School bluefin are feeding voraciously just south of Block Island. They are picking up the slack of the striped bass bite, which remained inconsistent this week.
Rhode Island Fishing Report
The Seven B’s in Narragansett have been running their daily fluke fishing trips, and results have been pretty solid when the weather has allowed. The crew reported a slow but steady pick of keeper fish over the last few trips, with the largest fish falling into the 6-7 pound range. The fleet will continue to make daily fluke trips through the rest of June, which sail from 7 A.M. to 4 P.M. Starting July 1st they will shift over to two trips per day with the first sailing form 8:30 A.M. to 12:30 P.M., and the second taking off at 1 P.M. and returning at 5 P.M. Striped bass trips will continue to sail on Friday and Saturday nights from 7 P.M. to 1 A.M., and as always live eels are included. Be sure to check out their website for detailed sailing schedules.
Over at The Saltwater Edge in Middletown the hot bite of the week has been the bluefin bite south of Block. The past few days have seen numerous boats reporting tuna in the 30-40-pound class. Fluke fishing has been good around Sakonnet and the Newport reefs in 40 to 50 feet of water. Striped bass fishing has been up and down this week, with the best boat reports coming from the southwest end of Block Island. Locally, daytime trolling has accounted for some good bass as well. Scup have finally moved into the area in good numbers, and are being caught on all the local reefs and rockpiles, with some anglers managing some nice fish from shore.
At Galilee Bait and Tackle in Narragansett, Howard reports that the local fluke fishing continues to slowly improve, but noted not to expect a limit on every trip. The striped bass bite continues to pick up along Block Island, as Howard weighed in two more 50-pound fish this morning. Locally, the harbor is full of schoolie bass, with a few 15-20 fish mixed in, and similar reports have come in from the local beaches. Good numbers of bluefish are now in, and seem to be concentrated on the bunker schools in the bay. The bluefin bite off of Block Island has garnered a lot of attention from Howard’s customers, and he noted that some good reports came in just south of Cox’s Ledge yesterday.
Mike Wade, of Watch Hill Outfitters in Westerly, was out in pursuit of those bluefin this afternoon, but passed on a local report which consisted of inconsistent bass fishing and improving bottom fishing. Striped bass reports have been very up and down lately, with most anglers reporting great catches from the local reefs on some days, and other days not marking a fish for hours at a time. The good days have been great for both size and numbers, so your best bet is to just keep plugging away. Fluke fishing has improved once again this week, with good reports coming from around South County, as well as Fisher’s Island. The long-awaited arrival of scup in local waters has also happened this week, and anglers are reporting good catches on the reefs and at the light house.
Connecticut Fishing Report
Lou, at Hillyers in Waterford, reported that fluke limits remain a bit tough to come by, but many of the keepers that have been caught have been quality. A 9-pound fish took home their tournament prize last weekend, and multiple 7-10 pound fish have come through the shop this week. Some decent black sea bass have been mixed in with the fluke, and are providing anglers with another take home fish for the table. Bluefish have settled in nicely around the area and can be found at Millstone, Bartletts and in the Niantic River. Schoolies can also be had in the river with some regularity, but the reefs remain hit or miss.
Andrew, at Fishin Factory 3 in Middletown, reported slow conditions across the board in eastern CT. The rain over the weekend pushed some of the bunker and bass out of the river, but things should be settled by the weekend and hopefully that will pick up. The reefs have been slow most days, but a few anglers who have put the time in found some quality bass this week. Fluke fishing has been slightly better in local waters this week, with the deep end of Hatchetts and Black Point producing a few doormats. Sea bass has been very good on most of the deeper reefs in eastern Long Island Sound. Scup are still absent in the sound, but should be right around the corner; while bluefishing has picked up and has been very good around Millstone Point.
James, at Rivers End in Old Saybrook, reported that the best bass bites of the week have came from the Race and Plum Gut, with some 40+ pound fish at both locations. Both areas are also holding large numbers of bluefish that have made the bass fishing difficult. Bartletts and Long Sand Shoal have had fish this week, but both have been up and down and seem to be changing by the tide. The western sound still appears to have better concentrations of bass, which will hopefully find their way out east soon. Fluking has been good at Six Mile Reef in 30-40 feet of water, and has been even better in Rhode Island for anglers who decided to make the trip. Porgies are just starting to show up on the local reefs, but are not in great numbers yet. That trend should be changing with a few more warm days. The Connecticut River has seen its first keeper blue crabs of the year, and that should also continue to improve as we warm up.
Captain TJ, of Rock and Roll Charters in Clinton, said that the fishing remains inconsistent, but was able to find a good bite on at least half of his trips this week. Bass have ranged in size from schoolies to 30-pound class fish, and when he has been able to locate big bait he has found plenty of big bass. Sea bass action has been great on all trips, and the larger charter limits certainly make the trip worth it.
Starting Friday, and running through Sunday, Atlantic Outboard Westbrook will host its 4th Annual “Westbrook Inshore Open” Striper and Fluke Tournament. There is still time to enter for a fun-filled weekend of fishing and excitement for all, including a kids fishing division. The $30 entry fee gets you a 4th annual “Westbrook Inshore Open” exclusive T-shirt, catered dinner at the awards banquet, AND you will be automatically entered to win more than $2500 worth of great raffle prizes! The awards banquet dinner will be held on Sunday, June 28 at 2 p.m. Trophies and raffle and door prizes will be handed out at that time.
Best bets for the weekend
The offshore crowd should be happy to hear of some quality bluefin close to home, head out and capitalize on that bite as we all know they never usually last long. Striped bass remains tough but they are out there if you put some searching time in; while bottom fishing continues to improve and will be a safe fall back plan for the weekend.