<b>NEW YORK</b>

<b>Adirondacks</b>

Subzero temps blanketed the area, putting the deep freeze on all the lakes, said Ron from <b>FISH307.com</b> at Lake George. Brant Lake and Eagle Lake held a solid 5 inches, and both gave up plenty of large yellow perch on small shiners and jigs. Paradox Lake was the spot to pull up brown and rainbow trout, and for the trout, try dropping down live shiners in the 15- to 25-foot depths. Lake George was locking up quickly, and 3 inches covered Harris Bay so far, but most of the coves, such as Huddle Bay and Northwest Cove, were expected to be fishable by today. The big lake was making 1 to 2 inches per night, now that the initial layer of ice was established.

<b>Salmon River</b>

Now that the river flow dropped to 500 CFS, steelhead fishing exploded, said Don at <b>All Seasons Sports</b> in Pulaski. The whole stretch of river was giving up steelies, with no particular area better than another, and anglers on average days out were tackling 8 to 20 fish, headlined by monster, 12 to 15-pound steelies! Some brown trout were also now in the mix, and so were a couple of fresh king salmon. Stonefly patterns in sizes 10 to 12 and Glo-Bugs in blue, pink and white were working to take the hardheads. The only setback was that 3 feet of snow covered the ground, so making your own trails to the spots was tough to do, but well worth the effort.

<b>PENNSYLVANIA</b>

Yellow perch were on a big-time bite at Dredge Harbor on the Delaware River, said Bill at <b>Brinkman’s Bait & Tackle</b> in Philadelphia. Customer “Delaware Jon” was catching 40 to 100 fish per trip, throwing minnows and jigs. Another customer was fishing Tullytown Cove to reel in 20 to 40 crappies, 12- to 14-inchers, per day, using minnows, wax worms and jigs. Another was fishing the power plant, picking up several catfish and carp on worms. Walleye fishing was getting attention upriver at Bull's Island, New Hope and Byram, where anglers reportedly nailed several of the fish from 4 to 6 pounds on minnows, worms, jigs and bucktails. The state stocked trout at Levittown Lake, and anglers there were fighting chunky rainbows, limiting out in a couple of hours on meal worms, wax worms, minnows, power baits and Kastmasters.

<b>NEW JERSEY</b>

<b>North Jersey</b>

Ice fishing was the talk of the town this weekend, with the cold weather moving in, said Adrian from <b>Fairfield Fishing Tackle</b> in Montville. They were getting all their gear together, buying tip ups and jigs in hopes that Budd Lake, Lake Musconetcong and the coves of Lake Hopatcong would be safe by Saturday. Lake Musconetcong was probably the best bet, because those waters were heavily weeded and were the most shallow of the three lakes, so that should bring the first shots to ice anglers.

Everybody was hoping for safe ice on the coves at Lake Hopatcong by this weekend, said Dom at <b>Ramsey Outdoor</b> in Paramus. Most anglers at the shop were loading up on ice gear, as well as sharpening augers and changing tip-up spools. In the meantime, trout fishing was decent, and most reports were coming in from the Pequest, Flatbrook and Musconetcong rivers, and small nymphs were working to hook the fish. A smallmouth bass feed was going on at the Denville section of the Rockaway River, and word came in about the bronzebacks taken on live shiners and slowly worked crank baits.

Lake Hopatcong’s ice fishability for the weekend was up in the air, said Laurie from <b>Dow’s Boat Rentals</b> in Lake Hopatcong. It was certainly cold enough to make ice, but it was just up to the winds to stop and allow it to form. As of a couple of days ago, skim ice was on the state park cove, and that was about it. If the winds subside, ice will form, and ice fishing will take off. The store is fully stocked with shiners, fatheads, mousies, spikes, wax worms and any ice-fishing gear you might need.

Small ponds started to get a layer of ice, said Tom at <b>Meltzer’s Sporting Goods</b> in Garfield, and ice anglers should have safe hard water on Monksville Reservoir by the weekend, if temperatures continued dipping into the teens through the week.  The shop is stocking a full array of ice-fishing supplies, including power augers, to get you on your way.

The South Branch of the Raritan River put out crappie around stick piles until the water froze, said Chris from <b>Lebanon Bait & Sport Shop</b> in Lebanon. So anglers were now focusing on the impending ice-fishing season, hoping the action would get started this weekend in shallow spots, such as Budd Lake and the coves of Lake Hopatcong.

Trout anglers scored plenty of bites in the Pequest River, said Ron from <b>Ray’s Sport Shop</b> in North Plainfield, and holdover rainbows and brownies inhaled bead-headed nymphs in sizes 12 to 20. Remember that the shop is hosting a fly tying demo 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on February 16, and both fresh and saltwater patterns will be taught.

<b>Central Jersey</b>

Lots of local anglers were heading up to New York’s Salmon River for steelhead fishing, said Jim at <b>Efinger Sporting Goods</b> in Bound Brook. The Altmar section was supposedly producing 10 to 14 fish, 5- to 8-pounders, per day for many anglers, and yellow and blue egg sacks got the strikes. Locally, the Pequest River and Ken Lockwood Gorge were solid bets to land trout on small nymphs. Don’t forget: The shop is holding its annual fly tying sale, featuring a 20-percent discount on all supplies and an additional 10 percent off for members of Trout Unlimited.

Scattered reports rolled in about anglers occasionally hooking trout at Spring Lake, said Roy at <b>L&H Woods & Water</b> in Wall. There was some activity on trout on the Manasquan River as well. For the most part, anglers were awaiting the big lakes to freeze, especially Lake Hopatcong and the Assunpink Wildlife Management Area lakes, and they might hold safe ice by the weekend.

<b>South Jersey</b>

Skim ice laid upon the Assunpink Wildlife Management Area lakes, said Eric at <b>Harry’s Army and Navy</b> of Robbinsville. Right before the surface was closed up, anglers were claiming yellow perch and crappie, and that should continue once the lakes become safe enough to drill holes and walk upon. The Delaware and Raritan Canal gave up a number of trout on nightcrawlers, and so did the Pequest and Musconetcong rivers. A few smallmouth bass were taken on live shiners fished under bobbers in the power plant section of the Delaware River.

Stone Tavern Lake was dishing out decent catches of crappie and largemouth bass before skim ice set in, said Carl from the <b>Sportsmen’s Center</b> in Bordentown. Once the ice covers up the lake, bass, perch and crappie should all be ready to chomp down jigs, shiners and grubs. Be extra sure that the ice is safe, and always carry a safety rope and ice picks when venturing out, especially on the first ice at the Assunpink Wildlife Management Area lakes and all other lakes as well. Safety is first priority!

With frigid temps settling in, local lakes began to freeze up again, but none was safe to fish just yet, said Jeff at <b>Blackwater Sports Center</b> in Vineland. The key to fishing now was to target lakes with spillways and flowing water that rarely freezes, such as at Willow Grove Lake, Malaga Lake and Parvin Lake. Try casting out live shiners for a chance at chain pickerel, perch and crappie at the spillways. The shop was getting new freshwater, spring-lineup stuff daily, so stop by and see what’s new.

The deep freeze kept many anglers inside, said Ki from <b>Huck’s Place</b> in Millville. But diehards should know that white perch were feeding in the Maurice River right through the cold spell. And they’ll still be on the chew through the coldest of temperatures, readily inhaling frozen grass shrimp or FishBites. Try floating the baits under a bobber with a 2-foot section of leader, using a size-6 bait-holder hook.

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