North Shore Long Island Fishing Report
It was another slow week on the North Shore, but every day we are getting closer to spring fishing. John at Terminal Tackle in Kings Park said there is still some ice in the harbors that has not completely melted yet. However, even if the water was open, there likely would not be much life around anyway. If things really start to warm up soon, we might see some flounder show up in the beginning of next month and the first schoolies should make an appearance sometime in the second week of April.
John also said that not many guys are bothering with trout, but the occasional fisherman that does head out has been rewarded with a handful of fish here and there. White’s Pool is one spot to try, but freshwater all around is now thawed, which opens up the possibilities quite a bit.
South Shore Long Island Fishing Report
Bryce at White Water Outfitters in Hampton Bays said that the King Cod continues to chip away at the cod grounds, but they have to travel out to deep water to get it done. The boat has been fishing wrecks roughly 180 to 250 feet deep to put anglers on enough keepers to bring home dinner. Ling are becoming more abundant as the weeks progress, and they are starting to pull up giants. Pollock are also in the mix, but their sizes are nothing spectacular. There are spots open on a few of the upcoming trips through April where they hope the fishing will continue to get better. Bryce also mentioned that with the water temperatures slowly on the rise, Shinnecock and Quogue Canals might be good starting points for those in search of flounder.
On the freshwater front, Bill from Combs Bait & Tackle in Amityville reported a few anglers taking advantage of the freshly thawed creeks and ponds and having some luck targeting perch.
Metro Long Island Fishing Report
Frank at Bernie’s Fishing Tackle in Brooklyn said you would have better luck getting fish in the frozen food section than in the local waters right now. However, he did hear a rumor from someone who came into the shop of a small amount of bass action in South Jersey. The Hudson River striper season opened on Monday, but John from Jack’s Bait & Tackle in the Bronx said no big reports have made it back to the shop yet. A fish was caught here and there, but the water is still ice cold so it may take 7-10 days before the bass really start feeding. Anglers are using bloodworms in the typical spots, such as Croton, Piermont, and Nyack. Take note, however, that the new striper regulations for New York went into effect as of March 17th, and it changes the Hudson season start date to April 1st. I have gotten mixed information if the season is technically closed now, but on paper it appears to be. I will try to have a definite confirmation by next week. The new regulations also change the catch limit to 1 fish between 18 to 28 inches OR 1 fish larger than 40 inches.
East End/North Fork Long Island Fishing Report
The East End continues to be quiet with no significant reports making it back to the shops. I spoke to Star Island Marina in Montauk and they didn’t think many boats even attempted to make it out with the recent rain and wind. The Viking Fleet only has a 2-day tile/wreck trip scheduled for next week, but hopefully the cod trips will resume after that.
Best Bets for the Weekend
It looks like Mother Nature is playing a cruel joke on us as we are slated to deal with possibly more than 5 inches of snow on the first day of spring. Temperatures sadly dropped this week, and it does not look like it will start to warm up until sometime in the middle of next week. Despite the weather, we can try to make the best of things. The cod bite on the South Shore continues to hold steady, but the mixed bag fishing seems to be picking up lately with a better supply of big ling. We have maybe a little over a month of cod fishing left, but there are only a few spots open on several trips so you should book it now before it is too late.
If the weather has got you down, skip the shoveling and head over to the Suffolk Boat Show running from Friday, March 20th through Sunday, March 22nd at the Suffolk Community College in Brentwood where you can pick out your new fishing vessel for the season. The Patchogue Fishing Flea Market at St. Joseph’s College this Sunday is also another option if you want to check out tons of fishing tackle and gear.
Tips on flounder fishing Boat in Patchogue river