Wed April 29-30 Alley Storm
Apr 29-30 superstorm -- 1.8" of rain across Steelhead Alley. Lake Erie tribs out through Sunday.
Meteorological Analysis
A severe storm system rolled through the Steelhead Alley region starting on Wednesday, April 29, 2026 and lasting until Thursday, April 30, 2026. The storm was active for approximately 19 hours, dumping a maximum of 1.83" of rain across affected zones. Geographically, the weather system impacted the New York (Lake Erie), New York (Lake Ontario), Ohio, Pennsylvania regions, causing rapid water-level rises on multiple tributaries.
Gauges recorded significant river responses, particularly along Ashtabula River (peaking at 155 CFS), Conneaut Creek (peaking at 198 CFS), Vermilion River @ Vermilion (peaking at 329 CFS), Cuyahoga River @ Independence (peaking at 1,210 CFS), Brandy Run near Girard (peaking at 20 CFS), Elk Creek (peaking at 224 CFS), Walnut Creek (peaking at 243 CFS), Twenty Mile Creek (peaking at 384 CFS), Crooked Creek (peaking at 55 CFS), Cattaraugus Creek (peaking at 4,690 CFS), Chautauqua Creek (peaking at 168 CFS), Eighteen Mile Creek (peaking at 1,140 CFS), Huron River (peaking at 425 CFS), Black River (peaking at 424 CFS), Euclid Creek (peaking at 52 CFS), Canadaway Creek (peaking at 464 CFS), Silver Creek (peaking at 394 CFS), Buffalo Creek (peaking at 2,120 CFS), Cazenovia Creek (peaking at 1,540 CFS), Salmon River (peaking at 576 CFS), Oak Orchard Creek (peaking at 1,170 CFS), Genesee River (peaking at 7,850 CFS), Sandy Creek (Hamlin) (peaking at 356 CFS), Irondequoit Creek (peaking at 542 CFS), Johnson Creek (peaking at 1,480 CFS), Eighteenmile Creek (Niagara) (peaking at 287 CFS), Black River (Watertown) (peaking at 6,150 CFS), Sandy Creek (Adams) (peaking at 809 CFS). Angling conditions deteriorated quickly during the peak flow periods, leading to temporary washouts. Gaging stations monitored the recovery times as flows began returning to their baselines, mapping out the best windows for fishermen to get back on the water.
From a weather prediction standpoint, the NWS forecasts for this event received an aggregate score card grade of 'C'. Gaging observations were matched against NWS precipitation models to assess the forecasting margins, highlighting the variance in local rainfall amounts across the lake shores.
Tributary Response & Recovery
Ashtabula River
- Pre-Storm Flow
- N/A
- Observed Peak
- 155 CFS
- Peak Time
- Apr 30, 08:30
Conneaut Creek
- Pre-Storm Flow
- N/A
- Observed Peak
- 198 CFS
- Peak Time
- Apr 30, 06:30
Vermilion River @ Vermilion
- Pre-Storm Flow
- N/A
- Observed Peak
- 329 CFS
- Peak Time
- Apr 30, 10:15
Cuyahoga River @ Independence
- Pre-Storm Flow
- N/A
- Observed Peak
- 1,210 CFS
- Peak Time
- Apr 30, 04:30
Brandy Run near Girard
- Pre-Storm Flow
- 5 CFS
- Observed Peak
- 20 CFS
- Peak Time
- May 1, 20:00
- Recovers By
- May 2, 19:00
- Baseline Return
- May 2, 15:00
Elk Creek
- Pre-Storm Flow
- 53 CFS
- Observed Peak
- 224 CFS
- Peak Time
- May 2, 02:00
- Recovers By
- May 3, 09:00
- Baseline Return
- May 3, 05:00
Walnut Creek
- Pre-Storm Flow
- 58 CFS
- Observed Peak
- 243 CFS
- Peak Time
- May 2, 00:00
- Recovers By
- May 3, 08:00
