<b>NEW YORK</b>

<b>Salmon River</b>

Many anglers reeled in more fresh steelheads and bigger ones than before on the river, said Ben from <b>All Seasons Sports</b> in Pulaski. The fishing was good, and the river was raised to 1,200 CFS on Tuesday. That flow was supposed to be continued through 12 o’clock that night, and the projected level afterward wasn’t announced at press time. Twelve-hundred is a healthy flow for drift-boating, but is high or fast for fly-fishing. Previously, the river flowed at 900, and before then, at 500. Five-hundred was the level that Ben reported in last week’s report here. The mid to upper river seemed to fish a little better than the lower recently. Mostly trout beads caught, but egg sacks worked. A few brown trout, not a ton, were landed. But some were. Air temperatures fluctuated a lot. The temp was 27 or 30 degrees the other day, and was 50 another day recently. Weather became cold again Tuesday, and snow fell that morning and the previous night, but no snow was accumulated on the ground this season.

<b>NEW JERSEY</b>

<b>North Jersey</b>

A few crappies were tugged from Greenwood Lake on a trip Saturday that Capt. Dave Vollenweider from <b>Live to Fish Guide Service</b> from Montvale took with a friend, Dave said. The friend wanted to fish for catches to eat, so they drop-shotted for crappies, keeping a few, releasing others, with Gulp minnows and leeches. The fish weren’t really schooled abundantly, but were marked along bottom structure like humps 25 to 30 feet down, and were hooked there. The boat would be drifted over the structure, and a crappie would be hooked, then the boat would drift away from the structure. More boaters than usual, though not many, fished the lake, apparently because boats couldn’t be launched at Lake Hopatcong. Hopatcong was drawn down for dock repairs, like annually. Maybe five vehicles with boat trailers were parked at the marina. But every time Dave motored the boat toward one of his favorite holes to fish, another boat was fishing it, and he had to wait till the vessels left. Dave did no musky fishing, but will keep fishing for them this season. He’s caught muskies into December, and some anglers swear by the colder months for better musky fishing. Dave saw a photo of a kid with an estimated 47-inch, 32- or 35-pound musky, a big one, caught at Hopatcong during the weekend. Boats can’t be launched from ramps at Hopatcong, because of the draw down. But the kid must’ve had access to a boat kept at a residence on the lake, dragging the vessel to boatable water. On Greenwood during Dave’s trip, other boaters were seen jigging a couple of sizeable walleyes, and walleye fishing is another option aboard. Largemouth bass catches were neither seen nor heard about, and angling for them seemed slow in chilly waters now. The lake was 49 degrees when Dave’s trip arrived, and was 51 later on the outing. That was about the same as during the previous week.  Moosehead Marina that Dave’s been launching from has now been closed for the season. That’s in New Jersey, and he’ll now have to launch on the lake from DeFeo’s Marina in New York that will be open for a while still. Dave will fish as long as possible this year, until winter weather sets in. A client is slated to fish with him this weekend.  Live to Fish Guide Service guides trips for muskies, walleyes, smallmouth bass, largemouth bass, panfish, trout, carp and more. Lakes fished include Greenwood, Lake Hopatcong, Monksville Reservoir, Echo, Mountain and Furnace. Rivers fished include the Flatbrook, Pequest, Paulinskill and Ramapo.

Nobody was heard about who trout fished, but Rockaway River flowed lower than it should, but at a moderate level, said Don from <b>Ramsey Outdoor</b> in Succasunna. He sees the river often in his travels. Winter trout stocking will begin Monday, and see the <a href=" http://www.state.nj.us/dep/fgw/wintrstk13.htm" target="_blank">New Jersey winter trout stocking schedule</a>. Lakes are stocked then, and the fall stocking, earlier this year, is mostly on rivers. Waters seemed cool for largemouth bass fishing. A lot of customers fished saltwater’s fall migration. Some customers geared up for steelhead fishing on upstate New York’s Salmon River.

Customers who fished hit Passaic River mostly, and the river is one heck of a fishery, said Joe from <b>Fairfield Fishing Tackle</b> in Pine Brook. Northern pike, smallmouth bass and a few largemouth bass bit in the river, running at a normal level. Blue Fox spinners, Zoom fluke and Senko worms were tossed for them. Catfish in the river inhaled baits like chicken gizzards.

