Conesus Lake, NY

[GANGGREEN]

I've fished Conesus a couple of times and enjoyed it.  I also enjoy Honeoye, Canandaigua, Keuka and Skaneateles, but it's Conesus that's drawn my focus recently.  My wife and I have been looking for a lakefront campground where we could set up seasonally and we finally rented a lot for 2020 on Conesus Lake and will be purchasing and delivering the camper this week most likely.  Not really looking for any specific spots or even techniques to use there, I'll figure all of that out easily enough on my own, but I'm curious what the thoughts are on the "state of the lake" so to speak.  Keep in mind that I prefer brown bass to green most of the time (although I'm flexible and willing to fish for whatever bites seasonally best) and I do enjoy multi-species fishing.  I'm aware that there are walleye there, but not really sure that they're caught with any regularity.  I also enjoy big bluegill, big crappie and especially big yellow perch.  I know that there are also tiger musky and pike there, but honestly, I couldn't care less about the toothies….

[J Francho]

There are smallmouth in the lake, but Conesus is a big green bass factory.  It generally fishes typically: docks on sunny days, deep weed edge, jigs & T-rigs.  When it's stingy, it's really stingy.

[GANGGREEN]

32 minutes ago, J Francho said:

There are smallmouth in the lake, but Conesus is a big green bass factory.  It generally fishes typically: docks on sunny days, deep weed edge, jigs & T-rigs.  When it's stingy, it's really stingy.

 

Still strong populations of bass though I'd presume?  I remember the first time I ever fished Conesus (it was actually the first time I'd ever laid eyes on the lake), I placed in a club tournament there and I've fished it a couple of times since with good numbers and fair average size on largemouth.  I'm more interested in the overall health of the fishery though.  Might have to start looking at some DEC survey results and what not.  Thanks for the reply J Francho.

 

[J Francho]

There is a tournament of some shape or form there almost every day of the week.  It receives a ton of pressure, and yet, churns out big bag after big bag.  I love that place, though it can break you on a tough day.  Spring time prespawn and spawn are best bet for a trophy brown fish.

[GANGGREEN]

Thanks again.  I'm actually really excited about getting the camper there and potentially having the opportunity to fish it 10 or 15 times next year.  I used to have a camper near Keuka and Canandaigua, which are also productive and fun lakes, but I get the impression that they probably don't offer the same quality of warm water fishing as Conesus (particularly for largemouth).  Like I said, pretty excited and looking forward to next year already.  I'll make a scouting trip or two this fall to see what I can remember or learn about the lake.

 

 

[J Francho]

Kueka is also VERY good.  Two of the largest tournament caught bass that I've ever seen came from there - an 8-5 LMB and 7-8 SMB.  Funny part, same bag!  The thing about Keuka is it's size.  You can't run to one end or the other like you can on Conesus.  It's the perfect size, big enough to support a good population, but not so big it's impossible to learn.  Canandaigua is beautiful on the south end.  Was just there yesterday for the grape festival in Naples. I wish I could have been fishing.

[reerok]

Hi J,

I got to fish Conesus last week for a few hours during the bluebird skies and lovely stable warm weather.  I was expecting a strong fishing day but it was stingy.  Fishing through the slimy, broken up weeds and grass was tricky.  The few green bass I picked up came off of docks with TRigged cut tail worm.  

 

I'm heading back tomorrow (weather permitting) - should I be fishing the deep weed edges instead?  

 

Thanks from the 585,

 

reerok

[J Francho]

2 minutes ago, reerok said:

should I be fishing the deep weed edges instead

Look for healthy, deeper weeds.  It might be a little weird with all the rain we got, so check that mid lake point with the creek running in.  Not sure how much rain they got south of the ROC.

[reerok]

19 minutes ago, J Francho said:

Look for healthy, deeper weeds.  It might be a little weird with all the rain we got, so check that mid lake point with the creek running in.  Not sure how much rain they got south of the ROC.

The docks just north of that point are where I picked up both bass, one a 3.5lber.

 

I'll look a bit deeper along the outside weed edge.  Tomorrow is supposed to be cooler and wet so I'm guessing the fish may be a bit funny.  On that lake with not a lot of structure I assume they lock down in the healthy weeds?

[J Francho]

2 minutes ago, reerok said:

On that lake with not a lot of structure I assume they lock down in the healthy weeds?

Yuuup!

[reerok]

Then I'll have to hit them in the head with the heavy tungsten!

[J Francho]

If your graph lights up with bait fish in that 20ish range, send a DS down in there, or a blade bate, or a jigging spoon.  You might unlock that smallie bite.

[reerok]

Unfortunately I won't be in charge of the boat.  And my buddy insists on fishing fast only.  He covers water with a spinnerbait 98% of the time no matter the conditions.  I probably can convince him to steer us to the outside weed edges but slowing down is pretty much off the table.

[J Francho]

4 minutes ago, reerok said:

And my buddy insists on fishing fast only.  He covers water with a spinnerbait 98% of the time no matter the conditions.

