RI, 9/16/05

BAY

Bluefish as large as 30 inches were blitzing butterfish on the East Providence side of the Red Bridge over the Seekonk River yesterday morning, said David Henault of Ocean State Tackle. Pods of blues have also been popping up at Green Island, Sabin Point, Barrington Beach and Colt State Park in the upper Bay, and near Halfway Rock and the Jamestown Bridge in the lower Bay. Skipjack blues are in every cove of the Bay, said Ken Ferrara of Ray's Bait & Tackle and John Littlefield of Archie's Bait & Tackle.

Striped bass are scarce in the upper Bay, but there have been some schoolies taking clams and Storm Wild-eye Shad at the White Church Bridge in Barrington. Trollers are catching bass in the 20-pound class on the reefs off Newport, said Sam Toland of Sam's Bait & Tackle.

Yesterday morning, a diver spotted a lot of large tautog at Hope Island, Ferrara said.

The fluke bite is still fairly strong off Shepley's Dock and Conimicut Light, said Ferrara. In the lower Bay, fluke are biting between Newport and Jamestown.

Scup fishing is fair along the rocks off Newport, but the sea-bass bite is spotty.

BEACHES AND SALT PONDS

Large bluefish and bass up to 15 pounds have been feeding on peanut bunker in South County's breachways, according to Ron Mouchon of Breachway Bait & Tackle. The bass bite has also improved along the Narragansett shore, said Steve McKenna of Quaker Lane Outfitters. He has been fishing Slug-Go lures, and his partner, Bill Nolan, has been using live eels to catch bass in the 20-pound class at night. Bluefish have been relatively scarce after dark, they said.

Scup are biting on the slack high tide in the breachways.

Fluke fishing is waning, according to several sources.

The salt ponds are filling with exotic fish now. Al Conti of Snug Harbor Marina has seen a lot of northern barracuda around his docks this week.

OFFSHORE

Yellowfin tuna over 100 pounds apiece were biting in Hudson Canyon on Wednesday, said Al Conti. Aerie One took wahoo, mahi and bonito on the south side of the shipping channel south of Block Island, too.

Sunday, the bluefin bite has taking shape at the Mud Hole, but it died following Monday's blow, said Conti. Giants bluefins are rolling up behind draggers, he said.

There are plenty of albacore tuna from Veach Canyon to the Dip, said Sam Toland.

BLOCK ISLAND

Striper fishing has been hot and cold this week. John D'Agostino took a 50-pounder on Southwest Ledge, and Jack Linton nailed a 48-inch fish Monday, said Bob Neilson of Wildwood Outfitters, but the bite turned off on Wednesday.

Don Richards caught an 8.9-pound fluke this week, said Ron Mouchon.

FRESHWATER

The water temperature on the Wood River was 63 degrees Tuesday, according to Ed Lombardo. Trout were rising to No. 12 and No. 14 ant imitations, and there was a small emergence of Blue-Winged Olive mayflies.

In Smithfield, anglers are catching a lot of bass, some as large as 4 pounds, on Stump Pond, said David Henault. The bass and northern pike ar taking shiners.

Boston, 9/16/05

A bit of inclement weather could change the fishing trends, and most certainly will affect the number of anglers on open waterways. Generally, it is these storms and the cold rain of fall that remind the migrant game species in the Northeast that it's time to bulk up for the long trip south. That usually spells good fishing in our parts, and all the signs were there this week for a strong finish. One sign of weakness, however, is a general cooling off of the great football tuna craze, though there are still fish in Massachusetts Bay up into the Gulf of Maine.
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Area A: The rockbound Downeast coast had some excellent striper fishing this week, with catches of note around Boothbay Harbor, Damariscotta, Orrs, and Bailey's Island up to Muscongus Bay. Also check out Popham Beach for stripers -- none too large, but slot size -- and down into the Piscataqua River mouth for both blues and striped bass. The ledges are still producing cod and haddock for party boats (and others), while the football action out in the gulf has quieted -- fewer fish or fewer anglers or both. North Shore fishing is generally fair with some decent catches at Plum Island, off Halibut Point, Lamprey River, and Lynn Harbor, where schools of blues and stripers are chasing bait.

Area B: Boston Harbor is decent, but with many fewer charters these days, the reports are diminished. Still, catches of stripers between Deer Island Light and Long Island Light have been reported steadily. Also, the outer islands, Lovells, Gallops, and Georges, had some schools of feeding stripers as did the southern approach -- Rainsford, Peddocks, and Grape Islands. Hingham and Hull have plenty of bait and fish feeding on it right down into the Weir River around World's End.

