Long Island New York Fishing Report 10-31-2014

North Shore

John from Terminal Tackle in Kings Park reported that striper fishing on the North Shore is gradually improving with anglers having some luck jigging at Cranes and Eatons Neck, as well as a few fish being caught off Callahan and Sunken Meadow Beaches and in the back of the Nissequogue. He also said that squid have been showing up in the local waters and if they stick around they should bring some more bass to the area. Mark at Cow Harbor Bait & Tackle in Northport added that drifting eels and worms at night at Cranes Neck, Oyster Bay Reef, and south of Buoy 13 and 15 have been working also.

Blues of 6 pounds or so are mixing in with the bass at Eatons and Cranes Neck while anglers are jigging A17s, A27s, and A37s, and morning tides seem to be the best time.

Mark at Cow Harbor said a lot of anglers are going too deep for blackfish right now and even though the air temperature has cooled down, the water is still about 60 degrees so your better bet is to try shallow water depths of 8 to 18 feet for tog. He reported that Smithtown Reef, the East Bar, the Brush Pile, Center Island Reef, and Caumsett Park are all hot right now. All baits are working but orange jigs seem to substantially improve your catch ratio. Robert from Hi Hook Bait and Tackle in Huntington said you can also try water a little bit deeper at Marshall Fields and Buoy 11B. According to Carmine at Campsite Sports Shop in Huntington Station, the porgy are starting to thin out, but you can find them mixed in at all the blackfish spots. There will also be some sea bass around those areas as well, although you’ll have to pick through a lot of shorts.

South Shore Long Island Fishing Report

The word on the South Shore is all about the stripers. East to west, the bite is on! Mike from White Water Outfitters in Hampton Bays said the beach fishing is excellent with diamond jigs, darters, bucktails, and anything else resembling a sand eel all producing fish. He also said that the boats are doing well jigging from close to the beach all the way out to 80 feet of water. Joe at Causeway Bait and Tackle in Wantagh reported that there are plenty of big fish in 30 to 60 feet of water being caught while jigging in the ocean outside of Fire Island Inlet. Bay Park Fishing Station in Oceanside said there is a nice morning bite west of Jones Inlet in 45-55 feet of water using umbrella rigs and bunker spoons. Anglers eeling the Inlet at night have also had some luck.

Marc at Trophy Tackle in West Babylon said that the blues are mixing in with the bass outside of Fire Inlet in 40 to 60 feet of water. Jigs are your best bet, but they are also willing to destroy soft plastics too. Anywhere the stripers are biting, you’ll most likely be hooking up with blues as well.

Mike at White Water said the blackfish on the eastern South Shore are starting to move out to deeper wrecks in about 80 feet of water. Joe at Causeway reported that you can still find some tog in the western Bays. Bay Park reported a lot of weakfish caught on jigs in 25 feet of water off the Church.

 

Metro Long Island Fishing Report

The stripers are getting bigger in the Metro area with a few more keepers around this week. According to John from Jack’s Bait and Tackle in the Bronx, jigging has produced bass from 28-32 inches in 50 feet of water behind the Execution Lighthouse. Louie from Island Bait and Tackle in the Bronx also said some keepers were found off the Shooting Range and Orchard Beach section one on chunks, and Vinny from Bernie’s Fishing Tackle in Brooklyn reported that jigs and needlefish have been working on the bass from Coney Island to Breezy Point in 15 to 40 feet of water. Stretch at Stella Maris Bait and Tackle in Brooklyn said there is a night bite off Norton’s Point for those fishing live eels. John from Hudson Park Bait and Tackle in New Rochelle said some fish up to 34 inches have been caught off the beaches from the Throgs Neck Bridge to Rye.

Blues of 8 to 10 pounds are hanging out with the bass around the Execution Lighthouse and the Stepping Stone Lighthouse. Finding birds working is also a good indicator of blues around.

John from Hudson Park reported that big blackfish over 9 pounds have been caught in deeper water of about 60 feet off Rye. Louie at Island Bait said the tog fishing is on fire around Huckleberry Island and all the local wrecks and rock piles with green, Asian, and fiddler crabs, and John at Jack’s Bait said there are a lot of porgy still around Pea, Huckleberry, and Hart Islands, but they are starting to get smaller. Some larger scup can be found from Rye to Connecticut.

East End Long Island Fishing Report

Paulie at Paulie’s Bait and Tackle in Montauk said that there is nothing in the way of big fish out on the East End and the Lighthouse has been slow, but the sand beaches are producing some stripers in the 15-20 -pound range on diamond jigs and needlefish. He said the best time is about an hour before dawn to an hour after dawn and then the bite picks back up at dusk through the night. Although the wind has made it hard for the boats to get out, a few have had some luck jigging up bass, as well as plenty of blues out of Montauk. Bill at Jamesport Bait & Tackle in Mattituck also said boats are hitting bass and blues off Horton’s using eels and chunks. Captain Lou at Star Island Marina in Montauk said that they are just waiting for a herring run to really get things moving again.

The blackfishing is picking up nicely on the East End. Captain Lou at Star Island said that the bite is really coming alive at Fisher’s Island on green, Asian, and fiddler crabs. There are also a good amount of tog and sea bass at the Southwest Ledge in 60-70 feet of water and at Cartwright in 100 feet. Bill at Jamesport reported plenty of blackfish off Horton’s and Rocky Point in 25-30 feet of water. Paulie said that the porgy bite is still alive on the south side and off the Radar Tower.

Best Bets for the Weekend

The striper bite on the South Shore is hot right now. The beaches light up before, during, and just after dawn and starts up again at dusk. The bass are still feeding on sandeels, so anything that mimics the bait will work nicely. Jigging has been working on the boats. The fish range from small schoolies to bass over 30 pounds, and the action is constant at times.

Blackfish are the other good way to go. The North Shore wrecks and Fisher’s Island are doing really well right now. Even though most of the South Shore reports were all about the stripers, I have a feeling that the AB Reef is holding blackfish like it was last week. The fish aren’t picky and are hitting on all the crab baits.