Throughout Long Island at this point in the season, it seems no matter where you are there is something to catch. Bigger stripers have been moving in and making their presence known as even as the bluefish continue to grow more aggressive. The fluke bite has improved and porgies have been turning up in more locations, though the overwhelming number of sea robins has made it more difficult to fish for both.
John from Hudson Park Bait & Tackle has been weighing in some impressive bass this week. There have been bass ranging from 38 to 43 pounds and bluefish pushing 18 pounds. The majority of bass in this area up until this week had been caught trolling Mojo rigs or bunker spoons. Now a transition seems to be underway with the biggest fish falling to bunker heads. Trolling has remained a productive tactic in water depths of 35 to 55 feet with white being the most effective spoon color. Surfcasters have also done well using plugs and Bombers from the rocks.
Michael from Stella Maris has seen a wide range of size in fluke and bluefish. Bass up to 30-pounds have also been caught with the best bite being on the early morning tide. The evening bite has seen good, too, with the biggest hitting as the sun comes up. Porgies continue to please in Jamaica Bay waters, along with short fluke.
At Bay Park Fishing Station, Jim said the bass fishing is as good as he’s seen it over the past five years. In a tournament the shop held this past Saturday, multiple keepers tipped the scales at 30 pounds with the winner weighing 44-pounds. This fish was caught at 7:30 a.m. while trolling between Debs Inlet and Breezy Point. After the contest wrapped up one angler brought aboard a 46-pounder. That fish was hooked as the angler reeled in the Bomber he was trolling to pack up. Jim has also seen lots of fluke, although these are still mostly shorts, as well as a ton of sea bass, which were released to be caught again when the season opens.
Beth from Terminal Tackle reported fluke and porgies being caught off of Sunken Meadow and the nearby jetty. There have been some keeper bass around as well on the bay side in the deeper water. The stripers continue to follow last week’s trend of hitting best when trolled in deeper water.
At Cow Harbor, Mark has been catching lots of keeper bass in the 20 to 30-pound class. Best action has come on the daybreak bite. He has also had some fluke but noted these have been more difficult to find. Mark says the best bet it to locate dips and holes in deeper water where there has been all kinds of fish stacking up. One such hole he found produced a mix of fluke, sea bass and schoolie stripers. There’s still a blend of bait around the Northport waters as he has found schools of spearing and bunker and noticed that both fluke and sea robins have been spitting-up manta shrimp.
Brendan from Captree Bait and Tackle reports strong fluke coming off the Captree Piers. There have been lots of bluefish and a mix of stripers as well, although the catch from boats has been slow this week.
Carmine from The Campsite, has been catching a few keeper fluke both on the morning tide as well as in the evenings. These were taken off Eaton’s neck. Bass have been caught there, too, as well as inside the Northport harbor off the rocks. There has been a decent – but not consistent – porgy bite in these waters that appears to be improving every day.
At Captain Kayak, George said he has heard of success with fluke on Smithtown Bay. Kayakers have also reportedly done well around Wading River with plenty of cocktail bluefish and short fluke. There has been limited success with big bass as the bluefish have been so aggressive they are tough to penetrate. There have been some small bass caught through the frenzy but the keepers are hard to come by.
Steve from Wego Fishing reported fluke still being picked off of the Greenlawns and from Greenport Harbor waters. There have also been strong numbers of scup in Cherry Harbor and off buoy 17. The Gut has continued to produce large bass and bluefish alike, especially on the incoming tides.
Ed from Warrens in Jamesport has seen fluke fishing picking up on the Sound side, especially off of Horton’s Point and the surrounding beaches. The sea robins have been a fluke fishermen’s worst enemy on these waters though, as there are so many around it is tough to have your bait or Gulp! down long enough to interest the summer flatties. He reports big bluefish on the bay side but very spread out and undependable on the Sound side so far. Ed added that there have been big stripers in the Plum Gut area, making the trip out well worth it.
At White Water Outfitters, Bryce adds onto the report of big bluefish in Peconic and Shinnecock bays. The bass have been better on the Peconic while fluke improves each day on the Shinny flats. Southern Montauk has been decent thus far and Bryce says the ocean side fluke action should kick in soon. A few bluefin tuna and shark have been caught offshore in recent days so look for catches there to steady-up any day now.
Chase from Montauk Marine Basin has not seen a ton of action out of Montauk so far, but he has had fluke on the south side up to 6 or 7 pounds. There have been some bass and blues around, too, mainly hooked while trolling and dropping diamond jigs. Chase also accounted for some porgies in Cherry Harbor.
Ray from Paulie’s said anglers are having success off the Montauk beaches using poppers. Many have connected with 8- to 10-pound bass and bluefish weighing 4 to 12 pounds.
congrats George !!!