The Day It's Not Quite As Crowded Out There

• Yesterday morning, big blues and larger bass had a school of bait penned up against the east shore of the Thames River around the Municipal Transfer Station. A fellow on the spot casting from shore estimated his largest blue at 14 pounds and weighed and released a striper of 30 pounds, said Joe Balint at the Fish Connection.
• Small blues are up river around Trading Cove but most of the large bunker and bigger fish are down below the Sub Base. You might find some false albacore in the early morning off Bluff Point or maybe over in the Sluiceway. Black fishing is closed right down, opening up on Sept. 22.
• Porgies are around in good numbers from all the reefs off the mouth of the Thames through Fishers Island Sound. You can also catch large porgies and some sea bass on the hard bottom off the State Beach at Misquamicut or just east of Watch Hill Passage.
• Red at Bob's Rod & Tackle heard about three bass from 41-48 inches caught with live eels in the lower part of the Thames River, all within the last few days. Blues were caught on live bunker or chunks fished from shore. People dunking worms along the river caught schoolie bass at times plus sea robins and very small sea bass.
• Al Golinski of Misquamicut had a week of mainly tending to visiting relatives and friends, only getting out once on a rough day for a fair catch of sea bass on the rockpiles off Weekapaug and Charlestown. There are lots of blues in the area, bothering striper fishermen looking for a trophy bass with live bait.
• Bunkers were spotted at times in Stonington Harbor, Quambaug Cove and just south of the Masons Island Bridge and other parts of the Mystic River.
• Capt. Don's in Charlestown reported on good to very good surf casting for bluefish anywhere from the Blue Shutters to Watch Hill. The fish are popping up in the morning and evening, also at times right in the middle of the day at Weekapaug Beach. One fisherman was called to the beach by his wife who was there sunbathing but got on the cell when she saw all the fish jumping out in the first wave.
• Those out after dark had some larger bass from the Quonny Breachway on plugs drifted out in the ebb current or cast off the rocks to the east of the breachway. An angler visiting from Florida had stripers of 28 and 30 inches on a Ron Z lure, a sand eel imitation that is very, very popular on Cape Cod and the islands.
• Porgy fishing from the breachway banks is just OK but not as productive as the weeks past. Fluke season is done in Rhode Island until next year just like Connecticut. If you want to get in some good beach casting before the weather turns cold, now is the time.
• Don at King Cove had numerous reports about bluefish caught from shore from Watch Hill over past Charlestown, both by locals and visitors from inland parts of the state. The fish are showing up at sunrise and sunset with bass around the rocks once it gets dark.
• Black fishing is closed but Don also said many people have 9/22 marked on their calendars. You can catch bass of various sizes trolling a tube and worm on the south side of Fishers Island or casting a live eel into the rocky shore — if a bluefish doesn't find it first. Bonito come and go, sighted in one locale one day, gone the next.
• Capt. Allen Fee at Shaffers said people are filling in time until the opening of black fishing chasing blues on the surface with spinning tackle or catching them trolling around the Watch Hill Reefs. Bunkers are in the Mystic River and Stonington Harbor, prime bait for big stripers if a bluefish doesn't beat a bass to the punch.
• The west side of Block Island and Southwest Ledge on the slack tides has sea bass if you want to run over there. Blue fishing was generally good in The Race along with others caught around Pigeon Rip. Big porgies are still on most of the rocky high spots in Fishers Island Sound.
• Capt. Brad Glas of the Hel-Cat said the blue fishing ranged from very good to excellent last week with the exception of one day when boat traffic “made a mess of things.” The first of the night trips for ocean blues to Alligator Ledge was a super success. Big fish of the week was caught on that trip, a 15-pound blue by Washington Castro of Danbury.
• Capt. Howard Beers was on duty at Hillyers Tackle. He told me on Wednesday a school of blues was on the surface most of the day just off Black Point, taking surface plugs for those with the time off. Bonito were caught from the shore at Pleasure Beach from time to time but not every day.
• Blue crabbing is still good along the pilings and coves of the rivers and the regulars catching bass in better numbers than the weekend angler.
• Roger at J&B Tackle said their charter boat had good blue fishing overall last week but the daytime bass in The Race were on the slow side. Porgies are still in good shape and crabbing also worth the time.
• Roger saw some small weakfish landed by people looking for snapper blues in Mystic River and small porgies caught from the docks up to the Route One Bridge.
• Capt. Joey on the Mijoy gave me a cell phone call to say the blue fishing is good over all along with a few bass on some of the trips. Starting Oct. 2 they will switch to porgies from Tuesday through Friday and continue with two trips per day for blues and bass on the weekends.
• River's End weighed in two bass in the 50s last week caught on live bunker on a three-way rig at the Sand Shoal. Blues are blitzing the beaches between Madison and Waterford; look for the bait and you might find the fish. Now is the time to scout the shore, even during the day, looking for the magic moment when fish push the bait up against the beach and usually grab any lure pulled past their noses. Mixed in with the blues just might be a striper over 30 pounds.
• Bigger bluefish were jigged up at Pigeon Rip and some also in The Gut on the flood tide. Porgies are big and plentiful and Cranes and Outer Hatchetts Reefs. Our waters are less crowded now, offering plenty of good fishing, weather permitting, right through November. (Tim Coleman is The Day)