Also called Black bass · facts last verified October 29, 2026

Lake Ontario smallmouth bass fishing and bass season

Lake Ontario smallmouth bass fishing and the Lake Ontario bass season, with the NY DEC black bass rule quoted exactly as DEC words it. Every statement is linked to its source; confirm with DEC before you go.

Live conditions

Overview

• DEC press release, June 11, 2026: "The St. Lawrence River and Lake Erie were ranked the #4 and #9 bass lakes, respectively, in the country by" Bassmaster Magazine in 2025. [dec.ny.gov]
• DEC held a Lake Ontario eastern basin and St. Lawrence River black bass public meeting on March 14, 2024 in Alexandria Bay. DEC's event page: "Biologists will provide an update on the fisheries' black bass population"; the agenda was to "share angler survey results, discuss management, and obtain input from the public." [dec.ny.gov]
• WWNY reporting on that meeting. The station says biologists presented data and writes, without naming a speaker, "Catches have either been stable or have increased in the past 10 years." Only the next line is attributed to DEC: "According to the DEC, 92% of black bass caught are released." Public comments, WWNY reports, ranged from "the length of the black bass catch-and-release season" to tournament catch limits. That was a public question, not a rule: DEC's Great Lakes row (see Current regulations) prohibits fishing for black bass, including catch and release, Dec 1-June 14 in the waters it names. [wwnytv.com]
• Bassmaster (Aug 18, 2024) quoting Christopher Legard, Lake Ontario Unit Leader, NY DEC Bureau of Fisheries: "Round goby is an abundant prey item for bass, which has resulted in a dramatic increase in bass size and condition ..." He also said "Nest predation by round goby does have a negative impact on individual bass nests." and, of DEC assessment data, "round goby do not appear to have a negative population-level impact on smallmouth bass". [bassmaster.com]
• USGS-listed research (Lantry, Eckert, Schneider and Chrisman, 2002, Journal of Great Lakes Research) on eastern Lake Ontario in U.S. waters: young-bass survival declined after double-crested cormorant nests on Little Galloo Island "exceeded 3,500 pairs in 1989", and gill-net abundance declined to its lowest level by 1995 and remained there through 1998. This is a 1980s-90s study, not a current status report. [usgs.gov]

Current regulations (quoted from NY DEC)

• DEC Great Lakes regulations page, Black Bass row for Lake Ontario, word for word: "Statewide Species Regulations apply, except that fishing for black bass (including Catch and Release) is prohibited December 1-June 14 in Lake Ontario and tributaries in Jefferson County and the St. Lawrence River and tributaries". This page reproduces DEC's wording and does not interpret how far the prohibition reaches. [dec.ny.gov]
• If you plan to fish for bass between Dec 1 and June 14 anywhere on Lake Ontario, confirm with DEC before you go. The rule is on DEC's Great Lakes regulations page. [dec.ny.gov]
• DEC's same page footnote: "The above seasons and limits do not apply to St. Lawrence River tributaries in Clinton and Franklin counties"; DEC points to Region 5 Special Regulations and Statewide Species Regulations for those tributaries. [dec.ny.gov]
• DEC statewide table, black bass row (largemouth and smallmouth are listed together; DEC has no separate smallmouth row): open season "June 15 - Nov 30", minimum length 12", daily limit 5. For "Dec 1 - June 14" the statewide row reads "Catch and Release only. Artificial lures only". This is the statewide default and the row does not mention Lake Ontario or any county. DEC's Great Lakes row, quoted above, says fishing for black bass "(including Catch and Release)" is prohibited Dec 1-June 14 in the waters it names; do not read the statewide catch-and-release line as permission to fish for bass on Lake Ontario in winter. [dec.ny.gov]
• DEC's statewide announcement, June 11, 2026 (it does not mention Lake Ontario, the Great Lakes or the exception above): the 2026 black bass season "begins on Monday, June 15, and extends through Monday, November 30." DEC adds that "Variations in minimum length and daily limits exist for some waters." [dec.ny.gov]

