SOUTHERN N.Y. THREAD (L.I., WESTCHESTER, PUTNAM, DUTCHESS, SULLIVAN, ORANGE COUN

[boss j]

Thanks Mr. Clean for the info. I didn't know Highland is private. I have fished the lake many times without incident. I would park on the far end of the lake (opposite the sand club bar). I even met the gentleman that owns the property I would walk through. He didn't mind us using his land to access the lake. His only beef was the snowmobiles eroding his shoreline when getting on and off the lake. I will have to take a ride and see if that option is still available. I haven't been there in a couple years, maybe things have changed.
I'm chomping at the bit to get out but I'm not thrilled about driving over an hour to find out if there's enough ice to fish.

Good luck to everyone this season, stay safe and have a Happy New Year!

someone went through there and was rescued 3 or 4 days ago...
 

[Tightliness]

Does anyone know if you can fish in kiameshia lake? I drive by it everyday and it seems like a good lake but I've never seen anyone fishing there

[dinks]

YESTERDAY AND TODAY ALL DINKS AND VERY SLOW,, 5 TO 6 ICHES OF SOLID ICE AND  NICE EASY SLEDDING 2 " SNOW ON TOP ..BUT THE COVE WAS SLOW BOTH DAYS ON SWING
TWO OF US JIGGED IT GOOD TOO.. MAIN LAKE ISN'T SAFE YET 4 INCH ICE AT BEST AND WOULDN'T TRUST NEAR MARINAS WHICH ARE CLOSED.. PROBABLY AFTER THIS NEXT COLD BLAST

[dinks]

IF YOU DARE SCOUT AND DRIVE IN PUBLIC RAMP AT THE SWING , USE A 4X4 BECAUSE IN TWO WHEEL DRIVE I WENT NO WHERE ON THE ICED PARKING LOT. AND THERE IS NO SAFE ICE YET ON THAT DEEP SIDE OF THE LK. AND SHORELINE IS VERY DANGEROUS WE USED A LADDRER TO GET ON BACK COVE WHICH IS ABOUT 6 INCHES..BUT TOWARDS THE MARINA WE STOPPED BECAUSE WE HAD 4 INCHES ONLY AND AHEAD LOOKED WET ON TOP.. NEEDS THE NEXT ARTIC BLAST

[dinks]

Not to confuse any readers, no swb is not ready for public fishing..wait for after the next artic blast coming ,, doubt even  this weekend maybe after the weekend  if sub temps are as forecasted. very small lookers and no big fish were seen on ourmarcum showdowns ,,just dinks! lol

[Dave327]

Out on Superior today 10am-5pm, one perch jigging, zero flags. A lot of guys out on the lake.
Drove by White lake on my way to Superior saw one shanty and a four wheeler  about 50 yards from shore.
I'll be out on superior next Sunday to give it another shot.
BTW got bait today at Tom's in Fair Oaks. He is almost out of minnows. He says next shipment is do in Thursday.

[NYBasser]

Fished Superior today from 8am - 5:30pm. Did very well jigging, had decent action throughout the day with multiple giant bluegills, pumpkinseed, perch, crappie, pickerel and bass. Highlights of the day were 2 crappie at 14" and a giant perch at 13", all on jigs. Jigs were the ticket today, seemed to be a slow day on the tip-ups for others. Did not get a chance to measure the ice, but if I had to guess, it seemed to be around 5"-7".

[dinks]

The am is drizzle rain, later pm today suppose rain steady so rising shoreline water will be a concern. Until sub zero temps return to refreeze what is now certainly thawing with the warm rain and not worth risking any ice. I give it another week after the next artic blast.. forecast showing good ice freeze week ahead after tomorrow.  Last wo days was our first on ice 2017..We jigged our favorite proven jigs.. using maggots..( toms bait) no mousies..i always thought a spike was different bug  larva to a maggot but  guess to a panfish it is all good protein.  We had a few moments thinking we were going to get into some  almost keeper size crappie and yellow but  it was slow both long days either side of the cove and favorite spots..majority were really tiny bait sized panfish on smallest sized swedish pimple jigs .. bigger jigs were ignored ..smaller glow jigs are recommended. It is possible the summer flood levels increased smaller bait size panfish implosion. Almost every hole had a tiny fish hit the jig.

