The Lower Niagara River Isn’t What I Thought—Especially With a Fly Rod

I went in skeptical., I didn’t expect much from the Lower Niagara. Fly fishing it for smallmouth bass, and staying in Lewiston, changed my mind completely.

Big streamers catching big smallmouth on the Lower Niagara River | Photo provided by Ken Baldwin

I had a busy season of travel and fishing in 2025. Africa. Puerto Rico. Montana. Florida. Everything from big water to warm water to postcard water. I even shared a good stretch of river with a group of crocs feeding on a dead elephant. Not joking.

An African buffet for the crocs. | Photo by Ken Baldwin

Unknown Waters

One of those trips took me somewhere I’d never been—and, if I’m being honest, somewhere that wasn’t high on my travel list: the Lower Niagara River in upstate New York.

I’ve heard the fishing in upstate New York is good, but it never registered as a fishing destination. You don’t read many articles on it, you don’t see postcard photos or calendars filled with beautiful images. It's just not on the tip of the tongue when you talk about fishing, especially fly fishing.

This lake trout was caught while waiting at the dock for the other anglers to show up. There are a lot of fish in the Lower Niagara. | Photo by Ken Baldwin

Never Say No to Fishing

Early last year, I received an offer to fish the Lower Niagara. I had a lot of travel scheduled for the summer; my time at home would be scarce. I was hesitant to add another trip.

Smart Friends

Kurt Mazurek—my fellow editor at Fishing On SI—heard about my trip and my not going. Kurt is a fishy guy, a bass guy, and someone who’s been in the industry a long time. He told me flat out that I’d be a fool to pass on it, and that it would be one of the best trips of the year. "Cancel another trip, take the wife out to a fancy dinner, but go fish the Lower Niagara."

The Lower Niagara

I couldn’t have been more wrong about my judgment of the Lower Niagara River — or what the town where I'd be staying was like. In spring, upstate New York is green, warming, clean, and coming to life. My big surprise, or one of them, because there were a lot, is that Lewiston is not an industrial town using the river. It felt more like a village town built along the river. It's not an eyesore, that's for sure.

The Lower Niagara is just coming to life in the spring. | Photo by Ken Baldwin

The Fishing

The Lower Niagara has big smallmouth bass, and lots of them. They move into the river from Lake Ontario. The marina I'm fishing out of is a little over 6 miles upriver from where the river dumps into the lake.

Smallmouth Vs Smallmouth

I tend to put smallmouth into two categories. River smallies, which usually run on the smaller side, are extra strong from living in constant current. And Lake smallies that get big because they have room to grow, and slow deep water to lie around and get fat in. They are strong, just not "river-strong."

I started out catching smaller fish until I figured out the streamer and retrieve that the bigger fish responded to. | Photo by Ken Baldwin

The Best of Both

In my unscientific opinion, Lower Niagara smallmouth feel like a hybrid of the two. They have the room of Lake Ontario to grow big, but spend a lot of time in the river current hunting for food. The result is a big fish that’s river-strong.

Familiar Waters

The fishing was straightforward and familiar. We mainly worked shorelines, drifting downstream and occasionally holding with the trolling motor when we found fish. And we found fish.

My Smallmouth Bass Rig For Great Lake's Fish

I fished two rods: a 9' St. Croix Evos 8-weight and an 8'10" St. Croix Tannic Bass 8-weight. Both were rigged with Scientific Anglers Sonar Titan 3D Sink lines. Here's a plug: Scientific Angler sinking lines are among my favorites for their performance. I've used them for everything from brown trout in Arkansas to tigerfish in Africa, and I'll keep using them because they make fishing with a sinking line easy.

The smallmouths of the Lower Niagara are above average in size and strength. | Photo provided by Ken Baldwin

Watch and Learn

I was here with a group of other anglers, all of whom were using conventional tackle. I was the only fly-fishing guy. They had all fished this river before and started catching right off the bat. I was the new invite, so I knew enough to throw a Clouser and mostly study the conventional guys on the first day.

The Spro Jerkbait

It was pretty clear by mid-day that a Spro mcstick Jerkbait 110+1 in Gray Ghost was catching the most fish. I knew that if I could make a streamer move like a jerkbait, I’d catch fish.

The Drunk and Disorderly

The steamer that gave me the best "jerkbait" action was a Drunk and Disorderly. Because of the shape of its head, it would slash left and right when stripped back. It worked like a charm.

The Technique That Led to Big Fish

I cast anywhere from 30 to 60 feet, depending on our position, and let the line sink between 6 and 13 feet. After my streamer reached the depth I wanted, I’d give it an aggressive, long pull—about two and a half to three feet—to make it jump forward. I’d pause, then give another long pull followed by a few short shakes, then another long pull. I mixed it up with variations of this retrieve. 

The Drunk and Disorderly streamers in colors that worked. | Photo by Ken Baldwin

Move Like a Jerkbait

The long, violent strips in my retrieve were to make the streamer move like a jerkbait. Most of my strikes came on the pause or right as the fly lunged forward after a pause. A big smallmouth feels like you’ve stuck a tree trunk, and then fight on.

A Fly Rod Should Equal the Task

When I wanted to fish deeper, I switched to a large Clouser minnow rigged on the stout St. Croix Tannic Bass rod, letting it sink and hopping it along the bottom. The shorter, beefier rod was good for hooking and horsing the fish up from the deep.

Lewiston, NY

When I travel to fish, I’m mostly focused on the fishing. Anything outside that, I want it to be easy and not require much energy to accomplish. I stayed in Lewiston, New York at the Niagara Crossing Hotel. The location and layout of the hotel made the stay easy.

Lower Niagara guide Capt. Matt Gantress got me into some nice steelhead. | Photo by Ken Baldwin

Everything Was in Walking Distance

I fished hard all day, cleaned up at the hotel, walked to Center Street a few blocks away. The street is lined with restaurants and shops. I’d sit down to a good dinner, have a beer, walked Center Street to wind down, grab a pastry and coffee, and went back to my room to crash.

Location, Location, Location

The hotel is located just off the river. You walk out the front door, across the parking lot, and then to the Village of Lewiston Marina & Launch Ramp, where you can meet your guide for pickup.

It's a simple hotel, clean, friendly and optimally located so your focus can be on the fishing.

By The Way

The Lower Niagara is also known for brown trout, lake trout, steelhead, walleye, musky, and salmon. I snuck in a half day of steelhead fishing and landed three fish in just a couple of hours. Next spring, I’m bringing a spey rod and dedicating a whole day to steelheading.

The Best Guide

Frank Campbell is the best you will find in the area.. He's been fishing the Lower Niagara and surrounding waters for 25+ years, and averages 200 days a year on the water. He lives and breathes this fishery. He’ll get you on fish, will instruct if needed, and knows when to let you fish without over-coaching. Plus he mixes it up with more than 20 years of stories and humor. It all makes for a great day on the river.

Big river, big fish. The Lower Niagara is full of these chunks. | Photo by Ken Baldwin

I’m Going Back

I was wrong about the Lower Niagara. My ignorance almost cost me a great week of fishing. It ranks among my best trips of the year. I'm comparing that to Africa, Alaska, Montana, and the Bahamas. I know that sounds crazy, but for pure fishing pleasure, catching fish, and the quality of fish in a nice environment, it rates enough so that I'm going back next Spring. —Ken Baldwin Follow me on my X account

"Slow down...listen to the hoppers...be patient with yer wife...eat sardines with hot sauce... catch “Gagger” trout!!!" – Flip Pallot

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