Connecticut and Rhode Island Fishing Report 4-26-2012

Trout Fishing Peaking
Saltwater Action Improving

It’s not always easy for anglers to choose their favorite time of year, but right now is up at the top for me.  So many types of fishing are heating up simultaneously that it’s sometimes difficult to focus on just one. The saltwater action is picking up steam, with striped bass and bluefish being found throughout Connecticut and Rhode Island and larger ones arriving by the day. There are copious amounts of baitfish awaiting them such as herring, squid, sand eels, mackerel and menhaden.  There are also winter flounder and big blackfish to target and fluke will soon be added to that list.

In the freshwater world, the rain that fell on Sunday was a blessing.  Right now is the pinnacle of the trout fishing season so the timing was helpful to spread fresh fish around and give them more places to hide. Hundreds of thousands of trout have been stocked in Rhode Island and Connecticut waterways with more on the way.  Get while the getting’s good!

Rhode Island

Striped bass are spreading across Rhode Island waters in big numbers according to Captain Thom at Quaker Lane Outfitters.  Average size is still on the smaller side, but it’s the most schoolie bass he’s seen in some time.  Mixed in are little bluefish in the 3 to 5-pound range, especially around the West Wall and the mouth of the Narrow River.  Thom said that Cocahoe Minnows are one of the most productive artificial lures in the salt this time of year.

Dave at River and Riptide excitedly talked about stripers keyed in on a cinder worm hatch in a couple saltwater ponds.  He said bass up to 35 inches have been fooled on worm flies and slim soft-plastics in the upper reaches of these ponds where the water warms the quickest.  Rips outside the ponds are also holding striped bass.  Captain Ron at Breachway Bait and Tackle said anglers jigging bucktails off breachways during outgoing tides are catching the occasional nice fish.

Striper numbers and size continue to rise in Narragansett Bay too.  OTW contributor Dave Pickering landed keeper-sized fish on back to back casts from shore in the Bay on Tuesday night, in addition to six smaller schoolies.  He’s been having the best luck using a Zoom Super Fluke mounted on a light jig head.  Dave noted that while it’s been crowded it along the oceanfront, the Bay has had relatively few anglers.

The first reports of bass from Block Island beaches came in this week from Chris at Block Island Fishworks.  He relayed that surfcasters are using soft-plastics after dark to score some keepers and smaller-sized fish. The turn of the tides have been good, especially the top.  As for bait, there are sand eels and mackerel present around the Island.

There wasn’t an influx of tautog reports this week, but Captain Thom of Quaker Lane and a friend boated a 9-pounder and some shorts while fishing for cod on wrecks in 80-feet of water off Charlestown.  He said a better bet for tog would be in Narragansett Bay around Rocky Point, Warwick Light, or Conimicut Light using green crabs cut in half.

News from the cod grounds remains discouraging.  Frances Fleet made two trips this past week and both were slow outings.  There was a respectable amount of ling taken last Friday, yet the only cod to show interest to their offerings were on the small side.  The Frances Fleet will continue to sail for cod during the week, though they happily look forward to their squid trips that start this Friday night.  Squid have moved in at the usual spots, but Chris at Saltwater Edge said the epicenter of Rhode Island’s squid action is the Goat Island Causeway in Newport.  He suggested going at night with the productive Yozuri squid jig.  Other spots shore-bound anglers can find them are public docks with sufficient lighting to draw squid in.

In addition, fluke season opens this coming Tuesday.  The regulations are 8 fish per day at an 18.5-inch minimum length.  Captain Thom at Quaker Lane Outfitters suggested starting relatively shallow off the Green Hill and Charlestown shorelines.

In freshwater, we finally received a portion of the rain we need so badly; 3-inches of it to be exact!  Dave at River and Riptide said the deluge was helpful for that it helped spread trout around that were stacked up in deeper pools of rivers and streams.  He also noted that the Wood River specifically is flowing at a good level and hosting major caddis hatches that have trout looking up and sipping dry flies.  On the bass front, Thom at Quaker Lane pre-spawn largemouth bite has been pretty good.  He recommended using live shiners under a float, but if you want to try artificial lures Thom stressed an ultra-slow retrieve.

