Lake George Fishing
The One That Got Away
By Mike Brown
 As a young boy coming of age in the 1960’s, my family made its yearly outdoor pilgrimage to Lake George.
Then and now, the long lake offered three distinct things the boys of summer yearn for: big fish, good times, and adventure. One of my fondest memories is of peeking over the side of a little rowboat moments after un-hooking a largemouth bass. Leaning over the side of the boat I was surprised by a beast of a fish menacingly swimming in the shallow, crystal-clear water below. The beast was huge, a mean-looking Northern Pike. Startled by the size of the fish, I jumped to my seat and paddled frantically back to the comforting safety of my parents. They watched me splash to shore and later heard a whopper of a story from their mighty little angler.
Now, here we are in the year 2002 and the little boys of summer from the 1960’s are taking their sons, wives, and daughters to Lake George seeking outdoor adventures. Despite the hectic times not much has changed at Lake George. There are still miles of undeveloped shoreline on the northeast side of the lake, big pike and bass are still abundant. Smallmouth Bass, Lake Trout and Atlantic Landlocked Salmon have collectively become the premier fishing trophies of this long, clean and family-oriented vacation mecca.
In fact, Lake George offers some of the best Lake Trout and Salmon fishing to residents of Southern New York and Northern New Jersey. Mix in the still legendary Northern Pike and you can imagine the fishing paradise of Lake George.
My son Shane and I rediscovered Lake George during a recent adventure trip to the Queen of American Lakes.
What we found was a tremendous fishing experience, spectacular mountain scenery and very little angling competition. Mix in superbly-prepared guides, high-tech fishing boats and the lowest package prices of ANY fishing charters in the entire state of New York, you can understand our pleasure.
At 7 am we met our captain and jumped aboard a 26-foot-long boat that was the most modern fishing boat we had ever experienced. It was big and broad, no worries of children falling overboard. Shane could have spent all morning with our captain, at the wheel absorbing the equipment alone.
But the captain gave Shane another option. He had never caught a lake trout before in his life and within the first hour he pulled in a pair of hefty lakers. He even allowed me to catch a couple as we trolled deep water. We caught five lakers, two salmon, and later in the morning, we caught 15 smallmouth bass as we drifted live minnows off a rocky point of shore.
Shane and all youngsters really savor this style of fishing, setting the hooks and bringing the fish to net all by themselves.
The Lake George fishing we experienced in mid-summer was one that my son and I will always remember.
Visitors to Lake George are wise to hire one of several fishing guides listed in on this site. Not only will you avoid both registration fees for boat users but the guides save immeasurable time and effort. They know where the fish are, what they are feeding on, and have the equipment to get the job done right. All bait and tackle are typically included. Most charters also cater to families and adults who know very little about fishing.
Whether you are casting from shore or trolling from a charter boat, you will find Lake George fishing to be most enjoyable and a great value.
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