Bost size for ontario fishing

[knothappy]

I have a Creastliner Super hawk it's 18.2 long and 97" wide with a 115 mercury, is their any time this boat would be ok to fish their and were if one place is better then another. thanks for your help, reading about catching the big salamon sounds great

[skipper19]

As far as any time? I guess if it floats it is good... However in all seriousness, I would have to say it depends on what day you fish out of which port and the direction and force of the wind, and your level of tolerance to bumpy fishing. Looks like you are coming from Pa. so I would say you are safe on a day that the predictions are for a south wind Oswego to Fort Niagara. west and east are usually OK if the wind speeds are less than 10 - 15 Mph but can cause waves of 2 to 3 feet or more in some areas. Lake O is fickle on any day. Early morning is best for a few hours on most any day as long as the wind was calm at nite, but by mid day it can pickup and develop a white cap chop that may make fishing a chore or at least not as comfortable. Keep an eye on the weather conditions ahead of fishing. There are several links on the left side of this site you can check the wind wave and weather forecasts. !8 ft boats are ok as long as you keep an eye on the weather. You won't want to be too far from port if the wind picks up or thunder storms come around, but that is the case with most anybody in a boat of any size, It depends on your level of skippering and whats comfortable to fish.

All said, the lake can be a mirror all day long and it also can be riled and small craft advisories put up on another. As a rule I would definitely go by the advisories. If there is one or a predicted one, choose a different time.

Most of the south shore is good if the wind is south, south west or south east. If I was to choose a port that had more chance to get out on wind day I would stick to Oswego to Fort Niagara. The east ports are usually more rough the farther north you go unless the wind is from the east, but that is usually a wind not favorable for fishing results.

Hope this helps. Don't be afraid to try it. The more time you spend on Lake O the more confident you will become with big water boating. Lots of boats out there are 18 ft or less. Even Kayaks are trolling.

Mark

[LongLine]

rwtms - Ditto what skipper said.

mine's 18 ft w/ 75 hp & I've been out a "few" times. (Depth and beam are more important than length for us little guys) If you can handle the boat well, are safety conscious and keep an eye on the weather, you'll be fine. Check out the report sections for places to go.

You may want to try a charter before hauling your boat up here, especially as late summer/fall approaches.

Tom B.

(LongLine)

[indian]

Thanks guys, I as well had the same questions. I have an 18 ft Starcraft Mariner 180 with a Yamaha 115hp outboard. The side height is 25.5" and the width is 76.5" , How does that sound. Also, I plan to fish the mouths of Oswego and Salmon rivers around mid September for Salmon. Anything "special" I should know before heading up?

[Big Water]

I have a Creastliner Super hawk it's 18.2 long and 97" wide with a 115 mercury, is their any time this boat would be ok to fish their and were if one place is better then another. thanks for your help, reading about catching the big salamon sounds great

rwtms,

I started fishing Ontario this year and only have a 18.5' boat, but have lots of experience on Erie. I've got to say that I've had this boat in 5-6' waves on Erie and never felt like I was in serious danger. The real problem is traveling any distance when the waves get big. I never plan trips if they're calling for more than 1-3's since it takes a lot of the fun out of it. Stock up on Dramamine if you've never fished in rollers before. As mentioned, the depth and width of the boat matter a lot. It's also a good idea to have a kicker motor and a marine band radio. One warning, once you fish here, it spoils it for your regular haunts!!

[FSNmachine]

I have fished both Erie and Ontario in an 18 foot boot with no problem. It was a closed bow which is great if you get in some heavy waves. nothing like taking a wave over the front on an open bowrider. As someone said it gets hard to travel with high waves though. We got caught in a good wind last year when we where 10 miles out. If you can only make 5 mph it will take 2 hours of banging to get in. That boat I could bang it in by standing up and do 15 mph and at least get in with some descent speed (not the normal 35mph though) We usually get soaked though as we splash waves over the front and over the windshield. The new boat is 22 foot and it sure makes a difference as it handles 5 or 6 footers. But then I can't troll in those conditions anyway. Its just too much work trying to setup etc. Its just nice to know that you can get back comfortably without worry should the wind pickup more than expected. Dramamine is standard issue and stocked on board for newbies to rollers.

