Outdoors with Larry DiDonato - Spring Turkey and “Cool Water” Fish Species Share May 1st Opener

After 28 years of service, veteran NY State Trooper Mike Brennan (right) is hanging up his spurs. Shown here after a past hunt with son Nick and his well-spurred bird, the father and son duo doubled up harvesting two big toms on a beautiful sun dappled morning. Nick Brennan is now carrying on two family traditions; One of an ardent turkey hunter, and the other by joining the ranks of the New York State Pollice as a Trooper working out of the Catskill Barracks. Here's wishing Nick a great law enforcement career and Mike a well deserved retirement! 

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) recently announced  the season opener for walleye, northern pike, tiger muskellunge, and pickerel will begin on May 1st  2026. That’s the same day the regular spring turkey opens up. Sportsmen and women in NY have a dilemma on their hands-they have to choose just one of a number of great outdoor activities to engage in on May 1st. In addition to the opening day of turkey season and for targeting and taking “cool water” fish species named above, anglers can fish for wild or recently stocked trout. Add to that, they’ve got the option to go out on the Hudson or Delaware Rivers to make a play for striped bass during their spring run. 

For diehard turkey hunters, it’s a no-brainer. They’ve been waiting all year and of late, patterning and locating birds in the evenings, pre-season. On opening day, they’ll be out at 0’dark hundred getting as close as they dare to a roosted tom. A few subtle tree yelps with a gobble in reply, and its game-on! If all goes to plan, boss gobbler will fly down and make his way toward the calls and decoys. Hopefully right into the trap of a well concealed ambush. While that hunter will take that scenario any time of day they can get it, it would be perfect if it was right at legal shooting time which begins one half hour before sunrise. 

Due to favorable weather conditions during the summer of 2024 which led to increased turkey poult production DEC expects an increased availability of two-year-old toms during the spring 2026 season. You can learn more about turkey harvest productivity trends across the state by visiting the interactive New York turkey dashboards. For more information or to explore the data, visit DEC’s website at www.dec.ny.gov.

For those with lots of stamina, it’s a glorious albeit tough day, but if you can recover from the morning’s turkey hunt, you can go out for pike and the like later in the day. Speaking from experience, it’s a little tough early am turkey hunting followed by a day out on the river chasing stripers, but it certainly can be done.  

If you chose to fish for walleye, they enjoy, “…a well-deserved reputation as one of New York’s most prized and tastiest gamefish. They are often considered one of the more challenging fish to catch but understanding when and where to find them and how they behave can go a long way towards putting fish in the boat.” The Great Sacandaga, Kayderosseras Creek, and Saratoga Lake are all excellent places to hunt for walleye. 

Additional reliable fishing locations for walleye are available on DEC’s website. May is good time to fish for walleye. DEC says, “As aggressive post-spawn feeders, walleye are often found in relatively shallow water near spawning locations this time of year.”

Black bass, pike and pickerel also hit nicely in late April and early May. They move into shallow tributaries, bays, and wetlands in early spring and feed aggressively. Use steel leader for pike and pickerel and cast swimbaits, crankbaits, spinnerbaits, and spoons along and around structure for the long fish and black bass. 

“Anglers can find high quality pike fishing opportunities in a number of cool water lakes in the Adirondacks, such as Great Sacandaga Lake, Tupper Lake, the Saranac Chain of Lakes, and Cranberry Lake. The St. Lawrence River, Seneca Lake, and Conesus Lake are also considered top pike fishing locations. For more information on fishing destinations for northern pike and other esocids, such as chain pickerel and tiger muskellunge, see DEC’s website for Northern pike, muskie, and pickerel fishing opportunities. Anglers are reminded that the fishing season for muskellunge opens on June 1.”

 For more excellent information on fishing in NY, use the Tackle Box feature in DEC’s HuntFishNY app. It provides information on access sites, stocking, regulations and much more. Go to www.dec.ny.gov to learn how to download the Tackle Box app. 

 So whatever activity you choose on May 1st and beyond, you pretty much can’t go wrong. Even if you catch a day when the turkeys aren’t talking and the fish aren’t biting, just getting out in the great outdoors at this magical time of the year is its own reward! 

Happy hunting, fishing, and trapping until next time!

News and Notes

Save the date for the Annual Kid’s Fishing Derby at Catskill Point

This year the Kid’s Fishing Derby at Catskill Point sponsored by the Greene County Federation of Sportsmen’s Clubs will take place on Saturday, June 13th. More information to follow as the event approaches.

The season for "Cool water" species like walleye, pike, and pickerel shares an opening day with the spring wild turkey hunting season on May 1st. Hunters and fishers now have a happy decision to make; whether to hunt, fish or do both!