[Gamalot]

Does anyone know if you can fish in kiameshia lake? I drive by it everyday and it seems like a good lake but I've never seen anyone fishing there

I do see guys fishing Kiamesha in kayaks and car top boats and on the ice. That said, I don't know if it is still private or not but those who do fish go in from a couple spots along 42 and the back side on the old Concord road. Years back they used to stock it with trout but I have been here between Sullivan and Ulster counties for 65 years and honestly don't know a thing about the lake. This summer I will drop my kayak in with the sonar and do some scouting to see how deep it is and where the deep parts are. Like all the other lakes around here I am pretty sure it will have the basics, Bass, Blue gills, Perch, Pickerel and maybe even some hold over Trout, Walleye and Crappie. Back in the late 1960s I caddied at the golf course and did see a few hotel guests catch 12-15 inch rainbows.
Maybe someone here will give us some info on the lake.

I made the rounds over the weekend. Drove past Swinging bridge, White Lake, Rio, Highland, Morning side, Dingle Dazy, Big pond and a few others. Guys were fishing but not on what I consider safe enough ice yet. 4 inches in some places but still open water out on White lake and all the other big waters. Just be careful if you are brave, 3-4 inches will hold you but we never know just where it can change to much less because of springs or under water currents.

[bowski76]

Does anyone know of the ice conditions at Walton and Round Lake?

[PerchFace]

this rain blows! supposed to be even warmer tomorrow

[Mikey Ice]

Open water on both lakes you need to go farther north

[hardwater diehard]

Little more than 24 hrs on this warm up to go ...then it 6 plus days of below freezing temperatures...teens and single digits for the overnights for a couple of those days... patience my fellow anglers.

[flounderman]

Walton and round are no way safe to fish. Not with the weather we've been having around here. I drive by those lakes a few times a week. Walton is deeper and takes a bit longer. Round will fish first because its very shallow.

I fished a farm pond twice over the weekend with a friend. I checked on 12/26 it had 8" . Saturday had 6" and Sunday the edges started to go bad. I'm done for a bit. Spend Sat chasing my flags all morning, had little time to jig.  Small shiners 2' off the bottom was the ticket for some nice perch and pickerel. Spent Sunday on my bucket  in 22' jigging mealworms on tiny horizontal jigs. Mostly dink perch and bluegills kept me busy for a few hours. Had a bass and pickerel crash the rod for a fun fight.

Safe fishing all!

[DoubleG]

I drove by White today and it looked like someone went through on a quad. They had cones around the hole.

[Rather-B-Fishin]

Wishful thinking lakes that were fishable last weekend will be safe for Sunday?!.3 days of below freezing might lock them back up...would love to do Saturday but that is probably really pushing it....thoughts?

[Gamalot]

Anyone foolish enough to be out on White Lake on a quad right now is probably doing us a favor by attempting to reduce the Gene Pool!

I am not real big on over enforcement of rules but I sure hope the DEC comes down real hard on these idiots who will ruin it for all of us when they say No More motorized vehicles on the lake.

[hardwater diehard]

At 1:20PM it was 43* now at 2:40PM its 38*  suppose to get to 32* by 6:00PM then drop to the high teens for the overnight...with 6 plus days of below freezing temperatures.

[Rather-B-Fishin]

Gamalot...could agree with you more...especially since they weren't supposedly more 40 feet out!...FYI our human gene pool has peaked already...hang on for the ride.
.ever see the movie Idiocracy? It is a must, the movie is dumb bit thearly parallels are really scary.

[jimc1965]

I fished Superior yesterday with 5" of ice every where I went. By 4 pm there was an inch of slush with some areas completely covered with water. The edges didn't look bad at all. I had a decent day with some nice Yellow Perch and a real nice pickerel on the jig. It slowed down about 1130. A few hole were filled with real small pan fish. Tight lines.

[Gamalot]

I fished Superior yesterday with 5" of ice every where I went. By 4 pm there was an inch of slush with some areas completely covered with water. The edges didn't look bad at all. I had a decent day with some nice Yellow Perch and a real nice pickerel on the jig. It slowed down about 1130. A few hole were filled with real small pan fish. Tight lines.

I get in trouble and flamed here every year when the idiots who cherish a fish and fun over life come out. As a kid me and a buddy learned real quick on the Bashakill to never trust thin ice and I honestly don't know how we made it out. Size does matter and if it is not 6 inches I aint going any deeper than where I can stand. It is a mighty nasty feeling when all of a sudden the floor drops out from under you and you are in mighty cold water over your head. Looks like around January 15 should be safe enough ice for me and that is fairly normal here on the bigger waters.

[MoneyPit]

I get in trouble and flamed here every year when the idiots who cherish a fish and fun over life come out. As a kid me and a buddy learned real quick on the Bashakill to never trust thin ice and I honestly don't know how we made it out. Size does matter and if it is not 6 inches I aint going any deeper than where I can stand. It is a mighty nasty feeling when all of a sudden the floor drops out from under you and you are in mighty cold water over your head. Looks like around January 15 should be safe enough ice for me and that is fairly normal here on the bigger waters.

