On The Water Magazine

• Best Bets for Connecticut and Rhode Island: Sounds to me like Block Island is the place to be for bonito, as this species seems to be stacked high and wide in the Coast Guard Channel for the time being. Opportunities for big stripers exist if you want to patrol the beaches after curing your case of “bonito fever.” Eastern Long Island Sound seems to be a good bet as well, with lots of good bluefishing as far west as Stratford. The Charlestown and Quonny breachways in Rhode Island seem like winners, too, with opportunities for multiple species of fish. The Thames River sounds pretty hot as well, though you may not see bonito if you venture upriver of the mouth.
• Connecticut: Over in Connecticut, Rennie at The Fish Connection in Preston reports that masses of baby bunker have come into the Thames River, drawing the bluefish in from near and far. Blues in the 2- to 3-pound range are pursuing the baby bunker, while blues in the 10- to12-pound range are after the bigger specimens. Big striped bass are lurking beneath them, just waiting for you to get below the horde of savage bluefish! Poquetanuck Cove, Norwich Harbor and Hortons Cove have been the hottest spots for them, according to reports. For those who want surprise – or want to avoid one – massive amounts of sea robins have hunkered down near Buoy-17 on the Thames. Proceed with glee or caution, because the nice-sized fluke mixed in can make the fishing either interesting or frustrating. Reports of bonito are coming in from Groton Long Point, Bluff Point, Watch Hill, the Sluiceway and Millstone Point. Bluefish have arrived en masse along the shore in the past week, proving a nuisance to anglers trying to catch anything but a bluefish. Bluff Point, Harkness Memorial and Ram Island Reef have been holding the greatest number of blues. Fluke fishing is still good in all the likely spots, so hit them while the season still is open.
• Hillyer’s Bait & Tackle in Waterford reports good fluke fishing as well, particularly for anglers who are venturing into the deeper waters. Big fish are being taken there on a consistent basis, and Peruvian smelt seems to be the winning bait for the biggest specimens. Fishing for striped bass is fairly slow by day, and your best bet is still eels at night, although those who look can generally find school bass. Bluefish are everywhere, with Black Point and the Sluiceway being the most productive areas. For those seeking hickory shad, early morning at the mouth of the Niantic River has been excellent. Reports coming into Hillyer’s testify to good numbers of bonito at Pleasure Beach, the Sluiceway and Race Rock. Final words: The crabbing is unbelievable.
• For Eastern Long Island Sound, the numbers are impressive. Captain Morgan of Captain Morgan’s Bait & Tackle in Madison reported that during the ICC tournament over this past weekend, the greatest number of bluefish and the biggest concentration of larger bluefish were taken there. Although the biggest bluefish (17-plus pounds) came from an area west of New Haven, the vast bulk of big fish were taken between the Connecticut River and New Haven. The striped bass are still around, but because the bait is spread out, the fish are, too. Captain Morgan has been hearing good reports for stripers around the breakwaters, the Thimble Islands, and Falkner and Charles Islands. Bonito have also been reported at Falkner, and there have been some nice catches of weakfish there as well. Fluke fishing is still holding up, with the fish mostly coming from 60 to 70 feet of water. Shorebound fluke anglers are doing pretty well at Hammonasset.
• There were also a number of good bluefish taken in the Stratford area, according to the weigh-ins for the tournament that's taking place at Stratford Bait & Tackle in Stratford. Chris said lots of 16-pound blues were hanging from the scale, and the smallest bluefish that came in was 13 pounds. Striper fishing, on the contrary, is a bit on the slow side, although fishing eels at night will still take some very nice fish, particularly in deeper water. Chris is awaiting the arrival of some larger bait to get the bigger fish clumped up rather than spread out, as they are at the moment. A few reports of bonito come into the shop, but these fish are not feeding anywhere on a steady basis, so it is a hit-or-miss scenario.
• Fisherman’s World in Norwalk reported good bonito action at Goose Island, and good topwater action to big bluefish feeding on bunker on the south side of Sheffield Island. Sheffield has also been producing some decent catches of bass, though most fish have been in the 20-pound range. Good catches of scup on sand worms are being reported from the same area.
• Inland just a bit, John at Valley Angler in Danbury didn’t have any great reports, mainly because everyone has been focused on bluefish, and other species are just starting up again. Candlewood Lake has been slow for anglers fishing during the day, but nighttime fishermen are doing o.k. with live bait, taking some nice bass of both the large and smallmouth variety. John has also been hearing of some decent fishing to large rainbow trout on Candlewood at night, again using live shiners as bait.
• Rhode Island: The bonito and false albacore are ruling the seas this week, claiming territory from Connecticut to Cape Cod. Along the Plymouth shoreline and up in Hull anglers are seeing the first smelt of the season. As the summer air cools down, the striper action is heating up again. Chase your big linesiders from Connecticut to Great Bay, and especially around Block Island. Bear in mind, the bluefish blitzes have been ferocious, so you have to get below them to find your cow bass. Fluke are putting in a strong last stand around Rhode Island, and offshore action has continued to be hot for tuna, with the occasional bigeye, mahi-mahi, and white marlin to boot.
• Steve at The Saltwater Edge in Newport agreed with the assessment that fishing in upper Narragansett Bay is spotty at the moment. There is a lot of bait pouring into the bay, so the action ought to pick up as we move into September, making this fall season a real winner. For the Newport area, Ocean Drive has been productive, particularly after dark with eels, and anglers are doing o.k. after dark with plugs. Steve has also heard some good reports about Narragansett Beach from anglers using eels at night.
• Bonito are keeping anglers busy along the coast in Narragansett, according to reports that Mary at Maridee Bait & Tackle in Narragansett is getting. Deadly Dicks and Rebel Fastrac lures are the current object of desire for these speedsters, so stock up before you head out. Hazard Avenue, Newton Avenue and the East Wall have all been witness to some pretty hot bonito action. There have also been reports of bonito in the mouth of the Narrow River, so it really does seems as if they are everywhere. Striped bass action is picking up a bit, with early and late being best if you can’t get out during darkness. From shore, light-colored Bombers are producing during the day, and black/purple is the color of choice for the hours of darkness. Tsunami plugs between 1 ½ and 2 ounces are producing some nice linesiders during daylight hours along the Narragansett beaches. Fluke fishing is beginning to slow just a bit, according to reports coming into the shop, but anglers targeting 70 feet of water or deeper are still doing well, especially in the area just east of the East Wall.
• Regarding the Charlestown Breachway, Phil at Breachway Bait & Tackle in Charlestown reports that 3- to 9-pound bluefish have invaded. It seems that whenever you toss something shiny into the water, your hooks come back with a bluefish attached. Striped bass are a bit scarcer, although shore-casters are having good catches of schoolies late and early in the day. Boats in slightly deeper waters are catching bigger bass early in the day. Bonito are parading up and down the beaches, but they aren’t hanging around very long, and shore-casters generally have not been able to hook them. Baby bunker are everywhere, which will keep the fish around and busy for a while. Phil agreed that the fluke action has slowed a bit, and most reports coming into the shop show that the fish are deeper and the ones being taken are smaller.
• Captain Don at Captain Don’s Bait & Tackle in Charlestown reported “tons” of bass at the mouth of the Quonny Breachway at the beginning of the week, and they’re stretching all the way over the East Beach and beyond. Most are school bass, but the occasional bigger fish has come to the hooks of anglers, too. Blue Shutters Beach has seen bass and bluefish at the surface during the first hours of light on a pretty consistent basis, and Captain Don reported “fish bumping the bottom of the boat” as he came up the Breachway just a few days ago. The bottom line is that there are lots of fish in and around Quonny Pond at the moment due to the thick schools of bait all over the place. According to Captain Don, a pink/white Versa-popper with a bent lip and no top is just killing the fish from shore during the day. If you stop at the shop, I am sure he will show you how to rig this fish-slayer up correctly. Bonito are also remaining at the mouth of the Breachway, making the occasional forays into the Breachway itself. Fluke fishing is holding up, but the fish are moving into deeper waters. Ninety feet of water out at the second ledge at the Quonny is producing some huge fluke at the moment.
• The first word out of John’s mouth when I called Twin Maples on Block Island was “bonito.” Massive schools of bonito are moving in and out of the Coast Guard Channel, and anglers are having a blast picking up these racing hounds from both shore and boat. While fly-rodders are having the most consistent luck (three to four fish per person), Yo-Zuri L-Jacks, Deadly Dicks, Swedish Pimples and Yo-Zuri Crystal Minnows, in that order, are the best producers for spin casting anglers. Just make sure the lure has some green on it, because the more it looks like a sand eel, the better your hook-up rate will be. While bonito have stolen the headlines, striped bass and bluefish are still waging war up and down the beaches. There have been excellent catches of big stripers even during daylight hours on both eels and needlefish plugs. According to reports coming to John, another run of large stripers (think 40- to 50-pounders) is showing up along the beaches. The fluke are still a possibility, but 80 feet of water is target depth at the moment. For those getting into them, the size ratio has shifted so that fluke in the 20-inch-plus range are much more common. (Alan Desbonnet, On the Water Magazine).
  

Westport Outfitters

• Many anglers enjoyed a near perfect weekend from a weather standpoint but there weren't many large bluefish hooked up. The average blues were in the 5-10lb range, including all of the fish that were caught by those of us from the shop that participated. These fish are a blast on the fly rods and give the newbie some very quick lessons on what to do and not to do with a traditional reel (i.e. no anti-reverse). Pound for pound, there simply is no better fighting fish on the light tackle or fly rods.
• Check the shallow sections of shoals and outflow areas near beaches to find blues finning while awaiting schools of peanut bunker and silversides to move through. Although August is not the prime month for striped bass fishing we had reports of stripers to 46" and 43" in and around the Norwalk area over the weekend. Congrats to George Moreo who landed a 47 inch, 35.5 lb striper on Sunday A.M. within the islands (see Recent Catches section). In fact, if we were to have taken a straw poll over the busy weekend, I would venture to say that almost more big stripers were caught by participants in the tourney than bluefish. Tube and worm and bunker produced these fish.
• As the peanut bunker grow you should switch your artificials to match baits in the 3-4" range over the next week. Rattle Traps, Yozuri Crystal Minnows, Smack-it Jr., and Striper Strike poppers are great choices for spin fisherman and fly fisherman should try blue/white, olive/white clousers and deceivers as well as crease flies and bangers for surface action. Speaking of flies, as we mentioned last week, we will now be carrying a full array of hand tied flies by Eric Peterson. For years, Eric has been seen as an innovator when it comes to tying. His new association with the shop and unique patterns we feel will compliment those others that we currently have on hand. Over the winter we will look to have Eric doing some demonstrations and classes so stay tuned. Come on down and have a look at the new Synergy patterns today!
• We are just beginning to enter the season when surface action will be the norm. Look for birds and bait busting on the surface and you will likely find bluefish under them. Under the bluefish, you will likely find some big lazy bass picking up the scraps from the frenzy taking place on the surface. Be sure to cast a weighted lure outside of these schools, say 15 feet. A one ounce Kastmaster delivered just so, will shoot past the bluefish and hopefully drift right past a waiting striper feasting…hold on!
• We continue to have several reports of Bonito being caught in the Norwalk Islands working schools of peanut bunker and silversides. On Monday we were forced to keep a fish that was taken on the fly rods after a bluefish severed the thing in half as we went to land it. Stripers are still being taken in deeper water but not so deep you cannot target them with light tackle. Try reefs and rocky areas using poppers early in the morning or just before dark. If you want a shot at a bigger bass during the day bunker chunks and tube and worm are your best choices, but you will mostly likely get plenty of bluefish action also using these methods. Some nice keeper fluke are still being taken in deeper water using live snapper blues and traditional squid/spearing combos. It looks like we have a nice week of weather ahead and for the holiday weekend, so get out there!
• The snappers are getting bigger and putting up a heck of a fight, get the kids out there this weekend for one last hurrah before they go back to school! Rigged combos perfect for this energetic fish starting at just $24.99!
• MONTAUK REPORT
• From the on board the “TEASER” sailing out of Montauk, Captain Dean reports that the fishing was slow with all the winds last week but the people who got offshore were greatly rewarded with great bites of Yellowfin and Big Eye tunas. There has also been a good giant tuna bite going on for the guys who know how to catch them. The bite seams to be in the "Mud Hole" closer to Rhode Island than to Montauk but only about a 35 mile ride for us here at the basin. Sharking is still going strong for the guys who want to skip the tuna's. The bass has been consistent all year and the eels will start working real well as the season progresses along. Flukeing has been a tough bite this week with many shorts, but the keepers are getting harder to come by each day. Dean hopes to see some new face's experiencing some of the best Tuna fishing we have seen in years. (Eric Johnson, Westport Outfitters).
  

