Long Island Fishing Report
Western L.I. and NYC
The Western L.I./NYC Fishing Report is written and compiled by OTW’s Audience Development Coordinator and NYSDEC licensed kayak fishing guide, Nick Cancelliere (@li_kayak_fishing).
- Stripers stay in the spotlight, with blitzes happening every day from the back bays to the open ocean, and gradually shifting West.
- Bluefish still around in size (and number) and make targeting stripers interesting.
- Blackfish (Tautog) in the keeper size-range are still sitting shallow and within reach of inshore anglers.
- You’re gonna need a bigger circle hook – thresher sharks have been out and about, becoming a bycatch for some when live-lining bunker.
Before I get into it, I want to talk about the fishing report. I’ve had the pleasure of writing this report for On The Water for a couple of months now, and I’d really appreciate some feedback from you, the dear reader. This report is only as good as what we put into it, and I want it to be shaped by the entire Long Island fishing community, not just myself and the editorial team. If you have anything to share, photos, fishing reports, suggestions, or feedback, let me know by emailing me at ncancelliere@onthewater.com. I’d love to see it.
Today’s report is brought to you from the OTW HQ in Falmouth, MA. I’ve got some recent Long Island fishing of my own to talk about, but for now I’ve been hitting the Cape Cod Canal and some local freshwater haunts with my now co-worker and OTW’s Assistant Editor, Matt Haeffner, in the early mornings. Matt will be talking about our freshwater escapades in his Cape Cod report, which you can read by clicking here.
Here’s what the tackle shops have to say:
John from Freeport Bait and Tackle reports:
“Not much has changed this week. There’s still tons of big bass being caught on live-lined bunker, or by trolling mojos. Out in the surf, stripers are being caught full of sand eels, so diamond jigs and sand eel lures are killer. For blackfish, the bite continues to be great both inside the bays and out on the ocean wrecks and reefs. Crabs of any kind rigged on a snafu rig, blackfish jigs, or simple hook-and-sinker rig are all you need to get bit.”
Jamie from Bay Park Fishing Station in Oceanside reports:
“Bass fishing this past week has been the best top water action I’ve ever seen. Stripers of all different sizes have ben attacking bunker off the beaches from Rockaway to Jones Beach all week. Brenden Kalkau reported having one of the best days of fishing in his life, leaving the fish biting because his arms got tired! The blackfish bite is on as well. Green crabs dropped at the bridges and on wrecks are all it takes. Bay park has everything you need for the fall run, 7 days a week!”
Brandon Weitz from Causeway Bait and Tackle in Wantagh told me:
“The bass bite has shifted a little bit west, but topwater feeds are still occurring, and the fishing continues to be awesome on the bunker pods. I’ve hooked into a thresher shark while live-lining from the boat and it was a crazy fight on my baitcasting set up! It broke me off, but not before taking some crazy runs and jumping five times.
From the beach, there have been some slot-size and over-slot fish, but not many cows. The bite has been consistent though, with the bass feeding on sand eels it’s easy to pick what lures to bring – JoeBaggs swarters or diamond jigs are great choices.”
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Want to get in on the bite? Find an OTW-approved Charter Fishing Captain around Long Island and NYC!
Paul McCain from River Bay Outfitters in Baldwin said:
“I’m back from a steelhead trip on Lake Eerie. Fishing up there was tough due to low and clear water – the fish were very spooky. Since my return, bass have been blitzing on peanut bunker in the canals of the South shore bays. One of my customers showed me pictures of a few solid fish.
There are a ton of trout stocked in the ponds from Hempstead to Manhasset right now. The DEC had its fishing festival but the bad weather affected the turnout a bit, so there’s plenty of holdovers that haven’t been fished for yet and you can get on some really easy trout action right now either on the fly or by throwing Kastmasters at them.”
Petey Trovato from Lindenhurst Bait and Tackle told me:
“Me, Vinny D’ambrosio and Frankie Pace had a good bass bite in the back bay. Vinny’s son Vincent had a nice 20-inch striped bass in the back bays on an SP Minnow. The outside reefs are holding some nicer bass, with a lot of 40-inch-plus fish on the bunker pods. Live-lined bunker and squidding diamond jigs is killer. Mullet have been in the surf as well as sand eels, so paddle tails and diamond jigs are all you need to get bit right now. Bridges are still holding blackfish, and rigs with crabs are best to hold bottom and avoid snagging in the current. On a recent trip I had a dozen shorts and almost a limit of keepers.”
Captain Josh Rogers of Gypsea Charters in Brooklyn reports:
“Blackfishing remains strong with many quality fish hitting the deck each trip. Lots of shorts at times, keeping everyone bent throughout the trip. Some trips have been slower than others but with the recent drop in temperatures, the bite should only get better! Big fish of the week went a hair over 7 pounds. We also were able to mix in a couple of striper charters and that was excellent as well. Countless releases of oversized stripers up to 52 inches on live bunker! We’re sailing open boat for blackfish by reservation only, as well as private charters for your desired species. Call/text (516) 659-3814 for information and reservations.”
