When the weather window has allowed anglers to get out on the water this week, they have been awarded with fish. Big striped bass are still along the south shore feeding on sand eels and bunker. On the north shore and both north and south forks the blackfishing has been outstanding. Here is what your local shops and marinas had to say for this weeks report.
Fishing Report For Long Island
Bay Park Fishing Station reported on Monday, David Alfano, Renzo Regina and Mike Campanelli of “Jade” trolled the Fluorescent Yellow SpoonFed Bunker Spoon in 55ft of water just east of Deb’s Inlet and had 3 keeper Bass, with the trophy topping the scale at 51.5 lbs! Today, trolling white Tony Maja spoons off of the Roundhouse (approx. 50 ft of water), Brian Connolly of the “Pepper Pei” landed a 24.60 lb Striped Bass.
Hudson Park Bait and Tackle reports lots and lots of tog in the area. There is a ton of action with the shorts, but there are keepers and some big fish mixed in. Schoolie stripers seem to be just about everywhere. Anglers are catching fish with bucktails and diamond jigs. Don’t forget your fly rod at home either, John said they are doing very well with the flies as well. The bigger striped bass have been coming on the troll. Both spoons and mojos are doing the trick.
Stella Maria Bait and Tackle said, anglers are doing well with the striped bass trolling mojos and spoons. Snag and dropping live bunker seems to be your best bet however, when you can find the bunker pods. The bass have been a variety of sizes from schoolies all the up to the 40lb mark. Blackfish continues to be fishing well, both green and white crabs are the bait of choice.
Capitol Fishing Tackle Company in Manhattan said, anglers are catching a lot of striped bass in the area. Though many are schoolie sized fish, there are some keepers mixed in. Blackfish from the boats and from shore has been good locally. Once again there are lot of shorts, but they have seen some fish in the 4-5lb class caught.
River Bay Outfitters reports that the Connetquot is fishing very well. Paul said, two anglers from the shop fished the river this week and caught 25-30 trout. On Saturday the river had the cadets from West Point fish the river and they also got into a bunch of fish. The local ponds were fishing good before this cold weather arrived. Paul is also starting up the shops fly tying classes again. It is a great way to some tips for all skill levels. For more information visit their site for the class schedule.
Captree Bait and Tackle reports, even with the snow today anglers still got into the bass. They had two anglers report catching 13 striped bass today. All were released , but a 28” and 30” bass for the dinner table. There are many schoolies around, but they have had bass up to 35lbs in the last two days.
Westlake Marina reported that the blackfishing has been very good with many limits coming from the boats. Westlake has green, white, and hermit crabs in stock right now. It is always best though to call ahead to make sure and reserve your baits. Seabass fishing has also been good, with a lot of big fish coming up.
Miller Place Bait and Tackle reports, when the boats are able to get out the blackfishing has been great. They have had a 7 and a 7.2lb tog weighed in at the shop this week. They have heard of many quick boats limits and anglers staying out on the water and releasing everything else. There are still striped bass around. They had an angler hit the beach this morning and get into a bunch of schoolie bass.
White Water Outfitters reports, tough conditions have kept a lot of anglers at home. The surf anglers are still hitting the beaches and catching some bass. These bass are still on sand eels. Blackfishing on the North Fork reefs and strifes has been outstanding. The fishing should continue to do well with the fish starting to move to a little deeper water. For the offshore anglers, on Monday the weather window allowed anglers to get to the canyons. They were rewarded with large big eye, albacore, and bluefin.
Fishing Forecast for Long Island
The weather is going to be tough for the next few days, but fishing is still not over for anglers in the area. Sunday looks like your best day for the weekend. Once the weather cooperates, anglers should still be able to catch striped bass from the boats and surf along the south shore. Blackfishing should pick up where it left off all over the area after this weather leaves. This is the time of year where many anglers start to put the gear away for the winter and shops start to close. We should however, still have another couple of weeks of good fishing both for tog and striped bass. Good luck to everyone out there on the water and have a great weekend.