Connecticut Fishing Report – September 28, 2017

Those who worked around the winds and dirty water this week have been rewarded with some quality striped bass, monster bluefish, and pods of false albacore throughout southern New England.

Connecticut Fishing Report

Andrew, at Fishin Factory 3 in Middletown, told me that the offshore storms didn’t scare the albies away, as they are being spotted from South County to the far western sound. They are starting to get more finicky, but if you move from pod to pod you can usually find one that will chew. Big bluefish are still being reported around the mouth of the river. Fish to 17 pounds are eating fresh chunks in the usual shore spots, and some anglers are reporting gators blowing bunker out of the water around the marina slips. The same area is holding some decent striped bass, with a few large fish taken by local sharpies this week. The water is still warm and the run hasn’t begun, so all those bigger fish remain a mostly nighttime game. Sea bass action is steady around Westbrook and Clinton, while hickory shad reports are starting to pick up in the upper stretches of the river.

Over at Hillyers Tackle in Waterford, the big news last week was the pending state record bonito caught by Mark Drummey. The fish weighed in at 11.5 pounds and was taken locally on a white Zoom Fluke. The windy weekend did little to hurt the albie fishing, in fact it may have helped, as the CT shoreline seems to have more fish afterwards. Local surfcasters are also reporting some good catches, for those that went out at night and battled the northeast winds. Bartletts is putting up a few bass, and the Watch Hill reefs are reportedly fishing pretty well. Scup action has been consistent, but bluefish action remains spotty.

Gene, over at Black Hall Outfitters in Old Lyme, told me that the recent weather seems to have kickstarted the fall run into full swing. There is a big mix of fish locally, from the central sound to the eastern stretches of the state, and some great fishing for bass, albies and bluefish right around the mouth of the river. Hugh bluefish have been blowing up on The Doc and similar, large topwater plugs, and there is a healthy population of bass in the mix to about 25 pounds. There are plenty of albies around right now, but Gene recommends sizing down your presentation right now as they have become finicky. Despite the warm weather, blackfish season is right around the corner and the shop will the hosting their annual TogTober tournament. Be sure to check out their website for details.

Captain TJ, of Rock n Roll Charters told me that the striper action has been a bit spotty this week, at least in terms of larger fish. They have been hooking up with plenty of shorts, which has kept the action up, and the big girls should start to move as the weather cools. The bluefish have been a bit scattered, but if you can dial in their spots you can catch as many as you want, in all sorts of sizes. The same could be said for porgies, and there have been some slob porgies out there this week. Most trips are still seeing some quality keeper sea bass coming on the porgy rigs as well. It’s the fall run and things are happening fast, now is the time to book a trip, TJ is booking trips through November 19th.

Rhode Island Fishing Report

The Frances Fleet in Narragansett has had to endure some tough weather conditions over the past couple of weeks, with the remnants of the hurricanes making a mess of the cod grounds. The water has been quite churned up and dirty, and while trips are slow, the crew has made the most of their opportunities on the water. Over the weekend Captain Richie reported some OK action, with a few cod upward of 20 pounds. Unfortunately, there just wasn’t a ton of fish to go around. The good news is that there are fish around, so things should fire right up when the weather clears at the latter part of the weekend and next week. Tautog is now open in Rhode Island, but the fleet will not start their blackfish trips until October 15th, when the 6 fish per angler limit kicks in.

Dave, at Ocean State Tackle in Providence, reports that albie catches are still very good in all the usual locations, including some decent catches for shore anglers. Tautog fishing has really started to pick up in the bay, and these fish should continue to push into shallower water in the coming weeks. Scup catches remain strong at India Point Park. Anglers are still plucking some decent striped bass out of the Providence River, and while the Cape Cod Canal isn’t as hot as a few weeks ago, it is still producing some hefty bass. Dave is now fully stocked with all the essential false albacore gear. He also has an enormous stock of Lemire’s Plugworks wooden plugs to get you ready for the fall run.

Saltwater Edge in Middletown reports that the recent wind and swells did little to push the false albacore out of the area. Shore and boat anglers continue to catch across the ocean state, on both the fly and spinning gear. It is really showing no signs of slowing down in the immediate future, and the plethora of bait in the area also has started to attract some better bluefish and striped bass for surfcasters. Tautog reports are starting to pick up a bit, with bigger fish starting to filter into shallow water and take the jigs.

Connecticut Fishing Forecast

While being bombarded with residual effects of the hurricanes may have made the fishing difficult for us over the past 10 days, it certainly doesn’t seem to have done much to move any of the fish out. Those who got out through this recent weather window are starting to find more keeper striped bass and monster bluefish across Long Island Sound, while false albacore numbers seem to be just as good as ever across both states. Scup and sea bass are still biting, with tautog action picking up in Rhode Island and getting close to opening in CT.