If you haven’t hung up the saltwater gear yet for the season, it may be worth keeping around for a little while longer. There are still striped bass, bluefish, tautog and hickory shad to be had along the Rhode Island and Connecticut shorelines. Strike while the iron is hot because water temperatures are falling and the arrival of sea herring and gannets have signaled the beginning of the end for 2011. Last weekend’s wind kept most anglers off the water or tucked away somewhere, but some very mild days this week offered redemption for those lucky enough to sneak out. For freshwater anglers, the autumn bite is on for northern pike in Connecticut and for record-breaking carp in Rhode Island.
Rhode Island
The south shore is still very much alive with striped bass, bluefish and even some hickory shad. The bass are mostly schoolie-sized between 18 and 28 inches, but there are some better fish mixed in to 36 inches and up. Steve at Saltwater Edge rattled off a few spots where anglers are plugging away for late-season action, including the oyster bar inside the Harbor of Refuge, in front of Carries in Point Judith, and Charlestown Breachway. He said it’s mostly a daytime bite with 1 to 3 PM being the hottest shift lately. The ticket for a tight line has been using white bucktail jigs with pork rinds or 5-inch rubber swim shads with a Red Gill teaser in front. Steve’s been seeing gannets diving for baitfish, but outside of casting range from shore. Mike at Watch Hill Outfitters shared that there are lots of bluefish and small bass in the surf line feeding on herring and a 7-inch Slug-Go in alewife pattern on a ¾ to 1-ounce jig head has been a great match. While he said there are some fish in front of Watch Hill Lighthouse, East Beach has been best especially at dawn and dusk. And for some real light-tackle fun, Jack from Quaker Lane Outfitters suggested targeting hickory shad at the mouth of the Narrow River with shad darts.
When the weather has cooperated, the blackfish action along the Rhode Island coast has been good. Steve at Breachway Bait and Tackle said there will be less competition out there now since the commercial season has closed. During an outing late last week, he boated 10 tog up to 6 pounds in 25 to 35 feet of water all on green crabs. A handful of productive areas that Steve recommended trying were Brenton Reef off Newport, in front of the Point Judith Lighthouse, Ragged Reef off Weekapaug Breachway, and the mussel bed outside Charlestown Breachway. Mike at Watch Hill Outfitters stressed that there are lots of blackfish out there, but you really have to work to cull out the quality fish. He also noted that with the dropping water temps, tautog are beginning to move to deeper water. Mike suggested 45 to 50 feet of water near Old Reef outside Weekapaug Inlet or the Clumps and Latimer Lighthouse off Fisher’s Island.
In freshwater news, OTW contributor Dave Pickering had a day for the record books last Thursday. Using pineapple-flavored sweet corn for bait, he landed 10 large carp, but one was in another league and topped any other freshwater fish ever recorded in Rhode Island, a 36-pounder! For the official carp state record, Dave needed to weigh the monster on a certified scale, which would have most likely led to the fish dying, so he chose to weigh it on his digital scale then released it to be caught again. It goes to show that there are amazing angling opportunities right in our backyard that we don’t always hear about. Hats off to Dave on the fish of a lifetime and its release!
Connecticut
Saltwater action is still going strong in Long Island Sound and its tributaries. In the Thames River, striped bass that spend the winter there are starting to filter back in. Jack at The Fish Connection told me that mostly smaller stripers, with some keepers up to 40 inches mixed in, can be found in Norwich Harbor using soft-plastic baits on ½-ounce jig heads. He said that 5- and 7-inch Zoom Super Fluke in white, alewife, or Arkansas shiner patterns are most effective at the moment. Pat at River’s End mentioned striped bass are being caught along the beaches of Waterford and around the mouth of the Thames River, with bucktail jigs or soft-plastics on a jig head being the key offering. In the western Sound, Captain Chris Elser is still encountering big bass using live eels. On Wednesday morning, he launched in flat calm conditions and scored approximately 20 stripers in under three hours, the two biggest of which went 30 pounds, were covered in sea lice and ate dead eels. He’s been focusing on structure off Milford in about 20 feet of water and is thrilled at the first signs of sea herring in that area so far this fall.
Fishing effort is waning because it’s getting late in the season, but there is a ton of toggin’ left to be done for those sticking it out. Bob at Hillyers admitted that the weather has been iffy and things are starting to slow, yet many of his costumers are finding quality blackfish in relatively shallow water. One of his regulars just landed an 11-pound slob along with his limit off Millstone Point. Other inshore areas that are still coughing up good fish are Two Tree Channel and Saras Ledge. Pat at River’s End has been hearing a fair amount of positive blackfish reports, albeit they’re full of mostly smaller fish from Southwest Reef or Black Point. He noted that they are starting to work their way to deeper water, like 30-feet or more. Pat also said while green crabs are the most popular blackfish bait, hermit crabs are by far the most effective, but they are more difficult to get a hold of. If there’s any sort of tough wind this weekend, Chris at Stratford Bait and Tackle recommended tucking behind the New Haven or Stratford break walls, which have been giving up several 5- to 6-pound tog lately, but when it’s calm head to deeper water like 55-feet around Middle Ground.
For freshwater anglers, this is a fantastic time of year to target northern pike and one of the better places in the state for action is the Connecticut River. Andrew from Fishing Factory III has been hearing good things from a few different coves like Chapman’s Pond and Wethersfield Cove, especially for those throwing big swim baits like those made by Sebile or Live Target. You can also buy or catch golden pond shiner in the same coves and fish them under a large bobber and wait until it goes under.
Best Bets for the Weekend
Last week I said the fat lady wasn’t quite ready to sing yet for the striper season. Well she may be warming up now. There are gannets diving on sea herring in Rhode Island and soon to be Connecticut waters, which is usually the curtain call for the fall migration. Take advantage of these last days and weeks of bass and blues because we all know how long winter can feel. Daytime fishing along the south shore of Rhode Island is a good bet for action. Pack your plug bag with bucktails, soft-plastics on jig heads, tin and teaser combos, and some topwater offerings. If you are looking for size, try drifting live eels in western Long Island Sound. For tog anglers, there are still plenty of good fish to go around, but start thinking about hitting your favorite deep-water rock piles with the falling water temperatures.