“Inshore sharking,” is once again the phrase of the week, as big threshers continue showing up within a few miles of the south shore. The large schools of bunker in the area are still holding the attention of most predators hunting inshore. Big bass, many in the 40-pound class, are keeping the baitfish neatly corralled and providing some drag-testing action for boat anglers. Fluke fishing remains decent-to-good around most of the Island, and bottom fishing remains consistent just about everywhere. Here’s the breakdown.
East End
Montauk has settled into its consistent self, with plenty of keeper bass, and a few big trophies, hitting jigs and live bait in the rips during the day and ambushing eels at night. ‘Tauk is also one of the most consistent areas for keeper fluke right now. Drifting the South Side during the flood tide in about 60 feet of water will give you a good shot at putting a few flatfish in the box. There are also plenty of porgies around, and if you get out to some of the deeper water pieces, you may even find a few keeper cod in the mix. The Viking fleet has been seeing consistent fluking, with just about every trip landing its fair-share of quality 4- to 5-pound summer flounder.
Moving west to Hampton Bays, Steve from East End Bait & Tackle had the latest on the bite in the Shinnecock area. Striper fishing continues holding out for those soaking clams around the Inlet and Ponquogue Bridge. Fluking inside the bay has slowed down from the fast-paced action of the last few weeks, but the ocean bite has picked up considerable. Steven noted that, “all the sharks had moved inshore,” and has heard numerous reports of 200-pound-class threshers working on the schools of menhaden. Out on the wrecks, the sea bass fishing remains good with big porgies, red hake and the occasional cod mixing in. The Peconic Bay remains littered with porgies, for those who don’t want to venture through Shinnecock Inlet, and bluefish continue popping up wherever there’s something for them to chew.
South Shore
The thought of fishing a ball of menhaden being swarmed by 40-pound-class stripers and 300-pound-class threshers well inside the 3-mile line is what many would call a good dream, but it’s been a consistent reality for weeks now for many anglers. From Shinnecock to Fire Island, the large schools of bunker are drawing heat from these big sharks, as well as hoards of big striped bass. Moriches Inlet continues to produce quality bass, and the bunker schools are popping up everywhere out front. If you’re out there at first light, finding the “nervous water” on top shouldn’t be a problem as some of these bait schools have been truly massive.
North Shore
Water temperatures in the mid-70s are taking their toll on the bite in the Sound for the time being. Chunking at night or in the early morning is your best bet for landing a keeper-bass right now, landing a bluefish will be less hard. The action picks up the further east you’re willing to travel, ending out toward the Race where action continues along steadily. Bottom fishing to the west remains strong, however, I talked to Captain Chris from the Island Current Fleet who has been following the porgies north. The fleet has been finding good numbers of quality porgies off Greenwich, Connecticut in 35 feet of water with the occasional big sea bass mixing in. The nighttime trips have had a bit of an interesting twist lately, as the menhaden, which have been spread along the south shore, have spilled up through the East River in search of safe harbor and are being cut to pieces by 10- to 15-pound bluefish in the extreme western Sound. The best action has been in the evening as the bluefish work into frenzy mode and push the baitfish to the top of the water column. The Current goes fluking every Tuesday morning, and despite a few keepers, Captain Chris says, “if the limit came down one inch, we’d be looking great.” Hopefully those fish will feed heavily and “make the grade” before the season closes at the end of September.
Best Bets
Heading east would be the general tip for the week. Several good options still exist within a few hours drive if your home waters have slowed down. Pretty much, pick a fork and head to the end of it, as both Montauk and Orient are still supplying good-numbers of cow bass. During the day, wire-lining parachute jigs or 3-way bucktailing will both produce in the deepwater currents of the east end. At night, you can’t go wrong with drifting a live eel on a 3-way rig. An inshore bass/shark combo trip remains a viable option along the bulk of the south shore if you don’t want to make the run the way east, and it’s definitely something worth checking out before these bunker schools move off. Tight lines.