Captain Adrian Moeller of Rockfish Charters in Queens reports:
“Fishing on the Rockfish continues to be lights out every day. We’ve been fishing 7 days a week staying on the bunker schools off the New York beaches and in Raritan Bay, depending on the conditions that day. Overall, the average size bass has gotten smaller with many slot fish mixed in with a few trophy bass each trip. Our anglers have been able to take home their limit of fish (if they want) while getting shots at breaking personal best’s daily. We only have a few open days left this season, give us a call to book a trip (347) 661-4501.”
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Here’s what local anglers have been posting on social media:
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Well, as John from Freeport put it, not much has changed with the striped bass bite – and that’s great news. There’s still fantastic striper fishing on both shores. When the bass are on sand eels, the fishing is nice and simple. Diamond jigs with tubes of any color can be launched well over the breakers and retrieved for quick bites from striped bass and bluefish. My go-to weight when casting from the beach is 1 to 3 ounces for maximum distance; 1 ounce on a calm day, and 3 ounces on a windy day. 2 ounces is my sweet spot if I want a ‘jack of all trades’ size diamond jig you can use pretty much in any situation. It’s just pure fun to whip a diamond jig as far as you can into the surf. When mullet are around, change it up to a 1- to 2-ounce Kastmaster spoon with a teaser for a larger presentation.
Western L.I. and NYC Fishing Forecast
There have been a lot of slot fish across the south shore and it doesn’t seem like anybody’s been hurting for meat despite the narrower slot limit. Still, with the Chesapeake spawn survey having a bleak outlook for stripers, I’d encourage good catch-and-release practices and consider harvesting blackfish instead.
On the north shore, the back bays have been producing schoolies up to slot-size fish, but not that many over-slot fish. The South shore hasn’t had that problem, however, with plenty of overs in the 40-inch range showing up across social media and in our reports.
Bait has been a mixed bag across the island, but on the north shore it’s been predominantly peanut bunker which have flooded most of the bays. On the south shore, it’s been adult bunker pods off the beaches and sandeels in the surf. A lot of big bass are getting caught on live-lined bunker beside the pods, or topwater lures worked through and around blitzes. On the north shore, the bite is a bit more finnicky, with smaller bait more numerous it’s important to match the hatch with a swim shad crawled slowly close to bottom to find stripers willing to bite.
Just as key as finding the bait, is figuring out the feeding windows. If you’ve spent a good amount of time on any body of water, you’ve probably noticed periods where fish are rising consistently, if not jumping out of the water while feeding. These periods might last hours, minutes, or even seconds (if we’re talking false albacore) but sometimes you can quite literally set your clock to it. If you’ve found a school of bait in one particular area, keep visiting that same area through each tide cycle and moon phase until you’ve mapped out a feeding window. Then, try to stay on that bite as long as you can – it won’t last. When it ends, you’ll start the process again. That’s fishing.
Togging reports have been a bit slower close to shore but not so much that I’ve heard any complaints. Keepers are still being caught in shallow water, close to shore in the Sound. The South shore bridges, while pressured, still hold legal-sized tog to bring home for dinner. Crabs on a jig or rig are all you need – fishing for blackfish is pretty straightforward.
The most difficult part, perhaps, is finding a bite and staying on top of it. Fortunately, it seems they haven’t moved much. My buddy Rob has been hammering the same spot multiple times a week and finding 1 to 2 keepers every time for only a few hours’ worth of fishing. This week he landed only two keepers and dozens of shorts, with gangs of monster porgy mixed in.
For once in what feels like forever, the weekend is looking pretty sweet! 60 and sunny with low winds. Get out there and enjoy it!
Thanks for reading, and tight lines.
The Western L.I./NYC Fishing Report is written and compiled by OTW’s Audience Development Coordinator and NYSDEC licensed kayak fishing guide, Nick Cancelliere (@li_kayak_fishing).
Eastern Long Island Fishing Report
The Eastern L.I. Fishing Report is written and compiled by OTW Field Editor, drone pilot and NYSDEC surf/fly fishing guide, Tim Regan (@southforksalt).
- Quality togging.
- Big bass on this past moon, all along the south shore, for surf and boat guys alike. Solid blitzes in small areas.
- Still some nice bluefish on the north shore, making their way around Montauk Point now.
- Fantastic bottom fishing, with triggerfish still on the menu. Big scup and giant sea bass are being caught.
- Giant tuna and big bass working bunker schools.
The Fishfinder of Captree reports:
“We’ve been pulling in quick limits of stripers, with many overs released. All fish were taken on jigs and swim shads. We’re hammering them in 25 to 40 feet of water. Alaska Bob put 18 bass on the boat to 30 pounds yesterday. There were no bunker schools yesterday, just bass blowing up on top; other days were spent around the bunker schools, getting fish to 40 pounds and over. At night, we’d drop down eels for cow bass.”
