Photo (at left): A free hands-on event held in early June for women on Oak Orchard River (pictured here) covered the basics of fly and spin fishing, safety, and fish biology. Credit: Stacy Furgal, NYSG

Contacts: 

Stacy Furgal, New York Sea Grant Great Lakes Fisheries Specialist, P: (315) 882-6227, E: slf85@cornell.edu 

Dawn Borchert, Orleans County Tourism, P: (315) 465-7578 E: dawn.borchert@orleanscountyny.gov

Waterport, NY, June 3, 2024 - Participants of a women's Learn to Fish Seminar, hosted over the weekend (on June 1st) by Orleans County Tourism in partnership with New York Sea Grant and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, received a hands-on introduction to spin and fly fishing techniques from local experts. also learned about the variety of fish species the Oak Orchard River has to offer. 

The afternoon event, during which participants also learned angling safety and the variety of fish species that the Oak Orchard River has to offer, took place at St. Mary's Archers Club along the river, a tributary to Lake Ontario that is world-renowned for trout and salmon fishing. 

"Orleans County is home to fantastic year-round fishing opportunities on our tributary waters that include Oak Orchard River, Johnson Creek, and Sandy Creek, said Orleans County Tourism Director Dawn Borchert. "The angling experiences here can be both relaxing and exhilarating with the diversity and productivity of the fishery of our tributaries and Lake Ontario." Borchert also participated in a 2023 NYSG Learn to Fish seminar for women in 2023 on Oneida Lake.

To learn more about salmon and trout in the Great Lakes check out NY Sea Grant's Salmon and Trout of the Great Lakes: A Visual Identification Guide (pdf). 

To learn more about angling in Orleans County, visit https://www.orleanscountytourism.com/fish. For local lodging, visit https://www.orleanscountytourism.com/stay.


Group photo of seminar participants and instructors. Space was limited to 20 women so that each participant could receive individual attention. Credit: Stacy Furgal, NY Sea Grant


Fly fishing demonstration. Gear was provided for those participants who did not bring their own. Credit: Megan Cochran, NY Sea Grant


Seminar participants practicing the fishing techniques they learned. In order to fish at the workshop, participants had to have a valid New York State Fishing License. Credit: Orleans County Tourism


Seminar participants practicing the fishing techniques they learned. Credit: Orleans County Tourism


Seminar participants practicing the fishing techniques they learned. Credit: Orleans County Tourism


Anglers on Orleans County's Oak Orchard River near the site of the June 1st Learn to Fish for Women Seminar. Credit: Orleans County Tourism


More Info: New York Sea Grant

New York Sea Grant (NYSG), a cooperative program of Cornell University and the State University of New York (SUNY), is one of 34 university-based programs under the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Sea Grant College Program.

Since 1971, NYSG has represented a statewide network of integrated research, education and extension services promoting coastal community economic vitality, environmental sustainability and citizen awareness and understanding about the State’s marine and Great Lakes resources.

Through NYSG’s efforts, the combined talents of university scientists and extension specialists help develop and transfer science-based information to many coastal user groups—businesses and industries, federal, state and local government decision-makers and agency managers, educators, the media and the interested public.

The program maintains Great Lakes offices at Cornell University, SUNY Buffalo, Rochester Institute of Technology, SUNY Oswego, the Wayne County Cooperative Extension office in Newark, and in Watertown. In the State's marine waters, NYSG has offices at Stony Brook University and with Cornell Cooperative Extension of Nassau County on Long Island, in Queens, at Brooklyn College, with Cornell Cooperative Extension in NYC, in Bronx, with Cornell Cooperative Extension of Ulster County in Kingston, and with Cornell Cooperative Extension of Westchester County in Elmsford.

For updates on Sea Grant activities: www.nyseagrant.org has Facebook, Twitter/X, Instagram, and YouTube links. NYSG offers a free e-list sign up via www.nyseagrant.org/nycoastlines for its flagship publication, NY Coastlines/Currents, which is published quarterly.