OBSERVER Photo by Gene Pauszek. Locally, yellow perch catches have been reported.

Good things come to those that wait…and bait. Yellow perch have finally appeared in local waters with some degree of regularity. It started over a week ago, when the strong northerly winds blew a lot of cold water into the area shoreline. Remember when the reports indicated anglers were catching lake trout in 40 feet of water? The prevailing wind evidently blew in a lot of bait , and the yellow perch followed the bait.

Anglers were finding perch in shallow water, and the hot spot was 10 to 14 feet deep in front of Cedar beach. Limit catches were reported for several days in a row, but since then the fishing has steadily moved deeper, and the perch anglers continue to catch decent numbers of perch.

There are some reports that indicate the evening bite has also been strong. Those anglers in pursuit of walleye report that the walleye bite continues to be high, with limit catches reported from all three local ports. There are no reports of fish over 26 inches in length, but if you are looking for “eaters” in the 17 to 22 inch range, head out to 60 feet of water and stay within the 70 foot mark.

This angler had success recently using stick baits in a variety of colors, utilizing five and seven colors of lead core line off the side planners. Dipsey diver presentations also worked well.

If you are heading out this weekend be aware that the weather conditions will be brutally warm and muggy so wear sunglasses , protective clothing and head gear. Stay hydrated , but avoid alcohol and caffeine while driving or on the water. Expect a lot of boat traffic on Friday and Saturday with the Sunset Bay Shoot Out going on this weekend. There has been a lot of black top paving going on at the Dunkirk Pier, so you may experience some difficulty this week.

Skip Bianco at Hogan’s Hut reports that the yellow perch fishing has also improved on Chautauqua lake but there have been a lot of smaller sized fish. Walleye fishing continues to be good.

Calendar: The Sunset Bay Shootout is Friday and Saturday. The payout is expected to be over $200,000. For details go to www.walleyeshootout.com.

June 29 – July 28 is the 10th annual Lake Ontario Counties (LOC) Summer derby. Go to www.loc.org.

July 22 at 4:30 p.m. the Lakeshore Longbeards our local chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation will hold an organizational meeting, at Liberty Vineyards in Sheridan, for the JAKES Day Youth event. It will be held on Saturday, Aug. 17 at the Westfield Fish & Game Club. The meeting is open to the public. They need more volunteers for the Jakes Day event so please stop by.

July 19-20 is the Sunset Bay Shootout. Contact Captain Don Ruppert at 435-4137.

July 28 is the Chautauqua Lake Summer Bass Team OPEN. At Chautauqua Lake, Long Point State Park. Contact Mike Russo at (716) 640-6915.

The Northern Chautauqua Conservation Club Walleye Tournament is Aug. 2-4. Contact person is Zen Olow at 640-2776.

VIP Day is Aug, 7. Contact Zen Olow at 640-2776.

Aug. 11 is the Chautauqua Bassmasters Tournament No. 3 on Chautauqua Lake/Long Point State Park. Contact Mike Russo at 640-6915. Innovative Outdoors Walleye Challenge out of Dunkirk. Contact Jim Steel at 481-5348 or go to www.innovative-outdoors.com.

There will be a Hunter Safety Training Course at the Northern Chautauqua Conservation Club on August 21 and 22 from 5 p.m. until 10 p.m. Two day attendance is mandatory.

If your club or organization is holding a hunter safety training/trapping course or a turkey shoot or any other outdoors event, and would like to see it posted in the calendar, send information to the OBSERVER, 10 East Second Street, Dunkirk, NY 14048, or call the sports department at 366-3000 ext. 5 after 6 p.m.

Note: If you have a big game fishing or trapping success story you would like to share, call 366-1772, or 467-2079 and leave a name, phone number and a time you can be reached. You can also call 366-3000, ext. 5, after 6 p.m. or email sports@observertoday.com.