Connecticut and Rhode Island Fishing Report 11-15-12

Schoolie Stripers and Big Blackfish Keeping Anglers Busy

The Indian summer weather we experienced last weekend gave many anglers an excuse to wet a line. Results mostly showed that schoolie striped bass seem to be running the saltwater scene, with keeper-sized fish and bigger occasionally mixed in. In addition, blackfish action remains rather strong for those still putting the time in. For freshwater, thousands of recently stocked trout and broodstock salmon are keeping plenty of anglers busy.

Rhode Island Fishing Report

The good news for surfcasters in the Ocean State is that if you want to catch striped bass, day or night, you still can with some regularity. The not-so-good news is that most of the stripers average less than 24-inches, but beggars can’t be choosers this late in the game. Of course, as we relearned last week, there’s always the chance for that fish of a lifetime (https://onthewater.com/fishing/rhode-island-surfcaster-catches-58-pound-november-striper/) on any given outing.

Steve McKenna of Quaker Lane Outfitters said it’s mostly a schoolie game at the moment with the intermittent small keeper mixed in. However, like most of the season, fishing eels after dark can still produce great results, such as Steve’s friend who took six bass to 33 pounds in the SoCo surf Sunday night. For more consistent action, Steve suggested hitting the Charlestown Beach area with a ¾- or 1-ounce bucktail with a white twister-tail.

Steve Cook at Saltwater Edge had similar advice, stating that the majority of the fish he’s been hearing about are coming from South County beaches on bucktail jigs with pork rind trailers. Steve added that a customer who shall remain nameless took a 36-pound daytime bass last Friday, so there’s still a chance to get a solid season-ending fish.

OTW contributor David Pickering fished the oceanfront three times over the long weekend with mixed results. Here’s what he had to report: “On Saturday, schoolie fishing was as hot as it could be as my son Ben and I landed in excess of a hundred fish. We went back to the same spot Sunday with about the same conditions, and our total for the day was three hickory shad and no stripers. I went back Monday with my son Matt. We landed about 25 schoolies in the first 45 minutes we were there and then, poof, nothing. Welcome to late fall fishing.” David also added a few observations from his weekend on the water, including that he saw only one bluefish caught in three days, no keeper bass caught in the same span, Cocahoe minnows on jigheads were slaying schoolies feeding on small bait, and that he saw about a dozen gannets diving way out on Monday, which could mean herring or not.

The blackfish bite remains hot for those who still have access to a boat or are willing to pay for a spot on a head boat. Mike at Cardinal Bait and Tackle said inshore spots like Ragged Reef, Watch Hill Reef and Latimer Lighthouse, in about 30-feet on average, are producing keeper tautog on green crabs with a fair share of short fish mixed in.

Captain Chis of the Island Current Express out of Snug Harbor reported some amazing blackfish action from Friday through Thursday with the biggest fish in that stretch weighing in at 11.5 pounds. They are sailing 10 to 14 miles east of Snug Harbor and targeting between 30 and 90 feet of water with green and Asian crabs, using about five to eight-ounces of lead. Chris mentioned that some nice codfish are mixing in with the blackfish on the deeper water drops. He also said they are sailing seven days a week right now, leaving the dock at 5 AM.

Seven B’s also reported solid tautog fishing lately with a few anglers limiting out despite a tough battle with wind and current. There were a dozen blackfish caught on Monday’s trip in the eight to nine-pound range with a very light bite.

Unfortunately, there were no reports from Block Island this week and not one mention of black sea bass or scup.

Connecticut Fishing Report

Long Island Sound fishing reports were similar to Rhode Island’s this week in the fact that most of the striped bass being caught right now are micros, with sporadic larger bass sprinkled in. Cheyenne of The Fish Connection reported that chunking bunker in and around the Thames River is producing small stripers at places like Norwich Harbor, Buoy 27 and Ocean Beach. Pat Abate at Rivers End shared that certain Waterford beaches, as well as Madison beaches like Hammonasset, are giving up school-sized bass on soft-plastic baits and swimming plugs.

“Think near the mouths of tidal rivers,” said Cappy of Captain Bait and Tackle when I asked him where anglers should be looking for striped bass. He recommended soaking chunks of bunker or mackerel for the best chance of success from shore, or casting and retrieving soft-plastics on jigheads. Nick at Fisherman’s World reported that Sage Nakamura did just that and landed bass up to 34 inches from the mouth of the Housatonic River over the weekend. He also mentioned that Paul Restuccia caught bass and even bluefish while diamond jigging Buoy 18 on Saturday. Nick added that schoolies were smacking top-water lures and tube-and-worms near the Norwalk Islands too.

Blackfish may very well be the best saltwater option at the moment. Andrew of Fishin’ Factory III enjoyed shallow tautog action with family and friends on Monday around Long Rock off Rocky Neck State Park. They ended up with a dozen keeper blackfish up to eight-pounds using green crabs in seven to 18 feet of water. Nick at Fisherman’s World had another shallow water blackfish report from Paul Fosse and Eric Lovous who bailed 15 keeper-sized fish up to eight-pounds in 10 feet of water off Norwalk.

Many blackfish have moved into deeper areas as well, so it pays to dipstick at various depths. Cappy at Captain Morgan Bait and Tackle reported that outer Southwest Reef, in about 50 to 60 feet of water, is a solid bet right now if you can deal with the choppy seas of late.

For freshwater fans, CT DEEP has stocked over 1,000 broodstock Atlantic salmon up to 15 pounds in the Naugatuck and Shetucket Rivers, as well as Mount Tom Pond and Crystal Lake. In the Naugatuck and Shetucket Rivers, angling for Atlantic salmon is restricted to catch-and-release only through November 30. Until then, the legal method for broodstock salmon is limited to angling using a single fly, or an artificial lure with a single free swinging hook and no additional weight added to the line. Brightly colored streamer patterns have been the top producer for fly anglers lately, especially in the Shuetucket River near the Baltic Bridge. For more info about the salmon regulations, you can read the 2012 Connecticut Angler’s Guide here: http://www.ct.gov/dep/lib/dep/fishing/anglers_guide/anguide.pdf.

In addition to salmon, CT DEEP stocked over 29,000 trophy and adult sized trout into selected waters throughout the state. Among the areas to be stocked this fall are twenty-four lakes and ponds, fourteen rivers and streams including twelve of the Trout Management Areas (TMA) and eight Trout Parks. For any Facebook users out there, check out DEEP’s Connecticut Fish and Wildlife Page for the latest stocking maps and updates. (https://www.facebook.com/#!/CTFishAndWildlife). Derrick Kirkpatrick of CT Fish Guides and a client experienced a good day of trout fishing the Farmington River on Sunday using size #18 pheasant tail nymphs.

Fishing Forecast for Connecticut and Rhode Island

For some classic late-fall schoolie action, Rhode Island beaches are where you want to be this weekend. However, please keep in mind that the hard hit area is still recovering from Superstorm Sandy, so access and parking remains tough at certain spots. Pack your plug bags with swimming plugs such as Bombers and Red Fins, as well as bucktails and soft-plastic baits on jig-heads. It would be wise of you to throw in some teasers too. With any luck, we’ll have a strong sea herring presence in the coming weeks that will draw in some larger fish.

Blackfishing is still worth going. If you already put your boat away for the year, but would still like to fill your freezer with fillets, there are a number of head boat options to choose from. While some fish continue to hang in shallow water, many tautog have moved to deeper areas, so don’t be afraid to bounce around different depths until you find what you’re looking for. Both green crabs and Asian crabs will get the job done, but most reports favored greenies this week.