Chaumont, NY fishing report: launches, rules and where to check conditions

Last checked 2026-10-29. This page is a guide, not a catch report. It covers Chaumont Bay on Lake Ontario in Jefferson County.

Launches

DEC's Jefferson County launch table lists two sites on the bay.

• Chaumont Bay (listed by DEC under the Town of Chaumont): hard surface launch, parking for 100 cars and trailers, operated by OPRHP (NYS Parks). DEC marks it not accessible.
• Long Point State Park (listed under the Town of Lyme): unimproved trailer launch, parking for 20 cars and trailers, operated by OPRHP. DEC marks it not accessible.

We did not find fees, hours or season for the OPRHP launches, so check with State Parks before you go.

Nearby launches on the same DEC table:

• Three Mile Bay in Lyme: hard surface, DEC-operated, listed as accessible, with shore fishing and a floating dock.
• Mud Bay in Cape Vincent: unimproved trailer launch, DEC-operated.
• Henderson Harbor: hard surface, municipal, parking for 80 cars and trailers.

More on our Henderson Harbor and Cape Vincent pages, and the full ports list.

Access and species, per DEC

DEC's Region 6 ice fishing page says access to Chaumont Bay and Guffin Bay is through state park and DEC fishing access sites along Route 12E and State Park Road. It lists northern pike, yellow perch and walleye for those waters.

Rules, as DEC states them

These are summaries. The DEC page is the rule.

• Black bass (largemouth and smallmouth): the season is June 15 to November 30, with a 12 inch minimum and 5 per day. In Lake Ontario and its tributaries in Jefferson County, DEC prohibits fishing for black bass, including catch-and-release, from December 1 to June 14. The statewide page alone describes that winter period as catch-and-release, but the Great Lakes page and the Region 6 page set the stricter rule for this area.
• Walleye: the Great Lakes page lists May 1 to March 15, an 18 inch minimum and 3 per day. See our walleye page.
• Northern pike, Lake Ontario row: May 1 to March 15, a 22 inch minimum and 5 per day.
• Yellow perch: open all year with no minimum size. DEC says there is no daily limit in Jefferson County waters, except Sandy Pond.
• Salmon and trout in the lake: limits and sizes differ by species. Read DEC's Great Lakes table.

DEC's Region 6 special regulations page lists no rules specific to Chaumont Bay, Black River Bay, Chaumont River or Perch River. Statewide rules are listed as effective April 1, 2026. The Great Lakes page shows no year, so confirm it is current. Check DEC before you go.

Ice fishing

DEC says ice fishing is permitted in all waters of Jefferson County. Some parking areas, roads and trails may not be maintained in winter. DEC advises caution on the ice and links its Ice Safety Guidelines. The page gives no Chaumont Bay ice notes, and we found no official ice thickness reports. Black bass are closed in winter (see above), so ice anglers can't target them.

Weather and water data nearby

• Forecast: the National Weather Service lookup for a point near Chaumont returns the Buffalo office (BUF), land forecast zone NYZ007 and Jefferson County zone NYC045. We did not identify a marine forecast zone for the bay.
• Water level: NOAA station 9052000 at Cape Vincent is the nearest listed water-level station we found. We found no dedicated Chaumont gauge, though that is not proven.
• Other stations: an NDBC search around Chaumont listed Cape Vincent (CAVN6), Alexandria Bay (ALXN6) and Oswego (OSGN6), among others. Distances are measured from our search point, not from Chaumont.

We have not confirmed which of these stations report water temperature, so we don't promise it here. For the weekly read, see the latest report.

Sources

• NYSDEC Jefferson County boat launches
• NYSDEC Region 6 ice fishing
• NYSDEC Great Lakes and Tributaries regulations
• NYSDEC Region 6 special regulations
• NYSDEC statewide regulations
• NOAA CO-OPS station 9052000
• NOAA NDBC nearby stations
• NWS point lookup

Last checked 2026-10-29. Check DEC before you go.