Long Island - New York Fishing Report - July 5, 2018

I hope everyone had a great holiday and were able to get out on the water and fish.  This past week seems to be much of the same as last week. Porgies and seabass still seem to be yielding the best action all over the island.  Offshore the bluefin and yellowfin bite has remained hot.  Big striped bass have moved out east from Shinnecock to Montauk and into the sound and north shore.  Fluke has been spotty in areas and steady in others around the island.  On the freshwater side of things, the early morning and evening times have been best when the heat is more manageable.

Stella Maris Bait and Tackle reported that the porgies are loaded in the area and seem to be everywhere.  The striped bass have moved into the deeper water and are mostly being caught on the troll. Fluke fishing has been picking up both on the boats and from shore.  The new species hitting the surf has been the brown sharks. They have moved into the area and the action has been getting better by the day.

Causeway Bait and Tackle reports keeper fluke have still been caught in the back of the bay, in areas such as Baldwin and Merrick Bay.  At the Jones Beach Piers, anglers have been getting some nice shots at some bluefish.  On the ocean front, fisherman are still catching schoolie striped bass and bluefish.  They have also heard of report of big sting rays and brown sharks being caught from the surf as well.

Bay Park Fishing Station reports, today Captain John of I Fish, You Fish, went out to Linden’s school and caught a nice 6.35lb fluke using Bay Park spearing and squid.  They said on Sunday, Ray, Kyle, and Ray Jr. headed out to the Hempstead Reef. Ray Jr landed a nice 6lb seabass along with four other keepers and 30 large porgies using fresh clams for bait.

River Bay Outfitters reports, Buffalo Matt with the 2 handed fly rod purchased at the shop caught a nice bluefish from the surf this week.  He has also been doing very well in the local ponds with the carp on the fly rod.  Staying with the freshwater fishing Paul has been taking the short ride north to the tail waters and has been doing very well with the trout.  Locally he said at the Connetquot the best action has been in the evening when the heat isn’t as bad.

White Water Outfitters reports the bluefin tuna bite has been red hot out in the canyons and they specified that people are catching really big fish.  The main areas seem to be SW of the Coimbra out to the Texas tower.  There has been a good yellowfin and big eye bite out in west Atlantis to Atlantis.  There have also been smaller bluefin mixed into this area as well.  Locally drifting live eels at night in the canal for big striped bass has been great.  On the beaches, anglers have been catching bass in a variety of sizes to schoolie sized fish to fish over 30 pounds.

Westlake Marina reports that they had a really nice mako shark weighed in two days ago.  The fish was taken by a 14 year fisherman named James on the boat the Double D.  They have also had some big fluke hit the scales this week.  They had several 7-9lb fluke weighed in with the biggest being 11.4 pounds.  Seabass and porgy fishing remains strong.  While you might have to pick through a lot of smaller seabass almost all anglers have come back with their limits.  This week they have also seen some really nice size striped bass weighed in.  The biggest being caught by a young angler named Johnny who weighed in a 47.9lb striped bass.

Miller Place Bait and Tackle reports striped bass have been taken at the middle grounds weighing up to 48lbs.  They also had a 42lb fish weighed in and heard of a 32lb bass caught as well from the area.  The porgy fishing has been ok in the Cranes Neck area with keeper seabass mixed in as well. The best reports of fluke fishing have come from the north fork of the island.  With many fluke being caught in the 21-23 inch size range.

Harbor Marina of East Hampton reports some some great sharking action. Taking advantage of an early Bermuda high weather pattern (i.e. summer doldrums) and calm ocean seas, boats from 3 Mile Harbor were able to make the trek around Montauk south to the Butterfish hole. I mated on one boat that caught and released 6 Blue Sharks and a Mako shark that was very close to the 83 inch mark (It is very challenging to get an accurate measurement on a bigger Mako, thrashing near the boat), and after a couple of amazing runs and a spectacular jump behind the transom it was released by the conservation-minded captain and crew. It was great to see a healthy offshore marine environment and responsible fishermen co-existing.

A nice body of big bass have moved into Eastern Long Island waters and this is definitely a good time to try for the trophy fish. The lack of a slot limit on big stripers is concerning, so please consider catch and relaease on the big girls or only keeping one big fish per trip for your vessel.

The Fluke and Seabass fishing has been strong along the north side of Gardiners Island with many boats limiting out on recent trips. The light tackle boats are keeping busy patroling for fish working sand eels along the flats and dinner plate sized porgies continue to entertain anglers both young and old.

Fishing Forecast for Long Island

With the rain coming in tomorrow, it should finally give a break from all of the heat.  For the inshore boat anglers out there porgies and seabass seem to be your best bet for the weekend.  Do not skip out on the fluke however.  While things seem to be hit or miss depending on your area you can still find some nice sized fish around most of the island.  Offshore the tuna bite seems to be on fire.  Both on the troll and even fish caught on top with different lures castes to the fish breaking the surface.  Big bluefin seem to be the main attraction but you never know what you might run into out in the canyons.  Surf anglers looking for striped bass, it’s time to head out east. The reports this week seems that this is the area to give you the best shot of catching a nice striped bass from the suds.  Along the south shore if you are looking to get into a fish that might be bigger then you are the sharks have moved in.  Brown sharks and even sand tiger sharks have been reported this week.  I have seen photos of these fish not only at night, but during the day as well.  Hope everyone has a great weekend and as always tight lines!