"Early on, anglers commonly work much closer to shore for browns than for other fish," he said. "Out in western Ontario, which tends to have more coho and Chinook salmon, a lot of guys head out a ways and run right past where the browns would be.

Use a variety of lures. I encourage anglers to experiment. If you get a hit or two, listen to the fish -- that's always a good idea.

"As the water warms up, browns begin to move off shore," Eckert said. "Compared to most other species, browns tend to be closely associated with the bottom. They don't go way offshore and suspend like other species. They can, but it's unusual."

The eastern basin lacks good brown trout habitat, so the majority of stocked browns are poured into the main part of the lake.

What's unique in Lake Ontario is the huge volume of the lake. The stratification scheme starts at the shoreline and progresses out toward the center, where there's a reservoir of cold water -- ice water early in the season. There will be scum lines on the surface where the cold and warmer offshore waters meet.

Then as the season progresses, all of the cold water is pushed down deeper. There is a more dynamic stratification scheme than in smaller inland lakes.

"There are temperature devices that can measure down at the downrigger," Eckert said. "That kind of data is really valuable -- they give the trolling speed, plus the top and bottom temperatures. Browns like cool water, so look to those areas where temperature bands are approaching the bottom, where the transition water temperatures intersect with bottom. If you have good equipment, you can adjust trolling depths accordingly.

"The Niagara River tends to be very cold because Lake Erie freezes completely," he said. "And the water up in the eastern basin is colder, so these are not good spots early in the spring. Usually, the best area with the highest harvest is from Rochester east to Mexico Bay, a little east of Oswego. Then as the weather warms the best area tends to spread out a little bit more," Eckert said.

"As fall approaches, browns get ready for spawning, and the amount of feeding they do is decreased. They do bite, but not as readily. In October, they enter the lower tributaries and Ontario shoreline near tributaries."