Eastern Long Island Fishing Report- October 6, 2022

Suffolk County / Eastern L.I. Fishing Report

• Last licks for Fluke. Bottom fishing was hot before the storm.
• Lots of big bass taken from the rocks in nasty weather. Slot stripers aplenty along the east end.
• Gator blues on the north shore.
• Tog season starts in a week. Prospectors have been finding promise.
• Montauk tournament results below.

Captree Bait and Tackle reports:

“We closed up shop for the latter half of the week due to the storms. Cars weren’t coming into the lot, and boats weren’t coming to the docks. Just prior to the squalls, we had a spear fisherman come in to weigh a 7.8 pound fluke he picked off the bottom. Frozen bunker flats are 2 for $20 until the end of the season.”

Captree’s Laura Lee reports:

“Thursday and Friday saw our only trips this week, and they were pretty solid. Friday’s 6 a.m. trip caught 123 bonito, 3 albies, 2 bluefish, 1 bullet tuna, 84 mackerel, 37 big scup, 42 sea bass, 4 fluke and 3 cunner. The 1 p.m. local caught 135 fluke up to 5.21 pounds, 35 sea bass, 2 blowfish and 5 sea robins. The 7 p.m. trip kept 4 weakfish and 3 bluefish.

Thursday fared slightly better. 7 a.m. saw 75 fluke, 12 sea bass, 8 sea robins and 2 dogfish. The 6 a.m. pelagic trip caught 1 yellowfin tuna, 52 bonito, 91 albies, 24 big bluefish, 12 fluke, 22 sea bass, 35 porgies and 17 mackerel. The 1 p.m. caught 74 fluke, 22 sea bass, 2 scup and 30 sea robins. The evening trip in the bay had 9 anglers who caught 7 weakfish, 7 bluefish, 1 striper and 5 fluke.”

• Looking for the Western L.I. and NYC Fishing Report? Click here to read about the bite around Nassau, Kings and Queens counties!

The Celtic Quest Fishing Fleet of Mattituck reports: Big winds and bad weather kept us off the water for a few days this week. The days we did get out were highly productive, with a good bite of scup, sea bass and bluefish. Scup and sea bass were were on the larger side, and the bluefish were slightly larger than cocktails. We had the Port Jeff school fishing club out early int he week, and the kids had their pick of all three species. Bluefish were even biting the tails off some of our catches before we could get them over the rail! Call them at 631-928-3926 for booking info.

Wego Fishing Bait and Tackle in Southold reports:

“After that northeast blow we’ve got a ton of bass and bluefish along with albies, all right up on the beaches along the Long Island Sound. They’re biting on JoeBaggs resin jigs, Super Strike poppers and bucktail jigs and the action has been fast since the wind laid down. Meanwhile in the (Peconic) bay, weakfish, snapper blues and porgies are still around in numbers.”

Chris at Westlake Marina in Montauk:

“This morning there was plenty of bass going off out by the point, and a handful of boats coming into the marina throughout the day with sizable sea bass and fluke. Our fillet table has been busy. A couple of boats also went out and anchored up for porgies, though I haven’t seen them come back yet which is hopefully a sign of a good bite. Squid and spearing are getting the job done for the sea bass and fluke, and with this weekend being the last shot at fluke, we’ve got all the goods in stock.”

Warren’s Tackle Center in Aquebogue reports:

“Before the wind this past week there were lots of porgies, snappers and cocktail blues in the bay, along with weakfish in the bay around pinch points and deeper holes. The weakfish haven’t been big but they’re around in numbers and provide some good fun on light tackle. Now that the wind has died down, we’re also seeing good numbers of striped bass and some big bluefish mixed in with them along the north shore in the Long Island Sound. The fish are in shallow right along the beaches.”

The Shinnecock Star in Hampton Bays reports:

“We’re looking to sail for fluke twice a day til the season closes on 10/9. Trips are from 7-11, and 12-4. We haven’t been out since Friday, but that was the best bite of the season. That’s saying a lot, because the past few weeks have been awesome. There’s been a phenomenal body of fluke right off the marina. Most fish we caught were 22-24 inches; many limits were caught, and many keepers were released.” They sail out of Oaklands Marina on the west side of Shinnecock Inlet. Call Capt. John for trip info and reservations: 631-728-4563.