Rivers End Tackle, Old Saybrook

• STRIPED BASS- Theres more peanuts on the shoreline than we've seen in a couple of years and thats driving bass and other species near shore to feast. Most of the bass are schoolies with an occasional jumbo in the mix. They have been hitting a variety of surface and sub-surface lures, when practical use a single hook lure. Its been a while since we've seen so many fat and sassy bass at this time of year. Theres still some jumbo bass on the reefs such as Bartlett, Hatchetts and Black Point with almost all catches coming on live bait.
• BLUEFISH- The peanuts that are bringing in the bass mentioned earlier are doing the same with blues. Theres been some blitzes along the beaches from the Old Saybrook Town Beach to Waterford Town Beach, both day and night. Look for the bait the choppers aren't too far behind. The Race, Plum Gut and Pigeon Rip also have blues but often not as good as the shoreline. Chunkers are getting some in the River but its not been a fast bite.
• SNAPPERS- Its been good at the Causeway, Saybrook Point and the DEP Piers with many of them approaching 6".
• FLUKE- Its the last roundup with the season expiring in Connecticut on Wednesday September 5th, the last day you can possess fluke on the states waters. In RI the season end on 9/16 and NY has no closed season but theres talk they might have an emergency closure next week. Block Island is still very good and we have had some reports as had the Ruins and Gardiners. Near shore in CT has been quiet, but with all the peanut bunker around they may feast in shallow water for the next few days.
• BLACKFISH- Some limit catches being reported from Hatchetts and Southwest Reef.
• PORGIES- They are out there with not too much effort being given them in the last few weeks. We have had some good reports from Cranes, Hatchetts and Cornfield.
• BONITO, FALSE ALBACORE - Theres still some bonito around the Rhode Island shore and they have been joined by a mass of albies. We have had some very good reports the last few days on large schools from Charlestown to Newport.
• BLUE CRABS- Some excellent catches from both North and South Coves on the River as well as the DEP Piers and Oyster River. (Pat Abate)
  

TheDay.com - Blue On Blue

• We are having a good year on blues over eight pounds in the Thames River, said Joe Balint at the Fish Connection. The fish are there, pleasing boat and shore anglers alike, because of all the bunkers in the river. Mixed in, usually underneath the bluefish activity, are a few stripers over 36 inches.
• Crabbing is fair to excellent in all the coves along the river, adding variety for those without boats. The last couple charter trips for Capt. Jack were on the slow side. They did find some bass on the Watch Hill reefs but couldn't get within casting range because of sea conditions after three straight days of easterly weather.
• Bonito are around from the Rhode Island beaches to Watch Hill Passage and some were also sighted one morning off Pleasure Beach. Porgies still provide lots of action on the Fishers Island Sound rock piles. Fluke season closes in state waters on Sept. 5.
• Al Golinski of Misquamicut is nursing a sore knee that will require an operation in the fall and limits his time on his boat. He did get out once for bass after catching bunkers in Stonington Harbor. He and a friend landed seven stripers 20-37 pounds on the Watch Hill Reefs in dirty water where they had to reel in the bait every few minutes and take the weed off it. Al's buddy Michael Lucceshi fished south of Block Island on Monday in rough weather for two small makos.
• Capt. Al Anderson had a good trip for yellowfin tuna prior to all the east wind. Trolling squid spreader bars and others lures at roughly 14600 x 43400 his charter party landed a nice catch of tuna from 60-80 pounds. Since then the water temps dropped six degrees, curtailing the fishing. On one trip they trolled past 25 high flyers at 14650 x 43650 without a single hit all day long.
• They did however get bass, catching small and keeper stripers from the North Rip in deep water on the outermost bar to Southeast Light to Black Rock along with some blues. Their best trip was 19 bass, eight keepers, at Southeast Light then two large blue sharks and a 150-pound thresher at 14500 x 43800.
• Capt. Don's in Charlestown said there are bonito running up and down the beach, out of range most of the time for shore fishermen. Boat anglers however caught some on the standard Deadly Dicks and Swedish Pimple lures. Scup catches are fine but fluke numbers seem to be in decline with biggest fish now coming from water 65-100 feet deep.
• Don at King Cove in Stonington took a short time away from getting a bunch of kayakers on the water to tell me the east wind hurt some very good striper catches on the reefs earlier in the week. Fluking is slowing down but those putting in extra time are still getting some keepers and jumbos.
• Scup numbers remain high and Don is now hearing about the first fair returns for people dunking sandworms for blackfish in some of the deeper holes.
• Capt. Allen Fee of Shaffers Marina took out his long-time friend Tyler Richards, visiting from Michigan. Together they landed small blues and schoolies on plugs from the east end of Fishers and the stake at Sugar Reef. They ended jigging Crippled Herrings deep off Middle Clump for bass of 28 and 29 inches.
• Allen guessed we should see some good catches of bass in the coming week on live eels tossed into the rocks the whole length of the south side of Fishers Island. Fluke catches on the inshore spots are fading as the season heads to a close on Sept. 5. Big porgies are still on most of the rock piles and snapper blues pleasing kids of all ages at the Masons Island Bridge.
• The better fluking is now at Montauk or in deeper water off Msiquamicut said Red at Bob's Rod & Tackle. It's getting much harder to catch a keeper in local waters. Blues are still chasing bunkers in the Thames River with a few bass under them. One gent came back to the store on Wednesday morning to report losing a nice striper from shore on Tuesday evening at a location close to the Coast Guard Academy.
• A mix of small porgies and a few keepers are in the river also along with schoolie stripers more than willing to take a worm on the bottom if a scup doesn't find it first.
• Capt. Brad Glas of the Hel-Cat reported most of last week saw good blue fishing except for two days “impacted by unfavorable local conditions.” The evening fluke trips ranged from fair to very good but keep in mind those will stop after the Saturday outing.
• By popular demand they are also offering two night trips to Alligator Ledge for ocean blues on Sept. 8 and 15. Big fish of the week was a 17.8-pound striper landed by Bruce Sebastian of Ledyard.
• Hillyers Tackle had news about one customer catching blues over 15 pounds after times in his small boat off Harkness Park. Hickory shad are in thick around the Niantic Bridges very early in the day and absent the next. Best chance of bass is after dark, drifting with a live eel or bucktail and pork rind.
• Porgies are still on most of the rock piles in Niantic Bay. Fluking is best in deep water from 60-100-feet-plus. Two other customers had reports of good catches of sea bass, one from the west side of Block Island, the other a “secret” spot around Fishers Island.
• Fluke are slowing down said Pat at River's End, probably just in time for the close of the fishing on Sept. 5. Your best bet right now might be a trip to the Ruins or Montauk. Lots more blues are on the surface early or late in the day. On Wednesday morning Pat watched a school of blues tear into bait at Crane's Ledges through binoculars from his perch on shore.
• Schoolies are after small bait along the Old Lyme shoreline, caught early or late in the day or after dark by surf casters with access to the area or people casting into the shore from small boats. Pat rated the snapper season has just average to date but said the crabbing is the best he's seen in the last three years. (Tim Coleman)