- Baseline Return
- May 3, 04:00
Twenty Mile Creek
- Pre-Storm Flow
- 90 CFS
- Observed Peak
- 384 CFS
- Peak Time
- May 2, 02:00
- Recovers By
- May 3, 10:00
- Baseline Return
- May 3, 06:00
Crooked Creek
- Pre-Storm Flow
- N/A
- Observed Peak
- 55 CFS
- Peak Time
- Apr 30, 00:15
Cattaraugus Creek
- Pre-Storm Flow
- 977 CFS
- Observed Peak
- 4,690 CFS
- Peak Time
- Apr 30, 04:00
- Recovers By
- May 3, 00:00
- Baseline Return
- May 2, 20:00
Chautauqua Creek
- Pre-Storm Flow
- 36 CFS
- Observed Peak
- 168 CFS
- Peak Time
- Apr 30, 03:00
- Recovers By
- May 3, 01:00
Eighteen Mile Creek
- Pre-Storm Flow
- 78 CFS
- Observed Peak
- 1,140 CFS
- Peak Time
- Apr 30, 02:00
- Recovers By
- May 2, 23:00
- Baseline Return
- May 2, 19:00
Huron River
- Pre-Storm Flow
- N/A
- Observed Peak
- 425 CFS
- Peak Time
- Apr 30, 10:30
Black River
- Pre-Storm Flow
- N/A
- Observed Peak
- 424 CFS
- Peak Time
- Apr 30, 11:00
Euclid Creek
- Pre-Storm Flow
- N/A
- Observed Peak
- 52 CFS
- Peak Time
- Apr 29, 21:28
Canadaway Creek
- Pre-Storm Flow
- 49 CFS
- Observed Peak
- 464 CFS
- Peak Time
- Apr 30, 00:00
- Recovers By
- May 3, 04:00
- Baseline Return
- May 3, 00:00
Silver Creek
- Pre-Storm Flow
- 31 CFS
- Observed Peak
- 394 CFS
- Peak Time
- Apr 30, 01:00
- Recovers By
- May 3, 05:00
Buffalo Creek
- Pre-Storm Flow
- 170 CFS
- Observed Peak
- 2,120 CFS
- Peak Time
- Apr 30, 07:00
- Recovers By
- May 3, 04:00
- Baseline Return
- May 3, 00:00
Cazenovia Creek
- Pre-Storm Flow
- 195 CFS
- Observed Peak
- 1,540 CFS
- Peak Time
- Apr 30, 07:00
- Recovers By
- May 3, 01:00
- Baseline Return
- May 2, 21:00
Salmon River
- Pre-Storm Flow
- 478 CFS
- Observed Peak
- 576 CFS
- Peak Time
- Apr 30, 13:00
- Recovers By
- Apr 30, 18:00
- Baseline Return
- Apr 30, 14:00
Oak Orchard Creek
- Pre-Storm Flow
- 570 CFS
- Observed Peak
- 1,170 CFS
- Peak Time
- Apr 30, 02:00
- Recovers By
- Apr 30, 07:00
- Baseline Return
- Apr 30, 03:00
Genesee River
- Pre-Storm Flow
- 8,244 CFS
- Observed Peak
- 7,850 CFS
- Peak Time
- May 2, 15:00
- Recovers By
- May 2, 20:00
- Baseline Return
- May 2, 16:00
Sandy Creek (Hamlin)
- Pre-Storm Flow
- 183 CFS
- Observed Peak
- 356 CFS
- Peak Time
- Apr 30, 20:00
- Recovers By
- May 1, 16:00
- Baseline Return
- May 1, 12:00
Irondequoit Creek
- Pre-Storm Flow
- 199 CFS
- Observed Peak
- 542 CFS
- Peak Time
- Apr 30, 09:00
- Recovers By
- May 2, 08:00
- Baseline Return
- May 2, 04:00
Johnson Creek
- Pre-Storm Flow
- 1,480 CFS
- Observed Peak
- 1,480 CFS
- Peak Time
- Apr 29, 21:00
- Recovers By
- Apr 30, 02:00
- Baseline Return
- Apr 29, 22:00
Eighteenmile Creek (Niagara)
- Pre-Storm Flow
- 106 CFS
- Observed Peak
- 287 CFS
- Peak Time
- Apr 30, 10:00
- Recovers By
- May 1, 11:00
- Baseline Return
- May 1, 07:00
Black River (Watertown)
- Pre-Storm Flow
- 3,293 CFS
- Observed Peak
- 6,150 CFS
- Peak Time
- May 1, 18:00
- Recovers By
- May 3, 11:00
Sandy Creek (Adams)
- Pre-Storm Flow
- 190 CFS
- Observed Peak
- 809 CFS
- Peak Time
- Apr 30, 17:00
- Recovers By
- May 3, 13:00
- Baseline Return
- May 3, 09:00
Fishing Guide & Tactics
Looking for advice on how to target steelhead on these rivers when they are recovering from a storm? Check out our master guides:
