Hello all my fishing friends:

    Finally the season has begun. Now that Spring has finally decided to stay awhile, I have been busy prepping both the Ontario and Oneida boats. Today I actually fished for the first time since last November and I'm pleased to report that browns, rainbows and even salmon made an early visit to Bandito III.

    We left the dock at 10:30 A.M. for the annual "shake down" cruise...and I'm happy to report that the Bandito III wintered well and left the slip this morning  "ship shape" and ready for action. I wanted to test all of the electronics, safety equipment, the boats ability to troll slowly, my planner board system, etc. All criteria was met with satisfaction and of course while we were engaged in the annual inspection we did manage to run the legal amount of rods for two anglers.

During our three and a half hour effort we landed 10 fish, lost 4 others and kept 4 browns, 1 steelhead and an 18 pound king. Every fish took a Smithwick Rattlin Rogue either black/silver or blue/silver fished on the surface off planner boards in 8 to 20 feet of water along the shoreline. The water temperature along the shore west of Oswego Harbor was 46.8 degrees Fahrenheit. Stained water definitely helped prolong the bite through high noon up until we quit at 2:00 P.M.

       Dan Kallfelz, North Chittenango (Contractor Dan) known for his touch with the hammer and prowess with the jigging rod, hadn't been up to Lake Ontario for browns in 20 years...he's been having too much fun with the "eyes" on Oneida. Well after today, he may make a few more excursions to the big pond before he gets to the heart and soul of the walleye season. Here you see Dan with his 18 pound king.

The walleye spawning run at the Oneida Fish Cultural Station in Constantia on Oneida lake was another success. Hatchery personnel handled 30,000 walleyes from Easter Sunday to last Friday. Although walleyes arrived early, colder than usual water temperature retarded the ripening process and delayed spawning for at least 10 days. This will clearly impact where you will fish on opening day, May 5. I suspect there will be more walleyes in shallow than out deep. Five to fifteen feet in areas adjacent to spawning tribs will more than likely play host to most jiggers looking for early "eyes". I'll be there with my favorite selection of jigs and blade baits and be sure to use Activate to enhance your chances of catching that derby winning walleye.

    Here is an early arrival to the hatchery. I took this picture the Monday after Easter Sunday.

May the fish be with you,

cap'n tony