On The Water

* Best Bets in Connecticut & Rhode Island: Go crabbing. Conditions are the best that they have been in a number of years, so take advantage while you are able. Go west and try your luck in the Bluefish Tournament; prizes are worth the effort. Grab your light-tackle gear or your fly rod and head out to meet the bonito or albies before they have seen every fly and spoon pattern on the face of the planet. Locate the heavy sinkers and go deep one more time for some fluke before the season winds down and closes. It is not so very far away.
* As the summer air cools down, the striper action is heating up again. Chase your big linesiders from Connecticut to Great Bay, and especially around Block Island. Bear in mind, the bluefish blitzes have been ferocious, so you have to get below them to find your cow bass. Fluke are putting in a strong last stand around Rhode Island, and offshore action has continued to be hot for tuna, with the occasional bigeye, mahi-mahi, and white marlin to boot.
* Connecticut: Big bunker are still making the Thames River their home, and some massive bluefish are hanging under the schools of bunker and sticking with them on their travels. Rennie at The Fish Connection in Preston had reports that Norwich Harbor was very busy early in the week, as jumbo blues made breakfast of large bunker. Striped bass action is good, but mainly to school bass in the river; the bigger fish may be enticed to eat eels at night at the river mouth and at deeper, rocky spots. Rennie is getting reports that the fluke are moving around a lot and the catch is thinning out as a result. Good fish are still being taken by those anglers who can locate them, however.
* Reports of anglers taking white perch in Poquetanuck Cove have also been coming into the shop, adding a new species to the list of summer angling possibilities. Mealworms seem to be the bait of preference for these fish. Bonito are now showing up all along the shore, and reports are coming in that false albacore are in the area as well. Rennie recommends Rattletraps, Swedish Pimples and Deadly Dicks for taking one of these oceanic speedsters. The crabbing is absolutely unbelievable, according to Rennie, and freshwater anglers are doing well to smallmouth bass in the Shetucket and Quinebaug rivers; largemouths in the Lake of Isles, Pachaug, Glasgow and Avery ponds.
* Shane at Hillyer’s Bait & Tackle in Waterford reports that the fluke are moving around a lot, and they are going ever deeper. Their size also seems to be decreasing, with keeper-sized fluke becoming ever rarer as the days go by and the season’s closing date approaches. Striper fishing to bigger bass is slow by day, though there are good numbers of school bass around and willing to play. Bartlett Reef and Pigeon Rip are prime spots for big stripers under the cover of darkness with eels or fresh chunks of bait. Some anglers are “3-waying” live scup with pretty good success at Bartlett, and school bass are falling victim to tube-and-worm rigs by day. Shane also has reports of good bluefishing at both Harkness and Pleasure Beach, with most fish in the 6- to 10-pound range. Bonito are also being reported at Pleasure Beach, but a boat is needed because the fish are not regularly coming near shore. Valiant Rock has been consistently alive with bonito, according to reports Shane is getting.
* Captain Morgan at Captain Morgan’s Bait & Tackle in Madison reported that bonito are showing up in the area, but nowhere with any consistency. Big bluefish have begun showing up in the area, but there is not a lot of big bunker in the area at the moment. The ICC Bluefish Tournament takes place this weekend, so let’s hope some of those jumbo blues hang around through the weekend.
* Bluefish have really come in thick to the Norwalk area, according to Chris at Westport Outfitters in Norwalk. Most fish are in the 8- to 10-pound range and are providing some very good topwater entertainment. Underneath the mess of moderately sized fish, you will find bigger fish mixed in. Striped bass catches are slow at the moment, but certainly not impossible. Chris has been breaking the mold on his charters by targeting shallower waters, and several anglers have taken bass in the 20-pound range. School bass are providing reasonably steady action for light-tackle enthusiasts, he added. Bonito are around but very scarce, and they are traveling in rather small schools. There is a lot of bait in the area – large schools of 2 ½-inch bunker and very large silversides – which is bound to keep both the bass and the blues in the area.
* Rhode Island: Steve at The Saltwater Edge confirmed that striped bass fishing is indeed improving, particularly from shore to school bass. Bait is everywhere and the fish are hungry – a particularly good combination for anglers. The bait is thickest in the lower bay, and in effect, the fishing is best there. Bigger stripers are mixed in, but you need to get below the smaller fish. Bonito have been taken at the various “walls” at Point Judith, giving shorebound anglers many reasons to make the hike out along the rocks. Steve notes that fluke fishing is still quite good, and he advises anglers not to overlook the Sakonnet River area for this species, as it has been rather productive.
* Bass fishing is still going strong on the south side of Block Island and by Southwest Point, say those at Wildwood Outfitters in Wakefield. A number of 20- to 30-pounders are also being brought in from Narragansett to Charleston, especially by the Narrow River, though boat traffic is still an issue. Fluke are standing strong in 55- to 100-foot depths outside the Center Wall, and in 60- to 110-foot depths by the R6-Buoy and around the Newport Bridge. Bluefish are popping up all over the place, from the Charlestown Breachway to Point Judith Light to Beavertail Point. Masses of peanut bunker are also drawing the blues to the north end of Gould Island and into Narragansett Bay. Bonito have been sighted outside the Point Judith walls, along the south shore of Block Island and outside the Narrow River, but true success stories are rare. Offshore fishing continues to offer excitement, with the occasional bigeye, mahi-mahi, and wahoo interspersed among the yellowfin around Atlantic and Veatch canyons. Cod are around, too, but the dogfish have been harassing those who attempt to catch them.
* Mary at Maridee Bait & Tackle in Narragansett is hearing reports of good sea bass and scup catches at the East Wall, and mackerel being taken at Black Point. Reports also say that the fluke are heading to deeper waters, with the waters near the lighthouse, at about 70-foot depths, producing some nice keepers. Bluefish are just about everywhere in the Narragansett region, though most are small- to medium-sized with an occasional brute tossed in just to keep it interesting. Striped bass angling is good both by day and by night; expect school bass by day — the Narragansett Town Beach has been productive both early and late in the day — and bigger fish by night, particularly when fishing eels. Mary reports that there are plenty of big bass lurking around the docks at Point Judith that are willing to eat clam bellies and cocahoes, but keeping them off the barnacle-studded piling is a major challenge. Bonito have invaded Narragansett coastal waters, but don’t expect to see them hanging around any one particular spot.
* While bonito are keeping anglers in boats busy just off the beaches in Charlestown, bluefish have invaded the Breachway. Ronnie at Breachway Bait & Tackle reported that most of the blues are in the 6- to 8-pound range, providing excellent action throughout the day. Larger blues are available near the mouth of the Breachway. Striped bass are around in good numbers, but catches are way down, according to reports coming into the shop; the problem is getting through the throng of bluefish to reach the stripers. As fluke are now move into the pond, catches are diminishing some, and most are shorts. Fluke rigs armed with cut squid or live mummichogs are the way to go, and you can use the leftover squid to take scup anywhere along the rocks of the breachway.
* Captain Don’s Bait & Tackle in Charlestown was busy as a beehive, but Captain Don found time to report that bonito are being found all along the south shore. These fish are now coming more regularly into the Breachway, providing some fast action to light tackle anglers. Daybreak is the best time to be out for striped bass, and there are reports of consistently excellent fishing from the Quonny Breachway to Blue Shutters Town Beach. In parting, Captain Don confirmed that the fluke are still biting, but they have moved into deeper waters. The depth to target seems to be 70 to 80 feet.
* The first reports of little tunny in the area came from John at Twin Maples on Block Island; two fish were landed just outside the Coast Guard Channel early this week. Bonito are also consistent in the Coast Guard Channel, and John expects both species to be a fixture in that spot for a while now. A run of really big fluke followed the big wind events over the past weekend and early in the week, with the red bell at Southwest Point and just off the Town Beach bell buoy being spots where jumbo sized fluke are being taken. John had reports that striped bass are now frolicking in the surf, and anglers tossing needlefish plugs into the suds are doing well with both school bass and larger specimens, even during daylight hours. Reports coming into the shop are suggesting that the bluefish, while still very plentiful, seem to be thinning out a bit. (Alan Desbonnet)

Connecticut Post- How will cold affect Bluefish haul?

• Erik at Westport Outfitters calls this week and next the "transition to fall," with the peanut bunker and snappers getting bigger by the day. "The water clarity is remarkable for this time of year," he said. "It's kind of a smorgasbord of fish for the angler right now." Some of Erik's charters resorted to deep trolling around Penfield Reef, where they found plenty of big choppers lurking. "Bluefish, bluefish, bluefish" is how Brian at Ted's Bait & Tackle in Bridgeport described the angling scene at St. Mary's. Most of the blues taken there went for drifted or weighted bunker chunks, the fresher the better. Occasionally, a school will show on top where they can be picked off with poppers and swimmers.
• Jason at Bobby J's in Milford seconded the hot bluefish action. Al Day nailed two blues in the 12-pound class fishing chunks behind Charles Island. The surface feeding schools are still raiding the shores near Bradley Point in West Haven.
• Trolling periwinkles in the Housatonic River, from the end of the Milford breakwater to the Merritt Parkway Bridge has been very effective this week.
• Striped bass — The bass picture is, in a word, slow, but dawn waders at the shore access spots in Westport and Norwalk and Fairfield are taking lots of stoolies and the occasional keeper thanks to then gin clear water. The reef behind Charles Island produced at least one 38-inch linesider this week.
• Bonita — Greenies between six and eight pounds have shown up in the Norwalk Island especially around Peck's Ledge. They should be racing off the Stratford beaches soon.
• Fluke — New Haven Harbor and the breakwaters were the hot spot for Jason Jadach and his brother this week. They took fish weighing 6.34 and 6.2 pounds off the bottom.
• Porgies — The action is all at Middleground, where Sean Lalond took a 2.28-pound porgy.
• Blue crabs — Mill River in Fairfield, Indian River in Milford and access points in New Haven Harbor are making for a banner crabbing season.
• Snapper blues — They are getting bigger and bigger and therefore more and more fun to catch. The snappers are biting shiners and Castmasters at the Fairfield Boat Basin and from the town dock at the end of High Street in Milford.
• FRESHWATER Largemouth bass — The state Department of Environmental Protection reports good to very good largemouth fishing in many areas. Areas to try include Bantam Lake (recent catches include 6.3 and 5.0 pound bass), Candlewood, East Twin, Winchester, and Mashapaug lakes, Lake Zoar (4.5-pound bass among the catches), and Pachaug (mixed reports), Burr and Squantz Ponds.
• Smallmouth bass — Good to fair catches reported from Lake Housatonic, Lake Zoar (3.9-pound smallie among the catches), Candlewood, Gardner and Squantz Pond. With cooler temperatures, action for river smallies on the Housatonic has slowed somewhat, but is still rated good to excellent. Some good action also reported in the Farmington River (Tariffville area).
• Northern pike — Catches reported from Lake Lillinonah, Bantam Lake and Pachaug Pond. Sunfish — Excellent summer time action happening throughout the state. Use worms, grubs, jigs or small poppers for them in any local pond or lake where fishing is permitted. Yellow perch — Jumbos are being taken from Candlewood Lake. (Charles Walsh)
  

Westport Outfitters

• The transition into the fall fishing season is upon us. The peanut bunker are becoming larger while the snapper blues continue to grow about one inch per week, offering our local fish a smorgasbord of table affair. At the time of this report, a cold front is quickly moving out, so it will be interesting to see how this weather affected our fishing here at home and more importantly if it scattered the bait again. The bunker in and around Norwalk/Westport area continues to be hit or miss, with larger concentrations to our West.
• The Bonita have arrived in mass and were all the craze over the weekend. We had at least a dozen customers get into these fish with about half as many bringing some to the boat up to 8 lbs. Deadly Dicks are the lure of choice, but Geoff and Tim wrestled one to the boat while trolling!! (see new homepage photo). It is very important to note, that when these fish come up, they rarely have a pattern like Albies, so try and cast where they might be going and not where they are. Fly selction should be small silver side patterns or lighter colored baby bunker imitations and snapper patterns.
• The charters that ventured out early in the week still relied on the go to lead core trolling set ups and managed bass up to 34 inches and blues to 12lbs. This week in particular we started chunking a bit more at some of the usual haunts like Frost Point, Penfield Reef and Sunken Island and were rewarded for doing so. We normally are not big fans, but non stop action can always change this. Unfortunately with the weather that moved in Friday and Saturday we were forced to cancel some charters and resorted to Porgy fishing on Saturday with non stop action.
• Inshore, the striper bite continues to be at first light and just before. Before the sun comes up, we are still using soft plastics like the Storm and Tsunami swim shads but as soon as the sun appears, so does Mr. Bluefish so switch out to a hard bait like a Rattle Trap or Crystal Minnow. Also try the old faithful Bounders, preferably silver in color. This age old lure can be slow trolled or simply retrived and it is easily taken for small bait fish. Flies to go out with should be small baby bunker patterns as well as some hand tied snapper patterns.
• It’s that time of year again to break out the Diamond Jigs. Although as usual, the normal ledges off of 11B, 28C and 13 will no doubt start filling in, this technique can also be utilized closer to home. Our preferred method is off a three way swivel with a Westport Outfitters hand tied teaser on a stiff piece of fluorocarbon. A blue or green deceiver or baby bunker pattern could be just what the doctor ordered.
• The snappers are getting bigger and putting up a heck of a fight, get the kids out there this weekend for one last hurrah before they go back to school!
• As we mentioned last week, with the water clarity above normal, a crisp fall like air to the weather pattern, cool nights and loads of bait, this fall could really turn out to be a good one, so get out there!
• Inshore things remain a little picky with both the stripers and fluke. Fluke fishing is producing a lot of fluke and some very nice ones, but it seems that the fluke population has been pretty much picked over by this time of year.
• MONTAUK REPORT: Captain Dean reports from the decks of the TEASER in Montauk …We had a little taste of fall on Saturday with a fairly strong little north wind. Only a few boats got out in the morning, but most were able to get the afternoon in. Canyon range boats heading out towards the edge are coming back with mixed reports. Sunday afternoon I spoke to two captains just back. One had a mix of albacore and yellowfins. The blow on Saturday mixed the water up considerably lowering the water temps down to as low as 68 degrees or so. Otherwise everything else is the same, with all the action below the 450 line (about 50 miles offshore).
• The shark action remains fairly steady with a good amount of small makos being caught daily along with some bluesharks. A couple of giant tuna's have been brought into Montauk this week, one was over a thousand pounds. All caught southeast of Block Island.
• A CALL FOR ACTION!! Westport Outfitters is proud to be helping to gather used fishing equipment for the JCCA campus in Westchester County. The JCCA supports children from ages 6 to 17 that have been abused, neglected or are just unwanted. All are emotionally disturbed, some have reduced mental capacity as a result, but most are still wonderfully resilient and are finishing school and hope to lead a better life.
• Most all of them love to fish, while the staff takes them on outings to local lakes and ponds and they make a few trips a year to Captree for a day on the saltwater. Fishing as we all know can be a very calming influence and we are hoping to assist this local group in any way we can. If you have any used gear that is taking up space in the garage or shed, please bring it by. Even if it’s in sub par condition, the kids have learned to re-wrap eyes/guides and break down reels to make them usable again. Since they don’t have access to a boat, we are mainly looking to get light saltwater and freshwater gear. Anything you don’t want, please drop it by the shop. For those requesting it, a letter from the agency thanking you for your tax deductible donation will be available. Let’s show the group how supportive the Westport Outfitters Crew can be!!

