Football Season In April?

It is time to play football, or should I say play with footballs.  The NFL season is over while the 2009 Lake Ontario football season has just started.  Of course I am talking about the fishing season for Lake Ontario’s famous Eastern Basin “football” Brown Trout.  Hands down, it is difficult to beat the brown trout angling in the eastern end of the lake, especially the Oswego area.  It is as good as it gets!

Beginning in early April the action begins along the shoreline and in the confines of the Oswego Harbor.  Using light line and light rods makes for some of the best fishing action one can find.  Once hooked, these unpredictable browns can provide plenty of surprises.  Will the fish jump for the sky?  Will it swim to the depths?   Will the preferred lure be a shallow running lure or one down rigged to deeper depthsl, or will each presentation work that day?  The answer is always a surprise and that’s what makes each outing exciting!

Brown trout fishing during the spring is usually characterized by fast action where multiple hookups are quite common. A wide range of presentations and techniques are used making for some interesting situations.  Anglers can often catch one fish on one rod/ reel set up and the next fish on a totally different configuration and then a third on an entirely different rig. Sure does keep it interesting!

Brown trout are wary, crafty creatures that do not wander too far from where they began their lives in the lake.  They are usually social with other browns, which affords the angler the multiple hookup probability.  They will gobble up stick baits, spoons, spinners, tinsel flies, worms and minnows just to name a few types of hook candy.  Speaking of candy, I am reminded about a time when I caught a brown on a young angler’s Gummy Bear candy worm.  True story, and if I remember correctly the color was green.   

I’ll bet a slew of articles have been penned regarding how to catch brown trout.  And I’m quite sure that every one of them will advise you to use light line, medium to slow action rods and to troll slowly in the traditional serpentine pattern.  They will also tell you to look for stained water and fish the warmer plumes in the spring.  Then by late spring, target water where the temperature is in the 50 to 65 degree range near the bottom.  This would all be correct counsel and first-rate advice.

I do have a few other considerations that will provide anglers with a better chance at tangling with the trophies.  Unless equipped with a photographic memory, anglers are advised to keep a log of each trip. Note the conditions such as sky type, wave action, wind direction, trolling speed, lure drop back, lure choice, size, and color.  Do not forget water temp, lure running depth, actual depth and water current as they are also important variables.  The more info, the better.  For future reference, I have begun using an onboard personal computer to record this information as I fish.

After a hook up, record the strike location on the GPS so that you can track backward to the action location.  It might be a good idea to troll back to the strike area because browns are school fish and another hook up is likely. My advice would be to fish that area for a while or a least until other boats see you circling and move in to join the bite.

The crafty brown trout angler keeps his eye on other boats in the vicinity, not to follow them but rather to stay away as gaggles of boats will eventually scoot the fish from an area.  Fishing may be hot and heavy in a given spot and sooner than later a convoy of boats will form.  Eventually the good fishing will cease.  The armada will usually spread out looking for other productive areas.  When you see this happening, vacate the area.  Then as other vessels abandon the honey hole,  return and see if the fish begin feeding again, for is a good bet they will.

Finally, make sure you run compatible lure presentations that permit all lures in the water to run properly at your chosen trolling speed.  Try pattern fishing where all lures are the same make, size, and color.  Run lines away from the boat with fixed mast planer boards.  Another favorite is the inline board such as a Church or Offshore. Try lead core and copper line so that you can present a stealthy approach that moves lures away from the boat and sinks to varying depths.  And do not forget Dipsy Divers as they can be deadly on line shy browns.

Successful Lake Ontario anglers know to keep altering your presentation till you find the lure du jour.  What was deadly yesterday may not work today even under similar conditions. Like I have said in the past, an orange striped lure works well on sunny days in stained water, except on days when it doesn’t!  The moral of the story is do not dig yourself into a rut.  An all time favorite fish catching, secret sure fire lure may not tempt a single trout on a given day, and that’s when success may depend on replacing it with a different offering, it least temporarily.

If you want more proof as to why Eastern Lake Ontario brown trout fishing is so good, consider this fact. The last three NYS record browns have all been caught in eastern waters. All were over 30 pounds and all were caught within a three to four mile wide area.  Need I say more?

Attention to detail will make you a proficient angler. It is the one thing common to all top tier fishermen. Try it, you will like it and you will then know why it is great to be a Lake Ontario troller.