As we creep further into December, the weather makes it more difficult for the ever-decreasing number of anglers that are still looking to run into some tight lines. The bite, however, is still active and success has been found from schoolie stripers to herring, blackfish, sea bass and cod.
John from Hudson Park Bait & Tackle reports that the main action has been with the herring run in New Rochelle waters. Recently, the fishing has been good and there are still a couple blackfish turning up now and then. By now most of these fish are shorts but a wandering keeper may still be pulled off bottom structure adding a bonus to the cooler.
At Stella Maris, Stretch is still seeing flocks of birds working over schools of short bass, although it’s much less fierce than earlier in the season. On the other hand, the ‘tog have held on pretty strong as there are fish around the Jersey Reef, Buoy 17, and New Bottom areas. The bigger fish it seems are near buoy 17 and, if the weather permits, trips here have been well worth the effort.
Carmine from Camp Site Sport Shop hasn’t seen a ton of effort on the fishing front of late but he did say that some schoolie bass are still up in the creeks and hanging around local docks. Herring can also be found locally and they have been a little more reliable than the bass.
Over at Terminal Tackle, John, Sr. reports that the herring have been around but haven’t been great. It’s been tough to time them but when everything comes together the results have been very good. The herring have been mostly in Centerport and Huntington according to John, and there are some squid beginning to mix in with them. Anglers have been finding a couple schools of squid off the local docks and there was a hot blackfish bite this past Sunday morning. It didn’t last long and most of the fish were shorts but the action was great and the keepers were weighing in at up to 4 pounds.
At Miller Place Bait & Tackle, Jim has also seen a majority of success coming from the herring bite. The Mt. Sinai scene has done well of late and herring rigs are moving fast off the shelves. The blackfish action has slowed its pace. Tautog season comes to a close on Wednesday and with it the shop’s season-long tournament wraps up, too. The current leader is a bulldog tipping the scales at more than 9 pounds.
Rich from White Water Outfitters reports that the ‘tog fishing was hot early this week out at Montauk. A couple of the store’s employees made it out for an afternoon and fared well with a mix of keepers and throw backs. If you can make it out to the deeper waters, sea bass continue to tear up the wrecks in 150-foot depths where some real brutes are helping to fill angler’s freezers.
In Montauk, Courtney from Montauk Marine Basin and Tanya from West Lake Marina noted that most anglers are heading to the South-East side of Block Island where they are catching a mixed bag of cod, blackfish and sea bass. The bite has been reliable and there has been enough action between the three species to keep the whole boat entertained.
At Gone Fishing Marina, TJ called it “A slow week” but noted there is still some action with blackfish off of Cartwrights. The keepers have been tougher to come by lately but they are still around willing to put in the time.
Paul from River Bay Outfitters reports that aside from a few herring, the salt water scene has been relatively quiet this week. On the freshwater side however, the fishing on the Consequent River has been doing very well lately. Bulky streamer flies have created the most interest with the fish and the park is reportedly staying open right through the end of December – and possibly all year.
From the Staten Island Tuna Club, Joe has seen some stripers being caught on the New Jersey side of Raritan Bay. This occurred on Wednesday, when blues were also hitting at the Midland Beach Pier. The Staten Island Tuna Club is having their first fisherman’s flea market on January 21, so make sure to stop by for some late-season upgrades.
Fishing Forecast for Long Island
As the lull of winter continues to encroach on the scene, the salty side is still offering a few end of the year pickings for those willing to brave the elements. While continuing to get in your last licks on stripers and bottom species, look to prepare the ice fishing gear as it looks like this year will create prime conditions to drop some tip-ups and jigs below the frozen surface.