Fishing and Outdoors in WNY: Goodbye to Old Man Winter

Article & Photos By Capt. Frank Campbell

Destination Niagara USA Director of Outdoor Promotions

It is said that March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb. After this winter, I can only hope that saying is true.

The brutal cold and snow that has gripped the Niagara Frontier for far too long is taking its toll on most people I’ve talked with. According to the weather forecasters, for the rest of the month we are supposed to enter a more-normal weather pattern with moderating temperatures.

The deep freeze has also affected fishing, or at least the ability to attempt to fish. This year, for the first time in a long time, the charter captains had to cancel trips due to the launch ramp at Lewiston being frozen up so deeply that not even the backhoe normally used to break the ice was able to clear a path for the boats to access the river.

The lower Niagara River offers some of the best winter fishing opportunities the nation has to offer. It is a frustrating scenario, as customers who have been waiting to go out on the lower Niagara to help cure cabin fever were turned away enroute to the dock or while waiting for attempts to open the ramp run their course.

Wintertime on the Niagara River can be both beautiful and rewarding. Nowhere else in the country can match the size, the diversity and the numbers of fish available out of Lewiston. People travel from all over the country, as we offer one of the few opportunities to open-water fish in January and February. We need to find a solution to keep the launch ramp open and invite anglers to enjoy our fishery and all that Lewiston has to offer in the wintertime.

The timeline for opening the fish-cleaning station in Lewiston has once again changed, and now it will be pushed back to April 1, as per the contractor. The new date is six weeks after the mid-February timeframe recently given. On a positive note, the stairs leading to the dock area are being installed and look to be completed in the very near future. They will be a welcomed luxury after walking the road down to the dock all winter.

The Greater Niagara Fishing Expo was another success.

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•The Greater Niagara Fishing Expo was another success despite some of the worst weather we have had all winter. The reviews from seminar attendees and vendors alike were very positive. More than 50% of patrons visited the expo for four days, and a good portion of the seminar attendees sat through over 10 seminars. If you didn’t get a chance to spend the day at the fishing expo, I highly encourage you to mark your calendars for Feb. 19-22, 2026. Note that it’s a date change from previous years.

•The Niagara River Anglers Association is holding its winter steelhead contest March 29 on the lower Niagara River and select Lake Ontario tributaries. The top three steelhead taken will be awarded cash prizes based on the number of entries. Sign up at The Wicked Worm in Youngstown or online at www.thewickedworm.com. For more information, contact Richard Brant at 716-783-1597.

•Some of the best fishing opportunities Western New York has to offer are coming in the next few months with the warming waters. Salmon will begin to feed in the shallows, as well as the smallmouth, and good trout fishing will continue through spring.

The warmer water temperatures also mark the return of the smelt to the Lower Niagara, as they look to spawn when the water hits the upper-30s to low-40s. The smelting isn’t quite what it was when I was growing up, but there still is opportunity to catch your limit of the tasty fish swinging a net in the currents of Artpark or the sand docks.

If dipping smelt just isn’t on your agenda, but you still enjoy getting to sample the deep-fried deliciousness, then you are in luck. The Smelt Capital of the World, Lewiston, is holding its annual Smelt Festival on May 23 at Academy Park. For more information, check the Upward Niagara Chamber website at www.upwardniagara.com. I hope to see you there.

•I hope to see you enjoying the local outdoors. Every week, I produce a fishing report – Niagara County Fishing Hotline – which you can access online at www.niagarafallsusa.com or by simply calling 716-282-8992, Ext. 4, to hear what’s up in the world of fishing. It is updated every Wednesday.