Riversend Tackle

• STRIPED BASS- The bunker moved back in force this morning from Westbrook to New London and beyond. While theres mostly blues on them the bass aren't too far away. Even though last weeks weather may have felt like fall its still the dog days of August as far as bass go. Theres been a few big bass reported from Hatchetts and Southwest on live bait and I believe we're still knocking off the remainder of summer residents. The Race has had some medium sized bass if you can get through the blues.
• The schoolies are running fair to good for August along the shoreline from Old Saybrook to Waterford. Rhode Island beaches have also had a good population of small bait and adult bunker with mixed sizes of bass. Theres been schoolies at the Causeway bridges near daybreak.
• BLUEFISH- Just in time for the WICC Contest the blues have sent in the reserves. Bunker schools have increased and drawn more blues close to shore. The Connecticut River was good this morning with choppers busting the bunker schools. Theres been intermittent blitzes all week when the two parties get together. The Race, Plum Gut have a good bunch of mixed sizes but the bigger boys tend to be in or near the River and smaller reefs.
• SNAPPERS- Snappering seems to have leveled out this week with fish still running below 6". The Causeway, DEP Piers and Town Dock are good bets.
• FLUKE- We had some good reports this week from Black Point but not much from the shallower waters. Theres been some decent reports from NY around the Ruins and Gardiners. Don't give up on the last roundup, we should see some good doormats these next two weeks.
• PORGIES- Good sized porgies are on the local reefs in fair numbers. Cranes, Cornfield, Hens and Chickens as well as Hatchetts are all worthwhile.
• BONITO- Bonito reports are waning this weeks as rumors of False Albacore are increasing. There have been a few credible odd one fish catches in the Sound. They are on the Vineyard now and thats a good sign, we should see some by weeks end.
• BLUE CRABS- Very good reports came in this week for both trappers and scoopers. All the coves in the lower River had good catches for traps and most pilings in the marinas are being worked hard.

CT DEP Weekly Fishing Reports #17

• LARGEMOUTH BASS fishing is reported as good to very good in many areas. Areas to try include Lower/Middle Bolton, Coventry, Red Cedar, Pattagansett, Wononscopomuc, Bantam Lake (recent catches include 6.3 and 5.0 lb bass), Candlewood, East Twin, Crystal, Winchester, Mashapaug, Kenosia, Highland and Bashan Lakes, Lake Wintergreen, Lake Zoar (4.5 lb bass among the catches), and Pachaug (mixed reports), Beach, Black (Meriden/Middlefield), Mudge, Ball, Gorton, Long (fair action, but a 6 lb bass among the catches), Burr and Squantz Ponds.
• SMALLMOUTH BASS catches reported from Lake Housatonic, Lake Zoar (3.9 lb smallie among the catches), Colebrook Reservoir, Crystal, Candlewood, Gardner, Eagleville and Lower Bolton Lakes and Squantz Pond. With cooler temperatures, action for river smallies on the Housatonic River has slowed somewhat, but is still rated good to excellent.Some good action also reported from the Natchaug, Salmon and Farmington (Tariffville area) Rivers.
• NORTHERN PIKE catches reported from Lake Lillinonah, Bantam Lake and Pachaug Pond.
• Some WALLEYE are being reported from Lake Saltonstall, Squantz Pond and Coventry Lake.
• CHAIN PICKEREL are being caught at Bashan Lake, Wononscopomuc Lake, Mudge Pond and Long Pond. Some catches also reported from Colebrook Reservoir.
• SUNFISH are providing excellent summer time action throughout the state. Use worms, grubs, jigs or small poppers for them. Areas to try include: Ball Pond, and Candlewood, Gardner, Silver and Highland Lakes.
• YELLOW PERCH are reported from Candlewood Lake (Jumbos), Highland Lake, Tyler Lake, Mudge Pond and Coventry Lake.
• Connecticut River – CATFISH (upper river) continue to provide excellent action on cut bait (chunking). Sunfish are also being used successfully for them. Target the outside bends in the river and the upstream side of the deeper holes of the river.
• NORTHERN PIKE have been found mainly at the confluences with tributaries, with some fish also being found in the coves and in the mainstem near Middletown and Haddam Meadows. The recent cool weather will allow more pike to move back into the river.
• LARGEMOUTH BASS are being caught in the coves from Hartford to Middletown (reported catches include several in the 3-4 lb range) and in the lower river.
• SMALLMOUTH BASS action remains fair to good in the Enfield area and near the mouth of the Farmington River. Several nice smallies also captured below Hartford including a 3.9 lb beauty.
  
• Some good STRIPED BASS action can still be found in the lower river on bait. Anglers are live lining hickory shad. Rivers & streams - With the recent cooler temperatures, trout fishing has picked up in some areas. Flows do continue to be low, especially in northeastern CT (most notably the Fenton, Willimantic, Mt Hope and Quinebaug Rivers) and also, in northwestern CT, the Housatonic River. Good reports from the West Branch and mainstem Farmington, Natchaug and Housatonic Rivers.
  
• Farmington River conditions continue to be excellent for summer trout fishing and anglers can also look forward to even more fish in the river for Labor Day weekend. DEP expects to stock close to 2,500 adult-size brown trout into the West Branch late next week. Morning West Branch water temperatures remain in the lower 60’s °F (63 °F on Wednesday, 8/22). Flows are clear and very fishable, currently about 200 cfs at Riverton, with an additional 10 cfs from the Still River. The Trico hatch continues, but may be slowing a bit. Isonychia (#10-12, fast water, evening), Needhami (#22-28, early morning), Blue Wing Olives (#22-28, mid-late afternoon), Sulphurs duns (#16-18, morning; afternoon to early evening for spinners), Stenonema (Cahill #14-18), Rusty Spinners (#18-26), Caddis (tan #16-20, all day; green #22-26, evening; summer pupa, #18-20 morning), Midges (#22-32, morning), Black Ants (#14-20, mid day in fast water), Flying Ants (#18-22, mid day, when windy/humid), Stone Hopper (#8-12, mid day) and Golden Drake (Potomanthus, #10-14, late evening) are successful patterns.
  
• Housatonic River is quite fishable. Flows are clear, although very low, currently about 140 cfs at Falls Village and 300 cfs at Gaylordsville. Water temperatures do continue to moderate, currently in the low to mid 60’s °F (mornings in the TMA). Insect hatches include Blue Wing Olive (#18-26, early morning; spinner fall in evening), Isonychia (#10-12 evening), Light Cahill (#12-14, evening), Sulfurs (#16-18 dusk/dark) and Black caddis (#14-20, early morning & evening). Try midges and stoneflies at the mouths of streams. Golden stonefly nymphs hatch at first light and adults egg-lay after dark. Try Black/Cinnamon Ants (#18-22, mid day in fast water) and Flying Ants (#18-22, mid day, when windy/humid). Fish will focus on ants when they are on the water (after a rain). Don’t forget streamers (morning & evening). Patterns to try includeWhite Wooly Buggers, Muddlers, Micky Finn, and Grey or Black Ghosts (#4-10).
  
• Lakes & Ponds – Anglers are finding some good late August trout fishing at Crystal Lake (Ellington), Coventry Lake, Highland Lake, East Twin Lake, Beach Pond and Long Pond.
• STRIPED BASS fishing remains good at the usual spots: Watch Hill reefs, south side of Fishers Island, Ram Island Reef, the Race, the Sluiceway, Plum Gut, Bartlett Reef, Black Point, Hatchett Reef, Long Sand Shoal, Southwest Reef, Sixmile Reef, Falkner Island area, the reefs off Branford, Milford Harbor-Charles Island area, Stratford Shoal/Middle Ground area, Bridgeport Harbor including Seaside Park, and the reefs off Stamford. The tube and worm combination has been very successful for cow bass.
• BLUEFISH fishing remains good throughout LIS. Consistent spots include the Race, Plum Gut, Thames River, Bartlett Reef, Hatchett Reef, Connecticut River from the Baldwin (I-95) Bridge to the breakwaters (including the DEP Marine Headquarters fishing pier), Long Sand Shoal, Sixmile Reef, Southwest Reef, Falkner Island area to the reefs off Branford, Stratford Shoal/Middle Ground area, Penfield Reef, and the Norwalk Islands.
• SNAPPER BLUEFISH fishing is good in the tidal rivers and coves.
• SUMMER FLOUNDER (fluke) fishing is better in eastern LIS such as the Niantic-Waterford area, Thames River, Latimer Point, Stonington area, south shore of Fishers Island (off Isabella Beach).
• SCUP fishing remains good on the local reefs and the time to go is now. Fishing an hour before and after slack tide especially on the shallower reefs is the time to go. Squid strips baited on a three way bottom rig is all you need to catch these spunky fighters.
• HICKORY SHAD fishing remains good in the Niantic River between Rte. 156 and the railroad bridge and the lower Connecticut River (including the DEP Marine Headquarters fishing pier in Old Lyme and the fishing pier at the Baldwin Bridge State Boat Launch).
• ATLANTIC BONITO can been seen chasing bait on the surface in the Race, off Pine Island, Bartlett Reef area to Millstone Point, and Hatchett Reef.
• WEAKFISH are still being reported caught off Black Point (Niantic), Falkner Island area, and Milford Point-Stratford area.
• BLUE CRABBING catches are getting better as the season progresses with jimmies measuring 7 inches (spike tip to spike tip).

