Lake Ontario Fishing Reports

Water temperatures along the north shore are sitting between 38 and 45 degrees, and that cold water pushes brown trout tight to shore. This is the best bank fishing of the year on Lake Ontario. The stretch between Port Hope and Cobourg, where rocky bottom structure concentrates alewife and smelt close in, has been the most consistent producer. Casting spoons from shore works. Slow trolling with shallow-running plugs — Rapalas, Bombers — works. The fish are aggressive and they're right there.

Steelhead are running the tributaries. The Ganaraska River through Port Hope opens for steelhead on the fourth Saturday of April, and when it does, anglers pack the banks shoulder to shoulder from the dam down to the lake. It's a zoo, but the fish are there — 8 to 15 pound chrome steelhead fresh from the lake. Float fishing with roe bags is the standard technique. Wilmot Creek gets less pressure and holds fish too, though access is more limited.

Offshore, a few Chinook are starting to show in deeper water, but it's early. The bite is hit or miss and most charter operations are focusing on brown trout and nearshore work in April. If a captain tells you it's too early for salmon, believe them.

This is what people come to Lake Ontario for. Surface temps have climbed into the mid-60s and the thermocline has set up between 50 and 80 feet. Chinook salmon are below it, holding in the 80 to 130 foot range, and they're feeding on alewife and smelt that concentrate around the same temperature break. The forage dictates everything — find the bait, find the fish.

Downrigger trolling is the game. Charter boats run spreads of flasher-fly combos and spoons at multiple depths, adjusting setbacks from 20 to 100 feet behind the ball depending on the day. Some days the fish want a tight setback, some days they want 80 feet of line between the release and the lure. Good captains are constantly tweaking. Trolling speed usually sits around 2.2 to 2.8 mph, though bumping up to 3 mph can trigger reaction strikes when the bite is slow.

Fish in the 20 to 30 pound range are coming in regularly across ports from Niagara to Kingston. Occasional fish over 30 pounds. Coho are scattered through the water column and show up as bonus catches on most trolling spreads — smaller than Chinook (5 to 12 pounds) but better fighters pound for pound, and excellent eating. Lake trout are deep and steady, responding to jigging and slow trolling.

This is peak charter season and the busiest time on the lake. Weekend trips book out weeks in advance. If you can swing a Tuesday or Wednesday, you'll have an easier time getting a boat and the lake will feel less crowded.

Fall on Lake Ontario is underrated. Chinook salmon are staging near tributary mouths, feeding aggressively before their spawning runs, and the catches can be outstanding. Trolling near river mouths and along the shoreline is the primary approach. The fish know where they're going and they're concentrated — which means the action can be fast when you find the staging areas.

Brown trout come back inshore as surface temperatures drop through the 50s. The same nearshore patterns that worked in April work again now: casting spoons, slow trolling shallow plugs, working structure close to shore. The fish are bigger in fall than in spring — they've been feeding all summer in the lake.

Steelhead start their fall run into the tributaries, though the peak usually doesn't hit until November and December. The Ganaraska, Wilmot Creek, and other north shore tribs will all see fish. Float fishing with roe bags and swinging flies are the standard approaches. Check water levels before you go — a heavy rain can blow out a small tributary in a day.

For anglers who fish the Ottawa Valley or Bay of Quinte most of the year, a fall trip to Lake Ontario is worth the drive. The weather is usually decent, the tourist crowds have cleared out, and the fishing is as diverse as it gets anywhere in the province. September is a strong month to book a charter.