Long Island Fishing Report - April 18, 2019

Happy Striper Season everyone! Reports are hot across the board. Whether you like striped bass, bluefish, winter flounder, herring, or anything freshwater, you are in for a fun April. Time to dust off the gear and get fishin’!

Fishing Report for Long Island

Mark at Bay Park Fishing Station in Wantagh got great reports from a couple boats running to New Jersey. Nick Savene of “No Time” Charters filled a limit of striped bass to 25 pounds for 5 clients this past Tuesday. They sailed to Raritan Bay in New Jersey for those big girls, and found success trolling lures and casting rubber shads on spinning gear.

Tim Yaginos also took a couple guys down to New Jersey on his boat the “Margarita”. They fished just inside Sandy Hook and found stripers to 15.5 pounds. Most of their fish were caught trolling chartreuse and white Mojos.

Some fun surfcasting can be found locally in Bay Park County Park. There are plenty of small stripers willing to eat Storm Search Baits, swim shads, and bucktails.

Theo at Causeway Bait & Tackle in Wantagh had a reassuring report as well. People are catching schoolie stripers from Robert Moses’ Field 6. Tins and bucktails are the ticket in that area. Plenty of schoolie bass have been caught on clams at Wantagh Park as well. For any bigger fish, you’ll need to hop aboard a boat. Theo also tells me that people are catching bluefish in Long Beach and points West of there.

Frank at Chasing Tails Bait & Tackle in Oakdale was smoking 3 trout out back when I called. There have been tons of trout stocked across Long Island already, with more scheduled through May. These stocked rainbow, brown, and brook trout are fantastic for introducing new people to the sport of fishing; for seasoned fishermen, these fish can offer an easily bent rod with a side of adrenaline, a welcome combo after the winter hiatus. Some ponds even had trout stocked that were up to and over 10 pounds. See the NYS DEC trout stocking list online to find a stocked lake near you.

It seems the schoolie striped bass have moved in pretty evenly throughout the island, as Frank confirmed they are in the Oakdale area “big time” as well. You’d stand a good chance catching some if you focus your effort on the brackish water in any of Long Island’s rivers. 4-5 inch paddle tail Bass Assassins are a perfect imitation of the herring and alewives those stripers followed up into the rivers. Just like the other shops, Frank informed me of the larger bass biting in Raritan Bay, along with bluefish in that same area.

Kathy at Freeport Bait & Tackle had the hot info on herring and winter flounder. She said both species are being caught on either side of the Jones Inlet, at Reynolds Channel, State Boat Channel and the Jones Beach Fishing Pier. She is selling flounder bait, so if you need bloodworms and clams, stop on in. She also has green crabs for blackfish bait, but she hasn’t heard of any tautog being caught yet. Kathy did, however, hear of some large tilefish being caught by a customer who went offshore on a charter into very deep water.

Paul at River Bay Outfitters in Baldwin had a fantastic report concerning the saltwater side: lots of schoolies in the back bays, ready and willing to chew on a warm day. Even more exciting for many is the return of some big bluefish to western LI. Paul tells me they’re being found here and there on the north and south shore, back bays and front bays. It’s looking good for us bluefish fanatics. On top of that, there is an abundance of Bunker in the area…. it can get really exciting when you put those two fish together.

Paul’s freshwater trout analysis was great as well. Our local Long Island rivers are producing well, especially the Carmans. That’s great news for us fly fishermen. Unfortunately for those who like travel to upstate NY for their trout fishing, those streams and rivers were blown out by recent rains.

Back in Freeport at Sea Isle Tackle, Robert reported on the schoolie stripers in the surf, and the bigger ones in Raritan Bay. For schoolies, we’re talking mostly 16-24 inch fish.

Reports on the East End are few and far between. Most boats out here haven’t started sailing, and shop regulars don’t seem to be putting in much effort just yet. I did get in touch with Kenny at Tight Lines Tackle in Sag Harbor, though, and he had the goods on the stripers. For the past week and a half, stripers have been hitting rubber shads in the South Fork surf, and in the bays. You’ll find more bass in the surf, though. Southampton Town stocked a number of its freshwater ponds with some solid 12-inch trout a few weeks ago, so residents of the town can target those. Nonresidents will have to hire a guide to target any Southampton Town freshwater. There are many large bass and pickerel in their ponds, so if you find yourself targeting them, Kenny says you shouldn’t be afraid to throw big lures. He has whatever you might need to catch any of these fish.

Fishing Forecast for Long Island

Freshwater fishing is on fire. This time of year, you stand a chance at catching some very large bass, pickerel, white perch, yellow perch, and the list goes on. Some of those fish will be preparing to spawn, so they are the heaviest they’ll be all year.

The small stripers are here, and hitting a variety of baits on the warmer days. Keep your presentations small to catch good numbers of them. Also consider crushing your hook’s barbs, as it will make releasing these short fish quick and easy.

Yesterday I saw whales swimming through Southampton. All sorts of critters are washing up in the surf, like sand fleas, cinder worms, crabs, and eel larvae. Gannets have been dive-bombing 100 yards from shore for the past week, so one can assume there are larger baits moving along the beach as well. Expect even more reports of racer bluefish entering LI waters next week. If we see some nice weather, do yourself a favor and get out on the water! The fish like those warmer April days just as much as we do. Tight lines to you all.