New York fishing reports
577 reports for New York — what's biting, water temps, and where to focus.
Finger Lakes ease into fall as walleye and smallmouth shift patterns
The fall walleye and smallmouth window is opening across Cayuga, Seneca and Skaneateles as surface water eases toward its seasonal cool-down and baitfish start pushing shallow. Fishing the Midwest's breakdown of the bottom-bouncer-and-snell "plain rig" flags it as a go-to for cooling-water walleye, a presentation Finger Lakes anglers can adapt to local structure this time of year. Smallmouth are shifting too. Wired 2 Fish notes bass pushing toward deeper structure and feeding heavily on baitfish as mornings turn cold, with early and late hours producing the most consistent action. Field & Stream's fall live-bait roundup adds a bottom-bouncing minnow rig as the standard approach for big fall browns working bottom contours in the strike zone.
Albie blitzes light up Long Island as the fall run kicks off
False albacore are thick off the North and South Forks and pushing west into Long Island Sound, per On The Water's Long Island and NYC report from September 24, which also has striped bass picking up steam in the Sound as anglers expect this week's nor'easter to kickstart the broader fall run. Water read 64.6°F at Montauk (NOAA CO-OPS 8510560), 65.1°F at Kings Point in the Sound (8516945), and 67.1°F at the Battery (8518750), all typical for the tail end of September. Big fluke continue working out of South Shore inlets as they exit the backwaters for deeper water, a pattern On The Water has tracked through its September 10 and 17 reports.
Catskills and Adirondacks browns settle into a fall pattern
Late September marks the seasonal turn for Catskills and Adirondacks trout water: nights are cooling faster than days, pushing streams toward the fall pattern brown trout key on. Field & Stream's fall rig roundup this week backs a bottom-bouncing minnow rig on a barrel swivel as the standard for working big fall browns, keeping bait pinned in the strike zone as flows cool. A full moon overhead this week adds extra low-light feeding activity to work around at dawn and dusk.
Albies flood Long Island surf as nor'easter fuels fall run
Montauk-area water is holding at 65.5°F per NOAA CO-OPS station 8510560, still summer-warm as Long Island's fall run kicks into gear. False albacore are the headline: On The Water's Long Island and NYC report notes albies spread off the North and South Forks and pushing into Long Island Sound, and East End shops back it up — Tight Lines Tackle calls albies 'plentiful' around Montauk and Shinnecock, White Water Outfitters has fast action on small metals and epoxy jigs at Shinnecock Inlet, and River Bay Outfitters in Baldwin says fly anglers are connecting from the South Shore to Montauk on sparse baitfish patterns. Bluefish are thick along the beaches too, with Tight Lines Tackle's Surf report describing 'piles of bluefish' from East Hampton toward Shinnecock and Captain Dave III out of Sheepshead Bay putting anglers on near-limit blues daily. Fluke remain a steady producer late in their season — Double D Charters landed a double-digit fish in Montauk, and South Shore boats Ebb Tide and Fishfinder II are still finding solid numbers. Striped bass are the developing story: On The Water notes stripers 'becoming more active' in the Sound, and North Shore shops Cow Harbor and Miller Place report the night bite building on bunker chunks and eels. NY DEC is urging boaters to track wind and barometric pressure closely as a nor'easter approaches.
Walleye and Lake Trout Carry NY's Fall Bite as Trout Season Opens
Walleye and lake trout keep carrying the action across New York's Great Lakes waters this week. Brookdog Fishing Co., fishing out of Buffalo and Niagara, describes the walleye bite as strong and consistent through mid-September, with lake trout jigging out of Barcelona turning into a reliable part of the program, and smallmouth bass fishing steadily picking up alongside them. NY DEC's September 18th Fishing Line flags the fall-run trout season now gearing up in Lake Ontario tributaries, the same seasonal cue Hudson Valley and Finger Lakes anglers watch for their own stream and inlet trout fisheries. Today, September 26, also carries DEC's Free Fishing Day tied to National Hunting and Fishing Day, a no-license window worth using this weekend.
Fall turnover nears as Erie smallmouth shift toward structure
Western New York is settling into the heart of the fall bass transition this week. Tactical Bassin's early-fall coverage describes smallmouth increasingly keying on baitfish activity around dawn and dusk as the seasonal cool-down accelerates, and Fishing the Midwest notes that as summer weed growth dies back, bass and other gamefish relocate to whatever green, living cover remains, a pattern likely playing out along Erie's nearshore structure as well. Wired 2 Fish's timing guidance, that bass hunt hardest in low-light hours, holds through this shoulder season.
