Long Island Fishing Report – August 15, 2019

Pictured Above: A nice fluke caught aboard Northport Charters.

Bonito and Spanish mackerel have been tearing up the abundant bait all along the south shore.
The amount of small bait, pretty much everywhere, is the talk of the towns as we approach albie season. Fluking has been red hot off Montauk, and some big ones were also taken at the reefs/wrecks along the south shore this week.

Big stripers moved over to Block Island. Some speculate that this is because of an influx of warm water.Triggers are coming up pretty regularly from the rocks. Lots of blues and snappers are still around. Endless sea bass in certain areas, and some are tremendous. Lots of porgies chewing, and a good amount of schoolie bass on the east end.

Nassau County

Paul at River Bay Outfitters in Baldwin says the bluefish are still everywhere, and he’s been catching them in the inlet. There were bonito in Jamaica Bay last week, popping up here and there, making for some exciting fishing.

The amount of bait in the back bays is amazing, and the blackneck skimmers are feeding on it in hordes, as opposed to the 1 or 2 birds Paul is accustomed to seeing. This bodes well for the next month. The western Sound is still holding a lot of fish, and some big ones at that. Solid stripers are being taken on plugs up against the rocks.

From Paul’s perspective, it has been a great year. It has been hot and dry, which makes for clean fresh water. The water bodies are lower and cleaner because they are not receiving the dirty storm runoff. Paul has therefore been hitting some nearby ponds before work to get a quick fix of easy largemouth bass fishing, and life is good.

He’s looking forward to Castober, hosted by fly fishing companies Sage and Rio at the Montauk Lake Club on the last couple days of September; after hearing about it, so am I.

Kathy at Freeport Bait & Tackle got an awesome report from Captain Jason Fosco of Team Cannonball Charters. He took Kenny Towey, Chris Lagert, and Matt Sanchez fishing in Montauk this past Saturday, and got into some heavy lifting. The guys caught multiple fluke seven pounds and up, hundreds of seabass, porgies to five pounds, triggerfish and mackerel. Chris L caught so many fish, he had to stop fishing when his arms turned to jelly.

Captain Ray from Carolann P Charters fished in 90 feet of water off Jones Beach using squid and spearing he limited out on both fluke and seabass, with fluke to six pounds. He also caught a 15-pound cobia, which was 3.5 feet long. That was this past weekend. The weekend prior, Ray had a really nice blue marlin come to the deck.

Locally, Edvin Radoncic caught two blues and two triggers while fishing under the Meadowbrook bridge around 7pm using clams. Tristian Odulio had about a dozen bluefish from 10 to 26 inches, and a number of porgies while fishing bunker near the west end 2 jetty at Jones Beach.

Michael Gerubel came in and weighed a nine-pound fluke that he caught on Hempstead Reef, using a chartreuse bucktail tipped with a 6-inch fire tiger Gulp grub and a fluke strip. That doormat ate that wild rig on the incoming tide. Anthony Jennetti had a 3.6-pound sea bass on the incoming tide at McAllister Reef while fishing with mackerel. The snappers are in, and there are a ton of fluke around, many of them shorts.

A bunch of successful fluking took place for customers of Bay Park Fishing Station in Wantagh this week. Caiden of “Lizzie D” had a nice three pounder using Bay Park Spearing.
Sean Barry and Mike Redmond of “Lil Mist III” caught over twenty fluke on the McAllister wreck, with the two biggest weighing 2.5 and 2.8 pounds. At an approximate depth of 60 feet, they used peanut bunker/cut squid and a KO single hook pearl mylar combo to catch the fish.

The “Blue Breeze” sailed to the Cholera banks and boated three fluke there to 3.5 pounds. Their 5-inch grubs also seduced two seabass to the deck. Phil Usinger of “Money Pit” fished south of Rockaway Reef in 43 feet of water with cut squid and Bay Park spearing to catch a 6.55-pound fluke. Owen Carr of “Nansea II” fished the AB Reef using spearing and landed a 4.8 pound fluke.

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Suffolk County

Bill at Chasing Tails Bait and Tackle in Oakdale tells me that the fluke action remains consistent in the bay and ocean, with lots of shorts and some monster flatties mixed in. Jigging bucktails or six-inch Gulp grubs will produce the big fish. Contrasting colored trailers are doing well too. Spanish mackerel and bonito have invaded the inlets and are getting caught off all the jetties. The albies should not be too far behind! Resin/epoxy jigs, diamond jigs, and kastmasters have been taking the fish. James F. had three bonito and a Spanish mack on a pink resin jig on Saturday morning.

Seabass action consists of non-stop nice fish on the reefs and wrecks. Tim Seaford fished the Virginia on Wednesday and caught his limit, with a 6.5-pound knucklehead to boot. Ling and fluke can be found out there as well. The town docks are filled with small snappers, which are growing by the day. Snapper poppers, kastmasters, or hooked spearing will produce numbers and a fun time for the whole family.