Where anglers find them

• Bassmaster (Mark Hicks, July 7, 2015; a magazine, not DEC): "Chaumont and Black River are sister bays near Watertown that offer exceptional fishing for largemouth and smallmouth bass." and "Henderson Harbor has more of the rocky offshore habitat that smallmouth favor." [bassmaster.com]
• Same 2015 Bassmaster article, on the St. Lawrence River at Waddington: "Smallmouth are more common on the main river where they feed in the current." [bassmaster.com]
• B.A.S.S. article text (promotional narration for the Aug 2026 Elite event based at Clayton, not DEC data): "From shallow flats to deep boulders, Ontario has everything smallmouth need." and "Current breaks, seams and boulders make up most of the habitat in the river proper". [bassmaster.com]
• DEC bulletin (Dec 20, 2024) listed a 9 lb smallmouth "caught by Dante Piraino from the St. Lawrence River, St. Lawrence County on September 22, 2024." [content.govdelivery.com]

Methods anglers describe

• Jay Przekurat, a tournament angler, in Bassmaster's Aug 20, 2026 preview of the St. Lawrence River Elite event (his opinion, not DEC): "I expect to see fish caught in 25 to 50 feet of water." and "Current is a huge factor too." The article itself, in its own words rather than his, ties that to rock-based structure like boulders. [bassmaster.com]
• Mark Hicks, Bassmaster, 2015 (the author's opinion, not DEC). Lake Ontario section: "For smallmouth on deeper rocky structures, tubes and drop shot rigs can't be beat." St. Lawrence River section (Waddington): "Jerkbaits and walking stickbaits dupe bass that feed on points and shoals." [bassmaster.com]

Seasonal pattern

• The 2026 Lowrance Bassmaster Elite at St. Lawrence River ran August 27-30 from Clayton Harbor Municipal Marina, 301 Webb Street, Clayton, NY (official B.A.S.S. page). The event is over. [bassmaster.com]

Charters targeting smallmouth bass

No listed captains target smallmouth bass yet. See the charter directory →

Sources

Every statement on this page comes from one of these primary sources. Last verified October 29, 2026. Regulations change: confirm on the linked DEC page before you fish.

• https://dec.ny.gov/news/press-releases/2026/6/dec-announces-opening-of-2026-black-bass-season (verified 2026-10-29)
• https://dec.ny.gov/get-involved/events/lake-ontario-eastern-basin-and-st-lawrence-river-black-bass-public-meeting (verified 2026-10-29)
• https://www.wwnytv.com/2024/03/15/dec-updates-anglers-lake-ontario-st-lawrence-river-bass-fishery/ (verified 2026-10-29)
• https://www.bassmaster.com/conservation-news/news/smallmouth-sense-part-1-the-goby-factor (verified 2026-10-29)
• https://www.usgs.gov/publications/relationship-between-abundance-smallmouth-bass-and-double-crested-cormorants-eastern (verified 2026-10-29)
• https://dec.ny.gov/things-to-do/freshwater-fishing/regulations/great-lakes-tributaries (verified 2026-10-29)
• https://dec.ny.gov/things-to-do/freshwater-fishing/regulations/statewide-season-sizes-catch-limits (verified 2026-10-29)
• https://www.bassmaster.com/news/gotta-love-those-ny-bass/ (verified 2026-10-29)
• https://www.bassmaster.com/elite/news/record-breaking-numbers-possible-during-elite-finale-at-st-lawrence-river/ (verified 2026-10-29)
• https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/NYSDEC/bulletins/3c822f0 (verified 2026-10-29)
• https://www.bassmaster.com/tournament/2026-bassmaster-elite-at-st-lawrence-river/attend/ (verified 2026-10-29)

Where to fish

• All ports
• Wilson
• Olcott
• Rochester
• Sodus Bay
• Oswego
• Henderson Harbor
• Niagara Bar

Other species

• All species
• King Salmon
• Brown Trout
• Steelhead
• Lake Trout
• Coho Salmon
• Atlantic Salmon
• Walleye