Pine Lakes in Hamilton County: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Pine Lakes is a Hamilton County water, New York side. This is rolling bush country. At 13 acres it is the sort of place you fish for an evening rather than a day. The nearest town is Northville, 22 miles away. For a city, Albany is 67 miles off. Other water within reach: 1.1 miles away is Elm Lake, Echo Lake about 4.3 miles, 4.6 miles away is Gilman Lake Pleasant about 4.7 miles and 4.8 miles away is Dug Mountain Ponds. There is no boundary nearby to worry about.

• Where to Fish on Pine Lakes

  Depth here is unknown, so count the lead down before committing. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. Open biodiversity records for Hamilton County list lake trout, brook trout, yellow perch and smallmouth bass. These are county-wide records, so not all of them will be in this water. On Pine Lakes a short move beats a long cast.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Expect July near 64°F and January near 14°F on the long-run figures. Fishing here follows the temperature more than the calendar. The lid arrives early and lasts until roughly mid April. The open-water window runs from around mid April to about early December in an average year. June through September is the settled part of the year, with the shoulders busier for fish. At Pine Lakes the season follows that pattern closely.

• Tackle & Baits

  No public source sets out the position on this bank. There is no recorded infrastructure here; expect to find your own way in. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Where the road in crosses private land, ask first. Some stretches are reserved and marked as such on the ground. Elm Lake, 1.1 miles away, makes the obvious fallback. Check the position on Pine Lakes before loading the car.