Lake Ontario Winds

[Helmut]

Guys I know some of you fish Lake O a lot so thought i would ask here first.
I would like to hit Ontario this year for first time. I have a new Tracker Targa V18 with 150 HP motor. What I need to understand is the way the winds affect the lake. I know it is not the same as Erie as it is much deeper. So if I could get some infor on what winds are favorable and speeds it would really help my understanding. Thanks

 

[whitetailhunter]

I assume you will be fishing the west end which most call the south shore in the Port Dalhousie or Jordon area as it is the only place to be at this time of year. The best winds are with west in them so it's blowing mostly off shore. Any wind with east in it and more than 10 km gets uncomfortable in a hurry. This time of year you will be fishing fairly close to shore so even 20 km winds out of the west should not be a problem. If you go you can leave the riggers at home but don't forget your planer boards and the required paper nav chart for that area. Although I must say it isn't very promising in the reports I'm getting this week from Lake Ontario. The cold spring has really put a damper on the fishing so far and water temps are still only 42 degrees with very few fish being caught. The only good reports I've heard are drift fishing for Lakers off the Niagara bar. I know your probably just itching to get out fishing in that great new Tracker boat and I sure can't blame you. But if you want good fishing I would save your gas for another week when things improve because that's what I'm doing. You can watch the fishing reports for Lake Ontario on www.spoonpullers.com so I hope that helps and good luck.

 

[lovetrout]

The great thing about lake ontario is that it doesn't blow up as quickly as erie.....and...in general you are within a mile or two of shore and fishing fow250>. Unless of course out in blue zone. South shore west wind is usually a good wind (jordan is a great launch). I love launching out 0f fishermans in hamilton but i only do it if the wind is low...as 3-5 miles to fishing typically. (most people find bronte a short ramp and expensive too) If you are fishing out of north shore say bronte or credit...once again only two miles off shore usually. That is tough part about say bruce/burwell and the distance you are out in the lake. YOU WILL HAVE A BLAST FISHING SALMON ON THAT LAKE!!!!

 

[Helmut]

Great thanks guys. So Sunday right now calls for 10k NE wind. My plan is to head to Port Dalhousie and troll towards Jordan harbour. I hope that wont be to rocky. if you think so I guess I'll be stuck with Dunnville cat fishing the river.

 

[lovetrout]

should be ok....just check wind sites and buoy data prior to going

 

[jakerboy]

This is the wind site i use . It has a 3 day forecast with a hourly wind speed . http://www.tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov/ofs/loofs/fore_wind.shtml

 

[whitetailhunter]

This is the site for the weather marine buoy situated in Lake Ontario off shore of Grimsby which gives the actual water conditions at any moment. I find it a great indicator because it's not a forecast it's the actual condition at the time. For example if the wind forecast on Lake Ontario is calling for a nice 10 km wind for the morning your going fishing but during the night the winds were up to say for example 20 km & gusting to 27 km the lake will still be rolling big for the entire morning even though the wind is now low. Although Ontario is a deep lake and takes considerably longer to blow up than Lake Erie that is shallow but keep in mind it also takes considerably longer to lay back down once it does blow up. So I always check this site to check the wind speed and wave height that occurred overnight before taking off in the early morning to go fishing. I have found it an invaluable tool during my 40 years of fishing the Big 'O'. It saves all that disappointment of driving all the way down there only to stand at the launch watching 4-5 footers rolling in because it blew up overnight. Wind NE 10km I consider the max for the south shore before the fun ends. The north shore is much better with N or NE wind but the fishing doesn't heat up there until at least the end of May.

http://www.ndbc.noaa.gov/station_page.php?station=45139&unit=E&tz=STN