Despite some of the lowest coastal water temperatures that the Northeast has seen in quite some time, fresh school bass have made their way to Connecticut and Rhode Island. Reports of fish with sea lice have increased in number over the past few days from Newport to Narragansett, as well as from the mouths of a few eastern Connecticut tributaries. Early season tautog are starting to bite well across Rhode Island and the summer flounder opener kicks off today.

Rhode Island Fishing Report

Fresh migratory striped bass haven’t been plentiful around the Newport area just yet, but reports of more and more fish with sea lice are trickling in each day. According to The Saltwater Edge in Middletown, the first batch of fish showed up around the area of Second Beach late last week and through the weekend. Small white soft-plastics and plastic swimmers have been the bait of choice for most surfcasters, while a small fly teaser attached ahead of your main offering will increase your chance for success. Local tautog anglers have reported better catches of legal fish on the rockpiles across Newport and Jamestown, with most fish residing in 18 to 25 feet of water.

Across the oceanfront of Narragansett, the hot and heavy schoolie fishing that is usually experienced during the first week of May is far from it. Quaker Lane Bait and Tackle in North Kingstown reported that large angling efforts at the West Wall of Point Judith have been rewarded with low numbers of fresh schoolies. The bass fishing across the oceanfront will likely remain hit or miss until we are able to string together a couple consecutive warm days and get water temperatures closer to where they should be this time of year. Anglers might look to upper Narragansett Bay and the upper stretches of the Providence River, where reports of holdover bass remain consistent and in better numbers than in the oceanfront.

Similar to Newport, tautog fishing has improved around Narragansett, and multiple anglers have reported good catches of keepers around the center wall and bass rock this week.

With more unsettled spring weather coming through this past week, The Frances Fleet in Narragansett remained at the docks. They did share some good news however, that some decent numbers of fluke were caught as bycatch this week. The recreational fluke season opens up today and the Lady Frances will be making their first fluke trip of the season this upcoming Saturday.

Connecticut Fishing Report

Fishing in the Connecticut River had really started to hit full stride over the last few days, and while the recent heavy rains will likely slow things up a bit, it should assist the rest of the alewives in finding their way upriver. Andrew, at Fishin’ Factory 3 in Middletown, reported that the first sightings of migratory striped bass are beginning to come in from the mouth of river. The northern stretches of the main river have been loaded with holdover bass that are eager to crush 9-inch Slug-Gos and small plastic swimmers. For a chance at larger bass focus on the smaller tributaries of the river that are now full of herring and have been catching the eye of the larger holdovers.

Solid reports of Connecticut River Shad have started to trickle in, with the best reports coming from the confluence of the Farmington and Connecticut rivers. The spring tautog season has now ended in Connecticut, but winter flounder catches remain rather consistent in the Niantic River and at Bluff Point.

TC Marine Bait and Tackle in Shelton reported that holdover striped bass fishing remains excellent on the Housatonic River, as river herring have finally made their way to the upper stretches of the river in better numbers. Schoolies are plentiful from the Route 15 Bridge north to the Sunnyside Ramp on smaller soft-plastics; while larger holdover fish have been showing up after dark to anglers fishing larger swimming plugs and 9-inch Slug-Gos.

Mike Roy of Reel Cast Charters had another successful week of putting large numbers of Housatonic striped bass on the boat. Mike has seen his best action after dark on the upper stretches of the river around the high ebbing tide. During times of lower water, action has been more consistent around the mouth of the river and Milford Point. Keeper-class fish have not only started to show up with more regularity, they also appear to be getting bigger each night.

Trout fishing has been very good across Connecticut prior to today’s heavy rain, and while that should muddy things up for a day or two, Pat at Upcountry Sportfishing in New Hartford, expects things to be much improved by Saturday when flows settle back to normal. The Farmington River is abuzz with multiple types of flies on the water and Pat reports that small streamers remains the most consistent way to land trout on the fly rod. The Salmon River and the upper stretches of the Housatonic River also garnered quite a bit of attention from trout anglers this week, and reports of good catches of large brown trout came from each location.

Fishing Forecast for Connecticut and Rhode Island

The good news is that it’s May 1st and air temperatures are nearing the 70 degree mark today. The bad news is that unseasonably cold days and nights hit us once again this week and we remain a few weeks behind our usual saltwater schedule. Holdover striped bass remains the most consistent option across Rhode Island and Connecticut, and with a decent forecast set for the weekend, a few more fresh fish should be arriving. Fluke opens in Rhode Island today and The Frances Fleet will be chartering some trips over the weekend for those who may not have a boat in the water just yet.