Port Robinson - The old section of the Welland River

[Technosis]

If you check out this google earth map you'll note the part of the Welland River / Chippawa Creek that appears to be cut off by the Welland Canal bypass. The CN rail mainline also cuts it off at the other side , but there is a large culvert that I assume is big enough to let a small boat through.

Has anyone ever fished this backwater, and what sort of fish are in there? is there any public access to it or would you have to launch somewhere below the aqueduct and enter under the railroad tracks through the culvert?

Assuming this link works, the water body I'm talking about is at the end of South Main St. I'm guessing that this was part of the old Welland river that was isolated by the Canal bypass. You'll notice a series of bridge abudments that cross the east end. It looks like a rail line or road once crossed over it.

Can anyone shed light on this waterway?

http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&ie=U...mp;t=h&z=15

[Dan Andrews]

On the left is the the old Rec canal where it meets the current Welland canal and yes I have through the ice only. I believe there is a motor ban and I'm not sure if any boats are allowed that close to the canal. It's deep there and not much different then the rest of the rec. Seen some dink perch and the odd pike pulled out but nothing outragous.

The otherside (to the right of the picture) hosts the auquaduct and I tried once but was dissapointed. Looks great, was packed with bait but may have been a slow day. We did a clean up there a few years back. If you go there bring a few garbage bags. That area seems to be full of slob anglers. Not all of them though .

If you want advice, send smokinjoe a PM. He fishes there with his Son and knows the area well.

Dan

[Tom Chopin]

I've seen guys fishing for panfish and pike off the main st. bridge with bobber and minnows. They had a dip net on a rope to land the larger fish as they were 15 feet above the water. Not a lot of shore access. Nearest boat ramp is more than a few KM back down the river. Water levels do fluctuate so sometimes you can get through the culvert, other times you can't.

[darkapocn]

have fished the offshoot there by river and s main... wasnt out for long that day, my friends didnt want to stay cuz they didnt get action in their first 5 casts..... but didnt catch anything, didnt see anything jump or anything either

[Guest niagarariverpro]

a few small pike is all i caught there.. nothing else and nothing big

[Smokin Joe]

I know this body of water a bit, been taking my son there for years. It's good for panfish and the occasional small pike or bass. The bridge abudments that you're talking about are good in the spring but very dangerous to fish. The sun starts to warm the steel and the fish stack up there in the early spring and the panfish really school there, but people don't realize that it also makes the ice unstable. I have seen way to many people go through there thinking it was ok. My advice is to wait and let the ice clear so you can fish from shore, it's not far at all from shore. I like to take my son there in the late spring early summer as the fish are usually biting fairly well, nothing big but steady.

As for getting in there with a boat, I wouldn't advise it. As Tom said the water level changes and it can go from a good 2' in the tunnel to less then 6" in a matter of minutes. And may not change back for a day or so. There are two inlets near the bridge that cause the flow to rise, these are controled and I rarely see both of them on.

I hope this helps, PM me if you have any questions and I'll try to answer them

As Chilli said bring a few garbage bags, those always seem to be the heaviest thing we ever got from there. There are garbage cans on both sides of the bridge that you can put them in or near if they're full