Conn Post 6/16/06

1. Saltwater anglers should see things start to open up over the next several days because this week's warm weather has sparked life into most of the marine species. As a bonus, the closed seasons on porgy and blackfish have ended. Anglers should now be able to catch striped bass, blackfish, porgy, fluke, black sea bass and a few bluefish this weekend.
2. Striped bass are in all the usual places, particularly at the mouths of harbors and large tidal rivers in the western end of Long Island Sound, along any rocky point between Norwalk and New Haven, and on the deeper reefs east of Old Saybrook. Bass anglers also got good news this week. The public access to the old Remington Gun Club in Stratford has been reopened after an unauthorized fence had blocked it.
3. Neil Velasquez III, 7, of Stratford, caught his first keeper striped bass last week. The fish hit a tube-n-worm rig. In the interest of conservation, the youngster released his fish.
4. Fluke are increasing in number on the Connecticut side of the Sound. Some places locally to look for these fish are the "middle passage" between Shea and Chimon islands off Norwalk, Penfield Reef in Fairfield, the Bridgeport Harbor channel, Charles Island and the New Haven Harbor channel. Traveling fluke hunters will find their quarry in Peconic Bay, on the south side of Fishers Island, off Horton Point, at the Mattituck Inlet and around Port Jefferson.
5. Larry Lainey of Stratford had good luck last week off Charles Island, where he caught a 5.40-pound fluke and a 3.20-pound black sea bass. Both fish were caught on a squid and spearing combination and weighed at Stratford Bait & Tackle. Willie Rhames of Fairfield picked up a 6.20- pound fluke in Smithtown Bay.
6. Elsewhere in saltwater, bluefish are spread throughout the Sound. But they are scattered and only present a fair fishery. Blackfish season opened Thursday. These fish should be holding around the New Haven Harbor breakwaters, Townshend Ledge, Browns Reef and Middleground. Porgy are likewise schooling around Middleground and Kimberley Reef.
7. The trout season is far from over as Albert Tirmadi of Fairfield discovered last week at the Saugatuck Reservoir. While casting a silver Krocodile spoon, Tirmadi caught a 6.40-pound Seeforellen brown trout. Dwayne Belle of Bridgeport also had good luck in the Aspetuck River, where he hooked a 2.20-pound golden trout on a nightcrawler. Ted's Bait & Tackle verified both catches.
8. Other places still producing trout include the West Branch of the Farmington River, the mainstem of the Farmington River, Salmon Brook, West Branch ("Hogsback") Reservoir, Colebrook Reservoir, Barkhamsted Reservoir, the Saugatuck River fly fishing area, the Mill River (Hamden), the Naugatuck River, East Twin Lake, West Hill Pond, Beach Pond, Amos Lake, Wononscopomuc Lake, Hop Brook Flood Control Impoundment, Gardner Lake, Black Pond and Tyler Pond.
9. Largemouth bass are coming off their spawning season. Don't expect to find many big fish for the next few weeks, but you should be able to catch plenty of 12- to 15-inch bass at Quonnipaug Lake, Lake Saltonstall, Ball Pond, Pachaug Pond, Gardner Lake, Rogers Lake, Moodus Reservoir, Lake Zoar, Black Pond, Silver Lake, Lake Lillinonah, West Hill Pond, Nells Rock Reservoir, Winchester Lake, Highland Lake, Tyler Pond and Lake Housatonic. [Connecticut Post, FRANK MCKANE JR.]