Eastern Long Island Fishing Report- December 1, 2022

Eastern Long Island Fishing Report

• Small striper invasion signals the end of the fall striper run. Peanut bunker blitzes.
• Decent bottom fishing when boats could get out: tog, sea bass, cod.
• White perch bite turning on.
• Absurd trout action on the river.

Bill at Chasing Tails Bait and Tackle in Oakdale reports:

“Striper season seems to have no end in sight. Lots of bass are swimming around the ocean in big schools. Some solid fish are still in the area; there are lots of slots and overs. Head out and look for the birds working the huge schools of bait and you will be on them in no time. Blitzes are lasting for hours at a time and those anglers with boats still in the water are having a blast with them. Pretty much everything is effective. Swim shads, popping plugs, bucktails, pencils, and jigs are all getting smashed up. Guys on the troll are hooking up nonstop. 

If you want to head out and do some bottom fishing, the action is lit up. Lots of solid tog and sea bass are coming up over the rails. Cod, pollock, and other creatures of the deep are on the prowl. The Jon boats are out and guys are already starting to target white perch. Bring some ultralight tackle and tiny curly tail jigs with you for nonstop action. These little cousins of the striped bass provide some excellent winter fishing.

In the freshwater, low and slow is the name of the game. Bass will be feeding in the warmer water columns, and up in the shallows while it’s warm and sunny outside.  Fish some jigs, soft plastics, and any other technique worked nice and slow. Some bass are already getting caught with their pink winter lipstick. Pickerel are on the same action. Panfish like bluegill and yellow perch are easily accessible and swimming in schools, perfect for a worm and bobber and a day of fun fishing. If you prefer to use lures, try some in-line spinners. Trout action is on the rise with the cooler temps getting them all charged up. They are starting to hold up in the winter water. Nymphs and streamers will get them chewing. I took an adventure out with my buddy Vinny earlier this week, and I popped my personal best wild brown trout on a fly. Luckily, Vinny was there to be the net man, that fish ripped drag a few times and brought me down the river at least 20 yards.”

The Celtic Quest Fishing Fleet of Mattituck reports: 

“The last time we sailed was the day before Thanksgiving. We battled tough new moon currents to pick away the the tog. Captain Des came along and hooked a nice one. Since then, we’ve been blown off the water every day. Our last scheduled trip for the season had to be cancelled due to the weather. We’ll see you in the spring!” Call them at 631-928-3926 for booking info.

• Looking for the Western Long Island and NYC Fishing Report? Click here to read what’s happening around Nassau, Kings and Queens counties!

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

The Peconic Star of Greenport reports:

“Fishing has been phenomenal, with beautiful blackfish, jumbo sea bass and some cod hitting the deck. Anthony Palisi said the weather was beautiful yesterday and the fishing was fantastic. He had a great outing, picking 7 keeper blackfish before they called it quits. He said there was plenty of short life as well. Earlier in the week, some anglers had as many as 11 keepers and 38 shorts in the 12-15 inch range. We’re sailing tomorrow, with great weather forecasted. We sail at 7:30.” For info, call Captain Paul at 631-522-2002.

The Shinnecock Star in Hampton Bays reports:

“Yesterday’s trip was a grind. We had some beautiful weather, but some very poor blackfishing. We’re going to sail for them on Friday, and definitely do some offshore trips after the blow.” Call Capt. John for trip info and reservations: 631-728-4563.

Montauk’s Viking Fleet reports:

“We ran to Block Island for some jumbo porgies yesterday and cleaned up. Despite the rainy conditions, they found a mix of sizes of scup and sea bass. Sea bass weighed up to 5 pounds and they even pulled some cod aboard. Mackerel came over the rail and so did a few dogfish. Tony Kim from Queens picked a 3.9 pound scup to win the porgy pool.

Tuesday’s bite was right on par with yesterday’s. There were about a half dozen keeper cod, probably a few less than yesterday. On Friday, Mark LaPointe from Baiting Hollow took both our pools with a 7.7 pound tog and a 3.2 pound sea bass. On the morning trip, the sea bass were up to 4 pounds.” Call the office to book at 631-668-5700, or book online at vikingfleet.com.

