New York Fishing Reports 5/13/05

• ANGLERS fishing both the saltwater and freshwater will find the action more to their liking now that the weather is improving and the seasons for walleye and pickerel are open.
• Fluke, stripers, bass and bluefish are moving along the South and North Shores of Long Island. Fluke are becoming more and more a target as anglers know the big fish are caught early.
• Stripers are providing lots of action in lower New York Harbor, Raritan Bay and Jamaica Bay. There seems to be a ton of bass in western Long Island Sound, especially all the bays and harbors.
• The best winter flounder fishing on Long Island is in Moriches Bay and the big ones are over 3 pounds.
• Fluke fishing around Montauk picked up considerably when the wind died down and the sun came out. The open boat Lazybones had a nice afternoon trip on Tuesday with 10 keepers being taken and the pool tipping the scales at 8 pounds, 12 ounces. There are also big blackfish being caught off Block Island.
• The walleye season opened last Saturday in New York and thanks to the DEC stocking program, good walleye fishing can be found on Long Island, with anglers reporting fish up to 6 lbs. from Lake Ronkonkoma and Fort Pond the past 2 years.
• Excellent walleye action can also be found in the lower section of many of the Hudson tributaries, including Catskill Creek, Rondout Creek and the Wallkill River. The Delaware River is also a productive walleye fishery.
• Anglers who can't wait for the June 18 opener of muskellunge season in New York can take advantage of the DEC's tiger muskellunge stocking program. Tiger muskellunge, a northern pike/muskellunge hybrid produced in New Yorks hatcheries, are stocked in 40 waters throughout the state. In the eastern half of New York, good tiger waters include Cossayuna Lake, Lake Durant, Lake Lauderdale, Lincoln Pond and Round and New Croton Reservoir and Rockland Lake.
• Many of the best chain pickerel waters are in the southeastern section of the state with some good choices being the Rio and Mongaup Falls reservoirs, Harriman Park Lakes in Rockland County and Walton Lake in Orange County. On Long Island, the Peconic River provides some of the best chain pickerel fishing.