My main strength as a guide is on warmwater species, specifically Bass. I enjoy chasing both Largemouth and Smallmouth Bass. While fishing for bass, we may run into some great Pike, Pickeral, Walleyes, Sheepshead or Panfish. All of these fish are great species, and provide their own challenges.
The area that I focus my guide efforts is Central New York. Oneida Lake and Onondaga Lake are my most central waters. However, some other area lakes offer some magnificent fishing opportunities. Places like Otisco Lake, Skaneateles Lake and the Seneca River all have some wonderful fishing, and great scenery.
I also offer special trips to Chaumont Bay, Lake George and Lake Champlain. These three bodies of water are world renowned, and I want to give you the opportunity to experience them!
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Sat. 11/14/09 I spent the morning on Skaneateles Lake with Hays and his Son. They are both good anglers. We had a very nice weather (I forgot it was November out there). Surface water temps were around 48 degrees. The guys did most of their damage with blade baits, fished vertically between 21-28 ft of water. It was a mixed bag of fish, including Lake Trout, Smallmouth, Rock Bass and Perch. Again, Skaneateles this time of year can yield a variety of fish in the same areas, which makes the fishing pretty interesting. I look forward to getting out on the weater with these guys again!
Wed. 11/11/09 I checked out the Baldwinsville section of the Seneca River today with my father, Jim. We have fished this section of the river a lot over the years, but never this late in the season. We had a surface temps about 49 degrees, a moderate amount of current, and a solid stain in the water. We eventually located some awesome smallmouths on outside bend, main river ledges. Most fish were caught on the rocky break from 6 or 7 down into 13 feet of water. Most fish were caught on a 1/4oz weighted YUM tubejig, in a variety of colors. It was an awesome afternoon, with some nice sun and a little breeze. What was most exciting was the overall quality of the fish. All but one fish were between 17 and 19.5 inches. The heaviest weighing 3lb14oz.
Sat. 11/7/09 I had a trip today with John and Jim from Buffalo. We hit Skaneateles Lake early, for a half day trip. Like many November days, it was Cold and Windy!! Wow, it was actually one the roughest days I have ever fished Skaneateles Lake. We had surface temps around 49 degrees, and many of the fish that I had found on Thurs. prior, had moved. The guys did managed some Lake Trout and Rock Bass for their efforts. The lakers are very pretty on there, although not really as big as the other finger lakes will give up. The guys fished hard, but were ready to retreat back the their Inn after the cold morning on the water.
Mon 10/12/09- Myself and fellow fishing guide John Gaulke hit Chaumont Bay today. It was cold! We launched the boat with air temps around 28 degrees! It was calm though, so as the day progessed, it got quite pleasant out there. We hit a few new areas, and some areas that I have fished before. We saw about a half dozen smallies very shallow (2-4ft deep), but seemed to spook more fish than anything. We moved to an intermediate depth of about 6-8 feet and proceeded to catch some nice smallies, with one chunk tipping the scales at 4lbs. The action came exclusively on 3-4 inch tubes. I was mostly throwing a 3.5inch green pumpkin YUM tube on a 1/4oz head. We couldn't get any reaction bite going whatsoever, be it rattlebaits, jerkbaits, spinnerbaits or topwater. I would say the key to today's fishing was being in a productive area when the sun came out. Much of our catch came during the small window of sunshine we got yesterday. John also managed a big drum, a pickeral and some perch. Overall, it was a fun way to spend an autumn day!
Wed. 10/7/09- I checked on Oneida again today. The bite was similar to the weekend. Good fishing with some nic quality bites (up to 3.25lbs). Most of the fish came dragging tubes and grubs. I did get some half-hearted hits in extremely shallow water on some wakebaits and topwaters, but there was little commitment from the fish with those lures. I checked some of my usual deep haunts, and nobody was home. I think much of the fall transition is underway to the shallower rock/sand flats, and the river channel breaks. I expect fishing to stay good and maybe even improve as the water temps continue to fall. Give me a call if you want to check it out!!
Sat 10/3/09 I got out on Oneida today preparing for some upcoming trips. It was a beautiful day on the water, and a fine break from the prevailing weather pattern of the last week. The surface temps were in the low 60's. There was some light schooling activity when the lake calmed down, and the fish would chase a Spit-N Image and a Pop-R. There was also a pretty solid grub and tube bite on some ultra shallow rock flats, and in the 12-14ft range. The fish were very strong and pretty as can be. Fall on Oneida is a great thing!!
