Norwich Bulletin

• Striped bass: The word is from Captain Bob Veach of Right Hook Fishing Charters, who books out of the Fish Connection and co-owner and charter Captain Jack Balint: "You've got to be on the fish -- but it can be real good." Eric Covino of Playing Hookie Charters said they have been averaging 15 to 25 fish per trip with three to five keepers.
• Fluke: Captain Don Cameron of Captain Don's in Charleston, R.I., Fish Connection, Shaffer's and everyone else we've talked to this week indicate that the fluke fishing is as good inside Long Island Sound as it is along the Rhode Island Beaches and Fishers Island.
• Bluefish: As the heat of summer takes over, bluefishing will only improve. There are big numbers of bluefish in along the northern Rhode Island shoreline and fish of all sizes being caught in local waters and around Fishers Island.
• Scup/porgies: Most fishermen are targeting fluke, stripers or bluefish, but anyone who has trouble finding and catching fluke for the dinner table can head to a nearby reef, rock pile or channel marker and catch porgies, some jumbo fish of more than a pound.
• Blue crabs: Last week Balint said a customer reported catching a few keeper crabs from the Thames River and this week Pat Abate of River's Edn in Old Saybrook said the lower Connecticut River and Oyster River are both producing fair numbers of keeper crabs.
• Freshwater Trout: After a week of hot, sizzling weather, trout fishing will drop down another notch as warm waters will literally par-boil any trout that can't find cool waters in which to hide for the remainder of the summer.
• Bass: Bass are now in their summertime feeding patterns, which means excellent fishing during the approach of storms with that drop in barometric pressure, temperature and reduction in light.
• Pike: Pike follows the same scenario as largemouths this time of year. When it rains and the pressure drops, these fish come out to play. During hot, bluebird summer days they can be tough.
• Walleye: There have been a few fish caught at Gardner Lake recently during the night bite and fish into the low 20-inch range reported from Beach Pond and Coventry Lake. (org published by Norwich Bulletin)