Fishing Report For Keuka Lake, NY

Current Report: Fair To Good

FALL. Fall is here and smallmouth are following schools of baitfish into coves and bays 6 to 18 feet deep. They thrive in the cold, clean water, which is an ideal environment for them. Locals report that tube jigs are a great choice when the bass are around 15 feet deep. Drop shot rigs with small worms or shad shaped plastics are also popular in 10' water, or deeper. Jerkbaits, deep-diving crankbaits, and slow-rolled spinnerbaits, are also successful, when bass are shallow to mid depth. Later in Fall, smallies move to slightly deeper water, around 10 to 25 feet deep. Fishing shallow for smallmouth is often good on cold, windy, cloudy and rainy days.

WINTER. Winter will isolate them around deeper structure, points, flats and creek channels, often suspending in open water above these features. They can generally be found from 15 to 40 feet deep. Jigging spoons, tube baits, drop-shot worms, jigs and Ned rigs tend to temp smallmouth in deep water. I like to work these deeper haunts very slowly, as the bass are somewhat sluggish. Here they hold, feeding less frequently, awaiting warmer water to return in Spring.

SPRING. After ice out, when water temperatures rise into the 50's, smallmouth move from deep wintering spots to shallower water, just outside spawning areas. They feed heavily in 3 to 12 feet of water at this time, and are typically caught on jerkbaits, crankbaits, tube baits, Ned rigs, and crayfish imitating plastics. Once water warms into the high 50's, they move into shallower water, and create nests in gravel or sand areas, then lay their eggs. Females then move to deeper water and males remain to guard the eggs, and then the fry. After a couple weeks, the males also move into 10 to 18 feet deep, and feed aggressively. Crankbaits, tube baits, Ned rigs, plastic worms, spoons and swimbaits are catching smallies during this period.

SUMMER. Summer is the best time to be on the lake for fast, smallmouth action. Topwater lures, crankbaits and tube baits are among the best choices here. Smallmouth bass feed shallow early and late in the day in 8 to 12 feet of water. They are being caught on topwater, crankbaits, swimbaits, Ned rigs and tube baits. Smallmouth bass here feed on crawfish and small sunfish. They prefer rocky or gravel bottom areas, as this is where crayfish live. During the hotter parts of the day, they are being caught on points, humps, and ledges around 20 to 25 feet deep. Often these deeper fish tend to school, so finding them can deliver some fast action. Anglers fishing around the section of the lake around weedlines on the northern shore, are reporting good catches.

Current Report: Good

FALL. Lake trout are returning to relatively shallow water, as Fall weather cools the lake. Lake trout feed on small fish, so lures imitating baitfish, sunfish or small trout are good choices. Other choices include nightcrawlers or Berkeley Power Crawlers, fished on drop-shot rigs. Flashy spoons can be fished at any depth, either jigging, trolling or cast and retrieve. For big lakers, use larger baits. They spawn in the Fall, and for a few weeks can typically be found 10 to 30 feet deep on points, flats and humps that have a rocky bottom. Lake trout feed on small fish, so lures imitating baitfish, sunfish, perch or small trout are good choices. Cloudy days, early mornings and early evenings are the best time to catch big lakers. Later in Fall they return to 20 to 40 feet deep, or deeper. Spoons, jigged vertically within the target depth can entice bites. Trolling with spoons, brightly-colored jerkbaits, and spinners with a variety of rigging methods to get these lures to run deep. For big lakers, fish slightly deeper and use larger baits.

WINTER. Favoring water temperatures in the 40's, lake trout find areas to their liking in 20 to 50 feet of water, and tend to stay there throughout the cold months. Learning these areas before the lake ices over can get you into some of the better area for ice fishing. Patient anglers willing to work slowly are catching some nice lake limits through the ice. After ice out, trolling with leaded line or downriggers, or vertical jigging with spoons and jigs, completes the cold-water season in 30 to 60 feet of water, or deeper.

SPRING. Prime laker fishing season is during Spring. Spring weather finds lake trout, along with baitfish, into 10 to 35 feet of water. Early Spring is a prime time to catch big lakers. Lakers are caught in areas of the lake which have deep water next to shallower, feeding spots. Jigs and heavy spoons are catching the majority of these big lakers. Slow trolling with leaded line or downriggers allows small crankbaits and spinners to be worked in deeper water, which also produces some nice fish. Later in Spring they typically drop into 60 to 150 feet of water.

SUMMER. Summer heat drives lake trout deeper, generally below the thermocline in 20 to 50 feet deep. Early and late in the day, lakers may feed as shallow as 10 feet deep. Generally, lake trout prefer to stay deep, near the thermocline throughout Summer. They look for depth variations like ditches, channels, humps and ledges, but are being caught in the deeper water around this structure. Heavy spoons and jigs, as well as very slow trolling, with leaded line or downriggers, produce many of the lakers being caught during Summer. In late summer concentrate on 25 to 45 feet of water.

Current Report: Fair To Good

The northern pike in Keuka Lake love to cruise the shorelines attacking anything that swims. Northerns are being caught on crankbaits, topwater, and jerkbaits, especially around reeds and vegetation and other shallow cover. Summer brings these big eaters shallow, and locals report a slow, steady retrieve.

FALL. As the weather starts turning cold, water temperatures cool fastest in the shallows. This brings baitfish into shallower waters, and northerns follow along with this food source. They hang around weedbed edges, main-lake points, reefs, and rocky shorelines to ambush prey in 10 to 30 feet of water. This is a prime feeding time as they prepare for winter. It is also a good time to catch a trophy pike.

WINTER. Pike remain active in Winter, often congregating in or near remaining weedbeds, especially along the edges. Other structure options include long points, reefs, ledge drop-offs, and rocky humps, ideally in 5 to 10 feet deep, nearby deeper water. Ice fishing was good here in winter. At times, when oxygen is depleted in deeper water, northerns suspend directly under the ice, where maximum oxygen is available. Other times they hold on structure in 10 to 20 feet of water, sometimes deeper.

SPRING. After ice out, northern pike migrate to shallow, warmer pockets, bays and coves. Once water temperatures reach around 40 degrees, they move into even shallower areas with vegetation, to spawn. Ideal depths range from 8 to 25 feet. After spawning they linger in the shallow bays for a short period. Once water temperatures rise into the 50's, they move to deeper weedbeds and shallow structures adjacent to even deeper water. Bright colors, whites and flashy lures appeal to these predators. Noisy topwater lures can also produce some spectacular strikes. Alternate between baits until you identify which one triggers the most bites for the day.

SUMMER. Northern pike scatter all around the lake, rather than gather in groups. This makes them difficult to locate. During the day they are holding from 10 to 30 feet deep, on ledges, reefs, weedlines, rock piles, islands and channel edges. Some of the larger specimens are suspending in open water, just outside feeding areas. Trolling or drift fishing produces some nice catches, using spoons, big spinners, cut bait, and deep diving crankbaits. Early and late in the day, they often move shallow to feed and can be caught around most weedy shorelines, in 5 to 12 feet of water. Noisy topwater lures, spinnerbaits and Johnson spoons with curly-tail grubs, are catching nice pike shallow.