9/19-9/26/09- To finish off the month of September, I spent the week on Western Lake Erie. I was competing in a BASS event out of Sandusky Bay, OH. I have been to that part of the lake before, and I am still having trouble patterning quality fish. I am trying to figure out how the water color, bottom composition, wind currents and lake currents work together to position fish. I caught some beautiful bass, but I had trouble staying with them from day to day. It was a great learning experience, and I am excited to bring much of what I learned back the Upstate NY and share with you all!!
Friday 9/4/09- I spent the day on Skaneateles doing some scouting and recreational fishing. It was a gorgeous day, and the deep water pattern held up well. Again, the 4" watermelon colored YUM Houdini Worm did most of the damage. Most of the smallies were caught between 29-35ft. There was some mixed grass on the bottom, and there were also plenty of rockbass mixed in with the smallies. In the afternoon, I moved a bit shallower and hit some small grassbeds that have managed to not get harvested (yet). The fish reacted well to a Green Pumpkin with Green and Red Flake tube. They wanted a really heavy weight too. Usually in the 10ft depth range I would thow a 1/4oz jig. These fish didn't mess with that, but would hit a 3/8oz. jig that was bombing quickly downward. Interesting thing to experiment with if you aren't getting bit.
I am pretty booked up through September, but I have many openings in October. It is an excellent time to fish in Upstate New York, so don't hesitate to contact me about a trip!
Fri. 8/29/09- I guided Tony and his wife Barbara on Skaneateles today. I had scouted out some deep fish (23-40ft), and a few shallow spots (10-15ft). Tony was quick to learn the dropshot technique. The green-pumpkin 4" Houdini Worm did most of the legwork on the smallies. Again, as mentioned in past reports, the use of electronics was critical. We could easily see these smallmouth (and perch and rockbass) on the graph, helping us stay in productive areas. The smallies were coughing up perch (some as big as 6"). When the sun came out mid-morning, switching to a watermelon colored worm was a little better. It seems that more translucent watermelon does a better job in the clear water when the sun is shining. Tony also landed a nice bass on a Rebel Magnum Pop-R over about 15ft of water. It was a very enjoyable morning on the water with two excellent folks!
8/15-21- I just spent the week at the north end of Lake Champlain. What an amazing and extremely diverse fishery! I have put a lot of time into this body of water over the last five years, and I am starting to understand it pretty well. An angler can really fish their strengths here, whether it is deep smallmouth, mid-depth smallmouth, or shallow largemouth. I focused primarily on mid-depth smallies and the shallow largemouth bite. The fish didn't seem to move that deep this summer, probably due to the extremely cold July. I was able to work some schools of big smallies with a dropshot many of the days, and also flip shallow reeds and cattails for largemouth. This event really drove in the importance of electronics on the boat. I used both the two dimensional and the side-scan sonar to locate productive areas, and not waste time in unproductive spots. Many clients notice how much faith I put in my graphs when offshore. I want to make sure that your time on the water is spent in areas with a high probability of hookups. If anyone is interested in a Champlain trip (one or many day) in 2010, please let me know, and we will try to work something out!
Wed. 8/12/09- Today I guided Sean and his son Cody on Oneida. We got out about 6:15 for a half-day morning trip. They were up visiting the area from Virginia, and wanted to see what these lake smallies (vs. their river smallies) were all about. Sean got into them right away. He landed a few really nice smallmouth. Cody also had some action, on the tube and grub early, and then on some topwater later in the morning. I saw some of my first real offshore schooling activity today. The lake slicked off and individual fish were up busting and swirling. That makes for some fun fishing. Ever notice how they bust just out of reach? Or when you trolling-motor to an area, to then have them start busting where you came from? Seems to always be the case :-) Overall, it was a great morning, and I look forward to seeing these two again!
Sun 8/2/09- I had a great trip on Oneida today with Mike. Mike was the winner of my Take a Soldier Fishing promotion. Mike listened close and really picked up on the tube jig tactic well. The fish have been keying pretty hard on crawdads, so dragging that tube along the bottom has been a dominant tactic for the last couple weeks. Mike fished hard through a number of torrential downpours, and caught fish no matter if the wind picked up, it got cloudy, it rained, or sun came out. Mike finished the day with 13 smallies, all between 14-20 inches. It was an awesome day. He was also kind enough to show me how to make and eat a military MRE.....a hot meal on a bassboat!!!