Freshwater bass fishing remains consistent, with prime action in the early morning and evenings. Top water lures are getting demolished by big, hungry bass. Slow it down during the day’s heat with senkos or jigs. Will Ganshaw had a nice 4.75 pounder using a popping frog on Friday morning. Pickerel are hitting almost anything; throw a jig, swim bait, tin or popper and you should find action. Yellow perch and sunfish are easily taken on a worm/bobber rig. Those guys can provide some fast fun for the family.

Trout action has been great in the early mornings and evenings as well, with big hatches taking place at those times. Caddis, Tricos, midges and terrestrials are all getting crushed.

Lindenhurst Bait & Tackle reports that hot action continues on the ocean reefs and wrecks. Several crews have been taking advantage of the first wave of larger fluke that have settled into their troughs, humps, and edges. Shop regulars are reporting excellent bottom fishing on the party and private boats. Porgies, sea bass, trigger fish, and ling are abundant for those finding the right piece of bottom structure. Bob Carlson drifted the Fire Island Lighthouse area on Tuesday and caught 2 keeper fluke of 20 inches and 24 inches, and the second cobia over eight pounds reported this season. On the same day, Rich from the shop and Jeremy Kurtz fished outside Jones Inlet in 60′ depths. They had 6 keeper fluke to 5.78lbs. that all bit on the last of the outgoing tide. Twelve-year-old Gianni Giorgini-Pepa boated a quality 8+ pound fluke a few weeks ago in Montauk, then managed several keeper fluke to 6.42 pounds this week.

On Saturday the “Hi-Hook” crew found a pile of big fluke outside Jones Inlet. S.I.F.C. member Billy Biscardi put a 9.24-pound doormat in the boat and Joe Biscardi and Joe B. Jr. had a few over 4 pounds.

On Sunday Gary Nankervis and Matt Ervolino had a solid fluke bite inside Fire Island Inlet. The guys had their eight fish limit, including Matt’s 7.22 pounder. Joe Tyminski on the “Lana Ann” drifted the Fire Island Reef scoring well with keepers to over five pounds.

To help target big fluke the shop has live jumbo killies, sardines, XL local spearing, mackerel, fresh peanut bunker, large local squid, squid strips, and small whole squid. For those that are jigging Gulp grubs, the shop now has new colors, sizes, styles, and pint containers as well as the heavy jigheads and SPROs to get them down.

Dave Flanagan of North Island Fly light tackle guide service in Smithtown says there is still a lot of bait around his area, and the water has cooled down to the low seventies after the cool nights and low humidity. Despite those good omens, the fishing remained a bit stagnant.
There is still a good amount of blues in a variety of sizes, but the big bass seem to have moved off. Most of the bass have been schoolies, but Dave has heard of a few better fish taken at first light and sunset by anglers working structure.

Everyone is hoping the hardtails show up early, so Dave’s prime dates are getting booked quickly to chase the albies. He still has plenty of mid-week openings from mid-September to mid-October.

Mark at Cow Harbor Bait & Tackle in Northport started catching some bluefish this week. He knows there are stripers sneaking around, and that only a few people are finding them. He says “you gotta go deep,” which is cryptic and I love it.

The sea bass are biting pretty good right now, especially in Montauk. He couldn’t get away from the things out east. The real good ones bite at the beginning of the tide change, especially during the past five days leading up to the full moon. As soon as the current starts kicking, the bite dies off.

There is a nice body of fluke in the area, holding some really nice fish. Again, only a few anglers are getting on them… Mark says to hit the hit the tide change.

We chatted about the bait, which seems to be consistent on the north and south shores alike. The amount of spearing is incredible; Mark says it’s by far the most he’s seen in the past five years. Underneath the spearing there are a lot of snappers. There haven’t been any albie sightings yet, but the Spanish mackerel have been providing some great action in the meantime. He even found some out in Montauk the other day. There is a plethora of bait, and he’s got a feeling that some of the mackerel are being fed upon by big fluke.

Captain Stu Paterson of Northport Charters had a banner week on the water, pulling in some really solid fish in the Huntington/Northport area. There is still a ton of bait around there. He boated a bunch of big porgies (2-3 pounds), fluke to 20 inches and 8.5 pounds, some teen stripers and cocktail blues. There’s a lot of life out there. During his “Kids Summer Fishing Camp” on Tuesday, the kids caught 77 porgies in the morning, persevering through the rain.

Rich at Whitewater Outfitters in Hampton Bays says that Jeff from the shop is catching plenty of schoolie bass on the flats, amongst the 1 to 2-pound bluefish that have inundated the bay.
There are scattered reports of bonito taken by anglers casting tins, or boat guys trolling for stripers and blues.

The Montauk guys are fly fishing for bonito out east in Montauk, where the schools are a bit thicker. The sea robins have finally moved in thick in the area. In the bay they’re pretty small, but on the ocean, you can find some monsters.

