<b>NEW YORK</b>

<b>Salmon River</b>

The first snowfall of the season settled along the Salmon River, said Eric from <b>All Seasons Sports</b> in Pulaski. But it was just a dusting, and the river was easily accessible from the banks. The waters maintained a flow of 335 CFS, and steelhead anglers averaged three to six fish per day that weighed up to 8 pounds. Late mornings after 9 a.m. through the mid afternoons were the best times to catch, and stoneflies or egg sacks in chartreuse, white or blue worked. The bigger holes at the Trestle and Schoolhouse pools were places to look.

Snow fell on the area for the first time this season, said Victor from Altmar’s <b>Fish and Ride NY</b>, a rental rancher for anglers. Plenty of fish swam the river, and anglers averaged four to eight steelheads a trip. A few monsters were nailed, and brown trout were also landed, and fishing for them should continue to improve with colder weather. Trout beads under floats, blue eggs and pink worms, or really all the usual baits, connected, and anglers just needed to get out there and fish. Fish and Ride NY offers a rental rancher with all the amenities for anglers and other outdoor enthusiasts. Stay the weekend or a week, and the staff can recommend fishing guides and other services.

<b>PENNSYLVANIA</b>

A few species were on tap throughout the Delaware River, said Bill from <b>Brinkman’s Bait & Tackle</b> in Philadelphia. A pick of largemouth bass was available at Dredge Harbor, and lizards and crank baits got attention. Catfishing for up to 5-pounders was stellar off Linden Avenue, Princeton Avenue and the Frankford Arsenal, and shrimp and nightcrawlers cajoled them up. Walleye fishing was hit or miss in the upper stretches of the river. But the Lambertville section gave up five for one customer who fished minnows, and the deeper waters at Byram served up five to ten a day for another customer, who trolled chartreuse crank baits and cast jigs. Smallmouth anglers worked jigs on the bottom at the Frenchtown Bridge to tie into a few. A few customers got into smallie action on the Jersey side of Yardley.

<b>NEW JERSEY</b>

<b>North Jersey</b>

Merrill Creek Reservoir was the popular spot to fish, and shiners were the go-to bait for all the assortment of species reeled in, said Bill from <b>Bill’s Bait & Tackle</b> in Phillipsburg. Catches were made like Justin Dornblaser’s 6-pound chain pickerel, Charles Green’s 5-pound 12-ounce pickerel, Greg Vold’s 5.4-pound largemouth bass and George Clymer’s 5.3-pound smallmouth bass. Recent trout stockings gave anglers a chance at a trophy trout at the Musconetcong River. Clark Banister creeled a 4-pound 12-ounce brownie there.

Lake Hopatcong put out walleyes on a fairly consistent basis, said Kevin from <b>Ramsey Outdoor</b> in Succasunna. Husky jerks and jigs tricked the fish in the deeper sections. The Pequest River and Ken Lockwood Gorge ran a little low, but rainbow trout in the waters inhaled midges, pheasant-tail nymphs and Prince nymphs in sizes 16 to 22.

Trout fishing was top notch on the streams, said Mark from <b>Meltzer’s Sporting Goods</b> in Garfield. The Wanaque, Ramapo and Pequannock rivers all gave up excellent trouting for anglers drifting garden worms or meal worms. At Lake Hopatcong walleyes were on the bite in the 15- to 25-foot depths, and Rapala ice-fishing jigs and shiners scored big.

Ranger’s Cove at Round Valley Reservoir was red hot for brown trout, said Steve from <b>Lebanon Bait & Sport Shop</b>. Up to 4-pounders and rainbow trout to 5 pounds chewed on nightcrawlers or shiners and also chased down Roostertails. Ranger’s Cove seemed to hold better numbers of browns, and the boat launch area seemed to attract more rainbows. Both trout ate more aggressively from mid afternoons to evenings.

