North Shore Long Island Fishing Report

Not a whole lot has changed over this past week. Stripers are still holding in deep water of about 60 feet on the North Shore. Anglers fishing during the change of the tide and chunking bunker or livelining scup and snappers have been having some luck with teen sized fish. According to John from Terminal Tackle in Kings Park, the striper fishing has been inconsistent, but some anglers fishing the beaches in Smithtown Bay hooked in to a few fish.

The fluke fishing has been very good as of late, with a lot of large fish being landed. John over at Terminal Tackle said the shop weighed in an 11.4 lb doormat from Huntington Bay, while other fisherman are having luck in The Triangle by the Obstruction Buoy in water over 35 feet, according to Robert from Hi Hook Bait & Tackle in Huntington. It seems like you will be finding a lot of shorts in the shallows, but bigger fish are still out deep.

Harbor Bait and Tackle in Huntington weighed an 11-pound fluke this past week caught off of Eatons Neck by Jake Cogan. Anglers have been doing well around this area and the Huntington area. Spearing and squid strips fished in water around 40 feet have been the most productive. Small bluefish have been showing up around the area as well. Small keeper size striped bass and abundant porgies can be found around the Triangle.

The consensus from all the shops is that the porgy are all over and ready to be caught. They can be found off the beaches, in the bays, and rocky structures such as The Triangle. Robert at LI Outdoorsman in Rockville Centre said anglers are catching their limits using worms and clams. A good number of sea bass in the 2-4 lb range have been mixing in with the scup, and pink seems to be the lucky color according to Mark at Cow Harbor Bait & Tackle in Northport.

We are finally starting to receive reports of bluefish on the North Shore. Terminal Tackle reported fish from 1-5 lbs being caught around Cranes and Eatons Neck on top water plugs and diamond jigs, and Cow Harbor said there is a very early bite off the beach of fish to 15 lbs. Of course, snapper are everywhere and getting bigger each week.

South Shore Long Island Fishing Report

The bass bite on the South Shore has been spotty and you have to be in the right place at the right time. Anglers have been having some luck off the beaches in the early morning using bait and bucktails.

The fluke fishing is a better bet on the South Shore with a good pick coming from Fire Island Inlet and the Great Sound Bay, according to John from Trophy Tackle in West Babylon. Bay Park Fishing Station in Oceanside reported nice numbers of keepers being taken on the AB Reef and out at Cholera Banks using spearing and squid as bait.

Mixed bag bottom fishing is also doing pretty well. Bay Park said 2-3 lb scup and 3+ lb sea bass are being taken off Hempstead Reef. Dan from Causeway Bait and Tackle in Wantagh said you can find both porgy and kingfish at the Jones Beach Pier. He also said that if you get out very early in the morning, you can find some weakfish off Overlook Beach and at the Sore Thumb. Chasing Tails Bait and Tackle in Oakdale also said there are nice size weaks to be found in the Great South Bay as well.

Not many reports of blues on the South Shore, but snappers are abundant in the bays.

Metro Long Island/New York Fishing Report

Bassing is holding steady in the Metro area with a lot of catches coming from around area bridges. John from Jack’s Bait and Tackle in the Bronx said that fish up to 25 lbs have been landed while fishing around the structures using bunker chunks.

There are a ton of fluke in the area with a really good number of keepers mixing in. Island Bait and Tackle reported that the fluke bite has been solid, especially around the Throgs Neck Bridge where anglers have been landing some doormats, and fluke over 5 lbs are being found around Hart’s Island and the City Island Bridge, according to Jack’s Bait and Tackle.

Bottom fishing isn’t as great as some other areas, but porgy fishing has been very consistent with large fish being found just about everywhere you would expect them to be. There still aren’t any reports of sea bass in the area though. Stretch from Stella Maris Bait and Tackle in Brooklyn reported that there are nice sized weakfish from 6-8 lbs being found in Jamaica Bay and by the Marine Parkway Bridge.

There are finally a few reports of bluefish in the area. John from Hudson Park Bait and Tackle in New Rochelle reported that decent sized blues are being caught using diamond jigs and by anglers trolling umbrella rigs. As is the case everywhere, snappers are getting bigger every week.

East End Long Island Fishing Report

The East End is still the place to be for big stripers. Mike from Star Island Marina in Montauk said that the fish are hanging in 40-50 feet of water.

The fluke bite last week was called outstanding. Bill from Jamesport Bait & Tackle in Mattituck reports a good number of catches coming from outside Shinnecock Inlet east to the Cheese House in 50-80 feet of water. Mike at Star Island also reported that keepers can be found off of Amagansett and at the North Rip.

There is still good mixed bag action in the Peconic around Buoy 30 and Roger’s Rock. Anglers bottom fishing can hope to catch a ton of scup, kingfish, weakfish, and a few blowfish here and there. Ken from Tight Line Tackle Inc. in Sag Harbor also reported decent number of weakfish being caught at Buoy 16 in Nayack Bay very early in the morning.

Best Bets for the Weekend

Depending on what you are in to, you will be able to find the fish you want biting somewhere around the Island. Stripers are still most abundant out East in pretty deep water, although there are some bass along the beaches if you are there at the right time, and the Metro bridges are doing well. There are a lot of blues out East as well, but they are finally starting to move into other water and are biting on poppers and diamond jigs.

Fluke is the way to go this week with a lot of big fish being landed. Fish are holding in all areas of the Island so you won’t have to travel far for a potential doormat. Squid, spearing, or livelined snappers seem to be producing the largest fish.

Scup are also abundant everywhere so you can’t miss with them. Sea Bass are most abundant mixed in with the porgy on the North Shore and on the South Shore Reefs, and the shops have been saying that the sea bass bite is the best they have seen in a while for this time of year.

Weakfish are also becoming more common so if you have been waiting for them, now is a good time to head out and look in the early morning hours. Of course, snappers are everywhere, so get the kids out to the docks.