Kenny at Tight Lines Tackle in Sag Harbor reports:

There was an astounding lack of surfcaster presence in what is typically the busiest week of surfcasting every fall. The Montauk Classic was held this weekend, and usually there’s trucks and anglers galore, ready to compete in the Mecca. What a shame, as the fishing was pretty awesome out there!  

Usually surfcasters crave these harsh conditions, as they’ll really ignite a striper bite around the rocks. It is a bit of a mystery why it was so quiet. That was perfect for those who made the trip though. Two guys from Jersey came into the shop to re-up on their bucktail supplies. They had just finished fishing the rocks Monday morning, and had a banner day. They scored fish to 25 pounds in what they called a nonstop bite. There was hardly anyone around to mug them. There have been some good striper reports from the inlets as well.

Bill Wetzel of the Surf Rats Ball reports: 

The Fred Golofaro Montauk Classic fishing tournament was held this past weekend, in some harsh weather. Ryan R. would be fishing with Bill throughout the tournament, hoping to take first place. Half-past-midnight on the first night of the tournament, Ryan hooked into the fish that would win the tournament.  

“While sitting on a boulder relaxing, Ryan’s rod bent in half. ‘Good fish,’ he said. ‘Good Fish’ is the greatest combination of words in the English language!” – Wetzel. 

Amen, Bill. Ryan’s fish was 41.5 inches and 29 pounds. Bill’s fish he caught shortly after was 39 inches, and they didn’t bother weighing it. Ryan’s fish ate a chartreuse super strike bottle plug; Bill’s ate a bottle plug made by Larry Welcome (Northbar Tackle). 

Congrats on the win you guys! 

Montauk’s Viking Fleet reports:

Thursday and Friday were our shots to get out, and the trips went well. Thursday’s trip was tough due to a stiff northeast wind. Big porgies were hungry, and they bit everywhere we went. Sea bass fishing was a bit more difficult, but we still managed to pick 3 or 4 keepers per person, and some were large. Thursday saw some cod and mackerel before we called it a day. A four pound porgy caught by Jack Alboher from Queens took the pool. Friday’s pool winner was Abel Ventura from El Salvador who caught a 3.25 porgy. Duke Brown from Brooklyn claimed the edible pool with his beastly sea bass that weighed over 4 pounds. Call the office to book at 631-668-5700, or book online at vikingfleet.com.

Chris Albronda from Montauk reports:

The past week was one of the worst stretches of weather he’s ever seen. Those conditions were perfect for surfcasting. The striped bass were pushed up near the beach, feeding in the suds. Fish from the slot to well-over were caught in the surf. There were blitzes occurring, and albies were taking part alongside the stripers.

The fluke season ended on a high note. That was a great few weeks on the doormat grounds. There’s a few more days before it’s officially closed, so maybe some better weather will offer potential for a last hurrah. The Miss Montauk will be sailing every day thru Sunday. Give Chris a call at 631-830-3881 to book a trip. 

Brandon Sausele, winner of the Fred Golofaro Montauk Classic gave me a rundown on Montauk’s recent action:

Brandon took first place with a 13.9 pound striper. Gilbert Rulon came in close second with a 13.48 pounder. John Bruno took third with a 10.58 pound fish. The Catch and Release trophy was claimed by Ryan Rawleigh, who was fishing with surf guide Bill Wetzel. They took first and second, respectively. Ryan’s striper was 41.5 inches, and Bill’s was 39 inches. Richard Fithian was a close third at 36 inches. Finally, the bluefish portion went to Larry Pacifico, who caught an 8.14 pounder. Doug Polvent caught the second place fish, which weighed 5.58 pounds.

The top two stripers came from a blitz on the north side on the final morning of the tournament, Sunday. 

The Montauk Surfmasters tournament is currently underway, and to nobody’s surprise, Brandon is atop the leaderboard. His fish weighed 32 pounds, which just beats out Bill Schulken’s 29 pounder. Funny thing is, those two fish were caught in the same spot at pretty much the same time. Brandon laughs, saying there was a bit of a dueling atmosphere that night. Gary Krist’s fish is not far behind, holding third place at 24 pounds.

Congrats on the wins, Brandon, Ryan, Bill and Larry!

• Looking for the Western L.I. and NYC Fishing Report? Click here to read about the bite around Nassau, Kings and Queens counties!

• Want to get in on the bite? Find an OTW-approved Charter Fishing Captain on Long Island!

Eastern Long Island Fishing Forecast

This week I bore witness to some awesome fishing. I saw overslot stripers getting caught regularly, with fish ranging to the upper 20 pounds. For short spans of time, the real big fish would join the party. My friends reported 40+ pound stripers getting caught from the rocks.