Captain Morgan

• A little more than a trickle of fall seeped into our weather pattern, sparking intermittent feeding sprees in the Sound. Early morning temperatures sparred with the mid 50s while several fronts clashed bringing thunderstorms/high winds. However, predominant northwest winds did offer some protection within shore’s reach but farther out, seas became angry. Nevertheless, there was activity in the lower rivers as schools of peanut bunker ran in/out with tidal flows bringing with them schools of striped bass and bluefish. During breaks, anglers were able to cast to top water blues, fish for feeding stripers and light-line thick schools of snapper blues. As winds shifted to the southwest and temperatures climbed, there were more opportunities to search the waters for bait and predatorial sport fish.
  
• Good striped bass action has been encountered on most of the local reefs/shoals. Drifters/casters are connecting using eels while jerking wire is bringing up deep-water bass. Lazily trolling deep divers early morning is also producing on the edges of structure while ‘brellas are catching bass/blues in 60 to 70 feet when zig-zagging rip lines. Six Mile, Long Sand Shoal, and Faulkner’s North Rip had their moments as did shallow water in low-light conditions.
• Both snapper blue and porgy/scup fever continues as anglers fish the shoreline. Snappers are good size and have not been fussy as to their feeding habits. Nor have porgies, whether on the reefs or off the shoreline wharves. Both snapper fishermen and blue crabbers are sharing elbowroom on bridges and riverbanks–the fishing for both is that good!
  
• Flukers, the last day to fish for your ‘doormat’ is September 5th and that is drawing near. There is still plenty of good fluke fishing so take advantage before the 2007 season ends.
• No season on the ‘weakies’ though, and they’re being caught while drifting or trolling small baits by Kimberly Reef and Faulkner’s. Periodic schools of swift moving bonito continue to surface close to unsuspecting anglers who usually are not prepared to respond. Those within quick reach of a ten-pound class setup can often hookup if patient and wait for the school to resurface instead of mounting chase. (Captain Morgan)

Stamford Advocate: Fishing Ernest-ly seeking an answer to the declining fish population

• The 25th Annual WICC 600 Greatest Bluefish Contest on Earth is only two weeks away and fishing for bluefish is improving. There are lots of bluefish around and, as expected, they are hungry. Anglers are also catching striped bass, fluke, porgies and migrating bonito.
• As I write this there are at least two schools of bonito feeding in our area. One school can be found off Tod's Point and the other is feeding at the Middle Passage. Nick at Fisherman's World reported Louis Milazzo picked up a couple of bonito while fishing at the Middle Passage. His largest weighed 5 pounds. He was using Deadly Dicks and Hopkins lures. Also doing well at the Middle Passage and Goose Island was Rob Pitman. Using flies, Rob caught several bonito in the 5 to 6 pound range.
• Frank Tellicione caught the largest striped bass reported last week. He reeled in a 41-inch linesider while fishing off Tod's Point using sandworms for bait. Frank also caught and released 15 other stripers and a large sandshark. Hector Rivera also caught a very large striped bass. While fishing inside Stamford Harbor Hector hooked a healthy 40-inch linesider. The cow was taken on a chunk of fresh bunker.
• Dave Rich and Gary Feighery spent some time fishing in Stamford Harbor. But luck was not really with them. Dave caught the only fish taken, a 34-inch, 18.5-pound striped bass taken on a bunker chunk.
• Rich Dombrowski and Pete Miller fished at Sound Reef and using bunker they caught three stripers measuring up to 30 inches and 10 bluefish.
• Capt. Mike Black of My Love Charters took his family fishing off Norwalk. The Black family boated 25 fluke weighing up to 5.5 pounds. Mike always uses a variety of bait.
• Bill Kovac caught his limit of porgies while fishing at the Stamford Cows. His largest fish measured 18 inches and was taken using clam strips.
• Kevin at Sportsman's Den says Hank Weiss of Sparky Charters did some bottom fishing in Greenwich waters last week and was rewarded with several nice fluke. His largest fish weighed 7 pounds and measured 21 inches.
• Tuna fishing is the Canyon is going strong. Capt. Matt and the crew of the "Amanda Lee" hooked up nine yellowfin tuna weighing up to 130 pounds, a 140-pound mako shark, 25 dorado, two albacore and lost a huge wahoo while fishing in the Canyon. The crew was using chunk bait and chum. The crew of "Covered Up" also did well in the Canyon. They trolled up 15 yellowfin, 4 mahi mahi and 2 albacore. Their largest yellowfin weighed 85 pounds. The fish were taken by trolling and chunking.
• Pete Miller and Tom Flynn went trout fishing at the Kensico Reservoir. Using stick baits Pete reeled in a 4-pound brown trout while Tom caught a 5-pound brown. Tom returned to the reservoir a couple of times and he tallied a total of 17 more brown trout weighing up to 9 pounds. (Martin Armstrong)

Captain Morgan

• Outstanding weather blanketed the area as a cold front moved through, breaking up our recent sweltering heat spell. At one point early morning temperatures dropped to the mid-50s, sparking an August feeding spree. As winds subsided and the waters of Long Island Sound calmed down, anglers hit their fishing sites to take full advantage of the action. For the past several days, striped bass action has been no less than hot!
  
• The run of fish was reminiscent of a fall event even though it’s prime summertime. Cooler water brought “cows” into the shallows to feed on whatever food was available and fishermen, donning an extra layer of clothing, searched for scattered schools of bait to use on the assault of big fish. One such cow turned out to be Paul Santa Barbara of Guilford’s first “50.” His morning catch tipped the scale at 50.25 pounds, measuring 51 inches, and was caught at the top of the flood in shallow water after sunrise. Welcome to “Club 50.” Stripers generally have been caught at Faulkner’s, Southwest, Six Mile and several of the other popular local reefs including nearby breakwaters. Tides have been favorable both for daytime/nightime trips where plugs, eels, chunks, and other live baits have been working.
• Schools of bunker are still scattered showing up in some harbors semi-regularly while totally bypassing others. Although there’s plenty of bait in the Sound, bluefish to date are not as thick in eastern LIS as they were last year at this time. However, anglers are finding large “choppers” mixed in with deep-schooling bass somewhat bothersome on the drop. The absence of dense schools of bunker drawing in the choppers is one contributing factor although that can still develop in time for WICC’s Bluefish Tournament/Captain Morgan’s Bluefish Contest.
• Snapper blues are growing in size/numbers attracting anglers to shoreline beaches, bridges, harbors and rivers. It’s time to grab those light poles, buckets and bait/lures for sure-fire fun.
  
• Porgy/scup are also here in numbers and easily caught from shore/boat. Try Charles, Faulkner’s, Goose Island for some good ‘ole porgy pounding. (Captain Morgan)

TheDay: It's Been A Tough Year For Casting In The Surf

• Our big news this week is two jumbo bass in one day caught on the Watch Hill reefs, presumably on live or yo-yoed large baits. One of the fish was ounces shy of 60; the other was 60 on the nose, landed by two different anglers.
• Capt. Don's in Charlestown weighed in bass of 27 and 28 pounds. The first was caught by Matthew Gaudio of Cheshire, trolling a tube and worm in the breachway, and the second, by Ian Snow Of East Hampton on a green surface plug at the breachway boat ramp just before low tide just before dark.
• Best fluking was out in 80-100 feet east of Watch Hill and 70-80 feet off Quonny. Tube and worm trollers had a good day on Wednesday fishing in 17 feet of water off the cottages. Blues were in and out of the surf, heavy at times, chasing small bait that is bringing fish in close after a very slow summer of surfcasting.
• Al Golinski of Misquamicut caught snapper blues with his cast net and used them for bait for 5-7-pound fluke off the Rhode Island beaches. He also caught some sea bass to 4 pounds when his drifts took him close to the many rockpiles in these spots. They made one trip for bass, landing five stripers to 25 pounds on live scup.
• The Fish Connection spokesman told me the bunkers are still in the Thames River, and they are still selling snagging hooks for shore and boat anglers that wish to snag a bunker and live line it for blues or maybe a bass.
• Fluking in local waters slowed down, not in numbers but sizes seem to be dropping with more shorts than keeper. Porgies are about every spot but a lot were on the smaller side, too small to keep according to many that came back for more bait.
• Customers are still seeing school stripers up on the surface from the south side of Fishers Island over past Watch Hill. These are very finicky fish feeding on small bait, turning up their noses at a lot of lures tossed at them. One item that is working was the 4-inch Super Fluke in white, rigged not on a lead head but just a hook. Bonito are around but showing up for a time then zooming off some place for the next couple days.
• Capt. Allen Fee at Shaffers Marina was counting worms when I called. He said Mike Mellow and his dad Jay, both from Mystic, were out trolling the tube and worm on the north side of Fishers Island, between the Castle and the golf course, for a 46-inch bass. Others from here landed large stripers drifting live porgies or shad at Valiant Shoal.
• Capt. Bruce continues to land medium and large bass on his charters, using lead line and chunks of mackerel or squid on the Watch Hill Reefs. Snappers can be caught from shore at the Masons Island Bridge and porgies from the Mystic River Park. Fluke season closes on Sept. 5.
• Red at Bob's Rod & Tackle was taking a moment after a busy week, as one might expect during the height of the summer rush to get on the water. He's heard about keeper fluke caught in shallower water, the fish coming in after the small bait around just like the stripers and blues. Tube and worm trollers caught blues and bass in the Thames. Shore angler using chunks or worms also landed some blues—if the porgies let the bait alone long enough for a bigger fish to find it. Black fishing is done until the cooler waters of the coming fall that isn't that far away.
• Capt. Brad Glas sent his regular e-mail saying the blue fishing picked up this past week just as predicted and the bass hit as usual at a certain stage of the tide. They also caught some nice fluke on the evening trips despite “some trying weather conditions.” The last fluke trip of the season will be Aug. 25. Big fish of the week was a fine 30-pound striper caught by Randy Lubinski, a very regular patron who usually fishes out of the port corner of the stern.
• Capt. Howard Beers at Hillyers said one of the regular striper anglers told him Wednesday night was very good for bass around the shoal, with the fish still hitting early in the morning for the charter boats out and about at that time. Fluking is holding up in very deep water for those with the patience to look for the doormats with big smelt and a strip of squid or just the smelt itself.
• Hickory shad were caught above the road bridge for sport or bass bait early in the morning or dusk but not much doing the day. Crabbing is good but snappers are on the small side.
• Capt. Joey Devine of the Mijoy reported blue fishing was good overall last week plus they caught a few bass on some of the days. In addition they landed a 27-inch fluke on whole herring along with a small number of others to 5 pounds.
• Roger over at J&B Tackle said if you put in your time drifting eels at Outer Bartletts on the ebb tide after dark you could come up with some larger bass. Blue fishing was good in The Race for the charter boats with bass mixed in early in the morning or at certain stages of the tide.
• They also got a reliable report of false albacore at Watch Hill, the only such report all week. Fluke were caught in 80-plus feet off the Rhode Island beaches or in very close like the 27-incher from Stonington Harbor along with some shorts. Tube and worm trollers had some medium bass along the shoreline plus some larger ones for those that used tubes so large they are called radiator hoses.
• Sherwood Lincoln of East Lyme took out a friend to deep-water fluke spots off Niantic, landing two limit catches to 9 pounds. He also took this writer and Dr. Frank Bush of Hebron for pictures for a magazine article. In three hours we caught stripers of 27, 37 and 43 inches, plus missed two others between Black Point and the Bartletts Spindle.
• We close with Pat at River's End Tackle who said there are more bunkers in the lower Connecticut River probably the reason shore anglers are chunking up more bluefish and smaller bass in the river. Every once in a while a shore chunker lands a bonus, a striper over 40 inches.
• Pat heard about one very good night of striper fishing in The Race (Valiant Shoal) and large fluke in declining numbers off the local shores in water over 80 feet deep. (Tim Coleman).