The offshore scene is steady at the canyon on the days when the weather is nice. Lots of yellowfins are being caught, and some are very big. There are more reports of swordfish and marlin, as well as bigeyes and mahi. In the Hamptons Offshore Invitational, there are already half-a-dozen dolphinfish that weigh over 20 pounds.

Rick from Harbor Marina of East Hampton reports that the ominous absence of bait and toothy pelagic predators in the eastern Peconics and Gardiners Bay has officially come to an abrupt end.

Upon leaving the dock last night for a full moon trip to the Race, it became apparent that he was not going to have to travel far to put a bend in the rod. Birds, frantic bait, and surface-feeding harbor blues were on both sides of the channel. After playing some tug of war with them, the crew headed northeast to the Race and encountered numerous schools of bluefish feeding on butterfish and peanuts. He says it’s great to see quality fishing action that is accessible to many, especially after a relative drought of bluefish this summer.

Mackerel and bonito are in the mix as well, although they didn’t hook any last night. Top water plugs were being exploded on almost every cast. Tins worked too but go with topwater; it’s just more fun. Creek Chubs and Atom plugs with a single rear hook are the ticket. It is the time of year to have a quiver of rods for all possible circumstances.

The Fishers Island chain held larger bluefish and a mix of stripers which were mostly shorts. You will definitely catch more schoolies than large fish when targeting striped bass right now. Rick advises using circle hooks when fishing eels, and single hooks on your topwater plugs and swimmers. The fish don’t revive as easily in the warm summer water; the easier it is to unhook the fish, and the less damage done to the fish, will translate to a healthier population. It was very gratifying to responsibly catch and release these beautiful stripers; they are the future of the fishery.

Seabass and porgy action remains strong throughout Gardiners Bay and Block Island Sound, and the ocean fluke bite is peaking.

Blowfish and snappers are being caught from the local town docks, and we are seeing some blue claws in the local harbors as well.

Clearly lots of options are available for both shorebound and boat anglers as we head into the late-summer staging phase of the upcoming fall migration.

Captain Chris Albronda, first mate of Double D Charters in Montauk, says the bottom fishing has been phenomenal. The fluke grounds have been holding double-digits flatties, large sea bass and porgies with some ling mixed in. Very large sharks have been marauding those same grounds, such as threshers, makos, blue sharks and brown sharks. This week started off with some great bass fishing, but that tapered off as the week progressed. During the Double D’s fishing camp for kids, they ran into a school of cow nose rays in the 30 to 40-pound range on light tackle. The kids had a blast battling these hard-fighting predators.

David at Westlake Marina in Montauk says the fishing has been slow this week, although he did weigh one really nice fluke. George Kok was fishing on the “Mishell II,” when he landed a 13.7-pound doormat.

There are some big bass coming in, but much fewer than in the weeks prior. All the good ones that are being weighed come in after the night tides. They typically come from south of Block, caught by anglers using eels. The inshore bass bite has been slow.

The water is warmer than usual. There is lots of life close in, such as whales, dolphins, and mola mola. They are a fun sight to see, but it’s not provoking a lot of guys to head offshore.

The seabass bite has remained consistent, with unstoppable action. They are pestering the fluke fishermen, but those guys usually get a limit of both fish. It’s all a matter of putting in the time and picking through the pests.

Long Island Fishing Forecast

There is a nice chill in the morning and evening air. Dolphins, whales, and enormous schools of nervous bait swim by every day. For the observant surfcaster who sees the numerous schools of stripers perusing the beach lip, the mid-sized bluefish terrorizing the spearing up front, and the enormous sea robins hanging slow and low, the imagination runs wild for what’s terrorizing the bait outside.

Every year it’s a bit of the same, and something entirely different. The amount of big bonito and Spanish mackerel this year is something totally new to me. My friend and I caught one bonito each this week, out in Montauk, weighing about 6-7 pounds. My personal best prior to that was about 10 inches long. So, this is awesome right now. Get out there.

The stripers are still looking for sand fleas but aren’t too hesitant to take a deadly dick imitating one of the many millions of spearing. It is fun to stalk these fish on a calm, clear day. I saw one fish with a charter of mine this Sunday that would have been at least 15 pounds, cruising within ten feet of dry sand. I’m noticing a lot more soft-shell sand fleas right now, which is probably more appetizing than the crunchy ones. Once that bite dies down, I feel certain there’s going to be some blitzing on the spearing. I wouldn’t be surprised to walk down to the beach today and see stripers blitging on this plethora of small bait. The blues have already been on top of that bait, and they have been moving in waves that show larger fish regularly.

I’ve heard the inlets are going absolutely insane these days, so any one of them is worth a look.
As Rick Drew says, we’re at the “peak” of ocean fluke season right now, and the reports definitely support that statement. Go fish for them, and don’t be afraid to use some big bait. It sounds like that’s exactly what they’re looking for.

Go practice your fly casting, because it seems like we’re in for one heck of an albie season, and it is just around the corner.

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