[nbajack70]

The good thing about Niagara or Oswego is if you do get blown off the lake, you can fish either the lower Niagara or Oswego harbor and still get some action. Plus there is very productive water not too far from the launch.

[stoutner]

I see guys out there with 16 foot row boats with 40 a year old 20 HP outboard 5 miles off shore. They are nuts. Just go when they are predicting 1 or 2 foot waves at the most and hope they are correct. They usually are not correct but when they are predicting 5- 7 footers they are usually pretty close. I was out of Oswego Sunday and they said 1-2 foot waves. Well, there were 5-6's at times with the occasional bigger rogue wave. It was barely fishable at times in my 22' because it was really hard to stand up. I never felt in danger though.

I have also been out there when it has been smooth as glass as far as the eye could see. Most times you don't know what it's doing til your actually out on the water.

Go out of Oswego, Rochester, or Sodus...that way if you flip over the Coast Guard is not too far away

[LongLine]

Indian - If that's on the inside ie from the floorboards up to the top of the bulkhead, I'd say you'll be fine. For me the inside depth is very important as it gives me something to brace against. Those boats whos side only comes up to the middle of the shin don't belong on Lake Ontario.

I'd suggest for any first timers on the lake to first travel upwind then setup and troll at some slight angle to and with the wind until you get used to how the wind will move your boat around. Also, the ride back to port is always smoother going with the wind.

Tom B.

(LongLine)

[indian]

Thanks Longline, yeah, that's from the floor to the bulkhead. Its about mid thigh. And as far as trolling with the wind, I always do that, I have a blown out ear drum and my balance isn't always good so waves are not good for me to be moving around the boat with, trolling with the waves is a lot less "rocky".

I can't wait for September to get here! My fiancee has never caught a salmon, this should be fun!

[bear]

You should be able to fish the Great Lakes without a problem as long as you watch the wind and what direction it's blowing from. I have an 18ft7in Scout and fish Lake Ontario and Lake Erie a lot with no problems. Depending on what Port you fish out of depends how the waves are, if you're at the East or West end of the Lake. You probably don't want to go out if the wind is 10-15 knt's and going with the waves is best to do. Good Luck! You've got a very Seaworthy boat for the Great Lakes. You're coming at the right time. The Salmon fishing is hot.

[billandpete]

Never been to Ontario, I just don't feel comfortable in my 18' Starcraft Starfish 90HP, it has a deep V, 98 inch beam, but only carries 20" out of water, kept to Erie most times and now will only hit it on VERY calm days , if you've been on Erie you know how fast the water can change, it took us 3 hours to get in from roundhouse to Small Boat HArbor via Hamburg beach, due to the 5-7 rollers and waves that just popped up from the NW, even though Weather radio said winds were calm! I would suggest a charter first in Ontario, ask the Captain how the lake reacts in different winds, and besides you'll find nice fishing spots!,

one other thing I found out listen to Canadian weather forecasts or their marine forecast web site, they give a more accurate forecast of Lake conditions and winds than the American side does. So now I'll just charter on Ontario until I win the Lottery and get my 32' Boston Whaler! Happy Fishing

[mattym22]

I fish out of my 16' starcraft on ontario all the time. I was out this past sunday in 3-4' waves. Just keep in mind that big waves make trolling a pain in smaller boats. I like to use the website www.wunderground.com to get wave reports on Ontario. It won't let you see the future but it'll give you somewhat of an idea as to how things are looking out there.

[reeleyz]

I use my 16' grumman on Ontario in Mexico bay and out of Oswego several times a year. You just need to pay attention to the wind/weather forecast. I usually stick with 10 MPH or less wind if it is SW, W, NW, or NE. A south wind can have a quite a chop too when you are a few miles off shore.

Just pay attention to the weather and use common sense.

[Mower]

We fished out of fair Haven this past Sat Morning in my 23ft larson. It was fishable but there was 6 ft rollers all day w/ the ocassional larger one. It all comes down to what you enjoy. we had a 16ft boat fishing near us and he was nervous w/ his boy. He ended up picking up when we did and following us in. it was no problem just makes you appreciate sea legs.