On The Water 5/21/09

Best Bets for the Weekend: The best bet for this weekend seems to be to simply get out and go fishing. Big stripers have moved in and are on the reefs, bunker are in the rivers and harbors, and fish are on them. Bluefish are still a bit thin, but they are scattered about everywhere an angler might look. Trout waters have been restocked, and the walleye in Squantz Pond and the largemouth bass in Candlewood Lake are hungry and ready to play.

From The Fish Connection in Preston, Captain Jack Balint reports striped bass spread throughout the length of the Thames River, along with big bunker. Both species are moving about, but a concentration appears to be holding in the Montville area of the river. Squid are just showing up around Napatree Point and at Watch Hill, and the action in The Race has exploded with the arrival of squid and tons of sand eels. Flounder fishing continues to be a hit-or-miss affair in the Thames River region.

In the fresh water, Captain Balint reports continued good fishing for trout in the Yantic River particularly, and in the Shetucket River. Pachaug Pond is producing good largemouth bass action, and a good concentration of pike appear to be hanging out just below the waterfall coming from the dam on the pond.

Howard at Hillyer’s Bait & Tackle in Waterford reports big striped bass on local reefs now, with good action being found on Bartletts Reef in particular. The Race too has lit up since early in the week, and bluefish, although smaller in size, are mixed in with the striped bass. The river mouths in the region seem to be holding good numbers of school-sized striped bass, though larger fish are found under the bunker schools traveling in the Thames and Connecticut Rivers. Howard reports that the flounder have moved out of the rivers now, and are to be found along the beaches; fishing continues to be O.K.

From Rivers End in Old Saybrook, Pat reports local striped bass fishing to be very good-to-excellent. The Connecticut River is holding large numbers of stripers. Some are larger but not in the jumbo range just yet, with the average fish weighing between 8 and 10 pounds. These fish are showing some preference for Slug-Gos and other surface-worked soft-plastic baits. Local beaches are now holding striped bass as well, though mainly school bass. Bluefish have turned up in the Connecticut River now, with most in the 2- to 5- pound range.

Captain Jerry Morgan at Captain Morgan’s Bait & Tackle in Madison reports that Six Mile Reef is producing good bass on wire and trolling rigs. Southwest Reef and North Rip at Faulkner’s are also producing good numbers of fish. All three locations are producing not only fish in numbers, but also of decent size.

Bluefish are around, and some big ones at that. Most are in the 4- to 6-pound range. Anglers with patience are still taking flounder, but it is very spotty. Freshwater fishing continues to be excellent throughout the region. The final trout stocking until before next fall will occur prior to the holiday weekend.

From The Bait Shop in Rowayton, Art reports a push of very large striped bass in Western Long Island Sound, and most local anglers are heading west, leaving the local report lacking. The bite for the bigger fish to the west appears to be a phenomenon occurring at first light, although bluefish are biting by day. Those anglers not rushing westward are finding good fishing in the lower Connecticut River for school bass.

Chris at Stratford Bait & Tackle reports good numbers of bluefish in the 5- to 8-pound range scattered around the area. Bunker are in most of the harbors and river mouths, and larger bass have shown up to feed on them. Fish between 10 and 20 pounds are commonplace and fish as large as 30 pounds are being taken, though mainly at night on chunk bunker. Trout waters have just been stocked for the holiday weekend and should provide good fishing for the weekend.

From Fisherman’s World in Norwalk, Nick reports striped bass to 30 pounds feeding on bunker around Hempstead in 40 to 45 feet of water. Good numbers of bluefish are now in the mix, with most in the 6- to 8-pound range. These fish are providing fun for anglers from the shore. Some bass are being taken from shore as well, but mainly early in the day. The Housatonic River continues to produce good numbers of striped bass readily available to surfcasters and fly-rodders. Flounder fishing continues to be okay, with Can 9 best on the incoming tide, and Oyster Pier at Sprite Island best on the out going tide. The Saugatuck Reservoir continues to produce a consistent walleye bite, and both smallmouth and largemouth bass are active. The Norwalk River was very heavily stocked with trout just recently.

Cody at Westport Outfitters in Norwalk reports excellent trout fishing through out the area, and says that trout waters have just recently been restocked. The Mill River and Saugatuck Rivers in particular have been hot. Fly-anglers and spin fishermen are both doing very well. School bass are all along the shoreline and in all the harbors now, and providing good fishing to fishermen throwing topwater lures and fly-anglers alike. Bunker are in the Saugatuck River and Norwalk Harbor, as well as other harbors, and larger striped bass are feeding on them and taking chunk bunker bait. Bluefish are around now as well. The sand eels have not shown up yet, so the major baits are still bunker and silversides.

Squantz Pond continues to produce very good numbers of walleye according to John at Valley Angler in Danbury. Due to dam repair and low water in the Sodum Reservoir in nearby New York, walleye fishing is excellent in that body of water. John reports excellent largemouth bass fishing in Candlewood Lake, with fish up to 9 pounds coming to hook and 5- to 7-pound fish fairly common. Smallmouth bass are still fishing well, but anglers have to be right on them at the moment. Trout fishing in Candlewood is hit-or-miss, mainly because the fish have not yet but bunched up. However, the causeway between Squantz and Candlewood is producing some very good trout fishing. [Alan Desbonnet, On The Water]