Fri. 7/31/09- I guided Jeff from McGraw, NY on a half day trip today. Oneida was the destination...and it was on FIRE! What a great morning. Surface temps were between 74 and 76 degrees. We got underway at 7, and within an hour Jeff not only had a few big smallies but also a limit of walleyes in the boat!!! I don't proclaim to know that much about the Oneida walleye fishery, but sometimes the smallies and walleyes are using the same area, like today. We used a variety of crawdad imitations, including tubes and grubs. We primarily probed deeper offshore structure, like deep grasslines, humps and bars. The one shallow area we hit was also stacked up too. Jeff landed about a dozen smallies between 14 and 21 inches!! The 21incher had a mouth and head on it like a largie. The fish seem of moderate weight, but I am sure this current feeding binge will fatten up a lot of the thinner fish. Jeff did a great job picking up the tubejig and grub technique, and it paid off with some great fish!!
7/22,23, 25- I spent much of last week on Skaneateles Lake. Early in the week I was checking out some stuff that I figured should be setting up well for the summer, but kind of stuggled. I had a few fish, mostly small. Basically, I wasn't throwing the dropshot enough. Under the conditions I was facing, strong south winds, warming surface temps, and very random weather patterns, the shallow bite was inconsistent at best. It seemed that if you got your boat out in 20-30 feet of water, and found some hard bottom, you would catch fish.
I spent Thurs. on the water with my friend RC. He was very helpfull in jogging my brain to get out on the breaklines, and was also very helpfull in showing me his approach to the lake. He is a great fisherman.
On Saturday morning I guided Tim and Karen. They were up vacationing from NYC and wanted a morning on the water. The sun was out bright, but the south winds were blowing pretty good. We tried some shallow stuff early, but then moved out deeper, and picked up the dropshot. They both took to the technique quickly. We were doing a mix of casting and drifting. We landed about 5 smallies, including one serious chunk that did some acrobatics for us. We also landed a few rock bass, and a pumpkinseed that had the colors of a serious tropical fish. It was a great way to spend a Saturday morning!
Thurs 7/9/09-7/12/09- I made a multi-day trip up to the St. Lawrence River out of Ogdensburg. It was a great trip. That river has so many fishing options, it can blow you mind! The fish were in a post-spawn/early summer mode. Everything is behind compared to normal summers, but that doesn't mean the fish aren't catchable. I found a good concentration of fish both shallow and deep. The shallow fish were relating the rock points with a mix of grass and boulders. They would strike a XCalibur Rattlebait and also a spinnerbait burned over their head. The deep fish just couldn't resist a dropshot! Using the current as an aid, you could target the fish in current breaks and eddies with the dropshot. Anyone who wants to learn how to fish this technique.is smart! It is a deadly way to present a lure to deeper fish. I love fishing the dropshot and I would be more than happy to spend a day teaching you too!
Fri 7/3/09- I checked in on Onondaga today. The bite seems to be quite slow. The grass and water look great, but I had trouble getting much going with the bass, largemouth of smallie. I know that the weights of local events are down a bit. Anyone know what could be happening? The bite is usually strong there in the mid-summer. I will keep checking in and keep you all posted!
Fri 6/19/09-6/21/09 I had the privelege of fishing Lake George for three days on the the official opening weekend of the traditional bass season. It has become somewhat of a routine for me, and I really enjoy it. The fish on Lake George this time of year are in transition. You may find fish shallow and spawning. You may find some mid-depth fish (10-20ft) which are done spawning, or you may even find some really deep (25-40ft) postspawn fish as well. I really enjoy targeting the deepest group of fish because they seem more reliable on a day to day basis. This year was no different. After finding some shallow largemouths on docks and cribs, checking back a day or two later, they up and vanished. The fish I was targeting out deep were pretty stable, and am sure will be throughout the summer months. These Lake George fish just can't resist a dropshotted YUM Houdini Worm. Stick with some shade of green and you are usually ok. This lake really shows how being good with electoronics can be a big help. It was a fun trip, and I look forward to my next chance to get up there!
