the 70s. Trout and salmon stay slow until water cools into fall, when Niagara-area tributaries like Eighteen Mile Creek usually see the season's first pushes. We're watching that transition closely as September approaches.
Lake Ontario kings staging up as Salmon River run nears
Lake Ontario's open-water salmon bite is rolling strong into late August, with Strike Zone Charters reporting that "salmon fishing has been very good this past week," browns and lake trout mixed into the catch alongside the kings. Boats are working 100 to 160 feet of water, running Mag Dipsy Divers deep and green, white, and chartreuse e-chip attractors when fish are holding low in the water column, per the charter's latest report. On the tributary side, the Salmon River-area gauge (USGS 04250750) is reading a modest 22.7 cfs, typical low late-summer base flow before fall rains and cooling water start pulling fish upriver. Water temperature wasn't available at this reading. With kings, browns, and lake trout already active out in the open lake, the Salmon River and Oswego River mouths should start drawing staging fish as August turns to September, so anglers planning a tributary trip should keep an eye on flow and temperature over the next couple of weeks.