North Shore Long Island Fishing Report
Captain Mark of the Celtic Quest out of Port Jefferson said they are finally out of the summer doldrums a bit with a recent uptick in the porgy fishing. The boat is finding fish in a wide range of areas and depths from 20 to 110 feet. Sea bass mix in on occasion, but there is very little pattern to when they show up. Captain Stu of Northport Charters in Northport reported similar bottom fishing success this week with scup to 2 pounds and a decent picking of sea bass. Fluke are much tougher right now, according to Mark at Cow Harbor Bait & Tackle in Northport, with a few pockets being successful for those putting in a lot of work. At times anglers can find them chasing bait in the harbor, while other times the fish will be deep out in the Triangle on rock piles. John from Terminal Tackle in Kings Park also added that there are loads of summer flounder off the dock at the Nissequogue River mostly consisting of shorts, but the occasional fisherman is rewarded with a small keeper.
Schools of bluefish are getting more sporadic with fewer fish actively chasing bait, although John at Terminal Tackle said you can find small 1-3 pound cocktails running up and down the beaches, including Sunken Meadow, Short Beach, and Callahan’s, in the early morning and just before sunset. Jigging out in deep water on the other hand is becoming more successful as Captain Stu of Northport Charters told us they are able to supplement their bottom fishing trips with bluefish to 15 pounds. Eatons and Cranes neck saw successful catches this week out in 30-80 feet of water. Striped bass are much more difficult to find with a few shorts hitting artificials off the beaches and others on chunks deep in Eatons and Cranes Neck. Nighttime gives you the best opportunity, but you will have to put the time in. The August heat is definitely making things tough at the moment. Snappers are even hard to find right now.
South Shore Long Island Fishing Report
Fluke remains solid on the South Shore with maybe even a stretch of better fishing seen this week. Bill from Combs Bait & Tackle in Amityville said that outside Fire Island and Jones Inlet was very productive at their respective reefs with just shy of double digit fish hitting the decks in 30-100 feet of water. Big strip baits and teasers above the bucktails are a great advantage for landing more fish. Bryce from White Water Outfitters in Hampton Bays reports pretty good ocean fishing if you can find the fluke. Pods are present in both shallow and deep water, and the anglers willing to spend some time bouncing around to different areas are more likely to be rewarded. Bay Park Fishing Station in Oceanside received a fluke report from anglers fishing in 50 feet of water off the Round House who landed upwards of 30 fish, 10 of which were keepers to 25 inches. Smaller sea bass seem to be the ones hitting at all of the South Shore reefs so guys are really starting to have to pick through them for ones to take home.
Most of the South Shore is barren of striped bass action; however, Bryce at White Water said Shinnecock Inlet and Bay fishing is about as good as August fishing can be. During the day drifting sandworms or clam and chum can get the job done, and eels are productive at nighttime. Fishing is not as good as it was in June or hopefully what it will be in October, but bass to 22 pounds is not a bad deal for this time of year. Snappers and blueclaw crabs are also prevalent in many of the bays and back creeks.
Metro Long Island Fishing Report
Porgy is the number one ticket in western Long Island, according to John at Jack’s Bait & Tackle in the Bronx. His small boat rentals and the party boats are filling buckets at all the usual spots, including Execution Lighthouse, Mamaroneck, and the Points. On the south side, there are plenty of great scup areas, including the Marine Parkway Bridge, the Round House, and Tin Can Grounds, according to Stretch at Stella Maris Bait & Tackle in Brooklyn. The Cross Bay Bridge, Breezy Point, and the Rockaway Reef are also very productive areas. Fluke are a bit pickier, but there are still plenty around for the taking. Ralph from Bernie’s Fishing Tackle in Brooklyn said the shop has seen good catches come from the Marine Parkway Bridge, Breezy Point, Ambrose Channel, and inside Floyd Bennett Field. Over in the Sound, Prospect, Sands, and Mattinecock Points as well as around all of the local barges and bridges are also good spots to find summer flounder. With less than a month until the season closes, John at Jack’s Bait said the fishing looks like it will be good until the very end.
Striper reports were hard to come by in Western Long Island, but Ralph at Bernie’s did hear of a few reports that the party boats were hitting a handful at night on worms. Bluefish are a bit more plentiful, and anglers can find them under the birds around the Breezy Point Jetty, behind the Execution Lighthouse, and inside some of the bays and harbors. Snappers are plentiful in Sheepshead Bay for the kids.
East End/North Fork Long Island Fishing Report
As in many other locations, bottom fishing is the best action on the East End. Captain Mike of the Prime Time 3 out of Orient hit the mussel beds at Plum Island and Fishers Island this week for bucketloads of porgy and sea bass, but he also saw better numbers locally as well. For fluke, the boat sailed out to Frisbees for keepers to 8 pounds. Courtney at Montauk Marine Basin in Montauk said that the south side fishing is fantastic for both scup and sea bass on just about every piece of structure you can find. Anglers are also finding a mixed bag throughout the Peconic of porgy, weakfish, kingfish, and small blues.
The bass bite is getting progressively slower each week to the point where the action is spotty at best. Paul at Paulie’s Bait & Tackle in Montauk said monster bluefish are definitely not in short supply for those looking for a good fight. Surfcasters are catching them off the town beaches during the day on sandworms and clams with the occasional striper taking the bait, and the boat anglers are having similar luck. Captain Mike of the Prime Time 3 ran offshore cod trips to Coxes Ledge this week which resulted in a limit of cod to 12 pounds and a number of haddock to 10 pounds. Big game fishing is still going strong with Courtney at Montauk Marine receiving reports of threshers and makos being caught very close, and offshore anglers hitting bigeyes at Atlantis and marlin & mahi at the Tails.
Best Bets for the Weekend
Not much has changed in the past few weeks with bottom fishing continuing to be the best way to put food on the table. Porgy are non stop on every shore, and enough sea bass are around to keep things interesting. While scup can be caught from the beaches at times, getting the boat out will give you a better shot at finding them as they can be in many different depths this time of year. Shallow water will produce almost exclusively porgy with maybe some short fluke in the mix, while you will find more sea bass if you head out deeper. For keeper fluke, hit structure on the South Shore or East End. Do not get discouraged if you don’t find them on the first drop. Check different areas and depths until you hit the jackpot.
The eastern South Shore or Montauk is where you might find some stripers still hanging around, but you have to decide if the time you need to put in is worth it. The hungry ones have been biting eels drifted at night, but you may be able to try trolling tubes or clams early in the day or late in the evening. This weekend marks the “WICC Greatest Bluefish Tournament on Earth” in the Long Island Sound. If you are participating in the festivities, my guess would be jigging or chunks in deep water can give you a chance at taking home some prizes. If you are not partaking, the rest of the Island is seeing decent bluefish action under birds or off the beach. The offshore forecast is looking like 2-3 feet with relatively light winds, so it looks like a good weekend to seek out sharks, tuna, and other big game species.