Wed. 6/10/09 I spent the afternoon on the water today with Ryan and Pete, two fine anglers. They joined me on Skaneateles Lake to take advantage of the strong shallow water Smallmouth bite that is happening now. These two men put a serious hurtin' on the fish! We estimated that over two dozen bass were put in the boat, mostly ranging between 1.5 and a solid 3lbs. Both of these guys got the hang of sight fishing and working these smallmouths with little YUM Crawbugs very well. The fish faught hard and were pretty aggressive if you made the proper presentation on them. We also managed to put a bunch of rockbass in the boat, and saw countless other yellow perch and rainbow trout swimming in the same areas we were fishing. Overall, it was an awesome day on the water!
Wed. 6/3/09 We had a fabulous day on the water today. I hosted Buster and Dan of Utica for a full day on Oneida. What a great trip!! These are two of the nicest guys you could ever meet...unless you are a fish! Once they got the hang of dragging a tube through the shallow rock and sandy flats, it was game-on. The key today was any color variation of green-pumpkin in a YUM tube on warm, shallow, rocky flats. The day started a bit slow with surface temps on the north shore at 59 degrees (4-5 degrees lower than a few days prior). However, once we got around some 62-64 degree water the bite picked up quite a bit. Not only did these two land over a dozen nice smallmouth, but they also boated five freshwater drum (they will PULL your line), and some fat rock bass. A great day with great folks!!
Fri.5/29/09 With some upcoming trips on Oneida, I got out to do some scouting today. We had a hard westerly, and extremely overcast conditions. I am still learning how to maximize the bass fishing on those overcast days. Anyone who says sunshine is tough for bass fishing must be crazy, because I invite the sun to shine most trips. My father landed a gorgeous 3lb 10oz. post-spawn smallie that absolutely CRUSHED his chartruese XCalibur Xr 50 rattlebait. What an energetic fight!! We also got on some fish with YUM tubes. I landed my first sheephead of the year. What a strong fish they are!!!
Sun 5/24/09 I decided to check out Onondaga today with my Father. The bass seemed to be in the early stages of the spawn. I am sure there are some fish who are all done spawning, but it seemed like most were in the skittish mood right before they hit the beds. We worked a couple fish with YUM Lizards and Zellamanders. The fish that we landed were all healthy and strong. The biggest of the day was a 21", 4lb 7 oz largie. It was a beautfiul day to be on the water. Many folks would call it a "chamber of commerce" kind of day.
Fri. 5/22/09- Spent another full day on Oneida today. I checked out some key north shore areas, looking for spawning smallmouths. Well we found 'em! There were some fish crusising and feeding, with another batch locked on beds. All gladly took our offerings of YUM Tubejigs. We also managed to put a few in the boat with an XCalibur Twitchbait, mostly silver metallic/black back. Prime depth seemed to be about 4.5-7 feet, which made it a little tough to see the beds unless the wind died down. We also manged to get a few strikes on a XCalibur Zell Pop. Who says it is too early for some topwater action!?!
Thurs. 5/21/09- I hit Oneida for a full day with Bill today. What an amazing day to be on the water!! Sun was out, air was hot, and the fish were biting!!! Tapping in to the normal pre-spawn/spawn smallie pattern on the lake, we hit rocky flats between 4-7 feet of water, throwing mostly Green Pumpkin YUM tubejigs on 1/4oz heads. Surface temps ranged from 61-63 on the main lake, and upwards of 68 in the back cuts and coves. We managed to put a bunch of smallies in the boat, most weighing between 1.5 and 2.5lbs, with a couple 3's mixed in. We also landed a sheepshead (strong fighting fish in the lake) , walleye, a bunch of pickeral, and even a couple bowfin! New York has some awesome variety of gamefish. Give me a call, and you can see for yourself!
Sat. 5/16/09- Today I had a half day trip with Paul and Doug of Wisconsin. Doug is a Cornell student, and his father Paul was in town to pick him up for the summer. What a great opportunity for me to take a father and son out for a day of fishing! We had very heavy south winds (sustained 15-20, gusting over 30 by midday). We targeted shallow grass flats in the northern section of the lake. The pickerel were up and active, with us landing a half dozen fish. They were really keying on the Gold/Green pattern spinnerbaits, as well as perch pattern jerkbaits. The hottest lure was the Booyah HD spinnerbait in Kentucky Magic color. We also had some nice perch take our offerings as well. The afternoon brought some wicked T-Storms, so it was good we got off the water when we did.