Off DEC website

Ice Thickness Table for new, clear ice only
Ice Thickness   Permissible Load
2 inches or less   STAY OFF
4 inches   Ice fishing or other activities on foot
5 inches   Snowmobile or ATV
8-12 inches   Car or small pickup
12-15 inches   Medium truck

I guess if the ice is not "good ice" or you weigh as much as a quad or snowmobile I would also be concerned. Spud bar and common sense is my general rule.
Thank you jimc1965 for the constant updates I appreciate them. stay safe and tight lines

[Gamalot]

Off DEC website

Ice Thickness Table for new, clear ice only
Ice Thickness   Permissible Load
2 inches or less   STAY OFF
4 inches   Ice fishing or other activities on foot
5 inches   Snowmobile or ATV
8-12 inches   Car or small pickup
12-15 inches   Medium truck

I guess if the ice is not "good ice" or you weigh as much as a quad or snowmobile I would also be concerned. Spud bar and common sense is my general rule.
Thank you jimc1965 for the constant updates I appreciate them. stay safe and tight lines

I can agree with these numbers but there is a very big difference between "Clear Ice" and the ice we normally have around here which I will label as "snow ice". We get a freeze and then we get some snow and a bit of rain in a warm up and we end up with snow ice. It might measure 5-6 inches but is anything but clear ice. Couple that with the various currents and springs normally found in many of our lakes and all bets are off. Early season and late season ice is inherently dangerous for those who are not cautious. I have drilled holes in 6-8 inches of snow ice and then just 15 yards away the next hole was only 3-4 inches thick.
In regards to this story about a quad going through on White Lake I spoke with one of the Battalion Commanders for the fire department and he knows nothing about it.

[bowski76]

Does anyone know if Swinging Bridge has safe ice?

[Gamalot]

Does anyone know if Swinging Bridge has safe ice?

I'll bite. That is 10 minutes from my house and there was open water last weekend. I will check again after this weekend given the cold we are getting into now but I sure would not trust it yet. My definition and yours of "Safe Ice" might differ and I would not doubt there could be some brave souls fishing it now. We drove over the Rio dam on Saturday and the lake was completely open water all the way up to the narrows.

[bowski76]

Thanks Gamalot. I read Lake Superior has good ice, I was thinking of fishing there but I never tried it.
I have fished White Lake in the past and the ice should be good for Saturday; I have the itch and I want to fish somewhere!
I live in Westchester County so I really appreciate the feedback; it's a long ride to find unsafe ice. My definition of safe ice is 5"-6", of mixed ice, 4" of black ice.

[Gamalot]

Thanks Gamalot. I read Lake Superior has good ice, I was thinking of fishing there but I never tried it.
I have fished White Lake in the past and the ice should be good for Saturday; I have the itch and I want to fish somewhere!
I live in Westchester County so I really appreciate the feedback; it's a long ride to find unsafe ice. My definition of safe ice is 5"-6", of mixed ice, 4" of black ice.

I get the same itch so I understand. I think you probably could find 4-6 inches of mixed ice in some spots on SB. I would certainly avoid the center where the river currents flow and the area around where the Cliff lake pipe line comes in which is across from the public launch and to the left. What I am NOT saying is that I have been there and tested the ice myself. Personally I would not trust it just yet but it might only be a couple days of sub freezing temps like we have now to set it up. It is 28 here now and going down to 17 tonight, 24 tomorrow going down to 9 at night and Saturday it will be a balmy 19 with a low of 9 at night.

[Outlaw fishing]

 Haven't fished it in  years but had a couple of good days there 3 years ago jigged up some nice  size bass and a ton of decent sized pan fish. Looking forward to hitting some of the local reservoirs in  the area.

[NYBasser]

Thanks Gamalot. I read Lake Superior has good ice, I was thinking of fishing there but I never tried it.
I have fished White Lake in the past and the ice should be good for Saturday; I have the itch and I want to fish somewhere!
I live in Westchester County so I really appreciate the feedback; it's a long ride to find unsafe ice. My definition of safe ice is 5"-6", of mixed ice, 4" of black ice.

Superior has good ice, about 1-2 inches of snow on top of 1 inch of white and 4-5 inches of black ice as of Monday. Snow and white ice is probably gone by now anyway. Fishing was good during the last two outings I had. Here are a couple pics:

[kbaez]

Looking for a palm rod and reel (marmooska ) any recommendations on a decent one?