9/3/2026 Tioga County Fishing Report- Hammond Lake, Tioga Lake, Cowanesque Lake, Pine Creek and More

Tackle Shack Quick Take-
Fishing continues to be challenging for many as we head into September.  However, storm fronts have had bass fired up in the evenings, and persistence has paid off with decent catches on most of the lakes. Weeds are starting to die back in some spots and heavy rains last night muddied up Pine and other waters.  More rain is expected again tonight

Expect challenging conditions going into the holiday weekend.  Tackle Shack will be open normal hours for Labor Day.  Fri-Sun 6am-6pm.  Monday (Labor Day) 8am-6pm

Tioga and Hammond Lake Fishing Report-

Pictured: Hammond Lake 8/30/2026 - Wes with a couple nice white crappies

Trolling has been most effective for crappies.  Berkley Flicker Shad and similar shad shaped crankbaits are working in shad colors and brighter colors.  Water temps are in the mid 70s.  Don't be afraid to try larger profiled baits like a Strike King 5xd or Hardliner crankbait.  Strike King's natural shad color is a perfect gizzard shad imitation.  Look for crappies in 10-15 feet, particularly around structure.

Shallow weeds seem to be the best places to key in on for bass.  Chatterbaits in white, shad, or white/chartreuse colors are all working well.   These bass are keyed in on gizzard shad and this is an excellent way to cover water to find active bass. The no wake zone and weeds along any shoreline are producing fish.  Neko rigged and wacky rigged worms are also working.  Buzzbaits and whopper ploppers also produced fish.  The Tuesday night league fished here this week with a top bag over 10lbs (3 fish).  Most bass have been between 1 and 3 pounds with a few bigger ones mixed in.

Hammond Lake is officially under Panfish Enhancement Regulations.  Anglers may harvest 20 crappies measuring at least 9".   This only affects Hammond Lake.  

Cowanesque Lake Fishing Report

Shallow weeds and timber continue to be a favorite spot for largemouth.  Deeper points are also holding fish.  Water temps are in the mid 70s.  Expect very dirty conditions on the west end with the heavy rain these past few days.

A few anglers noted hooking into stripers on swimbaits and bucktails in deeper water near the dam.  As water cools down, this bite will heat up.  Target areas with access to deeper water around the dam.  Dropoffs and humps on the outside of the weed edges on the east end are good places to start.  These fish roam quite a bit chasing bait, but almost always relate to deeper water this time of the year.  Side scan and livescope type fishfinders are a big help in finding them.  Without these, look for dropoffs around the dam for a good chance at finding them.

Hills Creek Lake Fishing Report

Nightcrawlers and shiners have been the ticket here for largemouth lately.  Anglers caught perch, bluegills, and bass off the docks and around the dam. Senkos, texas rigged and wacky rigged, around the weeds have worked.  The weeds were treated in Hills Creek in some spots.  Expect to some of these dying off.  

As weed patches die back, look for green areas for the best bite.  Fish tend to relate better to live plants.  The backs of the coves on campground sides and the island hump near the swimming area are good places to start.

Hamilton Lake Fishing Report

Most of the action has been around the dam lately.  Expect dirtier conditions here too near the creek mouth.  We've had a lot of questions about trout stocking lately.  Hamilton is stocked again in October.  Check back in a month for trout updates here.

Beechwood Lake Fishing Report

Few reports from beechwood this week.  A few anglers have been targetting bass with varied success.  Senkos and similar wacky presentations worked best around the weeds.  

Nessmuk Lake Fishing Report

Anglers have been catching bass off the dam, and by boat.  Topwater has worked well for mostly smaller fish.  Larger bass seem to be holding offshore on structure.  The dock area has plenty of bluegills and small crappies, plus a few bass, hanging around.

Pine Creek Fishing Report

Pine is muddy and rising after rains today and last night.  More rain is still expected.  Conditions will be very challenging through the weekend.  The smaller streams will be better to target.  Look at Asaph Run and Straight Run for wild browns and brookies. 

Live bait has been best for walleyes lately with moderate success on nightcrawlers and live shiners, particularly between the wing walls.  Check conditions before heading out with recent rain events.  Keitech swimbaits continue to be a favorite too for smallmouth.  Shad, or silver shads, have fished best.

Tackle Shack Tip of the Week-

Gizzard Shad play a big role in the diet of all fish on Hammond and Tioga.  Consider colors like white, shad, sexy shad, and gizzard shad when choosing a moving bait.  A touch of chartreuse works well too in stained or off color water.  One of our staff's go-to baits is a Z-Man Chatterbait Micro Max in the color Spot Remover. The smaller profile mimics the yearling shad size very well compared to a full sized chatterbait.

Did you have a great catch this week? 

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