Black Lake 7/11 to 7/18

[bridget]

Wanted to give the first two accounts of 2015 trips to Black Lake. Had to postpone our June trip this year, maybe a good thing?

 

Black Lake water levels fluctuate dramatically. Watching the water levels on line we heard in May the water level was very low, concerned about docking.

 

In Mid June we heard of rapidly raising levels and docks underwater.

 

Got to McLears Saturday afternoon and heard the a week or so earlier they had to pull all the boats our the docks due to high water.

 

Boat Launch their is always an experience. We have heard their are upgrades and we hope it happens. Strong south wind when we got their and a couple with a pontoon boat is having major problems. Bridget helps them while we are launching, which ends up having our boat do a 360. Worst parts of the trip is launching and pulling the boat - just hope for not a lot of wind.

 

Decided not to fight the wind and fish Saturday evening. Started out in front of Tin Island on Sunday A.M. and didn't do much so quickly moved to the North West end of Raspberry. Pretty much constant action. Caught about 20 Crappie with zero 9" keepers. Released one Small mouth bass.Perch and Sunfish were good.Caught and kept close to limits on both and release over twice a many. Went back in the afternoon with Bridget for a couple of hours and the action was non stop with an additional bullhead released.

 

Monday A.M. went back to the same spot and never moved.Probably caught well over a hundred crappie with only 8 keepers. For a while constant doubles, but most of the time. Caught and released a Small Mouth and Large Mouth Bass which were great diversions. Limited out on Perch and Sunfish with over twice as many released.

 

Tuesday and Wednesday were pretty windy so we didn't fish. Wanted to sight see for  two days anyway

so we did. One day to Ackwasanee Casino and the other to Alexandrian Bay with a stop a 1000 Islands Bait Shop (love to got their and look around pick up a few things).

 

Wednesday evening a cold front came in. Burr. The furnaces on nearby campers came on during the night.

 

Thursday A.M. went back to North West end  Raspberry. Caught a small throw way perch immediately and then nothing. Moved in and and out with little action. Then decided to drift south. all the way to Tin. Did two drifts with so - so action, best of the South Side of Raspberry. Decided to finish up on the South West Side of Tin in about 14 feet. Immediately double up on Perch with by Black Lake standards a slob. Fished for the next two hours until I ran out of bait with some very good perch and bull sunfish, constant action, along with a bullhead (back to the lake). Limits of Perch and Sunfish.

 

Friday A.M. went back to the same spot. Not much doing. moved in and out with not much to show. Decided to go to the South End of Tin in close on drift. Found the spot which included a nice Small Mouth (released). Anchored on the spot until I ran out of bait and culled my limit of perch and sunfish.

 

Forecast for Friday Night a Saturday were iffy so we pulled the boat after lunch. Probably a good move. After a great fish fry at Turners I came back cleaned over 100 fish in the fish house while the rain was pouring down.

 

Got up on Saturday about 5 A.M. (normal fishing time) and went to the fish house to clean another 100+ fish. Weather looked liked a  big time storm approaching while we we picked up camp and headed home about 10 A.M.. 

 

Love Black Lake and can't wait to get back in few weeks. While I was cleaning my pan fish Friday Night some guys brought in some huge Small Mouth and Large Mouth Bass. May on the next trip try to do some bass fishing as well. Already have several bags of pan fish for my down south and up north deer hunting camps.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[LongLine]

Sounds like quite a trip.

 

Tom B.

(LongLine)

[Fisherman72]

What do u use for bait?

[potsie225]

I love BL, reminds a lot like Canada.  We have a annual trip in Oct.  It will be our 5th trip and hope fishing stays good.  I know the area you were at, we have been staying at Pleasant view cabins.  Did you use just live bait?  TY Doug

[bridget]

I may have mentioned this in a previous post, but this is the third year we have been going up and staying at McLears. We like it there since we can set up our camper and look at our docked boat from the window of our camper. They have the Fishbone Cafe to eat, showers, a great fish cleaning facility (been spending at lot of time there) and its nice to be able to at predawn pick up bait and ice (and pay when later in the day when I get back). I'm sure there are other nice places to stay as well, but I haven't checked them out.

 

We have made good friends with campers that are up there all summer or for several weeks at a time. Most all fish with plastics and focus on Crappie. They joke with me about fishing with worms and minnows and catching more perch and sunfish than crappie. While I have never discussed it with them, my belief is that most end up selling their crappie fillets. Live bait cuts into profit margins as well as messing with dink perch and sunfish. I'm quite sure I could clean 25 crappie in well less than an hour. Cleaning a half dozen crappie along with 50 perch and 50 sunfish, takes me two to  three hours.That can get old fast.Now that I am pretty well stocked for deer season, on my August Trip, I'm confident I'm going to be a lot more selective on the size of perch and sunfish I keep.

 

At some point I may change, but for now I do this;

 

I fish with three rods. Two 9 foot light action rods with dual minnows and one ultra light with a dual fly dropper tipped with an inch or two of worm. Often I can't keep up with all three. Most of time it is constant action and you can't keep all three in the water. If the crappie are really hitting strong, I'll pull out the ultra light fly rig and cast a plastic. I bring a thermos of coffee with me, but to tell the truth there is little time to sit back and have a cup. If I was like my friends and there for the season or for weeks, I'd probably join them and switch to plastics.

 

For me however, I usually fish trout and salmon in LO and the FL. Lets face it, even on good days it can be hours or fractions of hours between hits. For my short time up there I like the constant action and to be able to get enough pan fish for the two hunting camps I go to in the fall.

 

Actually in the early 70's I kept a boat at Cayuga Lake and fished exclusively for bass and pickerel with plastic worms, jigs, etc..almost every day during the season. That got old so why I switched to trout and salmon.I have not doubt that that scheme of fishing at Black Lake could be extremely productive, maybe not for pickerel but for bass and pike; and in the trips to come I may take a shot at it.

 

 

When I was cleaning fish on the Friday night before we left a party brought in some huge SM and LM Bass and a Pike. The same thing happened the last night I was cleaning fish last August. If Bass and Pike are your targets, the opportunity is there.

 

The lake is full of warm water fish. It's basically your choice of what you want to focus on or how you want to catch them.