Connecticut Fishing Reports

Things are buzzing in the Connecticut saltwater scene, especially in regards to striped bass in our tidal rivers. The Thames River is hosting a strong concentration of schoolie bass spread from Norwich Harbor to the mouth according to Joe at The Fish Connection.  Mixed in are micro bluefish and a nice batch of bunker north of the Gold Star Memorial Bridge.  Joe also noted that a customer landed a 36-inch bass in the Pawcatuck River from a kayak on a Zoom Super Fluke that had 4 mantis shrimp in its belly.

The Connecticut River is another good bet for striped bass right now.  Andrew of Fishin’ Factory III told me that before the rain, bass keyed-in on herring were tail-slapping his surface lures in the Middletown stretch, yet only committing to a trolled umbrella rig with shad-bodied plastics.  However, river rat Bill Stratton landed a 30-pound striper north of Middletown on Sunday using a Commander metal-lip by Mike’s Custom Plugs.  Things quieted down a bit on the lure action since the rain, but the bait bite, specifically sandworms on bottom, is still going strong.  One of Andrew’s customers weighed-in a 30-pound striper this past week taken right from the Middletown shoreline while dunking a sandworm.

Pat at River’s End said the mouth of the Connecticut has been home to some bass, bunker and bluefish lately, but not an obscene amount of any yet.  Pat also shared news about the Honor the Veterans Tournament that River’s End and Fishin’ Factory III are hosting on May 6th. This is a catch-and-release striped bass tournament in the Connecticut River from Windsor Locks to the breakwalls at the river mouth.  It starts at 4:30 AM and runs until 3:30 PM. It’s designed for either shore or boat anglers and any type of tackle can be used as long as it’s artificial lures only. The entry fee is $25 for adults, $10 for kids and all proceeds go to the Take a Vet Fishing Program.  Call either shop for more details!

The other tidal river of Connecticut’s “big 3,” the Housatonic, is also fishing well for striped bass.  Chris at Stratford Bait and Tackle said stripers in the 35- to 43-inch range have been whacking Bomber lures this past week, especially the ‘chicken-scratch’ pattern.  There have been tons of herring in the river and the slim profile of these lures match them well.  Chris said to go at night in the Derby and Shelton stretches during any moving tide.

Winter flounder can still be found in the Niantic River according to Matt at Hillyers.  He said anglers chumming with clams and fishing with sandworms on bottom are doing best on incoming tides.  Nick at The Fisherman’s World said Norwalk Harbor is another place where you can confidently try for winter flounder.  He has costumers catching 2 ¼-pounders off the Calf Pasture Pier using sandworms and clam chum.

As for blackfish, Pat at River’s End said he is hearing the best spring tog reports in a long time.  The breakwalls in Clinton, New Haven, West Haven, and Housatonic River mouth have been most productive.  Green and Asian crabs are always good bets for bait, but sandworms are good early in spring when there aren’t many bait-stealing fish down to bother with.  Kayak angler Clayton Pace caught and released a monster 15-pound tog from the New Haven walls on Wednesday using Asian crabs!  Get in on the breakwall bite this weekend because the blackfish season closes again after Monday.

In freshwater, Cappy at Captain Morgan Bait and Tackle said despite the low water, last weekend’s Opening Day of trout fishing season was well attended and featured good fishing.  The CT DEEP has already stocked over 376,000 trout in state waterways so far with another couple hundred thousand coming before May is over with.  Cappy said some huge breeders were caught in the Salmon River, as well as the Farmington.  And even after the pounding last weekend, there are still an incredible amount of trout in our lakes, ponds, rivers and streams.  Cappy suggested meal worms or shiners for spin anglers and small nymphs like pheasant tails for fly fishermen.

Connecticut and Rhode Island Fishing Forecast

For saltwater anglers in Rhode Island, try poking around Narragansett Bay for some keeper bass from shore or try cashing in on the cinder worm hatch in saltwater ponds along the south shore. In Connecticut, try capitalizing on some big breakwall blackfish before the season closes early next week.

For freshwater folks, trout fishing is still the name of the game. Many places got pounded over the last two weekends in low flows, but recent rains have raised water levels a bit and moved fish around.  Trout action won’t be as good as it is right now for the rest of the year, so strike while the iron is hot.