Cod and black sea bass pick up steam around Block Island, while giant brown trout are catching a lot of angling attention across Connecticut.
Rhode Island Fishing Report
Captain Frank of the Frances Fleet in Narragansett reported that most of last week was blown out due to weather, but they were able to salvage a few trips over the weekend and make the most of them. On Friday the boat saw a nice pile of green market cod to about 10 pounds. The high hook angler for the day took home 8 fish, and while that wasn’t the trend across the boat, most anglers took home at least a couple of keepers. The boat also saw plenty of black sea bass, with limits of keepers coming pretty easily. The Saturday trip saw similar success and a more widespread distribution of keeper cod fish, as most anglers went home with 3-4 keepers. The black sea bass fishing was even better than Friday as far as sizes were concerned, with 3-pound fish being common and a few 4+ pound fish coming over the rails. Jigs have accounted for a few cod, but much like the last few weeks, bait has been the top producer. Tautog season is now closed but the fleet will continue to run cod and sea bass trips on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and weekends through the new year.
Captain Chris of The Island Current in Point Judith made his arrival to the harbor last week and sailed for their first cod trip on the 14th. Chris reported great fishing around the island, with good numbers of cod and black sea bass for everyone on board. The boat will continue to sail every day, weather permitting, as we get into the prime winter cod months.
Quaker Lane Bait and Tackle in North Kingstown reported that a few die-hards have been finding some schoolie striped bass in the upper stretches of the Providence River, but for the most part anglers are targeting trout in the local streams and gearing up for ice fishing season. The shop recently took in a large order of ice fishing supplies and with temperatures forecasted to plummet after the holiday; it won’t be long before we are walking on water.
Fishing Forecast
We are a few weeks behind last year’s ice fishing schedule, but temperatures are forecast to take a big drop around the New Year so it shouldn’t be long now. In the meantime, the CT DEEP and RIDEM continue to produce great opportunities for trout anglers across CT and RI. If the weather permits, a ride on a local cod/sea bass charter would also be great way to spend the weekend stocking the fridge.