TheDay: It's Been A Tough Year For Casting In The Surf

• Our big news this week is two jumbo bass in one day caught on the Watch Hill reefs, presumably on live or yo-yoed large baits. One of the fish was ounces shy of 60; the other was 60 on the nose, landed by two different anglers.
• Capt. Don's in Charlestown weighed in bass of 27 and 28 pounds. The first was caught by Matthew Gaudio of Cheshire, trolling a tube and worm in the breachway, and the second, by Ian Snow Of East Hampton on a green surface plug at the breachway boat ramp just before low tide just before dark.
• Best fluking was out in 80-100 feet east of Watch Hill and 70-80 feet off Quonny. Tube and worm trollers had a good day on Wednesday fishing in 17 feet of water off the cottages. Blues were in and out of the surf, heavy at times, chasing small bait that is bringing fish in close after a very slow summer of surfcasting.
• Al Golinski of Misquamicut caught snapper blues with his cast net and used them for bait for 5-7-pound fluke off the Rhode Island beaches. He also caught some sea bass to 4 pounds when his drifts took him close to the many rockpiles in these spots. They made one trip for bass, landing five stripers to 25 pounds on live scup.
• The Fish Connection spokesman told me the bunkers are still in the Thames River, and they are still selling snagging hooks for shore and boat anglers that wish to snag a bunker and live line it for blues or maybe a bass.
• Fluking in local waters slowed down, not in numbers but sizes seem to be dropping with more shorts than keeper. Porgies are about every spot but a lot were on the smaller side, too small to keep according to many that came back for more bait.
• Customers are still seeing school stripers up on the surface from the south side of Fishers Island over past Watch Hill. These are very finicky fish feeding on small bait, turning up their noses at a lot of lures tossed at them. One item that is working was the 4-inch Super Fluke in white, rigged not on a lead head but just a hook. Bonito are around but showing up for a time then zooming off some place for the next couple days.
• Capt. Allen Fee at Shaffers Marina was counting worms when I called. He said Mike Mellow and his dad Jay, both from Mystic, were out trolling the tube and worm on the north side of Fishers Island, between the Castle and the golf course, for a 46-inch bass. Others from here landed large stripers drifting live porgies or shad at Valiant Shoal.
• Capt. Bruce continues to land medium and large bass on his charters, using lead line and chunks of mackerel or squid on the Watch Hill Reefs. Snappers can be caught from shore at the Masons Island Bridge and porgies from the Mystic River Park. Fluke season closes on Sept. 5.
• Red at Bob's Rod & Tackle was taking a moment after a busy week, as one might expect during the height of the summer rush to get on the water. He's heard about keeper fluke caught in shallower water, the fish coming in after the small bait around just like the stripers and blues. Tube and worm trollers caught blues and bass in the Thames. Shore angler using chunks or worms also landed some blues—if the porgies let the bait alone long enough for a bigger fish to find it. Black fishing is done until the cooler waters of the coming fall that isn't that far away.
• Capt. Brad Glas sent his regular e-mail saying the blue fishing picked up this past week just as predicted and the bass hit as usual at a certain stage of the tide. They also caught some nice fluke on the evening trips despite “some trying weather conditions.” The last fluke trip of the season will be Aug. 25. Big fish of the week was a fine 30-pound striper caught by Randy Lubinski, a very regular patron who usually fishes out of the port corner of the stern.
• Capt. Howard Beers at Hillyers said one of the regular striper anglers told him Wednesday night was very good for bass around the shoal, with the fish still hitting early in the morning for the charter boats out and about at that time. Fluking is holding up in very deep water for those with the patience to look for the doormats with big smelt and a strip of squid or just the smelt itself.
• Hickory shad were caught above the road bridge for sport or bass bait early in the morning or dusk but not much doing the day. Crabbing is good but snappers are on the small side.
• Capt. Joey Devine of the Mijoy reported blue fishing was good overall last week plus they caught a few bass on some of the days. In addition they landed a 27-inch fluke on whole herring along with a small number of others to 5 pounds.
• Roger over at J&B Tackle said if you put in your time drifting eels at Outer Bartletts on the ebb tide after dark you could come up with some larger bass. Blue fishing was good in The Race for the charter boats with bass mixed in early in the morning or at certain stages of the tide.
• They also got a reliable report of false albacore at Watch Hill, the only such report all week. Fluke were caught in 80-plus feet off the Rhode Island beaches or in very close like the 27-incher from Stonington Harbor along with some shorts. Tube and worm trollers had some medium bass along the shoreline plus some larger ones for those that used tubes so large they are called radiator hoses.
• Sherwood Lincoln of East Lyme took out a friend to deep-water fluke spots off Niantic, landing two limit catches to 9 pounds. He also took this writer and Dr. Frank Bush of Hebron for pictures for a magazine article. In three hours we caught stripers of 27, 37 and 43 inches, plus missed two others between Black Point and the Bartletts Spindle.
• We close with Pat at River's End Tackle who said there are more bunkers in the lower Connecticut River probably the reason shore anglers are chunking up more bluefish and smaller bass in the river. Every once in a while a shore chunker lands a bonus, a striper over 40 inches.
• Pat heard about one very good night of striper fishing in The Race (Valiant Shoal) and large fluke in declining numbers off the local shores in water over 80 feet deep. (by Tim Coleman)

Westport Outfitters

• Although the hot weather continues, there is definitely a touch of fall in the air at night and in the A.M., which could mean good things for the fall fishing scene. The charters we took out all last week and into the weekend were not let down. Thursday we hosted a group of folks from First Reserve Bank of Greenwich. We trolled the Penfield area as well as locally in the islands with blues up to 13 lbs and a few keeper stripers. Although the fish are definitely stacking up on pieces of local structure, it has been our experience that they are still moving constantly after returning to some very productive areas the next day with no fish being marked.
  
• All of our trolling these days has been with lead core. I wish we had a forum board (soon to come) for customers to speak of their success stories when using marked lead core line. We can’t reiterate enough how critical it is to know just how far down your tube is on the structure and adjust when the contour of the bottom changes. If you are looking to increase your trolling catch ratios, you must try one of our lead core combos. We had one customer over hear the fundamentals being explained over the weekend and decided to purchase one himself. After a little guidance on spots we received an email the next day highlighting his success with a host of large blues and keeper stripers trolling off of Sherwood Point.
• During a test run on a sweet new Ranger 2200 Thursday as well we were into some 10-12 lb blues in the flats south of Peach Island on the Stillwater poppers. Especially during the week, if you can escape from the daily grind, do not overlook areas that may be inaccessible due to high boat traffic on the weekends, unless you really like burning that $3.50/gallon gas!! There are plenty of fish to be had out your back door.
• Earlier in the week we fished farther East of Penfield Reef for our share of keeper stripers again trolling tubes with lead core. We also had a late report from the shore guys casting top water plugs for bass of to 29 inches in the same vicinity. There is so much bait around do whatever you can to separate your offering from the pack. Try tying a teaser on after a popper to trigger a strike. The micro bunker from last week is definitely growing rapidly and will provide the necessary bait for our fall run to be productive.
  
• Speaking of fall, shop faithful Dan hooked into his first Bonito on Monday mid day and after screaming off 200 yards of line, landed a nice 8 lb fish. Congrats!! Although the fish was taken on a Bomber, our recommendation would be to stick with the never fail Deadly Dicks in various colors.
• Over the weekend, the master and wade fisherman extraordinaire Pete Viviano who is still fishing the Mill Pond hard at first light managed a few stripers up to 28 inches on silver side patterns. Who would have thought that we would still be getting healthy good sized fish from shore in the middle of August after the tremendous spring that the Mill had.
• At the time of press, Captain Chris had just come in off the water with a charter late Wednesday with a share of blues to 10 lbs and stripers, including a fat 33 inch keeper taken outside of the Norwalk Islands.
• The snappers are getting bigger and putting up a heck of a fight, get the kids out there this weekend for one last hurrah before they go back to school! Rigged combos perfect for this energetic fish starting at just $24.99!
• With the sense of fall in the air, an abundance of bait in the area, as well as some extremely clear water for this time of year, this fall could really turn out to be an epic one. Let’s all just pray that we don’t get a thrashing from a storm to screw things up!
• THE MONTAUK REPORT: The Mako fishing is excellent right now. There are lots of Makos around, but not to many big ones. Farther offshore the tuna bite has been great, but you have to get out at least 50 miles for a steady bite, and you’ll do even better over the "edge". There is nothing in closer that I have heard of this past week. We hade yellowfin up to 80lbs on Sunday on a day troll. Inshore, the fluke bite died off a bit which is most likely because of the conditions resulting from Friday’s blow. (Eric C. Johnson).
  

Rivers End Tackle, Old Saybrook

• STRIPED BASS- The bunker schools seem to be increasing around the mouth of the Connecticut River and thats making daytime live bait fishing easier. It doesn't seem that theres more large bass around but that they just can't pass up that bunker. Some jumbos are coming from Hatchetts, Black Point, Southwest Reef and Long Sand Shoal shortly after daybreak. These larger bass are probably some of the summer reef residents, give them a shot at coming back next summer.The number of school bass along the shoreline has been pretty good for the past few weeks with some surface action. Drifting in the Race has been a bit better but not hot over the last week. Bait casters at the mouth of the River have picked up a few nice bass on chunks from Saybrook Point.
• BLUEFISH- The Connecticut River has increased its bluefish population over the last week as the supply of baitfish has gone up. Both shore and boat fishermen have been scoring mostly on bait. Theres also been a healthy run of choppers along the shoreline and local reefs. The Race and Plum Gut have been good as has Southwest Reef and Cornfield Point. The WICC Bluefish Contest starts next weekend with a better distribution of bunker for Eastern Long Island Sound.
• SNAPPERS- As long as the tide is flowing well theres been good snappering at the DEP Piers, Saybrook Point and the Causeway.
• FLUKE- Its been slowing down for the last week in the River and the shallower waters adjacent to it. Some good catches have still been coming from Block Island and Gardiners. The deep waters off Black Point are still worthwhile, theres still some of the best of jumbo fishing to come.
• PORGIES- Theres still a lot of porgies out there with not too much pressure on them. The smaller reefs such as Cranes and Cornfield have been good for those trying.
• BONITO- Theres been a bunch of sighting and a better catches at Jordan Cove, Watch Hill, Plum Gut and Weekapaug. Try for fluke off the Rhode Island South Shore and you'll probably run into bonito, be unprepared for them and your chances of seeing them will increase.
• BLUE CRABS- Good reports coming from the Oyster River, DEP Piers, and North Cove. (Pat Abate)

