Bear Lake Fishing in Herkimer County, New York

• Overview

  Within Herkimer County, New York, you have Bear Lake. The bank is 1,617 feet above sea level. The water covers some 54 acres, so pick a bank rather than trying to cover it all. Around 1.2 miles of margin, front to back. Head to Boonville, 16 miles away, for anything you forgot. Lowville is 25 miles away, with Rome at 33 miles. You are close to a county edge here; who manages the access can change within a short drive.

• Where to Fish on Bear Lake

  We hold no depth figure for this one. The shallow end warms first and pulls fish in ahead of the rest. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. Species logged across Herkimer County include white sucker, yellow perch and brook trout. What holds for the county may not hold for this water. Read Bear Lake before you fish it and the day goes better.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Averages here run 65°F at the top of summer and 15°F at the bottom of winter. The middle months are generous; the ends are demanding. Count on hard cover from midwinter, and open water from mid April. The lid tends to go about mid April and return around early December. Late spring and early autumn carry the year between them. The season on Bear Lake rarely departs from it.

• Tackle & Baits

  Access is not recorded for this water. Records list it as a natural water body rather than an impoundment. You can camp about half a mile away, going by the mapping. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Parking is often the real limit rather than the bank itself. Fishing rules and camping rules are set separately here. The nearest alternative is Bloodsucker Pond, 1.5 miles out. What applies at Bear Lake may have changed since it was mapped.