The trout streams fished well, said Bill Hoffman from <b>Skylands Angler</b> from Clinton. Streamers were effective, were really the happening fly, typical by this time of year. But nymphs will also work. Those become choices when insects become less abundant in the waters in the cold months, of course. The fish seemed to hold in the deeper parts of the rivers, also typical of the time of year. Maybe that’s because the fish no longer need to seek the more oxygenated areas like ripples once the stagnant, warm-weather waters disappear. The opportunity for big trout was better now, and those fish also sat in the deeper holes, instead of in the shallows they prefer in summer. They can be less spooky in the deep, or less likely to get spooked by anglers wading into the shallows. Bill noted that big trout constantly move up and down the rivers instead of staying stationary, and are more likely to be found in the middle of the streams than small trout that like to hide behind structure, getting out of the currents, holding in one place. Bill also surf fished, moving south to Island Beach State Park, instead of the beaches farther north around Sandy Hook that he fished earlier in the season. He tends to move south along the shore as the season progresses, looking for somewhat higher water temperatures, and following the migration down the coast. Striped bass were landed on trips, and not a huge population was around, and they didn’t hold tight to shore, and the fish weren’t large, but trips managed to pick them up. Low tides were better, allowing casts to better reach the deeper holes and channels the fish favored. They fed on sand eels, a bait that gathers lower in the water column than bait such as peanut bunker. So lures such as Ava jigs, the long and skinny Super Strike plugs or patterns like Vision sand eels got the strikes. Skylands Angler guides fly-fishing trips for trout on the Musconetcong and Pequest rivers and Ken Lockwood Gorge. Bill aims to teach anglers, whether beginners or advanced, how to fish the rivers, even so they can come back and catch on their own. That includes fly selection, how to fish the flies, casting lessons and all aspects. He also offers fly trips for other freshwater fish, like pike, hybrid striped bass, carp and largemouth bass. Plus he guides trips in the ocean and bay surf during the spring and fall migrations at Sandy Hook and Island Beach State Park with both conventional and fly tackle.

<b>Central Jersey</b>

Customers racked up the most trout action on the Pequest River than all local streams, said Amy from <b>Efinger Sporting Goods</b> in Bound Brook. Rainbows were banked that were smaller, in the 12- to 15-inch class, but some larger ones to 18 inches were hung in the pools. Size-20 San Juan Worms in pink and sizes-16 to -20 midges claimed the fish on the river bottom. A good show of trout also gobbled up shiners along the Round Valley Reservoir shoreline.

Winter trout stocking commenced, and Lake Shenandoah turned out a bunch of good fish on nightcrawlers and spinners thrown from the docks, said Dennis from <b>Murphy’s Hook House</b> in Toms River. In other news, chain pickerel toothed up killies in the Trilco stretch of the Toms River. The front section of Forge Pond was a happening locale to angle in white perch on killies.

The Colliers Mills Wildlife Management Area ponds held activity from both pickerel and largemouth bass that hit shiners, said Eric from <b>Harry’s Army and Navy</b> in Robbinsville. Lake Assunpink was a crappie and largemouth hang out, and both chased after shiners along the stick piles. Carnegie Lake also offered solid crappie and largemouth opportunity.

The trout stocking made for excellent fishing on the South Branch of the Raritan River and the Pequest River, said Bob from the <b>Sportsmen’s Center</b> in Bordentown. Power Baits, Phoebes, Panther Martin spinners and Mepps spinners did a job on the fish. Fly anglers should toss Wooly Buggers and streamers in higher-water streams and midges and nymphs in lower-water creeks. Small- to medium-sized chain pickerel mouthed up shiners in the Colliers Mills Wildlife Management Area lakes as well as the local bog ponds. The picks also whacked flashy types of spinners and spoons. Crappies were sometimes found at Carnegie Lake, honing in on small shiners.

<b>South Jersey</b>

<i><b>Note</b></i>: South Jersey shops including <b>Creek Keepers</b> in Blackwood, <b>Shag’s Bait & Tackle</b> in Salem and <b>Huck’s Place</b> in Millville are now closed down for the winter.

Most anglers headed out to target largemouth bass at South Jersey’s lakes including Grenwich Lake, Stewart Lake and Newton Lake, said Rich from <b>Big Timber Bait & Tackle</b>. The shop sold out of 15 pounds of shiners, a large amount, to those who looked for the fish. Fish still bit in the Delaware River, but angling on the river drops off at this time of year. Striped bass milled around the river, and bloodworms were the best bait. Rick in a past report said the bass already gathered to spend the winter at deeper holes like at the Graveyard north of the Commodore Barry Bridge. The fish collect at such areas through the cold months.

Chain pickerel were a mainstay for local anglers, said Lou from the <b>Sportsman’s Outpost</b> in Williamstown. Malaga Lake was a top producer, and so was Iona Lake. Mepps spinners and shiners were two of the best attractors. Franklinville Lake amassed a good population of crappies eager to smack fathead minnows and small hair jigs tipped with grub tails.

Chunkier largemouth bass to 4 and 5 pounds could be dusted up from Parvin Lake on Rat-L-Traps and suspending jerk baits, said Steve from <b>Blackwater Sports Center</b> in Vineland. Mary Elmer Lake put up decent numbers of the bass and chain pickerel. At Iona and Sunset lakes chain pickerel could be caught on spinners and killies, and at Union Lake crappies nibbled fathead minnows and yellow or white twister tails. Both Shaw’s Mill Pond and the Almond Road area of the Maurice River gave up trout on drifted Power Baits and garden worms.

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