Rhode Island Fishing Report – November 2, 2017

The severe coastal storm early this week kept most fishermen at the dock and made a mess of the water. However, the water has begun to settle down and clean up, and early reports indicate that albies are still around, stripers are feeding heavily, and the fishing will bounce back this weekend.

Rhode Island Fishing Report

The Frances Fleet in Narragansett is ready for a great weekend of blackfishing now that the local waters have settled down and cleaned up. Captain Mike got out after the storm and reported a better than expected day on the blackfish grounds despite the dirty water. High hook had 4 keeper tog with the biggest being around 7 pounds.

The Seven Bs V in Point Judith will be fishing Friday, Saturday, and Sunday for porgies and sea bass. The boat has been enjoying great action on porgy and sea bass, coming close to boat limits on sea bass with plenty in the 3- to 5-pound range and big porgies to 3 pounds. Until blackfish begin to move onto deeper structure, they plan to keep taking advantage of the fantastic porgy and sea bass bite.

From The Saltwater Edge in Middletown, fishermen are excited by the abundance of bait, birds, bass and, yes, albies. Narragansett Bay is loaded with bait fish blitzing under birds all the way up to Mount Hope Bay. The Sakonnet River is loaded as well, and fishermen were catching albies around the Newport Bridge as recently as Thursday morning.

With false albacore still around, the good action from last week should continue in the Watch Hill area, along with stripers and some big blues. The same goes for the surf fishing along the South County beaches and breachways, where a healthy supply of bait should have loads of schoolies and some keeper-sized stripers tight to shore.

Connecticut Fishing Report

The water was absolutely filthy after the storm, reported Rivers End Tackle in Old Saybrook, with coffee-colored waves breaking on the beaches. The good news is that the water has already cleaned up a great deal and as of Thursday morning schoolie stripers were chasing peanut bunker along the local beaches. Conditions should only improve heading into this weekend.

Andrew of Fishin Factory 3 in Middletown reported that with water temperatures warmer than usual, blackfishing has been good in shallower water and should remain good this weekend as the water settles. The shop has switched to fall hours and is open Fri-Sat-Sun from now until March.

Fishermans World in Norwalk reported that post-storm, the fishing has been on fire in the Western Sound. Loads of bait, mostly peanut bunker, are in the shallow water off beaches and harbors and striped bass have been blitzing away. Albies are still around as well, and there are some big blues mixed in. Action has been best in the mornings. Bottom Fishing has also been very good, with lots of big porgies around at all depths, black sea bass in deeper water, and blackfish in shallow water (10 to 20 feet). Unfortunately, many anglers have pulled their boats for the season. If you have your boat in the water or on a trailer, you can take advantage of what should be a few more weeks of fantastic action.

James, at Norwalk Islands Fishing, was thrilled to report the albies have stuck around post-storm, but reminded me that any day could be your last shot at one of these fish. Bass fishing is getting better and better, and he has been seeing surface blitzes up and down the Fairfield County shoreline and islands, typically early in the day. Peanut bunker are the primary forage these days. To find bigger fish, he recommended skipping the blitzes and instead focusing on the rips and structure. If you find bunker, don’t stray too far. Blackfishing is also improving steadily as the water is settling down into a more typical fall temperature. The blackfish will be in shallow water likely through Thanksgiving, but really any structure shallow or deep will hold them. It’s best to diversify your offerings with Asian crabs and green crabs this time of year, as the blackfish can get picky.

The rivers were running high due to all the rainfall, reported the Compleat Angler in Darien. The Housatonic was completely blown out, but the Farmington should be fishable by this weekend. In the meantime, local fly fishermen have been taking advantage of the abundant stripers and early-morning blitzes.

Rhode Island Fishing Forecast

A warmer-than-average October has set us up for a fantastic start to November. With water temperatures still running warm and loads of bait around, we’re setup for a great weekend of fishing. The storm was a setback, but recent reports of albies are in abundance in Narragansett Bay and the Western Sound, and schoolie stripers feeding along the beaches suggest that fishing will return to form. Bottom fishermen should take advantage of the great action on porgies and sea bass, and blackfish hunters should concentrate on shallow structure as the bite is just now beginning to pick up as waters cool.