CT DEP Weekly Fishing Report #16 8/16

• LARGEMOUTH BASS fishing continues to be good in many areas. Places to try include Wononscopomuc, Red Cedar, Middle Bolton, East Twin, Winchester, Mamanasco, Gardner, Bashan, Coventry, Pickerel and Pattagansett Lakes, Scoville Reservoir, Lake Kenosia, Lake Waramaug, and Moosup, Babcock, Mono, Gorton, Ball, Long, Pierrepont, Gorton, Hopeville, Squantz and Jurovaty Ponds.
• SMALLMOUTH BASS action reported from Saugatuck Reservoir (including a 21-inch smallie), Candlewood Lake (somewhat challenging), Highland Lake, Gardner Lake, Colebrook Reservoir and Bantam Lake. Housatonic River smallmouth fishing remains good to excellent.
• NORTHERN PIKE fishing is reported to be good in Lake Lillinonah, Winchester Lake (small fish), Bantam Lake, Hopeville Pond and Pachaug Pond.
• WALLEYE action reported from Lake Saltonstall, Coventry Lake and Squantz Pond.
• SUNFISH are providing excellent summertime action, just head over to the local, neighborhood pond. Larger areas to try include Wood Creek Pond, Gardner Lake, Candlewood Lake, Tyler Lake, Lake Hayward, Crystal Lake (Ellington) and Mamanasco Lake.
• Connecticut River – CATFISH (up to 6.25 lbs.) angling is rated as very good and they are available to anglers on cut bait in the deeper holes of the river. Try from just north of Hartford down to the Haddam area.
• NORTHERN PIKE anglers should target cooler water in the deeper holes and at the confluences of rivers & streams. Some STRIPED BASS (up to 43”) are being caught at the mouth of the river.
• SMALLMOUTH BASS action remains fair to good north of Hartford (Enfield area and near the mouth of the Farmington River).
• TROUT:
• Rivers & streams: Trout fishing was generally slow last week except for good reports from the West Branch Farmington River (including a 5-lb, 23.5 inch beauty). Some catches also reported from the Natchaug and Mill Rivers. Flows in some areas continue to be low, most notably the Fenton, Willimantic, Mt. Hope and Quinebaug Rivers in northeastern CT and the Housatonic River in northwestern CT. High daytime air temperatures have made early in the morning and late in the evening best for fishing. A number of major hatches are, or will soon be winding down, anglers are advised to include terrestrial fly patterns in their arsenal.
• Farmington River conditions continue to be great for summer trout fishing. Morning West Branch water temperatures remain in the lower 60’s °F (63 °F on Wednesday, 8/15). Flows are clear and very fishable, but have dropped, currently about 200 cfs at Riverton, with an additional 12 cfs from the Still River. East Branch releases from Lake Mcdonough have also been terminated. Trico Duns/Spinners (#26-28) are on the water early-mid morning. Needhami (#24-28, early morning), Isonychia (#10-12, fast water, afternoon/evening), Blue Wing Olives (#22-28, mid-late afternoon), Sulphurs duns (#16-20, morning; afternoon to early evening for spinners), Caddis (tan #16-18, all day; green #22-26, evening; summer pupa #18-20 morning), Cahills/Summer Stenonema (#12-18, early morning), Midges (#22-32, morning), Black Ants (#14-20, mid day in fast water), Black Beetles (#16-18, mid day), Flying Ants (#18-22, mid day, when windy/humid), Stone Hopper (#8-12, mid day) and Golden Drake (Potomanthus, #10-14, late evening) are also successful patterns. Evening brings out every bug on the water.
• Housatonic River Housatonic River flows remain clear and very fishable, but continue to drop, currently about 185 cfs at Falls Village and 335 cfs at Gaylordsville. Trout fishing has been slow, with many trout in the thermal refuges. However, water temperatures have begun to moderate, with morning water temperatures in the TMA currently in the upper 60’s °F. Although temperatures have moderated, anglers should take extra care when handling trout they plan to release! Somewhat cooler weather is forecast for the weekend and early next week. As the river cools expect the fish to move out of the thermal refuges and back into the river. Insect hatches include Blue Wing Olive (#18-26, early morning; spinner fall in evening), Isonychia (#10-12 evening), Light Cahill (#12-14, evening), and Black caddis (#14-20, early morning & evening). Midges (#20-26) and stoneflies can be found at the mouths of streams. Golden stonefly nymphs hatch at first light and adults egg-lay after dark. Don’t forget streamers (morning & evening). Patterns to try include White Zonkers, Wooly Buggers, Muddlers, Micky Finn, Grey or Black Ghosts (#4-10).
• Lakes & Ponds: Good summer trout fishing reported from Saugatuck Reservoir (10.1 lb brown trout caught by Wayne Lauro of Bridgeport, CT), Crystal Lake (Ellington, try at 26 feet), Lake Wonoscopomuc (5.5 lb, 22” brown among the catches) Highland Lake, East Twin Lake, Long Pond, Beach Pond, West Hill Pond, Squantz Pond.
• STRIPED BASS fishing remains good off the Watch Hill reefs, south side of Fishers Island, Ram Island Reef, the Race, the Sluiceway, Plum Gut, Bartlett Reef, Black Point, Hatchett Reef, Long Sand Shoal, Southwest Reef, Sixmile Reef, Falkner Island area, the reefs off Branford, Milford Harbor-Charles Island area, Stratford Shoal/Middle Ground area, and the reefs off Darien and Stamford.
• BLUEFISH fishing remains good at the Race, Plum Gut, Bartlett Reef, Hatchett Reef, Connecticut River from the Baldwin (I-95) Bridge to the breakwaters (DEP Marine Headquarters fishing pier), Long Sand Shoal, Sixmile Reef, Southwest Reef, the reefs off Branford, Stratford Shoal/Middle Ground area, Penfield Reef, and the Norwalk Islands.
• SNAPPER BLUEFISH fishing is good with most fish measuring about 5 to 6 inches in length.
• SUMMER FLOUNDER (fluke) fishing best bet is in deep water (60 to 90 ft.). The usual fluke spots include the Stonington area, Latimer Point, south shore of Fishers Island (Isabella Beach), Black Point area, Falkner Island area, and Charles Island to Stratford Point.
• SCUP fishing remains good on the local reefs with fish in the 14 to 17 inch range being reported.
• HICKORY SHAD remains good in the Niantic River between Rte. 156 and the railroad bridge and off the DEP Marine Headquarters fishing pier in Old Lyme.
• WEAKFISH up to 13 lbs have been reported being caught off Black Point (Niantic), Falkner Island area, and Milford Point-Stratford area.
• BLUE CRABBING is good along the coastline.