Area C: Blues and bass found around Hingham Harbor, with some decent bass schools outside over the rocky bottoms from Black Rock to Minots, Strawberry Point and The Glades. While the bass are still decent, as of yesterday morning, the bluefish were more in evidence along this coast, around to the North River mouth. Lots of bait in Duxbury, Plymouth, and Kingston bays have plenty of fish on the move, with medium striped bass all over this shallow inner bay that meets the estuary. Manomet rocks are OK, but not hot right now, and the east end of the Canal is only fair off the jetties.

Area D: Some bonito still biting in the west end of the Canal and anglers were having luck trolling into Buzzards Bay around Wareham and across at Pocasset, where the fluke fishing is still decent but fading. Stripers between Scraggy and Woods Hole for trollers, and there are even a few scup deep around Clevelands. In western Buzzards Bay, the stripers are decent from back of Cuttyhunk to Westport, and on the back side out toward Nomans.

Area E: The South Cape is pretty quiet just now, with only fair fishing in the early days of the annual Vineyard Derby. Nantucket bluefish are excellent in the shoal water, especially at the famous Old Man Shoal -- all that could be altered by Ophelia, of course.

Area F: Some good bass catches around Monomoy, but the water is churned up and weedy along the National Seashore beaches. Some decent bass and bluefish inside around Billingsgate, Provincetown Harbor, and Crescent Beach.

NY Newsday, 9/16/05

1. Western Long Island Sound: This should be a good weekend for full-moon fluking, and on Wednesday, anglers from Jack's B&T in City Island were already finding limits. Lots of bluefish up to 13 pounds on chunks or on the surface, and mixed in is a fall prelude of small striped bass.

2. Huntington/Northport bays: There will be plenty of bluefish hunters on the water this weekend with the Huntington Yacht Club Tournament tomorrow and the Town of Oyster Bay Bluefish Tournament on Sunday. Four Winds had reports of big bluefish off Eatons Neck and by Buoy 13, and if the wind kicks things up, there should be some bonito and albacore activity.


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3. Smithtown Bay: Not much bass action until Wednesday, when things began to open up. Rob Krogman nailed a 20-pounder using clams off the jetty leading out of Stony Brook Harbor and his father, Bob, had a 15-pounder on the same trip, according to Swaine's. Jeff Sicdi, Heather Velez and Christie Palazzo also reported 20-25 pounders on eels. Bluefish to 9 pounds are stretched along the shore and there are keepable fluke among the many shorts.

4. Port Jefferson to Mattituck Inlet: Porgies are biting in good size and numbers at the Middle Grounds when conditions accommodate anglers. Slack tide and no drift make things difficult. Bluefish are being jigged all around in deeper Sound waters with some bass showing up more regularly. Big fluke are still around, but use large baits to slow the throwbacks.

5. Orient Point to Fishers Island: The Race and the Gut are teeming with blues during the day on heavy diamond jigs and bass at night on bucktails and eels. The bass haven't been stunning in size, but the action is nearly non-stop with a few larger fish in the Race, according to Wego Fishing. Sound-side surfcasters have been enjoying a nice run of bluefish and bass.

6. The Peconics and Gardiners Bay: You can't go wrong looking for porgies with Cedar Point and Buoy 17 among the hot spots lately, according to Wego Fishing. Weakfish aren't in the numbers they were two weeks ago, but there are some being taken on high-low rigs or diamond jigs off Rose Grove and Greenport.

7. Montauk Point: Offshore fishing is very good when conditions allow the trip. Gary Benker had a 210-pound mako and Mike Nolan had a 65-pound yellowfin tuna on the Viking Star's first offshore tuna trip of the season. All totaled, there were eight yellowfins, three albacore, two makos and plenty of ling and mahi. Surfcasters are finding bass on both the north and south sides, mostly through the night, according to Freddie's B&T, with a lot of false albacore and bonito mixed in off Shagwong.

8. Shinnecock Bay: Young Cassie Deneuve caught her first fluke, a 4-pounder, while fishing with Grandma Sue and Timmy on the Awesome over the weekend, according to Molnar's Landing. Capt. Robert DeMarco and Frank DeMarco both hooked into the same 7-pound, 13-ounce fluke outside the inlet. Stripers are starting to show up; John Fernandez caught a 29-pounder on Wednesday near the bridge.