Brown Trout Join the Trolling Bite Ahead of Tributary Runs
Strike Zone Charters (Lake Ontario) reports a solid week of trolling out on the open lake, with Brown Trout mixed into the bite running 100 to 160 feet down. Preferred depths have been shifting day to day as wind moves the temperature break around, and Mag Dipsey Divers are doing the work; green, white, and chartreuse spoons are the producers right now.
Albies headline as striped bass start to show on Long Island
NOAA CO-OPS station 8510560 off Montauk holds at 66.6°F this morning, with Kings Point (8516945) at 65.3°F and The Battery (8518750) at 69.1°F, barely off late-summer levels for this date. False albacore are the headline species on the East End: White Water Outfitters in Hampton Bays calls them the top producer around Shinnecock Inlet, and Tight Lines Tackle in Southampton reports albies "plentiful" around Montauk and Shinnecock. Striped bass are the story to watch: White Water Outfitters says bass are "now beginning to show" inside Shinnecock Bay, and Tight Lines hears of more stripers north in Rhode Island and Connecticut, an early migration signal. Bluefish stay steady, with Captain Dave III out of Sheepshead Bay reporting almost full boat limits. Fluke remains the bread-and-butter bite, with Double D Charters in Montauk landing a double-digit fish and Bob's Bait and Tackle calling fluking "better this week" on peanut bunker and Gulp.
Fall walleye and lake trout bite holds strong across NY's Great Lakes waters
Brookdog Fishing Co., running charters out of Buffalo, Niagara and Lake Ontario, reports the walleye bite has stayed strong across multiple reports this September, with lake trout action running especially hot out of Barcelona on deep-water jigging presentations. Smallmouth bass are cooperating too, giving clients a reliable third option as conditions shift into fall. These reports come from New York's western Great Lakes fishery rather than the Hudson Valley or Finger Lakes directly, but the pattern they describe, walleye and lake trout locking into a stable fall bite while smallmouth stay active, is the same seasonal shift freshwater anglers statewide should watch for as water begins its cool-down.
Albies Blitz Long Island Ahead of Nor'easter's Push
Water off Montauk sat at 67.3°F this week (NOAA CO-OPS station 8510560), still warm enough to keep the fall run's headline act rolling through the surf. False albacore have taken over the East End: White Water Outfitters in Hampton Bays reports good numbers around Shinnecock Inlet on small metals and epoxy jigs, Tight Lines Tackle in Southampton calls albies "plentiful" around Montauk and Shinnecock, and On The Water's September 24 Long Island report notes albies pushing off both forks. River Bay Outfitters in Baldwin says fly anglers are finding them on sparse baitfish patterns and long casts from the South Shore to Montauk, while WeGo Bait and Tackle on the North Fork has them showing on small resin jigs along the Sound side. Striped bass are building behind them — On The Water notes stripers "becoming more active" in Long Island Sound, and Cow Harbor Bait and Tackle describes a strengthening after-dark bite from Asharoken east toward Sunken Meadow, with fish in the 10- to 20-pound range on bunker chunks and live eels. Bluefish remain a dependable backup from Point Lookout to the West End, and fluke are still filling coolers on the South Shore this late in the season, per Ebb Tide and Double D Charters out of Montauk, where a double-digit fish came over the rail Friday.
Finger Lakes water cools as fall transition sets in
USGS gauge 04232050, in the Finger Lakes region, logged water at 59°F on a flow of just 5.77 cfs as of Thursday afternoon. That's a solid drop from summer highs and puts the system squarely in the seasonal cooling window anglers watch for as Cayuga, Seneca, and Skaneateles head into their fall turnover. Flow is running low and stable, typical baseflow for late September with no recent rain pulse showing in the record. Tonight's full moon adds extra nighttime feeding pressure worth planning a trip around.
Albies and Fluke Fire Up Long Island's Fall Run
False albacore are the headline story across Long Island this week. On The Water's September 17 report has albies pushing west through Long Island Sound, and out on the East End, White Water Outfitters says good numbers are stacked around Shinnecock Inlet on small metals and epoxy jigs while Tight Lines Tackle in Southampton calls them 'plentiful' around Montauk and Shinnecock. Fluke remain the most consistent producer coast to coast: Double D Charters out of Montauk landed a double-digit fluke on a productive late-season bottom bite, Bob's Bait and Tackle in Amity Harbor is finding keepers on peanut bunker and Gulp in the bay, and Captain Dave III out of Sheepshead Bay describes a consistent keeper fluke bite alongside near-limit bluefish. Water temps back up the fall-transition read — 67.6°F at Montauk and 69.4°F at Kings Point in the Sound (NOAA CO-OPS), both comfortably in the range that keeps hardtails and bait moving through the inlets this time of year.