On The Water

• Best Bets for Connecticut and Rhode Island: The bonito seem to be showing up everywhere, so I suggest heading out to try your hand at one of these speedsters before they get pounded too hard and before little tunnys show up. Rhode Island’s south shore, particularly the breachways, sound like they are turning on for the season and will be worth a visit. Give Block Island some consideration as well; the big bass are being very cooperative out there. Eastern Long Island Sound is also stocked up with every species imaginable at the moment, including the best run of blue crabs in a long time – get out there with a rod and a net and some bait! If a bit of solitude is you desire, I suggest giving the Wood River a try, tossing ants, beetles and tan deer-hair grasshopper patterns.
• Connecticut: Allen at Shaffer’s Marina in Mystic reported that although fluke fishing will be drawing to a close in another couple of weeks, there are still good catches to be had locally and farther away. Fluke anglers are doing well at the mouth of the Mystic River, at Ram Island and at the tip of Enders Island. If you have the capability and the time to travel, Misquamicut has been excellent for good catches of keeper fluke. Striper fishing is still good, although the best catches are coming from tube-and-worm rigs in deeper areas. Bonito have been reported near Fishers Island but not at the river mouth or other nearby areas. Reports of big to giant scup are still coming into the shop, and families are taking the youngsters fishing for snapper blues, which are now swarming in the river.
• Bigger bluefish are pretty regular now in the Thames River, with fish to 12 pounds not uncommon. Captain Jack Balint at The Fish Connection reports that the large bunker holding in the river are keeping the big chompers well fed and active. Buoy-27 and Norwich Harbor are good spots to try, offering good access to these larger fish. Striped bass to 45 inches are also reported to be traveling with the schools of bunker, but you must get down beneath the blues to find the bass. Three-ways and big bucktails are producing some large bass and blues in the water between Great Gull Island and Race Point, with Great Gull being the better producer. Strong tides have made it difficult to get deep, but that will wane as the weekend approaches. School bass have been providing lots of topwater action as they feed on an overabundance of very small bait at Watch Hill. The action is hectic and often frustrating, according to Captain Balint, because the fish are so focused on such tiny bait. Similar activity can be found along the south side of Fishers Island. Reports say bonito are showing up off Watch Hill and along the south shore Rhode Island beaches, and some have begun to appear around Bluff Point, Ocean Beach and Harkness Memorial State Park beach. Big scup are being taken all over the place, and fluke are still coming to hook without much effort. Seaflower Reef continues to be pretty good for fluke, though the southeast corner of Fishers Island is the most consistent spot overall.
• At Hillyer’s Bait & Tackle in Waterford, Shane reports that although the fluke are still biting, they seem to be going ever deeper. You should plan on starting at 75 feet and prepare to go 100 feet in some areas. Those who succeed in getting their bait good and deep are rewarded with fluke to 25 inches. Shane reports that Isabella Beach on Fishers Island, Misquamicut and Black Point are all producing good catches. Peruvian smelt continues to be the favored bait at Hillyer’s. Striped bass are holding court early and late, and especially during the wee hours of darkness. Anglers tossing eels during these times at Bartlett or Hatchetts Reef are being justly rewarded. During the day, striper action is happening mainly on tube-and-worm and umbrella rigs. Bluefish are found all over, but Valiant Rock at dawn is a best bet for tangling with some larger specimens; there, 10- to 12-pounders abound. Bell 6 in Niantic Bay is producing some large scup, though good scup angling is reported from all locations. Shane has been getting some confirmed reports of bonito at Pleasure Beach.
• Captain Morgan at Captain Morgan’s Bait & Tackle in Madison only had the time to give me some highlights for the week. Large bunker have moved into the area, attracting large bluefish and larger striped bass. The bluefish are harassing the bunker, making the fishing good when you find a school of bunker. A few waves of bonito have been reported moving through the area, but none have been hanging around very long. Captain Morgan reports tons of bait in the area, so the bonito ought to settle in soon. Fluke fishing is still going strong, and the big scup that were coming into the shop earlier are only getting larger.
• Chris at Stratford Bait & Tackle in Stratford reports that bluefish are becoming pretty thick in the region, with a mix of sizes up to 8 pounds being the most common, though some are larger. Striped bass fishing has slowed considerably during daylight hours, and big fish are only being taken at night. Diamond jigs bounced around the Norwalk Islands are producing good catches of bluefish as well as the occasional larger striper. Fluke fishing is slowing in the area, according to what Chris is hearing, but scup fishing is getting better and snapper blues are now everywhere, providing lots of fun for the younger crowd of anglers. Inland, reports say largemouth bass fishing has improved, and those fishing the weed edges at dusk and dawn with plastic baits, Jitterbugs and other traditional topwater lures have found success.
• In the Norwalk region, Chris at Westport Outfitters reports that his charter trips are seeing non-stop action to striped bass. Although most of the fish are schoolies, they are peppered with the occasional larger fish in the 30-plus-inch range. Tube-and-worm rigs are the most productive method by day, and live eels at night are most productive overall. Bluefish are providing pretty intense topwater action, according to Chris, with a deluge of baby bunker providing the focal point for the action. Chris reports lots of snapper blues in the area, which provide great action for the kids, and larger stripers and big bluefish are beginning to target this bait as well. A few bonito sightings from the Port Jefferson and Norwalk Harbor areas have come into the shop, but nothing consistent yet.
• Rhode Island: The fluke are moving into deeper water as temperatures continue to rise throughout Narragansett Bay and along the south shore of Rhode Island, reports Neil at Quaker Lane Bait & Tackle in North Kingstown. Even though fluke catches are a bit sporadic in the lower bay, anglers dropping their bait into 50 or more feet of water along the south shore are still doing pretty well. As an added bonus, the dogfish seem to have thinned out some, providing a bit of respite. If you get in the vicinity of the Charlestown Breachway, Neil has been getting reports of lots of bonito at the mouth, as well as a good number of very large bluefish. Around Narragansett Bay, things have quieted considerably, with the waters south of Beavertail Point providing the most consistent fishing, especially for striped bass. Early, late and nighttime will provide the best action to larger fish, though school bass and bluefish are available throughout the day. Neil reported an upswing in the largemouth bass action inland, and anglers are seeing considerable action on local ponds when fishing shiners.
• From East Greenwich Harbor to Davisville, the bluefish are on the surface chowing down on baby bunker, according to the reports Rob at Wildwood Outfitters in Wakefield is hearing. The action is becoming more consistent by the day, and although most catches are rather small, they’re being punctuated with an occasional slammer blue in the 10- to 12-pound range. Fluke action is still pretty good in the lower bay, with reports of good action along Dutch Island in 70 to 90 feet of water. The occasional sea bass along the same stretch of shoreline is an added bonus for many anglers. For striped bass, reports say that the south shore is the place to be. Better yet, head out to Block Island to target the big bass being sighted on a very regular basis. Bonito are showing up at both the East and Center walls, but they are not terribly consistent yet. Inland, Rob has been hearing good reports for largemouth bass in Wordens Pond, when fished late in the day with topwater lures; early morning is the next-best option. While the heat has slowed the trout fishing a bit, reports of good evening action in the Wood River are providing some relief. Rob has heard that terrestrials late in the day are stimulating the fish for a bit of evening feeding.
• In the Newport area, striped bass angling is improving on a day-by-day basis, according to reports coming into The Saltwater Edge. Steve reports tons of bait showing up throughout the region, drawing in lots of school bass and bluefish that provide excellent light-tackle sport. The occasional larger fish is being taken under the cover of darkness, or early or late in the day. Eel pattern flies are proving productive after dark. Reports point to Brenton Point and the Cliff Walk as the best places to fish in Newport, though good bonito action has also enticed anglers to the East and West Wall. There is a ton of inch-long baby bunker in the area, so expect these speedsters to appear with greater frequently in the coming week.
• Mary at Maridee Bait & Tackle in Narragansett also reports improved striped bass fishing in the past week, with a big influx of school bass throughout the area. Big bass are still around, but the lucky anglers have been catching them early, late or after dark. A 36-inch striper was landed just the other day at the mouth of the Narrow River, where action has been steady and improving. Black Point is producing good numbers of blackfish, and both the East Wall and Pier 5 are providing great scup fishing. Anglers are reporting fluke a bit farther out, and although 60 feet is the best starting depth, you should be prepared to go deeper. A boat is pretty much required for fluke these days, as Mary is hearing that shore-based catches of fluke are dwindling rapidly. Pier 5 and the East Wall both remain premiere locations to take keeper fluke.
• Reports for fluke coming into Breachway Bait & Tackle in Charlestown agree that 60 feet is a good starting depth. Keeper-sized fish are still coming in, and the action is better overall due to the diminishing dogfish problem. Ronnie reports that bonito have stacked up in the mouth of the Charleston Breachway, providing good angling opportunities. Bluefish and school bass are also part of the mix, with the big blues concentrated around the mouth because of all the baby bunker there. Smaller blues are being found throughout the Breachway, and school bass provide some lively activity at the start of the incoming tide when they begin feeding. Blackfish are also stacked up at the mouth of the Breachway, offering an additional option if you’re waiting for the bonito to circle in for the next feeding bout. Ronnie has also received numerous reports of mahi-mahi just off the beach along the Charlestown area, though they are all juveniles.
• Captain Don at Captain Don’s Bait & Tackle in Charlestown was pretty busy, but he did have time to note that the fishing is amazing all around. Quonny Breachway is loaded with stripers and bluefish, although they’re mostly smaller fish. Youngster Ian Snow, however, managed to land a 28-pound striped bass at slack low tide under bright sun in Quonny Pond, proving that big ones are still around. Ian took his catch on a handmade “skimmer” sold at the shop, although hottest method for striped bass at the moment is the tube-and-worm rig. These are proving to be almost “fail-proof,” no matter where they are fished. Bonito have appeared in good numbers and are now venturing into the Breachway. Monster scup still abound, and fluke are still providing plenty of action along the beaches by boat.
• The bonito have now made a consistent showing at Block Island, with the Coast Guard Channel being the spot to seek out these speedsters. Because they’re new to the area and haven’t already seen every fly and lure on the island, they are still willing to play. Striped bass fishing is holding up nicely, according to John at Twin Maples, with needlefish plugs being a top producer day or night, and late day and night are the best options. By boat, Black Rock and the southwest corner of the island are most productive for larger fish, and trolling a tube is the rig of choice. John suggests adding a small dead eel to the last hook to make the action hotter still – but hold tight to your rod! Be sure to hook the eel behind the eyes for the best action and longevity. A run of larger fluke also came into the island late last week, and anglers are starting off this week with good catches of larger fluke in all the traditional spots along the island. (Alan Desbonnet)

Eastern Connecticut, Nor'east Magazine

• Despite the warm water temps in Long Island Sound, the bite continues to be fairly strong all throughout the shoreline. Mark Beers of Block Island Tackle in Westbrook remains pleased with the local bite. In terms of striped bass fishing, Southwest Reef has been incredibly consistent and has yielded many cow bass. Over the second half of this week, several 35 to 45-pound linesiders have been pulled from this small, but productive reef. Interestingly, many of these fish are loaded with sea lice, prompting Mark to think these fish may be residents of the Hudson River. Charter operations are also limiting out on a consistent basis in this location. As for other productive bassing locations, Cornfield Point and Crane Reef have been popular choices for anglers drifting live bait to hungry stripers.
• In terms of bluefish, they are everywhere, according to Mark. On Thursday, a customer reported one of the largest schools of blues he has ever seen. The choppers stretched from the 11 buoy all the way into the shoreline. A vast majority of these fish were on top, making it an easy pick for local anglers throwing poppers.
• For surfcasters, there are plenty of big blues to be had near Great Salt Island on the backside of the rocks. In Madison, the “Captain” at Captain Morgan’s reported a nice run of bass along central Long Island Sound. On Thursday, a 50.25-pound bass was taken on a livelined shad at Kelsey Point. This fish was caught “in tight” along the rip that forms along the Point. Apparently, there were a lot of big fish in the area working bait in the shallows.
• Along the shoreline, small snappers have begun to appear in large numbers. Along with the snappers, large schools of peanut bunker are popping up from the shoreline out to the nearby reefs. Adult bunker are available for the persistent angler, but these schools are not large and are scattered throughout the Sound.
  
• There continues to be reports of bonito near Falkner Island and Crane Reef, but the numbers have decreased over the last week. The same can be said about the vast number of weakfish along Falkner Island and Kimberly Reef. Blackfishing has slowed considerably, but the porgy bite is still very good in terms of size and numbers.
  
• Blue crabs are abundant in the local estuaries. Lastly, the shad have showed in good numbers, so if you wish to liveline big bait, this is a great time to use these shad - truly one of the true delicacies of the striped bass.
  
• On Friday, I spoke with Richard from Hillyers Bait and Tackle in Waterford. He reported the local fishing, especially for lunker bass has been very good over the last few days. Bartlett’s Reef continues to be THE location for a big fish. Over the course of the last few weeks, three 50-pounders and eight 40-50-pounders have been landed at this location. The most successful anglers are livelining bunker and shad to find their limits.
  
• Fluking has been spotty at best, but anglers fishing in 80-100 feet of water are having the most success. The bluefish have been incredibly active and are frequently spotted working on top along the Waterford and Niantic shoreline. Big porgies are still abundant and can be had near any of the local rock piles in the bay.
  
• On the offshore front, it was a rather slow week for confirmed landings. One angler did manage a 200-pound thresher shark, along with two makos while fishing the Canyons. There are also yellowfin and bluefin tuna to be had at the Fingers. Bill from King Cove Marina & Outfitters claims there is no such thing as the “summer doldrums” in the easternmost part of the state. Fluke fishing remains fairly strong, but anglers are certainly working harder for their keepers. A majority of the action is now occurring in 45-60 feet of water.
  
• Stripers are plentiful from the “Kitchen” inside Little Narragansett Bay; out to Napatree Point; over to Fishers Island (south side); and east to Watch Hill. Many of these pods are of the schoolie variety, but there is no shortage of larger fish, especially near the rip along Watch Hill and the south side of Fishers Island. Live bait continues to be the key. Quonny Breachway is finally starting to pick up with a nice pick of big bass coming from the channel. Surfcasters working Misquamicut and Fire District Beach are producing big fish on a more consistent basis, especially under low-light conditions.
  
• On Saturday, Pat Abate of Rivers End was nice enough to provide this species by species breakdown for Eastern Connecticut. Striped Bass - The excitement for stripers lately isn’t the size but the behavior of the bass. For several weeks there have been schools, at times an acre in size and in unison on the surface from Watch Hill to Plum Island.
  
• On the local reefs such as Hatchett’s, Long Sand Shoal, and Southwest Reef, the live bait crowd has been scoring with a few jumbos. The Race and Plum Gut remain pretty quiet on the bass front.
• Bluefish - The action from shore at the mouth of the River has slowed this past week, but some choppers are being landed, particularly at night, at the DEP Piers and Saybrook Point. There have also been some blues from shore in Niantic. The Race and Plum Gut have the normal summer load of blues with some surface appearance at low light and slack tide.
  
• Fluke - The run at Block Island has been good with some great sizes. Black Point is still giving up some doormats but not many fish. Long Sand Shoal has yielded mostly shorts.
• Porgies - Mixed sizes are coming from the local reefs. Bartletts, Cranes, Hatchetts have a fair amount of fish.
  
• Bonito – There’s been a bunch of sighting and a few catches at Watch Hill, Plum Gut and Weekapaug. There have been fewer reports this week.
  
• Blue Crabs - Good reports coming from the Oyster River, DEP Piers, and North Cove. And lastly, Claire from Hel-Cat II Charters provided the following charter report. Just as we predicted, the fishery came back to life with a bang this past week.
  
• Bluefishing picked up rapidly as each day passed and the bass hit was, as always, centered on time of tide. Our Thursday, Friday and Saturday afternoon/evening fluke trips continued to produce well despite some trying weather conditions. (Roland St. Denis