9. Moriches Bay: On Wednesday, the open boat Rosie fished outside the inlet and had 45 keeper fluke, 23 of them better than 5 pounds. Of course, the day before, there were practically no bites. Bass are biting on the outer bar and on the flats. B&B Tackle customer Doug reported a 35-pounder caught on herring.

10. Great South Bay/Fire Island Inlet: Stripers are starting to perk up as anglers are hitting on live eels in the evenings, according to Augie's in Babylon. The action runs from the Robert Moses Bridge to the inlet, depending on conditions, and it's a nice start to the fall with loads of bait to entice the fish to the area. A few larger weakfish are coming close to the docks looking to chow on the snappers.

11. Jones Inlet/Western Bays: With forecasts for 5-20 foot seas this weekend, there won't be a lot of boats heading for the Canyon, where the fishing has been excellent. But inshore is pretty good, too, with a burst of fluke in 70 feet, south of the inlet according to Woodcleft Fishing Station, which also reported Gary Corwin's 10-pounder taken in the bay on a live snapper. Weakfish are hitting sandworms in the creeks and bluefishing is good at Three Sisters, 17 Fathoms and the Mud Buoy.

12. East Rockaway Inlet: Bay Park Fishing Station reported the crew of Four Queens had 10 keeper-sized bass Sunday and nine Monday drifting clams behind the commercial boats. Make sure to give those guys their space! The crew on the Low Key had fluke to 6 pounds with eight keepers and nice sea bass at the Atlantic Beach Reef on Tuesday. And over the weekend, the Fish On went to the tip of the Canyon and had bluefin to 100 pounds on the chunk, including 11-year-old Justin Mole's first bluefin.

13. New York Bight: Bluefish to 15 pounds are being taken off the beaches and the striped bass are starting to snoop around the shoreline, as well. Weakfish aren't as consistent as they've been, but there are still keepers around and it's a nice pursuit after you've killed your arms bluefishing.