<b>Central Jersey</b>

Trout streams ran low, but waters were cold, said Angelo from <b>Efinger Sporting Goods</b> in Bound Brook. Low temperatures were good for the fish, but trout were finicky in the skinny waters. Light tippets and small flies were fished. Patterns that caught included midges, pheasant-tail nymphs, isonychias, stoneflies, caddis, eggs and worms. Angelo assumed trout sometimes still spawned, but he hooked trout on Monday. Though autumn’s main spawning might have been finished, Angelo believed that brown and brook trout will spawn sporadically through winter. That seems the reason eggs catch throughout winter. Eggs will come into play again when species including suckers spawn in spring. This week’s cold snap, starting Tuesday, would probably turn off trout a few days, maybe through Thursday or Friday. But once the fish become acclimated, maybe by Friday, they should bite again. When Angelo fished for trout Monday, in warmer weather, trout were seen rising to bugs on the surface. Anglers now will fish for trout in the middle of the day, or will no longer target early and late in the day, because of the seasonal, cooler weather.  Anglers will be cold, with numb fingers, ice frozen in rod guides, and nets frozen to backs. But fewer anglers on the waters is great this season. Only the hardcore will fish. In other news, musky catches were still made, sporadically, on lakes. Some of the peak musky fishing might’ve just passed. They’re active in autumn. Catfish will school together in the cold at places like Delaware River, Spruce Run Reservoir and maybe Round Valley Reservoir. Trout fishing was good from shore at Round Valley and Merrill Creek Reservoir on M&M combos – meal worms and marshmallows – and shiners under bobbers. Largemouth and smallmouth bass fishing ended, really, because of cold. An occasional largemouth might be picked up when a spoon is slowly fished along bottom for lake trout or bait is soaked along bottom for catfish.

From <b>Murphy’s Hook House</b> in Toms River, Jeff socked chain pickerel from Winding River on shiners, he said. He also clocked them on shiners from the Toms River at Trilco, the closed building supply. No sign identifies the building, but locals know the stretch by the name, located near Garden State Parkway. Pickerel, a fish willing to chew practically no matter how cold waters become, also hit at cranberry bogs. Spinners will draw them to smash the hook there. Nothing was heard about trout fishing, not even how trout streams flowed. Spring Lake and Lake Shenandoah are some of the nearby waters slated for the winter trout stocking that will start Monday. Lakes are stocked in the winter trout stocking, and mostly streams are stocked during the fall trout stocking that took place earlier this year. At the shop, killies are no longer stocked, until demand for them picks back up. Shiners are on hand, but none will be re-stocked, until demand rebounds. Nightcrawlers and garden worms are on hand.

<b>South Jersey</b>

Fishing for trout was good at Lake of the Woods, said Karl from <b>Sportsmen’s Center</b> in Bordentown. Garlic-flavored PowerBait and meal worms latched into them well. At Assunpink Wildlife Management Area, crappies hovered over the Christmas trees in the middle of Rising Sun and Stone Tavern lakes. They were nabbed at the high spots on tackle like marabou jigs and Beetle Spins. Lots of chain pickerel attacked in the Toms River at Trilco. Nobody mentioned walleye fishing on Delaware River near the shop.

Chain pickerel fishing was good at lakes, said Steve from <b>Blackwater Sports Center</b> in Vineland. Pickerel that remain active in cold waters become a mainstay in lake fishing through winter. But Union Lake gave up a mixed bag of largemouth bass, smallmouth bass and pickerel, good fishing. For largemouths at lakes currently, suspending jerk baits, jigs and minnows can catch. Smallmouths will jump on the same tackle, and maybe Rat-L-Traps and lipless crank baits. Pickerel everywhere will swipe minnows or jerk baits. In saltwater, striped bass fishing was spotty. Stripers were hooked in back bays and along the coast. Waters slated to be included in next week’s winter trout stocking include South Vineland Park Pond and Shaw’s Mill Pond in Cumberland County, Haddon Lake and Rowand’s Pond in Camden County and Ponderlodge Pond in Cape May County.

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