Tupper Lake, NY

Terrific Tupper

Both the variety of species and the size of the fish lure ice anglers to Tupper. DEC fisheries biologists have found walleyes as large as 15 pound's in the lake.

BY MIKE SEYMOUR

THE ODDS OF CATCHING A TROPHY PIKE, WALLEYE OR LAKER ARE EXCELLENT IN THE WATERS NEAR THIS ADIRONDACK VILLAGE.

The possibility of catching multiple species is part of the fun of fishing at Tupper Lake. When a tip-up flag appears over the ice, a northern pike is the most likely cause. Sometimes, though, a walleye, lake trout, or jumbo perch has taken the bait. And on less frequent occasions, the tug at the end of the line is produced by a landlocked salmon, speckled trout, brown trout or even a tiger muskie.

Nestled in the southwest corner of Franklin County, the Adirondack village of Tupper Lake is an ice angler's dream. Ice fishing opportunities near the village include Tupper Lake proper, Raquette Pond and Simond Pond. These three waters are interconnected, and during the open-water seasons, boaters can navigate from one water to the next via well-marked channels. In the winter, each water has its individual ice fishing personality.

Tupper Lake, the largest of the three, covers over 6,000 acres and has nearly 30 miles of shoreline. Its variety of habitat includes 80-foot basins, large bays, weed flats, shoreline points and island drop-offs. Anglers gain access at the DEC boat launch off State Rt. 30. Once the ice is solid, the launch provides drive-on access for ATVs, snowmobiles and vehicles. The lake has a strong population of smelt, which creates a Catch-22 situation. The abundance of natural feed produces large, healthy fish, but since the pike, walleyes and trout are so well fed, anglers face the challenging task of enticing them to strike their baited tip-ups.

Despite the competition from natural baitfish, though, the lake yields monster fish. Area taxidermist Tim Snyder says that he sees 15- to 17-pound northern pike taken from the lake regularly. Don Hamilton won a recent ice fishing derby with a 10.4-pound lake trout, and last February Jeff Trudeau hauled a 12.4-pound laker through the ice. Yellow perch to 13 inches, 6-pound landlocked salmon, and double-figure walleyes are occasionally caught. And Rich Preall, Head of DEC Region 5 Fisheries, believes that Tupper Lake could yield the next state-record walleye. When his staff surveyed the walleye population here in the 1980s, they electro-fished a number of 14- and 15-pound fish.

Bordering the village of Tupper Lake, Raquette Pond was created about 60 years ago when dam construction flooded lands along the Raquette River. Anglers have walk-on and drive-on access at the public boat launch at the Rotary Pavilion in the Municipal Park. The habitat here consists primarily of weedy flats that provide excellent cover for baitfish and young fish. Maximum depth on the pond is 12 feet, and many areas are only four to five feet deep.

Raquette Pond has good perch fishing, but the water is best known for its northern pike. A number of years ago the pond yielded a 21.3-pound pike that measured 43 inches. In 1993, seven-year-old Matt Burnham, with the help of his dad, pulled a 15- pound, 37.5-inch northern through the ice. The best locations for catching big pike are near sunken logs, along weed edges and in the old river channel. At times, walleyes show up in these same areas, too.

Just south of the village, Simond Pond consists of weedy flats in the western portion and deeper, open water in the eastern half, where anglers will also find a number of small bays and mainland points. The Tupper Lake Rod and Gun Club boat launch on the Simond Pond Road provides good access, and the flats in front of the launch are the pond's most popular ice fishing areas.

Simond harbors some walleyes, but pike and perch are the most popular species. Last February I spent half a day fishing here, and my efforts prouced one northern pike and 60 yellow perch. The northern hit a shiner fished below a tip-up while the perch were jigged with a grub-tipped spoon. Even though the pike action was slow that day, anglers commonly see 10-20 flags on the pond's hot days.

Local angler Tim Snyder fishes all three waters. When spending the day on Tupper Lake, Tim pursues northern pike and walleyes in eight to 12 feet of water in the bays. He has his best luck using small suckers in areas with a rocky bottom. The taxidermist likes fishing on Raquette Pond because of the good access and the heavy concentration of bait fish that draws pike, walleye, perch and even lake trout here. Tim says that Simond Pond provides the fastest action of the three waters. On his best days, he has caught and released 15 pike by setting his tip- ups in openings in the weeds.

Jessie's Bait and Tackle
133 Main St., Route 3
Tupper Lake, NY 12986
518/359-9480

Snyder's Taxidermy
45 Sunset Ave.
Tupper Lake, NY 12986
518/359-3872

Tip Top Sports
Corner of Park St. and
Wawbeek Ave.
Tupper Lake, NY 12986
518/359-9222

Tupper Lake
Chamber of Commerce
60 Park St.
Tupper Lake, NY 12986
518/359-3328

DEC Region 5
Fishing Hotline
518/891-5413

Matt Boudreau has fished the Tupper Lake waters all of his life, and he has a reputation for catching big northerns. Last February he hauled a 14.5-pound pike onto the ice. Matt's technique consists of a Phoebe flasher, an 18-inch monofilament leader, and a small treble hook baited with a large sucker. When fishing Tupper Lake, he likes to find a rocky bottom where some change in depth occurs. Matt will some- times land walleyes and lake trout on his pike rigs. Last winter he caught five lakers weighing five pounds or more. When searching for northerns on Raquette and Simond ponds, this pike hunter recommends fishing the weedlines. He spends time during the open-water seasons identifying such spots.

Jeff Trudeau is the lake trout expert at Tupper Lake, and he routinely wins this division in the annual ice fishing derby. Jeff uses an 8-foot monofilament leader because experience has taught him that lakers shy away from the steel ones. His favorite bait is a 4-inch sucker fished on a small treble hook with no weight added. The angler has his best luck near sandy gravel shoals in 25 to 40 feet of water. Jeff staggers the depths of his baits because he has taken lakers at depths varying from just three feet below the ice to right on the bottom. He also spreads out his tip-ups so they are hundreds of feet apart.

Don't expect fast action when looking for lakers. In fact, Jeff compares lake trout fishing to deer hunting, and even though he and his brother-in-law, Matt Paiement, have caught a six-fish limit before, he says that a single catch makes for a good day. Jeff praises lake trout at Tupper for their fighting ability and their beauty. He recommends using big-spooled tip-ups because lakers here routinely run off 100 yards of line after striking a bait. Once the fish are brought near the hole, they really show their spunk, and an angler has all he can do to pull one through the small opening in 24 inches of ice. The typical lake trout at Tupper weighs 5 to 9 pounds.

Like ice fishing anywhere in the state, anglers at Tupper Lake, Raquette Pond and Simond Pond will experience slow days and fast days. Perhaps the slow days occur because the fish are full of smelt and other baitfish, but it is this same abundance of forage that contributes to the growth of trophy fish here. If you head to the Tupper area this winter, you might want to check your bank account to see if you have enough to pay a taxidermist for mounting a 40-inch pike. Tupper Lake Contacts

The Annual Fishing Derby
The Tupper Lake Rod and Gun Club's Annual Ice Fishing Derby is scheduled for Sat.-Sun., Feb. 19-20, 2000, and derby boundaries encompass all of the waters of Tupper Lake, Raquette Pond, and Simond Pond. Anglers can pre-register at Tip Top Sports, Jessie's Bait and Tackle, or Fortune's Hardware. On-site registration begins at 7 a.m. on Feb. 19 at the Rod and Gun Club located south of the Village of Tupper Lake on the Simond Pond Road. For more information, contact Ray Shumway, the club's vice-president, at 51 8/359-2764.

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