The dry weather we have all been looking for finally came into play this week along with a blistering heat. It may have slowed down the bite across Long Island for one of the days but overall, it has been prime conditions to get out and put in some time on the water. Blues and bass continue to become more aggressive with plenty of keepers in most locations. Porgies, fluke and a few weakfish are also doing their parts to keep lines tight and with the amount of bait this year, that’s shouldn’t change soon.
Metro
John from Hudson Park Bait and Tackle reports that the monster porgies are in and pushing the 18-19 inch mark. Stripers and bluefish have been hitting well and although they haven’t been the biggest fish reported so far with blues in the 12-15 pound range and bass weighing up to 25-30 pounds, there are plenty of keepers around with lots of decent fish mixed in.
In Brooklyn, at Stella Maris, Stretch has seen good scup action and plenty of fluke this week. There is still some sorting through shorts to deal with, as always, but limits seem to be a vary realistic goal. Bass are being taken on jigs off the boat and have reached up to the 40-pound mark for a couple of fish. The first shark reports also trickled in this week and should turn into some hot fishing as we climb deeper into the summer season.
South Shore
At Sea Isle Custom Rod Builders, Robert continues to find great action around the Freeport waters. Fluking has been best on the bay side and just outside the Inlet may be all you need to reach. Stripers have also been on patrol in the bay however the trolling this week did see a slight drop off. Still plenty of big fish being aggressive but the heat may have played a roll. A few anglers ran into some sharks off shore as as Robert says, there are all the blue sharks you can handle around as well as a couple makos.
In Wantagh, at Causeway Bait and Tackle, the bay fluke fishing has been tough lately. The ocean side though has picked up off of Hempstead and Atlantic Reef. Sand eels have been all over and really seem to have found the attention of all species. Stripers have been fishing well on the bay side and clam has gained the edge for hooking into keepers. Trolling has been hot to the west of Wantagh and plugs off the beach have been decent. There are a couple of fish scattered around off the surf but no real hot areas have emerged just yet for reliable fishing.
Paul from River Bay Outfitters reports that he’s noticed the heat play a big role in this weeks fishing. Both for fish and anglers, it was tough to be out for more than a few hours at times. However, there have been lots of fluke out of Randel’s Channel. You will have to put in your time to work through the shorts but keepers are being dug out. On the fresh water side, Peconic River was terrific this week for an event Paul held with the Long Island Fly Rodders. There were tons of bluegills, a few bass and lots of pickerel to go around. This Saturday, June 17th starting at 10am, Paul will be having a Grand Reopening with presentations, demonstrations, fly tying and tons of food.
North Shore
Captain Stu of Northport Charters continued to find big summer flatties this week. A 5.5 pounder topped the scale on Sunday with some other nice keepers to go along with it. There haven’t been an overwhelming amount of doormats but the fish they are finding have been worth the wait. Sand eels and spearing have been thick all week and should lead into some great fishing in the coming weeks.
Aboard the Celtic Quest, the porgy bite has been outstanding. There’s been a ton of fish spread out over a large area and makes targeting the scup a very reliable job. The half day trips have been porgy focused where as the full day trips are porgy and fluke because there are only so many scup you can catch. The fluking was tough this week but should be picking up as we move forward.
In Kings Park, at Terminal Tackle, the stripers have been hitting hard and increasing in size. Trolling has been plenty effective but it seems this week that bunker has produced the bigger fish. Blues are mixed in as well as tons of 1-2 pound cocktails that have been tearing up the surface on sand eels off a few local beaches. Diamond jigs and small poppers will be all you need to make for a quick afternoon of action. Fluke have reached into the 6-pound range, along with the always present shorts and sea robins, but have been stuffed to the gills with sand eels. Porgies are biting well of the rocky beaches in about 30-feet of water. They have been consistently large too with a good number of fishing weighing in at 2-pounds or up.
Jim from Miller Place Bait and Tackle has been seeing the bass action pick up both with the bite and size of fish. This week, starting on the 10th, there was a 30 pounder, a 25.5 pounder and a 21.8 pounder caught on consecutive days. The bigger fish have come off the boats but you can still run into a bass in the 10-15 pound range off the local beaches. Fluke continue to bite beat off of buoy 11 and scup have been hot off Cranesneck. Cocktail blues have made an appearance off the beaches of Port Jeff and Mt. Sinai.
East End
At Blue Water Lures, Chris reports that there are still a few fluke left on the Peconic Bay side but the bite has certainly dropped off since the start of the season as the sound side has begun to light up. Gator blues are found off most local beaches on poppers and diamond jigs and scup are all over. In Jesops, you can still pull a few weakfish out with a little effort but they never really light up so far this year.
In Hampton Bays, at White Water Outfitters, huge amounts of blues have found their way into the local waters. Some bass have been mixed in but the blues are dominating the scene for now. Fluke fishing has been decent so far in the ocean but the bay side has been much more consistent. Offshore, about 20-30 miles off, some big blue fins have moved in. At the Canyons, there been some sun-100-pound tuna in but the bite has been decent.
Fishing Forecast for Long Island
Weather and fishing are heating up this week as sand eels flood the waters across Long Island and draw the attention of all predators near by. Look for the beaches to start lighting up as schools of bait are pushed up against shore. With beautiful weather in this weekend’s forecast, it’s going to be as good a time as any to get out and wet a line.