10/15/10 WNY Steelhead report ..

Just got back after a fruitless couple hours on Cattaraugus and 18-mile creeks feeding into Lake Erie. Twofold problem--- very high winds! Literally blew the snot out of my nose! Made line control impossible and of course brought piles of leaves into the creeks! Temps in the 50's, tried egg sacks, spinners, and Boo flies with nary a hit.

The Cat is in "fishable" shape, a bit brown, but OK, mod level. This was in Gowanda. Talked with a half dozen other fishermen and they had had no luck. Consensus is the fish are there, but not in numbers, and the sun, wind, leaves are keeping them spooky.

18- Mile remains low and clear, and choked with leaves. I saw no fish and no fishermen at a couple popular spots. I do believe that few fish are making it over the sand bar at the mouth. That creek should be jumping with fish, and fishermen!

My suggestion if you're planning a weekend trip to one of those creeks, is to just bide your time. get some chores done and save up your time for when the creeks show more promise. As someone said, though- " a bad day of fishing still beats a good day at work". Good luck to you! Best---- JoeW

PS- Some beautiful scenery here in WNY, however!

[RAK]

Some places I fish are miles away. I don't like spending money on fuel and then not catching anything.

One of the things I do is Pray before I go fishing... It works for me.