Lake Ontario — Henderson Harbor and Golden Crescent Fishing Map & Depth Chart (NY)

Fishing Lake Ontario - Henderson Harbor and Golden Crescent: what the data says

164,456-acre section. Henderson Harbor, Chaumont Bay and the island shoals of the eastern end: legendary smallmouth water with big pike in the weedy bays. The lake tops out around 234 ft. The contours are modeled from the water's real shoreline and maximum depth. Treat them as a rough guide, and never use them for navigation. Below is the species-by-species picture, pulled from the same data the map uses.

Smallmouth Bass fishing at Lake Ontario - Henderson Harbor and Golden Crescent

Start shallow in spring: smallmouth bass sit in 3 to 12 ft that time of year. By summer they slide out to 10 to 30 ft, and by winter most fish are in 20 to 45 ft. Rock reef is the standout, a rock pile at roughly 6 ft, rated prime for spring smallmouth bass. Best bite is early morning and the evening. Summer baits: a drop shot (goby/minnow) or a ned rig gets it done.

Season	Depth	Best window	Go-to baits
Spring	3 to 12 ft	dawn & dusk	Ned rig, Tube jig
Summer	10 to 30 ft	dawn & dusk	Drop shot (goby/minnow), Ned rig
Fall	8 to 25 ft	midday & dawn	Jerkbait, Blade bait
Winter	20 to 45 ft	midday	Blade bait, Hair jig

Northern Pike fishing at Lake Ontario - Henderson Harbor and Golden Crescent

In spring, northern pike run shallow here, mostly 2 to 8 ft. They move out to 8 to 20 ft in summer and finish the year down in 5 to 15 ft. If you only fish one area, make it Weed flat: a weed flat around 4 ft that scores prime in spring. Best bite is early morning and the evening. A bucktail or a weedless spoon over cabbage covers the summer program.

Season	Depth	Best window	Go-to baits
Spring	2 to 8 ft	midday & dawn	#5 inline spinner, Spoon (red/white)
Summer	8 to 20 ft	dawn & dusk	Bucktail, Weedless spoon over cabbage
Fall	6 to 18 ft	midday & dawn	Big rubber (Bull Dawg style), Husky-style jerkbait
Winter	5 to 15 ft	midday	Tip-ups, Large jigging spoon

Largemouth Bass fishing at Lake Ontario - Henderson Harbor and Golden Crescent

Spring largemouth bass on Lake Ontario - Henderson Harbor and Golden Crescent hold shallow, usually 2 to 10 ft. By summer they slide out to 8 to 20 ft, and by winter most fish are in 15 to 35 ft. If you only fish one area, make it Weed flat: a weed flat around 4 ft that scores prime in spring. In summer the feeding windows fall in early morning and the evening. Tie on a texas-rigged 10" worm or a deep-diving crankbait and you're in the game.

Season	Depth	Best window	Go-to baits
Spring	2 to 10 ft	dawn & dusk	Spinnerbait, Chatterbait
Summer	8 to 20 ft	dawn & dusk	Texas-rigged 10" worm, Deep-diving crankbait
Fall	4 to 15 ft	midday & dawn	Squarebill crankbait (shad), Spinnerbait
Winter	15 to 35 ft	midday	Blade bait, Jigging spoon

Yellow Perch fishing at Lake Ontario - Henderson Harbor and Golden Crescent

Spring yellow perch on Lake Ontario - Henderson Harbor and Golden Crescent hold shallow, usually 3 to 12 ft. By summer they slide out to 10 to 30 ft, and by winter most fish are in 15 to 35 ft. Weed flat is the standout, a weed flat at roughly 4 ft, rated prime for spring yellow perch. Best bite is early morning. Summer baits: a drop-shot micro plastics or a small spoon tipped with worm gets it done.