Fri. 5/15/09- I had a full day trip on Cayuga Lake today, jigging for Lake Trout. It was a unique situation, with two anglers in my boat, and two more in a "chase" boat. All four men (Aaron, David, Roy and Ace) were enthusiastic fisherman who will certainly be honing their laker jigging techniques and whacking a lot of big Cayuga fish this season. The bite was quite slow, with super calm, sunny conditions, the fish were not in a super chase mode. We did manage to land two lakers between 22-26 inches, lose one giant at the boat (30+ inches), and have some short strikes and quick hook and lose hookups. The fish came on both YUM Houdini Shads on a 1oz. Jig, and a paddle tail shad body lure.
Wed. 5/13/09- I took a quick trip over the Onondaga this afternoon. I put in about 3 hours to find that the post front conditions really knocked these fish down. Water temps had dropped about 7 degrees in the last day or so, and the bass that had been sniffing out the shallow flats were uninterested, and/or not there. It seems that until the spawn is underway, the most consistent spring action in that fishery is in the river. The lake seems to be hit or miss until post-spawn/summer for the bass. I will keep testing this theory in the upcoming weeks.
Wed. 5/6/09- This afternoon I decided to take a trip over to Cayuga Lake and do some scouting for upcoming trips. I had the opportunity to fish with friend and fellow guide John Gaulke of Finger Lakes Angling Zone guide service. We hit the north end of the Lake, and came to the conclusion that the lake's bass are back and ready to eat!! In the four hour trip, we landed between 6-8 fish, including an amazing 4lb smallie that gobbled up a Booyah HD spinnerbait, and a PIG of a largie weighing in at 5lb 2oz. This fish were fat, strong, and tons of fun! It is clear that spinnerbaits, in a variety of sizes, colors, and styles are a great tool for pre-spawn fish. It was a great afternoon on the water, and I would love to share the experience with someone like you!
Thurs. 4/30/09- I took a scouting run out to Onondaga Lake/Seneca River this afternoon. Water temps are rising, and the fish are moving up with it!! I decided to try some of the flats in the River and took advantage or a nice shallow bite. Water temps were hovering around 56-57 degrees, with an overcast sky, wind, and some threatening storms. I did most of the damage with a 3/8oz. Tux 'n Tails Booyah Spinnerbait with Tandem and Double Colorado Blades. I would throw the bait up on the bait up onto the shallow flat (.5-3 feet deep) and pull it across any piece of cover available, like a grass pile, log, stump or piling. The Largies would come up and eat it good!!! It was a fun, target oriented way to catch fish.
Wed. 4/22/09- I had an afternoon trip with Bill today on Otisco Lake. There is usually a pretty strong, spring jerkbait bite going on there for Large and Smallmouth Bass, and today did not dissapoint. There were many largemouths boated, and one little smally. Surface temps ranged anywhere from 45 in the mid portions of the lake to 49.5 at the north end. The main key seemed to be isolated grass beds in 3-7 feet of water. The fish were clearly keying on metallic pattern jerkbaits, as more matte colors went nearly untouched...switch back to a metallic (Silver/Blue, Silver/Black) and the fish would be eating again. The XCalibur Xt3 Twitchbait was the lure that got the most, and the best quality of fish. Spring is here...Don't miss the Action!!
Mon. 4/20/09 - Just returned home from the first Bassmaster Northern Open Event of 2009 on the Chesapeake Bay, MD. It was a very challenging event. We had some brutal weather conditions during the pre-fish period, and some challenging water conditions during the tournament. I was unable to put together any sort of pattern for quality, keeper fish during the event, and was left near the bottom of the standings. I am SUPER excited, though, to get back up to New York and take advantage of the bite that will be really turning on with the warming weather!!
Thurs 4/2/09- Made another trip to the Onondaga Lake and the Seneca River today. Surface temps in the lake are creeping into the mid to upper 40's with the calm sunshine we had. My success came in the river throwing Green Pumpkin YUM tubejigs in 5-18 feet of water. The four smallies I landed were fat, healthy and quite spunky even in the chilly water.
Wed. 4/1/09- Made a couple hour trip to the Seneca River, downstream of Onondaga Lake. I had heavy cloud cover with a mix of light and heavy rain, giving way to a south wind. Surface temps were around 41 degrees, water clarity was stained. I managed to land 7 smallmouths between 1.5 and 2.25 lbs. All the fish looked healthy, and gave a decent fight in that cold water. The fish bit on chrome Heddon Sonar between 15 and 20 feet of water.
