Long Island - New York Fishing Report - September 14, 2017

Mid-September is always a great time to be on the water and this week did not disappoint. Fluke fishing continues to be red hot in some spots across Long Island with some big doormats hitting the decks. Sea bass and porgies hold steady as aggressive and numerous along the bottoms, and false albacore have become pretty active along with shorelines with some big blues and a couple stripers.

Metro

At Hudson Park Bait and Tackle, John reports that the gator blues have found the New Rochelle waters this week—15- to 17-pound fish are working close to shore chasing the schools of rain bait and spearing. In the deeper water, there are mostly smaller blues on the schools of bunker that are still around, hitting on bait and diamond jigs. Fluke fishing is still fishing well but mostly in the very rocky areas. The sandy bottoms aren’t producing much so if you’re looking for these flatties, you may have to be willing to lose a few rigs in the process.

In Brooklyn, at Stella Maris, Stretch has been happy to see some albies off the Coney Island Pier and the waters nearby. The action has been decent over the last couple days and will hopefully stick around a little longer. Porgies and weakfish are also producing well off Floyd Bennet Field. On the offshore side, there’s been some tuna around between Chicken Canyon and the 100 square waters. Anglers haven’t been knocking them dead but the bite is worth the trip.

South Shore

At Causeway Bait and Tackle, there is also a strong showing of fluke this week. The State Channel has been coughing up plenty of 5- to 7-pounders with not too many shorts but lots of sea robins. Stripers can be found taking plugs on the high outgoing tides and especially at night. These have been a mix of schoolies and bigger fish but no monsters just yet. Offshore, there’s been a good run of yellow and blue fin tuna on the troll lately. Some 60- to 70-pound fish have been showing up and seem to be in pretty decent numbers.

Paul from River Bay Outfitters reports that the North Shore in Manhassett Bay had been allowing fly riders to gather a mixed bag catch of bass, shad and some monster scup. There is tons of bait of all kinds here so the action should only improve as the weather becomes more and more fall like. On the South Shore, some false albacore were tearing up the waters around Breezy Point and further east near Montauk. There were enough to make the waters almost boil over at times so keep a sharp eye out in the days to come. For the freshwater scene, ponds are fishing well but remain a little weedy for now. The first real cold snap should help drop these levels and just in time as stocking should be happening very soon for those ponds that receive it.

North Shore

Capt. Stu of Northport Charters continues to find pay dirt with sea bass, scup and fluke. Fluke are holding steady in the range of 3 to 4 pounds but with a solid bite. Sea bass are reaching 4 pounds while porgies are not far behind at just over 3. There remains tons of bait in the harbors and played their role perfectly as they lured monster blues in this week. These fish should be around long enough for everyone to shoot down and catch their fill as the bait is very strong in numbers.  Capt. Stu’s open boat is now running Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday from 7 to 1. The boat leaves out of Britannia Marina in Northport.

In Kings Park, at Terminal Tackle, John Sr. reports that the waters are still overrun by porgies as has been the case for much of the second half of summer. Sea bass are also around in the deeper waters but haven’t been as hot. Stripers have picked up and are working close to shore. The bite is almost exclusively at night with lots of schoolies and a few 20-pounders mixed in. Blues are working their way in with tons of cocktails off the beaches and some bigger fish out deeper and off the Triangle. Albies showed up off of Sunken Meadow and should hopefully lead to more coming through soon. As far as snappers go, there are still plenty and they will most likely hold their snapper sizes for another week or two before growing more and moving off.

Further east, at Miller Place Bait and Tackle Jim has seen tons of blues this week. There’s been a lot of cocktails around but some bigger fish have been working off the middle grounds along with an occasional striper. Diamond jigs have been doing the trick for these fish. Fluke fishing has been cold here but the always reliable scup and sea bass are picking up the slack. Some big sea bass can be found off Buoy 9.

East End

In Hampton Bays, at White Water Outfitters, fluke action has been best on the ocean side this week. There are some fish on the bay side however it’s more of a battle to get past the sea robins. Stripers have moved into the Inlet and are working off some of the beaches along with the first solid wave of albies. Things are setting up very nicely for a fall run so be prepared to break out the heavy surf gear.

At Gone Fishing Marina, TJ reports that the fluke fishing has been absolutely on fire this week. There are very few shorts still left around and the average fish has been 5 to 7 pounds. The top of the class came in this week at a whopping 14 pounds. Sea bass and porgies are also fishing well but you will need to do some picking through the shorts. Stripers can be found in most places but the best action is at night on eels and small plugs. Some false albacore are also on patrol out here right outside the Inlet and on the south side of the Island.

Over at Montauk Marine Basin the fluke are also dominating the bent rods. Deeper water seems to be producing some bigger fish but there are plenty of fish to be found in all levels. Bass fishing has been so-so but the arrival of the albies balances things out for most anglers. Sea bass and scup are in high numbers as usual so over all it’s tough to find a spot bare of action.

Fishing Forecast for Long Island

Things seem to be falling into place perfectly for the fall run and we are beginning to see the first strong signs of action now. However, if you’re not looking to pound the surf the fluke action is red hot on the East End with fish of a lifetime almost becoming common. Either way be sure to get a line in the water as we are quickly falling into one of the best all around fishing seasons on Long Island.