Season	Depth	Best window	Go-to baits
Spring	3 to 12 ft	midday & dawn	Small jig + curly tail, Perch-pattern micro crank
Summer	10 to 30 ft	dawn	Drop-shot micro plastics, Small spoon tipped with worm
Fall	12 to 35 ft	midday	Jigging spoon (small), Perch rig / spreader
Winter	15 to 35 ft	midday & dawn	Tungsten jig + spikes, Rattle spoon (small)

Walleye fishing at Lake Ontario - Henderson Harbor and Golden Crescent

Start shallow in spring: walleye sit in 4 to 15 ft that time of year. They move out to 15 to 35 ft in summer and finish the year down in 20 to 40 ft. The spot to know is Sharp break, a drop-off in about 35 ft of water that rates prime for walleye in fall. Best bite is the evening and early morning. Tie on a crawler harness on bottom bouncer or a deep crankbait (trolled) and you're in the game.

Season	Depth	Best window	Go-to baits
Spring	4 to 15 ft	dusk & dawn	1/8 oz jig + minnow, Hair jig
Summer	15 to 35 ft	dusk & dawn	Crawler harness on bottom bouncer, Deep crankbait (trolled)
Fall	12 to 40 ft	dusk & night	Jigging rap, Jig + big minnow
Winter	20 to 40 ft	dusk & dawn	Jigging spoon + minnow head, Rattle bait

Rock Bass fishing at Lake Ontario - Henderson Harbor and Golden Crescent

In spring, rock bass run shallow here, mostly 2 to 10 ft. By summer they slide out to 5 to 20 ft, and by winter most fish are in 12 to 30 ft. The spot to know is Rock reef, a rock pile in about 6 ft of water that rates prime for rock bass in spring. In summer the feeding windows fall in the evening. Summer baits: a ned rig (small) or a marabou jig gets it done.

Season	Depth	Best window	Go-to baits
Spring	2 to 10 ft	midday & dawn	1/16 oz jig + grub, Small inline spinner
Summer	5 to 20 ft	dusk	Ned rig (small), Marabou jig
Fall	8 to 22 ft	midday	Small tube jig, Inline spinner
Winter	12 to 30 ft	midday	Tungsten jig + plastic, Small spoon + spike

Lake Ontario - Henderson Harbor and Golden Crescent also holds white perch (15 to 40 ft in summer). Pick any of them on the map above for rated spots and bait picks.

Notable structure

Deepest basin: deep basin, around 192 ft
Sharp break: drop-off, around 111 ft
Sharp break: drop-off, around 101 ft
Sharp break: drop-off, around 74 ft
Deep break: drop-off, around 73 ft
Deep break: drop-off, around 65 ft
Offshore hump: offshore hump, around 56 ft
Sharp break: drop-off, around 54 ft
Rock reef: rock pile, around 48 ft
Shallow feeding flat: feeding flat, around 48 ft
Offshore hump: offshore hump, around 38 ft
Feeding flat: feeding flat, around 36 ft
Sharp break: drop-off, around 35 ft
Rock reef: rock pile, around 33 ft

Common questions

How deep is Lake Ontario - Henderson Harbor and Golden Crescent?

Lake Ontario - Henderson Harbor and Golden Crescent is about 234 ft at its deepest point. The contours here are modeled from the water's real shape and maximum depth, so treat them as a rough guide.

What fish are in Lake Ontario - Henderson Harbor and Golden Crescent?

Anglers target largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, walleye, northern pike, yellow perch, rock bass, white perch on Lake Ontario - Henderson Harbor and Golden Crescent.

Where is the best fishing spot on Lake Ontario - Henderson Harbor and Golden Crescent?

Rock reef is the top-rated area: a rock pile in about 6 ft of water that rates prime for smallmouth bass in spring. Open the map above to see every rated spot for each species and season.

When is the best time to fish Lake Ontario - Henderson Harbor and Golden Crescent?

For smallmouth bass, the summer bite is best in early morning and the evening. Each species page section below lists the seasonal windows, and the map shows a live NOW badge when you're inside one.

Nearby waters

Salmon River · Lake Ontario - Oswego and Mexico Bay · Cross Lake · Cazenovia Lake · Otisco Lake · Skaneateles Lake

See how Lake Ontario - Henderson Harbor and Golden Crescent stacks up: best largemouth bass lakes in New York · best smallmouth bass lakes in New York · best walleye lakes in New York · best northern pike lakes in New York

Browse all New York fishing maps or every water on DepthScout. How we build these maps. For fishing guidance only, never navigation.

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