On The Water, 9/16/05

This week everyone is anticipating the approach of slow-moving and hopefully wet, Hurricane Ophelia, which will most likely be remnants by the time it gets here. Either way, many anglers along the shore are looking for fishing to pick up in the suds after this storm passes through. For sure it will improve the very difficult freshwater conditions that inland anglers are contending with.
Thomcat Pelletier of Quaker Lane Bait and Tackle, North Kingstown said the fishing has been pretty good for stripers along the south shore reefs for their customers who are fishing the dusk through dawn bite with live baits such as scup, hickory shad and eels. Thom himself said he was catching stripers over the weekend on live bait that were in the 20- to 30-pound range. Steve McKenna, who also works at the shop, continues to do well by slinging Slug-Gos at night off the beaches in the Narragansett area.
Bluefish are all over the place. Fish of all size classes from one pound to over 10 are chopping eels, shredding soft plastics and generally raising hell with anyone who is not targeting them. One of his buddies had a bluefish take a four-inch-wide bite out of a fluke that was being reeled up to the boat on Sunday. Bluefishing is, for all practical purposes, a “can’t miss situation” along the south shore, as well as up inside Narragansett Bay.
Fluke fishing is slowing down, but there are still fish coming in from the drifts at Pt. Judith, Newport and Sakonnet in 60 to 70 feet of water. There was a 12-pounder caught over the weekend out in front of Point Judith during what was a pretty fair bite. Anglers are also taking sea bass up to five pounds while fluke fishing off the beaches.
Bottom fishermen are killing big scup off the east wall at Point Judith Harbor in closer to the rocks. One scup fisherman caught a stray triggerfish, a migrant from the south that is commonly caught in our waters late in the summer. With water temps so high, it seems like oddball species such as angel fish, jack crevalle, cobia, wahoo and even tarpon might show up in our waters this year as they have in the past during hot long summers. However, other than some wahoo reported offshore, reports of southern migrants locally have been scarce so far. No solid reports on false albacore and bonito in the area, and no one has even mentioned Spanish mackerel yet this fall.
Rob at Saltwater Edge, Newport reported that nothing much has changed since last week’s report, other than the fact that the striped bass action is picking up, with fish weighing in the mid-twenties. These fish have been hitting well on topwater baits, such as Zara Spooks and Poe’s walk-the-dog lures, as well as on larger Slug-Gos.
Lots of big eight-pound and better blues are also hitting well and are easy to find around the Newport area.
Rob heard that the albies are starting to move down along the Long Island shore, but not much in this area so far. The fact that there’s peanut bunker everywhere and some mullet up to about seven inches swimming around to bring them in and hold them when they show up bodes well for later in the fall. He thinks something big is about to happen after the hurricane blows up the coast. This week has been the calm before the storm, so to speak.
John Swienton, owner of Twin Maples Tackle out on Block Island, told us the big waves stopped earlier in the week, so anglers could get back out to fish. One friend from Line Sider Charters caught seven big bass just south of Southwest Ledge up to 42 pounds on Tuesday by drift-fishing with live eels. Everyone else on the ledge was getting fish, as well.
John went to Black Rock with a buddy and easily limited out using eels over the weekend. There are loads of big fish around the island at the present time and plenty of bait in the form of anchovies and baby bunker to keep them around for a while. The area around Sandy Point is also producing fish to 20 pounds and better on poppers and swimming plugs.
There are bluefin tuna southwest of Sharks Ledge, running between the 90- and 120-foot line. These fish are in the 20- to 50-pound range, and most are being caught by trolling offshore lures such as Hex heads, Green Machines, etc. The false albacore are still ripping in and out of New Harbor with the tides at the Coast Guard station and vicinity.
Fluke fishing was slow this past week, due more to the lack of anglers targeting them than to lack of fluke. There are good numbers of sea bass being caught along the west side of the island incidentally by fluke anglers and by a few sharpies who are targeting sea bass around the rock piles and drop-offs that hold them in high densities.
Captain Don of Captain Don’s Tackle in Charlestown, Rhode Island, reported low angler activity levels so far this week, but the weekend saw plenty of activity and catches of bass, bluefish, porgies and fluke from Quonny Pond and vicinity.
There are some very big slammer bluefish around ranging from 12 to 15 pounds being caught off the shore from Charlestown Breachway down to East Beach and the Andrea Hotel at Misquamicut.
The Watch Hill Reef complex has been producing consistent catches of both bass and bluefish, mostly on eels and by trolling with tube and worms, although anglers tossing plugs are taking their share of smaller fish. Fred and Trish Dewolfe of Westerly caught an 18-pound bass off the Charlestown Breachway at two in the afternoon on a tube and worm. These things are so easy and effective they break all the rules. My son caught his biggest bass to date, a 33-pounder, using a tube and worm on a hot July day at around 3 p.m. at dead slack low tide, a time I wouldn’t bet on being able to catch a dam porgy. Yet over the years, we’ve consistently caught decent stripers at times when they weren’t supposed to be biting.
Fluke are still being caught along the south shore but at a greatly reduced pace over the past week or so. Bigger fish have been caught in 60 to 70 feet of water off the beaches, with smaller fish coming in from the salt ponds where they appear to be chasing peanut bunker. One customer and a friend caught fluke of 27 and 29 inches and about nine pounds while fishing out off the shore from Weekapaug Breachway over the weekend. No one has been out fluking so far this week.
Bill Jolley caught a 3-pound weakfish off Weekapaug Beach on Sunday using a Kastmaster. Another angler took a 5.25-pound sea bass in 50 feet of water off the beaches while drifting for fluke.
The Swamp Yankee Classic Tournament is underway. This is an event that runs from September 5 through November 13, with weekly prizes for both bass and bluefish in the shore and boat divisions.
There are still some good scup around the breachways, as well as off the beaches and local reefs, for anyone who wants fast fishing action and edible fillets.
As of Wednesday, the surf was kicking up, so many anglers are anticipating good action as the effects of Hurricane Ophelia are felt.
Don at King Cove Marina, Stonington told us they have been seeing tons of bluefish and some good striper catches from the waters between Watch Hill and Stonington. One kayaker caught a 46-incher, along with eight other keepers while trolling a tube-and-worm rig on Tuesday evening. Everyone who has gone out lately has been taking some nice bass and blues off the reefs, as well as from the Stonington flats.
Fluke action has died off big time throughout the eastern Long Island Sound area, with many anglers switching over to sea bass or scup for their frying material.
Kevin, who fishes out of the shop, said he spotted schools of tunoids off the reefs on Monday, but they were not on top long enough to get a hook into them. Customers and the guys at the shop are hopeful this may be a sign that this fall’s albie run is finally beginning. Maybe they will be about three to four weeks late, which puts their arrival about the middle of next week – or maybe due to the presence of tuna earlier in the summer they are not going to make a major showing this season.