Captain Morgan, Madison, CT

• Better late than never as schools of gene-carrying striped bass paraded into Long Island Sound. Ribbons of stripes rounded Montauk graced the shores of Rhode Island, filled the passages of Fisher's and filed into the Race. Feeding was fierce as fish, no doubt, searched for protein to rebuild those post-spawning bodies. Males long and thin dwarfed plump females carrying egg-filled bellies buoyant in the saltwater.
• Fog-draped, this vast flourishing nursery of sea life was ideal cover for casting into tight spots. Eels splashed, poppers gurgled, and drags broke the silence. If there were an early sun trying to poke through, one wouldn't know it. The scene was a black, white, and gray portrait gallery void of any color–a classic image one might have gleaned from an early copy of Life magazine.
• The ebb tide flowed just enough to float clumps of seaweed mixed with eelgrass thinned from a patch of bottom not far north. Whether a popper teased with a lagging hair-trimmed O'Shaughnessy or an eel pitched toward a boulder awash the outcome was the same. Every pop was clearly heard, as was the slap of large caudal fins.
• As one striper was lured from its lair and subsequently hooked, another seemed to follow, undeterred from the commotion. Although most bass in the sound emanate from the Chesapeake some do hail from the Hudson as one tagged dorsal indicated. Between eels and lures, these linesiders appeared not to have much preference since rods bent with equality. The trip was relaxing–no fighting with chop or wind just fish. Even a little time to ponder over a saltwater fishing license, how its revenues would benefit Connecticut recreational fisheries/anglers and how reciprocity between states makes sense since tonight we fished waters bordering three states.
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• On The Water: Recent stormy blasts swept through the Sound creating turbulent conditions but overall, fishing cranked up a few more notches. This was the week for picking your window of opportunity. Notably, bass in excess of 40 inches showed their fins as they went on a feeding spree. Hooked were fresh fish in the 40-plus pound range as they made their way from The Race toward mid-Sound. Plenty of smaller-class fish have been feeding throughout the shoreline and in the tidal rivers with action heating up on a falling tide.
• Reefs and shoals are now seeing fairly steady action, however more bluefish are in the mix. Thick-shouldered, spring–run choppers have been chasing down schools of menhaden with several rivers beginning to show an increase in numbers of bait fish. As the Sound fills with more bunker and shad, look for harbors to heat up. Grimm Reefers, Tension lures, Banjos, Arrowheads, and Slashbaits are good bets while trolling Spider rigs, “chutes,” and tubes are working on offshore reefs. Live/fresh chunks, eels, and worms are doing well both on/off shore.
• Keeper fluke numbers are on the rise. Mini-doormats are now being caught along the Connecticut shoreline on Case flukes, hi-lo's, three-ways, and “hook'm” and 'rhody' rigs. Several have been caught from shore while limits have been taken in 30 to 60 feet from Hammonasset to Faulkner Island with the occasional one reeled in at The Six while trolling/jigging for stripers.
• Note: There will be no Connecticut saltwater fishing license at least for 2008. Unfortunately, time ran out and the bill died on the calendar before it could be brought to vote following a crammed legislative session. Efforts are underway to ensure passage in the future so that all funds collected remain within Connecticut's Conservation Fund and not forfeited to the federal government.