Even though the calendar says it’s January, it still feels a lot more like late October. High temperatures are forecasted to hit 50 degrees again on Saturday from Montauk to New York City, and reach the 40s for the bulk of next week. The headboats out east and along the south shore are preparing for their winter cod seasons. There’s been a steady build-up of cod going on for about a month now, and it should continue to get better until it peaks sometime in early March. It’s a new year, and that means new regulations. Unfortunately, the one big change this year places much tighter restrictions on the blackfish season. There will no longer be a blackfish season starting in mid-January, a major blow to anglers with year-round fishing addictions like myself. The new season will run from October 8 to December 4, and there will still be a 4-fish bag limit but the minimum size has been increased from 14 to 16 inches. There’s no doubt this is a tough pill to swallow for many New York anglers, especially the charter captains who’ve lost an entire season during the leanest time of the year. The other significant change in regulations is that signing up for recreational marine fishing registry is now mandatory. The good news is that it remains a no-fee system, and should help regulate our fisheries with better results.
East End
The 2011 season ended with a bang for the Viking Fleet, and even the Fleet’s seasoned captains were impressed with the strong finish. It began on the annual “Montauk Locals” trip December 27, when the fleet headed out with the intention “to explore our local cod grounds.” It looks like thinks are shaping up pretty good for the local cod season that starts on Friday, they managed to find cod on every drop as well as a number of different species — 13 to be specific. The local crew had an epic day, landing cod, pollock, ling, cunners, sculpin, porgies, sea bass and even a keeper monkfish. The following trip the next day was even better. Captain Carl described the fishing as simply “phenomenal,” and added that, “It started with lock-and-load action on the porgies with double headers flying over the rails.” Needless to say, it didn’t take long for the boat to limit-out on Research-Set-Aside scup, so Captain Carl moved to the sea bass grounds. “Again were well rewarded,” Carl reported, “landing as many knot-head Sea Bass as we wanted, only keeping our limit of course.” With two species down and plenty of time left in the day, they rounded out the the trip “with some nice cod, some bluefish and even some ling.” Due to the huge crowd, both the Viking Star and Viking Starship sailed on the last day of the 2011 season. Both captains reported another fantastic day on the water. Captain Steven Jr. added in his final report of the year he was “frankly amazed at both the weather and the incredible bite on December 31.”
South Shore
Although we’ve entered the slowest two-month period of the angling year for New Yorkers, the weather remains unseasonably mild and there’s still a few species out there worth catching. The cod and ling are being caught in decent numbers aboard all the south-shore headboats still sailing. The herring have spread out, and can be caught right now from just about every pier along the western south shore. It going to be pretty mild for January on Saturday, and the herring do provide a good excuse to wet a line. If you’re not ready to start filling up pickling jars for your own consumption, consider vacuum sealing some hook-baits for the spring run — it’s really not that far off if you think about it like an addict. The late-onset winter this year continues to have a big effect on the sea-surface temperature in the New York Bite, as water temperatures continuing holding in the low 50s.
North Shore
The herring have shown up in a few north-shore harbors. The water temperatures in Long Island Sound are finally starting to catch up with the season, falling into the low 40s this week. Now that the blackfish season starting in January has been eliminated, herring will be one of the few options until the bass start to return in a couple of months. Although, I will concede I’ve made many treks to the Huntington Station outflows this time of year in a desperate search for aquatic life.
Upstate
The mild start to winter continues to have a big effect on the upstate fisheries, by this time last hardwater season was going full-steam though the region. However, this year is a much different story. Fishable ice is still a rare commodity throughout the state, and although the process has started almost everywhere, you’ve got to travel just about as far north as geographically possible to find it. I called Steve at Northern Harness Bait & Tackle all the way in Massena on the St. Lawrence River in order to chase down my first ice fishing report of the season. “Yeah, they’re fishing on a good 8- to 10-inches in a lot of the coves,” a statement which took me slightly off guard. Apparently some of the sheltered coves on the St. Lawrence River locked-up pretty tight over the holidays. Good news for Steve who’s at the shop 7 days a week slinging bait to the local crew of ice fishermen, and the early reports coming in are sounding pretty good, “They’re getting a lot of northerns,” Steve said, “and doing pretty well with the perch.” If you’re thinking about a road-trip north, just remember that only certain coves on the river are safe to fish. Steve thinks it will still be another week or so before all the traditional spots are ready to go, so if you’re planning a trip up there for the first time be sure to talk to someone like Steve before heading out, and avoid any areas that look completely deserted. Ice fishing on big rivers can be a risky endeavor at this point in the season, I remember a few years ago when a group of ice fishermen in Maine needed to be rescued by the coast guard after the piece of ice they were fishing on broke off and started floating down the river.
The steelhead season up in the Kent area has pushed through into the new year. “There’s still no snow on the ground up here” Sharon from Narby’s Station said to me a slight tone of disbelief in her voice, “We’re getting a few flakes now, but it’s going to be in the 40s again tomorrow.” So, with daytime temperatures still completely manageable and no snow on the ground to speak of, the local diehards still out on the creeks hooking quality steelheads and browns. The usual assortment of real and artificial egg sacs continue to be the most prevalent offering, but some anglers have started fishing with wax worms on a jig head, and some are even using night crawlers. Sharon told me that some areas of Oak Orchard Creek have started to ice up a little, but the continued mild weather should extend the season for at least another week or so.
Best Bets
My first “best bet” of 2012 is definitely going to be heading out east and sailing aboard the Viking Fleet’s opening weekend of the local cod season. The bite isn’t quite as red-hot as it will get by February, but there’s already a workable amount of cod sitting southeast of Block, and more are pushing in everyday. Now that the sea bass season is closed until June, I’d considering swinging a jig, or at least bringing some along, because the sea bass haven’t gotten the message. An 8- to 12-ounce diamond jig is a good alternative incase you’re having trouble keeping the knuckleheads off your bait. Although, they’ve been so thick in the area, that even cod jigs haven’t been be a perfect solution. According to Captain Steven Jr.’s final report of the 2011 season, “We saw loads and loads of knot-head sea bass biting everything we threw at them, including jigs,” so be prepared to release some nice looking 5- to 7-pound biscuits — they’ll be waiting for you in June. If you can’t make it all the way out east this weekend, you’ll likely be able to put together a decent catch of ling and few small cod on one of the south-shore headboats out of Captree or Hampton Bays. Get out there and make the most of your 2012 angling season, this weekend is a great time to start.