I nearly threw my arm out throwing big jigs to target those big bass, without getting a single tap. I went every day, threw the right weight in the right spots and tried every possible presentation. NOT A BITE!

I’m convinced I just didn’t have the right color (I’m also avoiding the uncomfortable possibility that I’m cursed). White bucktails seemed to be the key, with either white or red trailers. All I had was chartreuse trailers, and off-white jigs at best. There were not many people catching. When someone caught, he’d probably catch multiple fish. You had to be throwing the right thing. I spent hours casting those heavy hunks into the heavy current. That activity took a toll on my hurt shoulder. I really start to miss the light tackle stuff when I have to battle big winds with heavy tackle to reach the big fish. Beggars can’t be choosers though; I gotta match my gear to my target. I’m so desperate, I do feel a bit like a beggar. I think I’m going on three weeks without a bass. My friend Matt is in the same pickle; he made me laugh when he said “2 weeks ago I was so desperate that I caught a shad on purpose.” Feel you, Matt.

That storm was sick. The thunder and lightning that was exploding above my house two nights ago was unlike anything I’ve experienced in some time. There was no delay between the flash of lightning and the boom of thunder. We were right in the sh** on the east end. After that, we received squall after squall. As the weather got worse, though, the fishing got better!

If you braved those conditions, I hope you caught something. The wind and the stinging sideways rain, the giant heave and backwash of the surf, and the sporadic spurts of lightning that’d strike uncomfortably close were not easy obstacles. For the luck-lacking, putting in time was the only option.

I threw a necessary Hail Mary this morning, because I didn’t want to put up another report without anything tangible to report myself. I swear, the fishing only got worse as the weather got better. Not a tap for me, and I think my friends came up fishless as well this morning. They saw a couple fish here and there, heard of a couple elsewhere, but nothing to write home about. Generally, this is par for the course; fishing tends to slow down for a spell as weather improves.

Regardless, I think it’s about to blow wide open on the beaches. This nice little stretch of relative calm that’s coming should make movement along the beaches easy to see, much like it was before the storm. Before the storm, there were hordes of mullet moving through. I think that will persist, and some other species will be added to the mix. I’m expecting the bite around the moon to be awesome, and to kickstart some of that beach movement. 

I was listening to the OTW podcast with Steve George this week. Steve mentioned that he likes the spring because it’s more predictable, so you can conceivably catch more fish in less time.

I agree with that. For the first four or five years I fished, I thought the opposite. I always did poorly in the spring. The fall treated me well, and I’d catch all my biggest stripers then. Those first five years were especially awesome too. I had a lot of fish over 30 pounds, and my one 40+ pounder in those autumns.

The reason for that is I had so much time to fish, and such a drive to learn, that I’d spend every second of my free time wetting a line… and this is the reason I’m diving into this. Spring now provides for me better than the fall; I know what to throw now, plus when and where. Like Steve said, those fish are predictable. Fall, on the other hand, is pretty much a crapshoot. Good fish biting around moons is about all you can predict… and there’s a chance a storm will ignite a bite where the fish are. The REAL trick to capitalizing on the fall run, though, is this: spend as much time as you can with a line in the water. Every minute you’re not fishing is another minute you’re not going to get lucky. Fish are moving through. They are not necessarily staging in one spot for a long time, day after day. They don’t hang in a general area for 2 weeks. The fish are doing the same thing we do during blitz season: running and gunning. Keep the line wet and hope one of them spots your lure as they migrate.

With this moon coming up, I can’t recommend anything but to fish every possible moment you can. The guys already doing this are having a banner fall. Every day, there’s less fall to fish. In December, you don’t want to look back and say “I should’ve gone on this/that night.” Fact is, you should go every night, and every day if you can.

If you haven’t begun yet, begin right now. It’s time for consistency!  Schoolies are about to show up en masse. Get some bigguns before it’s mostly little-uns.

Time for me to break the friggin skunk too. Death to the skunk! I want to catch some big fish this fall. It is time.

Let’s go.

Good luck!

PS: Sorry for the lack of pics this week. I’ve seen more big fish in person than I have seen pics of them. Here’s a little visual ditty I put together with my friend and fellow surfcaster Justin Friedman. It’s a whale surfing a wave at Shinnecock Inlet. Enjoy!

Whale Surfs a Shark-Filled Wave to Feed on Fish