Chris Albronda from Montauk reports:

“Bottom fishing was the main attraction this week. Striped bass have mostly moved on, so blackfish and sea bass were the primary targets. Anglers going after them were also pulling up some nice codfish.” Chris is going on the Miss Montauk this Monday. There are a few spots available to target tog and sea bass. Give Chris a call at 631-830-3881 to book a trip. 

• Looking for the Western Long Island and NYC Fishing Report? Click here to read what’s happening 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

You know it’s getting slow when you start seeing “bunker” itemized in fishing reports. That gave me an awesome laugh. I was going to start off this report on a darker note, so thank you Laura Lee for the chuckle.

The darker note: fisheries management.

We as recreational anglers have been fortunate that certain groups have been fighting for the results we desire. Our desires are very far from being realized, but at least there are folks dedicated to fighting the good fight. If there weren’t, I think the situation would be much worse.

If groups like the American Saltwater Guides Association (ASGA) hadn’t “rallied the troops,” the ASMFC wouldn’t have received hundreds of letters that support more cautious management for the Striped Bass. Perhaps there are plenty of donors out there, but paupers like me aren’t paying the guys at ASGA. Still, they are fighting on my behalf to institute my interests. I’m a total noob to fisheries management, so it helps to have some knowledgeable, righteous folks speaking for me. I trust that the stance they routinely represent is the same I would if I was in their shoes. So, first off, a big shout out and thank you to the ASGA. I commend the ASGA’s bonafide approach. It is very idealistic, and I’m an idealist.

The ASGA requested an addendum to rectify the ASMFC’s use of a loophole to continue allowing conservation equivalency. But the ASMFC declined, asserting that “there is no appetite for an addendum.” What’s the next thing the ASMFC did? They began an addendum process that could increase commercial harvest. That’s the story, in a nutshell. You can hear Tony Friedrich explain it in depth in the ASGA’s recent podcast. Give it a listen, and get ready to act.

The only way to create the fishery that we want is to fight for it.

We need to get used to writing letters/comments. The ASMFC will be accepting comments through 1/13/23. Email your comment to comments@asmfc.org and don’t forget the subject line “Striped Bass Addendum 1.” BCC the ASGA and they’ll enter you into a giveaway: stripercomments@gmail.com. 

Here is all you need to know. Be there.

CLICK TO READ MORE ABOUT ADDENDUM 1 to AMENDMENT 7

Sorry for the long tangent, but that stuff’s important. Now for the fish:

It’s been on and off, all over the place, but I’ve been finding fish. Stripers are still running the beach. It’s mostly death rats now, but I have heard of some quick spits of slot bass and even fish into the 20 pound range on the open beach. Right place, right time.

The bass in back are tiny. There was a showing of slightly larger fish (20-28 inches) around the moon, but it’s steadily declined ever since. That’s just my experience, working about 6-8 spots in both skinny water and big bay water. I’m not really catching in most of the spots. I feel lucky to still be able to pluck minis from the surf, to make up for the otherwise below-average fishing.

Despite the decent fishing, I decided to drive up to the Connetquot yesterday. The fishing was just stupid. The bite was pretty much nonstop, literally, for 4 hours. I think EJ, Steve and I each had well over 40 fish.

I’m not one to count my fish, but that was just the easiest, most ridiculous fishing I’ve done in a long time. Fishing that’s devoid of any challenge becomes monotonous pretty quickly though. Especially when most of the fish are cookie cutters. There were lots of tiny brook trout, and a good amount of mid-size brookies. The rainbows were all in the mid-teens, and fought like crazy. They kept it interesting. It really was like fishing in an aquarium though.

You’d think the challenge I’ve faced targeting stripers this fall would make me appreciate some easy fishing for once. Fact is, it just wasn’t nearly as fun as challenging myself and getting skunked.

I’m sure in the doldrums of winter, I’ll make my way back to the river and come to appreciate it again when the cold water makes the fish a bit more particular about moving to eat. Until then, I’m going to try to catch migratory stripers til the last one’s gone, and then find myself some holdovers to hold me over.

Perching is picking up. Carping is slowing down. There are still shad around. The freshwater bite has been good some places and terrible in others. I’m going to focus more on that this week.

With some erratic weather in the week ahead, I’ll be looking to the back waters during high winds. I’ll be driving the beaches when the ocean’s calm and the weather’s warm. I’m mainly fishing high water, and low light. Whatever works, I’m trying to find it.

Good luck to you. Don’t forget to send a comment to the ASMFC. Tight lines.