Shore Fishing the Erie Canal at Pools Brook in Kirkville, NY, September 10, 2015

I was originally headed to another section of the Erie Canal but when I couldn't find it I stopped and asked a Manlius Police Officer who was sitting along the side of the road. He told me that the section I was looking for is where they have started paving the Erie Canal Trail and that I would be better off going to Pools Brook in Kirkville. He also fishes primarily bass and gave me great information on Onondaga Lake. He said I should go near the dog park at 5 am and use top water lures and I'd catch more smallmouth bass then I'd know what to do with. He also told me to try Butternut Creek near the Dewitt Police Department.

Kirkville was nearby and I'd never been past Green Lakes on Green Lakes Road so I headed in that direction. I found out later Pools Brook is a creek that was diverted toward the Erie Canal, see the following link  http://www.fishonondagacounty.com/about-the-fishing/bodies-of-water/pools-brook/.
I found parking for just two cars (luckily no one else had parked in this area) on the side of the road near the trail. The area near the bridge had good access and looked similar to the area of the Erie Canal we fished last night where we caught panfish early on and bullheads when it got dark out (see link  http://www.fishingcentralny.com/2015/09/fishing-for-bullheads-on-erie-canal-in.html).

Since I made the mistake of bringing my ultralight pole last night, I brought my medium-light spincast pole with 6 lb line today, bobbers, split shot and worms and salted minnows. I really like bringing my cheap, little spincast poles to places like this because even though they aren't smooth to cast and have other issues from time to time, they are great for when you just want something simple. I usually save my spinning and baitcasting poles for lakes, where casting is important. 

I walked down to the larger area of Pools Brook and got out of the weedy, narrow areas of the canal. 

I immediately got wrapped around trees while casting and decided to go back to the clear shore access near the bridge. After catching several panfish near the bridge, I started making my way back to the larger Pools Brook area. I saw carp and bass near the shore but could not get them to do more than just look at my worm. For bass, I know feeding time is much later at night so they'd have to be curious or irritated to hit it. I caught a total of 8-10 pumpkinseed and a couple of bluegill.

I tried #4 hooks in hopes of getting something bigger and the pumpkinseeds were still hitting them and so active, they were swallowing them almost immediately. During the whole afternoon I saw maybe 8 people and only one fisherman which showed up briefly around 5 pm. Someone has a farm nearby because I listened to farm animals all afternoon. It was quite peaceful. When you get up near the opening of Pools Brook there is a small creek on the opposite side of the trail that was nice to listen to.