It's not a terrible plan, if they're on the feed.  Otherwise you're hauling water and catching pickerel.

[reerok]

15 minutes ago, J Francho said:

It's not a terrible plan, if they're on the feed.  Otherwise you're hauling water and catching pickerel.

And he's just as happy catching pickerel as bass so it works great for him.  I'll just try to keep up by hitting high percentage spots as he zooms us past them.

[J Francho]

Here's a back of the boat trick for that: grab your spinning DS setup.  Toss it slightly in front of where the boat is heading, but on the deep side, to not interfere with the shallow machine gunner.  Leave the bail open.  Let line peel out to where you be a little longer than a decent cast.  Close the bail, and give it rip.  You'd be surprised how many fish I've picked up from the back of the boat in that situation.

[reerok]

Awesome idea!  To confuse the situation further, he controls from the back of his Ranger with the remote dongle (no foot pedals).  For some reason he likes fishing off the back.  But I guess your idea could still work from the front of the boat.  I'll just have to retrieve rapidly so the long line doesn't slip beneath him and/or the boat.  I could use casting gear with a higher retrieve rate and heavier weight to get down to depth quicker...

[J Francho]

1 minute ago, reerok said:

To confuse the situation further, he controls from the back of his Ranger with the remote dongle (no foot pedals).  For some reason he likes fishing off the back.

Very unique.

[reerok]

He's a giver!  Haha.  He really is one of the most generous humans I know so I think he just likes to give his friends and family the room on the front.  Thanks for your idea.  I will give the DS a shot if we fish the deep weeds.

[reerok]

A stingy Conesus day after the rain and cold front.  The DS trick picked up the only fish of the day, a chunky little 2 lb.  Thanks for the tips and I look forward to fishing this lake more.  Hopefully I'll bump into you out there some day.

[skiman4235]

HI all

 

My brother and I are traveling up from Central Pa to fish Conesus Lake for first time on Saturday.  Looks like temperatures will be hot and humid, guessing water temps will be up as well.  We are planning to launch the boat very early in morning and fish all day.  Looking to fish bass and pike.  Any advice to put us on some fish would be greatly appreciated.  We do catch and release.  Also, I am only seeing 1 public boat launch, is this correct? 

[rmcguirk]

Yes, only one public boat launch.  Was out this past Sunday and when I left surface temperature was 80.  We had a fair bit of rain the other day, but I doubt that the temperature will be below 78 come tomorrow morning. 

 

Just another couple of thoughts on conditions.  First, by 10:00 a.m. there will be a ton of pleasure boat traffic on the lake.  In normal years, it is usually a bit later.  But, it seems like everyone is sticking closer to home under the circumstances and getting out on the water earlier than usual. With the expected heat tomorrow, I'd expect that to be the case again. 

 

Second, the weed edge this year is a bit weird, at least right now.  Usually, it ends out at 12-14 feet.  This year, its really more like in 8-10 foot range.  I don't know what the cause is, but I'm chalking it up to a colder than normal spring.  

 

Regarding chasing them generally, advice above still holds:  fish the docks when the sun is up or the deeper weed edge.  If you're there early tomorrow, I'm betting (hoping?) that there will be a decent top water bite.  

 

Good luck.  I'll probably see you out there tomorrow.  

[J Francho]

I’ve always suspected boat traffic does that to weed lines. All the waves churn up the shallows, and contribute to the turbidity of the water, blocking the light for the weeds. In the past decade boat traffic is way up. 

[ww2farmer]

44 minutes ago, J Francho said:

I’ve always suspected boat traffic does that to weed lines. All the waves churn up the shallows, and contribute to the turbidity of the water, blocking the light for the weeds. In the past decade boat traffic is way up. 

If that were the case, Silver lake would have no weeds LOL....and  as it is, it has the best milfoil and coontail in it right now that I have seen in 10 years, despite the boat traffic pounding it's getting right now.

 

I have come to the conclusion, like fish year classes, things go in cycles. The #1 factor I have seen for poor summer weed growth is cold springs with high water....even if it's gin clear, if it's high and cold the weeds just seem sluggish. A close #2 would be a ton of snow cover on the ice not letting light in during the winter. #3  would  be endless days of ripping North or South winds in the fall,and early spring that create a lot of "current" in these North/South oriented lakes uprooting sensitive and weak late/early season plants. Turbidity caused by boat traffic IS a factor at times, but if they get a good start and over winter well, it seems like a moot point for the most part. A good old fashioned pea soup summer algae bloom will also knock them back a bit too. The recent invasion of curly leaf pond weed in Conesus, and Silver don't help with milfoil in 8-12 feet either. That stuff takes off like wildfire in the spring, and tops out in late May, and depending how long it hangs around before it dies back, it really knocks the milfoil on its butt. On Silver this year that pond weed topped out  late May per normal, but with the heat we have had and water temp jumps, it faded quick and the milfoil really came on.

[J Francho]

Those are good theories too. We’ve had bad weeds on the dump and other bays for 10 years now. High water, low water, cold, warm. The only thing that’s consistent is boat traffic. That’s why I blame that.