We’re now into the 11th month of the year, but don’t tell the striped bass that just yet. The striper fishing continues to improve for those fishing by boat or from the wash along the western south shore. Tog fishing is still hot just about anywhere there’s some decent structure, and the cod and ling are already stacking up out in the deeper water. The black sea bass season reopened this week and will stay open right through the end of the year. The Jones Beach Classic is this weekend, and there’s plenty of bass in the area. Get out there and fish while you still can.
East End
Striped bass are still coming out of the Montauk Rips just about any time they’re fishable, and the end of the season is bringing some bigger linesiders into the mix. From the surf, it’s been hit or miss this week. I heard one report of an angler who played catch-and-release with 30 bass up to keeper size around the Point, then completely struck out the next day. The north wind forecasted for this weekend will increase your chances for finding some bass actively feeding in the wash, but it’s not likely to be easy. “There’s been a pick of fish,” says Ray at Paulie’s Tackle of Montauk “but they’ve been working for them.” The biggest struggle for the surfcasting crew this week has been the inconsistent wind. “It feels like it’s been switching every 12 hours,” says Ray, and commented that the crew at the shop would prefer even a consistent bad wind to the current changing conditions. Hopefully the north winds this weekend will setup long enough to bring some fish into the wash along the north side of the Lighthouse. “It ain’t over yet,” said Ray.
Over at the Viking Fleet, the bottom fishing south of Block Island continues to impress even the most seasoned anglers. Jumbo porgies are still plentiful and on their last trip Captain Dave reports, “Everyone caught their limit of porgies.” The trip also caught good numbers of big black sea bass, and perhaps what is most exciting, “We had at least a dozen keeper Cod.” The cod are getting bigger as well, as this trip had several which reached the 20-pound class. Although the nighttime eeling trips didn’t get out this week due to the weather, some keeper bass and blues have been caught alongside the porgies and sea bass during the day.
In Hampton Bays, it’s been a slow week mostly due to the bad weather. I talked to Steve at East End Bait & Tackle who confirmed that things have remained slow from the surf in the Shinnecock area. The one bring spot has been for those anglers drifting live eels out in the inlet, they’ve been picking away at bass into the 20-pound class. Tog fishing has been shut down most of the week due to the the bad weather, but it shouldn’t take long for the bite to resume once the seas lay down a bit. Also, there should be plenty of sea bass on the reefs, so it’s a good idea to bring a pint of clams if you’ll be heading out for blackfish.
South Shore
The bass have finally arrived in the western sound en mass and those anglers who’ve been persistent are finally working their fish-to-cast ratio back in the right direction. The bass fishing has really taken off for boat anglers livelining shad or bunker, and fish have also started coming up the surface to hit plugs. Good timing for the Jones Beach Classic. I talked to Ed from Jones Beach Fishing Station to hear the latest report and get the details about the tournament. “Fishing generally has been good, there’s a lot of stripers in the area,” Ed told me. There’s also been some bigger fish in the mix recently, just the other day Ed weighed in a 39-pound bass caught off one of the piers right by the shop. The tournament starts at 9am tomorrow, but you can sign up at the shop until 9am Saturday.
North Shore
Tog remain at the top of the list for most anglers fishing on the Long Island Sound, although there’s still scattered reports of a few bass and blues pushing through on migration way south. “The togging has been excellent,” says Richard from Camp-Site Sports Shop in Huntington Station. He also mentioned that “jigs are really taking off around here,” as more-and-more people are realizing how effective they are for catching blackfish in shallow-water boulder fields. Not to mention the added fun of targeting blackfish with light-tackle spinning gear.
Metro New York
The small group of hardcore anglers who fish in the Five Boroughs are getting back in on the action for the time being – tog, blues, bass and porgies are all available right now from a variety of locations around the city. I talked to Jonathan from Fisherman Depot in College Point, Queens who told me that even though the bass and bluefish bite has been on the slow side since the storm, the tog bite continues to get better. “The blackfishing is phenomenal right now,” says Jonathan, and each trip has produced results better than the last. The crew has been fishing in shallow water, 15 to 20 feet, and has been doing the bulk of their fishing with blackfish jigs. All their recent trips have produced “boat limits” but the keepers continue getting bigger, and the latest trip had several white-chins into double-digits.
Upstate
There’s still a few salmon, plenty of browns and an increasing amount of steelhead to be caught in the streams around Lake Ontario, and nighttime lows in the 20s in other parts of the state has some anglers already thinking about the upcoming hardwater season (I would definitely include myself in that group). The weather has been great, however, for those fishing in the Lake Ontario area. I talked to Sharon from Narby’s Superette and Tackle who told me fishing remains great, and the weather has been unseasonably good. The recent snow storm missed the Kent area completely, so all the local streams are still wide open and easily accessible. Eggs sacs remain to go-to bait option for those using spinning gear, and black nymphs and wooly buggers continue producing best for the fly-fishing crew.
Best Bets
Conditions look promising for the Jones Beach Classic this weekend. There’s more bass in the New York Bight than there’s been since spring, and there should be enough big baitfish in the area to hold them there for a while. Also, the dropping water temperatures have the fish feeding a little more aggressively, and hopefully more willing to strike at plugs and other artificials during the tournament. The north wind in the forecast this weekend will also make a final surfcasting trip to Montauk a tempting possibility, although there’s no guarantee you’ll find fish. Tog fishing on the western sound, however, is about as close to a guarantee you can get right now. Another good option for the weekend would be bottom fishing south of Block Island onboard the Viking Starship, they are catching big black sea bass and increasing numbers of codfish alongside the jumbo porgies. It’s times like these when I wish I could “pump the breaks” on the escaping season, because I know we’re on the edge of another long winter – tight lines everyone.
Upcoming Events
The Jones Beach Classic is this weekend and officially starts Friday morning at 9am and runs through Sunday. Sign-ups are at Jones Beach Fishing Station, and anglers can sign up until 9am Saturday. The shop will be open 24-hours during the tournament.
The View Restaurant in Oakdale will be having their 22nd Annual Striped Bass Tournament on Tuesday, November 11. The event will include an awards ceremony, as well as an open bar and buffet. Call Jim at 631-589-2694 to register or for more information.