Rhode Island Fishing Report - September 24, 2015

False albacore fishing remains strong, with shore anglers faring as good as boat anglers this week. A few cold nights seemed to be all it took to get a few more striped bass fishing, as quality linesiders are now being caught with some regularity.

Rhode Island Fishing Report

Captain Russ, of The Seven B’s in Narragansett, reports that their full day multi-species trips remain very consistent. Favorable drift conditions late last week and early this week resulted in scup to 3-pounds, along with black sea bass to 6 pounds. Boat limits remain pretty easy to come-by for both species. These trips will continue to sail daily, while private charters are available on the Jeanie B. Private charter trips are booking up quickly so be sure to contact the fleet before time runs out.

Not much has changed at The Saltwater Edge in Middletown, where just about everyone around the island is spending their time chasing hard tails. False albacore have been taking advantage of the wind and tide currents, and pushing bait balls tight to shore. This has resulted in excellent false albacore fishing for both boat and shore anglers, with the shore anglers having the upper hand in some cases. Some strong winds in the upcoming days may dirty things up a bit, but should also help keep some of the bait penned in tight to shore. Tautog, sea bass and scup fishing are all very strong as well, but most of the angling effort is still being spent on the albies.

Howard, at Galilee Bait and Tackle in Narragansett, reported strong false albacore fishing along most of the Narragansett shoreline this week. Again, the bait has been pushed in tight to shore in most locations, which has resulted in surfcasters finding as much success as boat anglers in many instances. The occasional green bonito has still been mixed in with the albies, but for the most part they have moved back out and are being caught around Block Island. The local striped bass fishing has started to improve, and has coincided with the weather being a bit more fall-like. The adult bunker that have been around the harbor all summer are finally starting to get harassed by bass in the 30-pound class. Dusk and dawn blitzes of small bass and bluefish are also becoming more common. They are often occurring close to shore as well, in many of the same places that the albies are showing up later in the day. The Block Island bass fishing has also remained strong, but most anglers are reporting that the fish are moving around and becoming a bit tougher to locate. Black sea bass has been very good with fish in the 3- to 5-pound class still showing up, and the cod fishing is really starting to pick up at Cox’s Ledge.

At Quaker Lane Bait and Tackle, Steve reported that local surf anglers have been finding much more activity of bass and blues over the past week. Most of the south county beaches have seen large blitzes of schoolies during the morning hours this week, while the Narragansett and Jamestown shoreline has seen a push of better fish to about 36 inches. Bottom fishermen have had no trouble finding scup and sea bass, and most are reporting much better tautog fishing on the shallow rockpiles this week.

Mike, at Watch Hill Outfitters in Westerly, reported that most striped bass anglers were pretty pleased this week to find some great fishing close to home. Watch Hill and Sugar reefs produced a number of quality 30- to 40-pound bass to anglers drifting eels, and for the first time in a while the local reefs seem to be fishing better than Block Island. False albacore action has been hot and heavy from Napatree to Narragansett, with shore and boat anglers having great success this week. The abundance of bait has kept the fish spread out in small pods, but there seems to be no shortage of hardtails. Mike also mentioned the strong cod fishing at Cox’s Ledge, and also rumors of bluefin making their way back to the Mudhole.

Connecticut Fishing Report

The eastern sound black sea bass fishing has shown no signs of slowing according to Hillyers in Waterford. Sea bass action has been great in shallow water, deep water and a few were even caught close to the surface on metal jigs intended for bluefish. There is no doubt plenty of quality fish and they are plenty aggressive. False albacore have invaded the sound as well, and anglers are finding them on the Waterford shoreline, as well as from the boat in The Race and around Fisher’s. The bluefishing has also been excellent at The Race, with the outgoing tide being best. Some very large blitzes of keeper striped bass also took place around Fisher’s over the weekend, while local striper fishing has been on the slow side. Niantic Bay and the river are loaded with snapper bluefish, and the snapper fishing is now at its peak.

Andrew, at Fishin Factory 3 in Middletown, reports that most anglers have been taking part in the false albacore craziness, and the fish are now spread out from Rhode Island to points west of the Connecticut River. These fish are now covering a wide range so locating them has proven more difficult, but those putting their time in are being rewarded handsomely. The local sharpies have seen a slight increase in quality striped bass, but overall it’s still quiet. Big bluefish, on the other hand, have not been hard to find, and can be taken on large topwater plugs around the mouth of the river.

At Rivers End in Old Saybrook, James reports that some decent numbers of small striped bass and bluefish have taken notice of all the peanut bunker around the sound. Blitzes have been reported from Napatree, The Race and the Westbrook shoreline, along with most points in between. There is still plenty of bunker in the lower river, and the big bluefish have taken notice. A few striped bass have taken notice as well, including a 35-pound fish caught from shore on a topwater spook. False albacore have spread as far west as the Duck Islands this week, which has cut down on the fishing pressure. The blue crabbing in the Connecticut River is excellent for both numbers, and some monster crabs; while the snapper bluefishing has also picked up steam.

Captain TJ, of Rock and Roll Charters in Clinton, had one of the best striped bass fishing weeks of the season, with consistent fishing and fish to 35 pounds. TJ believes that the fall run has just gotten kicked into gear, and the next few weeks should be very good. There are still plenty of bluefish to go around, while the bottom fishing for scup and sea bass is as strong as ever.

Mike Roy of Reel Cast Charters had excellent multi-species action through the end of last week and into this week. Not only did he have bass to 30 pounds after dark, he also got into blitzing 30-pound class fish well after daybreak on a few occasions. He has also witnessed some intense aerial shows from blitzing bluefish, and has steadily picked away at nice schools of false albacore. Light-tackle fishing in our area doesn’t get much better than it is now, be sure to contact Mike for a great multi-species day.

Fishing Forecast

The fall run has gathered speed, and along with false albacore and blitzing bluefish, we are now starting to see more and more striped bass take notice of the abundance of bait. If you head you this weekend just armed with some spinning gear, there’s a great chance your’ arms will be too sore to move by the end of the day.