<b>NEW YORK</b>

<b>Adirondack Mountains</b>

The blizzard that pummeled New Jersey this weekend didn’t affect the Adirondacks, said Jeff from <b>FISH307.com</b> in Lake George. No snow currently covered ice that’s being fished in the Adirondacks. Ponds and small lakes held the ice there, and the ice-angling was good. No fishable ice covered the larger Lake George yet. Waters ice-fished included Schroon Lake, Brant Lake, Indian Lake, Lake Eaton and Eagle Lake. Catches included yellow perch, crappies and northern pike. Schroon Lake gave up lake trout and landlocked salmon. Lake Champlain turned out all the different species. FISH307.com is both a brick-and-mortar store and an online store. All tackle and bait is stocked for ice-fishing, including shelters, augurs, lures, jigs and a thousand rods. The bait includes suckers for the lakers and salmon, and beautiful golden shiners, the best Jeff’s seen in years, for northern pike. It also includes fathead minnows, rosy reds and medium shiners for perch, and more.

<b>Salmon River and Western N.Y. Rivers</b>

Salmon River’s steelhead fishing was good last Wednesday through Friday with Jay Peck from <b>Jay Peck Guide Service</b>, he said. The fishing settled into a winter pattern, and the water temperature was consistent, and the river flowed at 750 cubic feet per second. Anglers averaged three to six steelheads landed in a day, and six to eight hooked. That was great, and the river lowered to 350 CFS afterward, but that was a good level for fly-fishing. The fish keyed in on stoneflies now. Jay specializes in fly-fishing and catch-and-release, and books trips that fish with conventional tackle with his other guides. He did no fishing on the river the past couple of days, because he was preparing to exhibit at The Fly Fishing Show at the Garden State Exhibit Center in Somerset, N.J., this Friday through Sunday. Stop by and say hello! But friends continued to fish the river this week, catching well. Steelheads remained scattered throughout the mid to upper river. The blizzard that pounded New Jersey this weekend didn’t reach Jay’s area. Heavy snow fell around Rochester last week on Monday and Tuesday, but not along Salmon River, farther east. No rough weather happened since, and weather warmed. Jay also fishes for the huge brown trout in Lake Ontario’s tributaries in western New York, around Rochester, this time of year. Those waters, smaller than Salmon River, had been frozen, but began to thaw. Air temperature reached 35 degrees Monday. Oak River, one of the tributaries, was low. Genesee River, another, held lots of open water but a high flow. The western New York tribs could offer the trout fishing if weather remains relatively warm. The trout grow large because they spend summer in Lake Ontario. They live in the tributaries in winter because forage is more abundant there then.

<b>PENNSYLVANIA</b>

Ice was fished in the Poconos, Bill from <b>Brinkman’s Bait & Tackle</b> in Philadelphia wrote in an emailed report from the shop Friday, before Saturday’s blizzard. Brady’s Lake was fished on the hard water in those mountains. Yellow perch, crappies bluegills and trout were angled. Shohola Lake was also fished in the Poconos. Yellow perch, bluegills and chain pickerel came from there. Plenty of other waters were probably also fished in the mountains. Open water was fished before last week’s cold, including at Core Creek Reservoir. Fair catches of yellow perch and bluegills were nabbed there. Three or four customers tugged a few trout from Pennypack Creek before the cold. 

<b>NEW JERSEY</b>

Customers said ice was fished at Lake Hopatcong at coves, and along the edges of Budd Lake, said Don from <b>Ramsey Outdoor</b> in Succasunna. But whether that was safe was highly questionable. One customer who lives along Lake Hopatcong said yellow perch were angled from the lake’s ice, but he knew that from anglers who returned to shore, and the customer wasn’t going to walk on the ice to find out, risking falling through. Still, customers bought ice-fishing supplies every day, so they must’ve ice-fished somewhere, probably a little to the north. Nothing was heard about trout fishing on streams. Probably 10 to 14 inches of snow fell during Saturday’s blizzard. The snow was melting quickly in warmer weather now. Catch the shop’s exhibit at The Fly Fishing Show at the Garden State Exhibit Center in Somerset this Friday through Sunday.

Anglers can telephone <b>Dow’s Boat Rentals</b> in Lake Hopatcong to check ice-fishing conditions, Laurie said.

Ice was fished to the north, mostly on smaller waters, reeling in the standard yellow perch and chain pickerel, said Braden from <b>Efinger Sporting Goods</b> in Bound Brook. Weather became warmer this week, but when weather was colder in the past week, Budd Lake was ice-fished. Little Swartswood Lake surely held ice, but nothing was heard about fishing there. Trout streams were blown out because of the snow and melt. Once the warmer weather melts ice this week, surely Delaware and Raritan Canal can be fished for chain pickerel. They bite almost year-round, and dunk a shiner for bait. The shop will hold a sale beginning Friday for about 10 days with discounts including 25 percent off rods that aren’t already marked down, 25 percent off Berkley products, 40 percent off Salt Life sunglasses and 30 percent off fly reels. Details are expected to be posted later this week on <a href=" https://www.facebook.com/EfingerSportingGoods" target="_blank">Efinger’s Facebook page</a>.

Lakes were frozen, and 2 feet of snow fell during Saturday’s blizzard, said Steve from <b>Blackwater Sports Center</b> in Vineland. Nobody really fished, because of that. He said for last week’s report that open water at spillways could probably be fished for catches like panfish, and that a few customers were interested in fishing for white perch on brackish rivers. The perch are pursued throughout winter, because they’ll bite throughout the season, and the brackish water’s slower to freeze. A few customers had been blackfishing on party boats on the ocean. Those trips were probably just beginning again, after being weathered out.

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