TheDay, Reserve Your Spot For A Warm Weekend

• The fluke picture is improving along with nice weather predicted for the long weekend, was the report from Bob's Rod & Tackle in Quaker Hill. He had news about keepers caught at Montauk, the south side of Fishers Island and Greenport. Biggest of the week was a 9-pounder from Greenport.
• Closer to home, there were some 30-35-inch bass landed off Montville on live eels and the tube and worm and possibly enough winter flounder for supper and a few meals afterwards off the sandy beaches from Seaside past Harkness Park. Please keep in mind the Connecticut season for the latter fish closes down on May 31.
• Capt. Kerry Douton at J&B Tackle reported lots of bass in The Race but most are on the small side. Fluking is fair to good at Peconic, along the Rhode Island beaches and Montauk, all in time for the upcoming holiday weekend. No shark trips just yet but they are in the planning stages.
• Al Golinski of Misquamicut is just about ready to put the boat in the water and take it out for a shakedown run. He's heard about squid on the Watch Hill Reefs along with larger bass. Bunkers are up and down the Pawcatuck. Everyone is hoping they will stay put and provide a source of striper bait in the coming weeks. Shore anglers landed plenty of small bass from the beaches between Watch Hill and East Beach at sunrise and again after supper.
• Lots of smaller stripers was the report from Capt. Don's in Charlestown. One local named Roger has 285 bass to date from Quonny Pond, all caught trolling the tube and worm, but only was a keeper. The back end of the pond registered 59 degrees yesterday so Don said we may see some worm hatches pretty soon.
• Bass were coming and going from the breachway at the bottom of the evening ebb tides along with small ponds of 8-10-inch bunkers. Fluking was best over humps and other structure versus drifting on flat, sandy bottom. Tautog were caught from the breachway rip-rap and the end of the jetties at low, slack water.
• Capt. Al Anderson talked with one of his Long Island contacts and learned one of the boats from the East Fork fished in the Sluiceway this week. The man made 18 straight drifts to land 18 keeper bass. To date though there are not a lot of stripers of any size in either the Montauk rips or just yet at Block Island.
• Fishing though in the Point Judith Salt Pond with Connecticut customers Stephanie Cramer and friend was another matter. In three trips they boated 132 bass to 36 inches, including 18 keepers. One-third of the fish were caught on flies with fast sinking lines, the rest trolling small umbrella rigs here and there in the pond all the way up into the Narrows.
• King Cove Outfitters told me they weighed in a 38-pound bass from the Watch Hill reefs and heard about others caught in the Pawcatuck under the bunker schools. The man who landed the 38 said he had a larger bass on but dropped it just under the boat. Shore fishing is good along the Rhode Island beaches for schoolie bass but not a lot of people are taking advantage of that fact. Fluke season has arrived along the Misquamicut shore and the south side of Fishers Island.
• Allen Fee at Shaffers Marina predicted some nice weather for the long weekend and good crowds as anglers come down to use their boats and catch fluke in various spots but not yet inside Fishers Island Sound. Those running over to Montauk reported bluefish taking their fluke baits as well as shorts and some keepers.
• Small boaters can enjoy action with light rods and school bass inside the Mystic River from the RR Bridge down to Noank. Allen guessed there should be some larger bass out on the Fisher Island Reefs, maybe casting lures in the morning or anchored up and fishing fresh squid on lead core line.
• He was very pleased about the state's completing a fishing platform on the Mason's Island Bridge. The spot is prefect for kids or folks that need handicap access. And, best of all there is free parking right at the marina, a short walk from the new platform that will officially be opened in time for the weekend.
• Moving over to the Fish Connection, I talked with Capt. Jack Balint, just back from fishing a striper tournament in northern New Jersey, complete with high winds, lots of blues and talk of how dingy the water is down there. Back home, The Race is loaded with 30-35-inch stripers, ready to hit a diamond jig on the slower tides or bucktail when it's moving faster.
• Dennis, an employee at the store, landed 13 keeper fluke on his last trip to the Rhode Island beaches. No amounts of blue fish are in our waters yet but they are due soon.
• Richard at Hillyers Tackle said boats had good night catches out in The Race on Tuesday and Wednesday plus good numbers of smaller bass on the day trips. They also had the first sparse reports of a FEW keeper fluke in Niantic Bay and better numbers over at Fishers Island or Rhode Island east of Watch Hill.
• You might find some small blues, maybe a 6-pounder or too along with school bass in the Millstone outflow and a small to moderate number of winter flounder in the Niantic River or Jordan Cove. If interested, don't dally because the season closes soon.
• No sign of hickory shad yet around the Niantic Bridges. Boats that didn't wish to fish The Race rips had 30-35-inch stripers at Inner Bartletts on trolled lures and live bait.
• Mark was minding the store at River's End when I called. He said small boaters are getting bass to 15 pounds now casting in the lower Connecticut River on Slug-Gos and Zara Spooks. There are only a limited number of bunkers in the river just now as opposed to other places plus the first stray bluefish of the year. People fluking off Niantic caught a sea bass or two. (Tim Coleman The Day)