Capt. Dave Flanagan of North Island Fly in Northport reports:
“We’ve been bringing in a good number of stripers this week, primarily on the fly. Justin picked his PB early in the week. Fred Chall Marine Supply’s annual trip for tog went well a few days ago; we had the water to ourselves, and picked through loads of shorts and porgies to put together a catch of 7 keepers. ConMan tackle jigs did the trick. We also had albies all around the boat, all day long.” Check out Dave’s website to book him for a charter at northislandfly.com.
The Celtic Quest Fishing Fleet of Port Jefferson reports:
“The bite in Mattituck has been awesome this week. We’ve been putting some quality tog on the deck, along with some nice sea bass and solid porgies. The heavy currents of the moon tides made the bite a little more difficult to tap into, but we’re looking forward to the cool water and decreased tides in the week ahead.” Call them at 631-928-3926 for booking info, or check the website/Facebook for more info.
The Peconic Star 3 of Greenport reports:
“Sea bass, blackfish and porgies were the main quarry this week. Our high hook the other day was an eight year old girl who pulled in a limit of blackfish, plus many shorts and some sea bass. We had some absolutely perfect days this week weather-wise; the moon tides did make it tough to get a productive drift. At one point we were using 16 and 20 ounce sinkers to hold bottom. There was a good amount of short life out there, and tog were making it to 9 pounds, and sea bass to 3 pounds.” For booking info, call Captain Paul.
Brooklyn Girl in Orient reports:
“This past weekend showed some solid togging. Saturday’s sold out trip had 24 anglers who boated 58 keeper blackfish and many shorts. The shorts were mostly just-under keeper size. Elizabeth took the pool with an 8.5 pound blackfish, and Pete’s came in at a close second weighing 7.5 pounds. High hooks had limits-plus. The next day’s trip was great, with 62 keepers coming over the rail, to 7.5 pounds.” Contact Ken/Barbara for trip info at 631-395-7055.
Nick from Haskell’s Bait and Tackle in East Quogue reports:
“Bass action is still going fairly well in the inlets and outside of them. Fish seem to be feeding on squid, sandeels, and even lizard fish. Jigs and bucktails are working well. There has been good squid action around the docks and piers by the inlets at night. Surf-wise, the fishing has been sporadic, but the schools are thick when you find them. It’s definitely worth driving down the beach this time of year, looking for diving gannets and cormorants working near to the beach. Once you find the bait, you’ll find the fish.”
The Hampton Lady of Hampton Bays reports:
“Nader picked our pool fish yesterday, a seven pound tog. Easy limits were acquired by a few anglers. We stopped to play catch and released with a ton of stripers in the 20- to 30-pound range. Kelly M. picked our pool fish the day prior, a 7.3 pounder on the jig. Colleen, took the pool the day before, continuing the lady anglers’ victory streak. On Friday, Mike Moriarty reeled in a monster fluke, at 14.4 pounds, which he released as it was out of season. It was a stellar week of fishing!”
Bill Wetzel of the Surf Rats Ball reports:
“John D joined me last Thursday on the north side, where he picked one fish after dark. We poked around the sand beaches, where John found an 8 pound weakfish and two schoolies on darters. Tim joined me the next night, and we came upon a bunch of casters catching some solid fish on bucktails on the sand beach. On Saturday, Luis joined me on the sand beaches for a schoolie session. We switched from bucktails to shads and began catching schoolies and up.” Subscribe today at www.longislandsurffishing.com.
Montauk’s Viking Fleet reports:
“We crushed some big sea bass and cod out by Coxes Ledge on Tuesday. Cod, ling and giant scup topped off the catch. Simon Choi took the sea bass pool with a 6 pounder, and Ralph Rivera from Brooklyn took the cod pool with an 8 pounder. Over by Block Island, we found a good pick of porgies with some nice sea bass in the mix, plus 6 cod and some mackerel. The day before, we pulled up some big bluefish and a handful of keeper stripers around Block. We were doing some nighttime squid jigging over the weekend; the guys who were dialed in were catching steadily, and they helped everyone else tune into the bite. The second half of the trip had double header monster squid flying over the rail.”
Chris Albronda from Montauk reports:
“What an exciting week of fishing Montauk had! The striper fishing was top notch, with just about every fish being within the slot limit. I fished with Savio on the Fishooker, using really light tackle to jig bucktails. In one drift, we had a dozen keeper bass. We began at 11 a.m. and we’re homebound at 6pm, our rods having bent the entire time. The false albacore were available in the same areas as the stripers. Both tides produced, and they were extra easy to fool on cloudy days. The bottom fishing was top notch as well. Tautog, sea bass and a few cod made their way over many a rail.” Shoot Chris a text at 631-830-3881 to book a trip.
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Want to get in on the bite? Find an OTW-approved Charter Fishing Captain around Long Island and NYC!
Eastern L.I. Fishing Forecast
The bite seems to be improving immensely. With this cold north wind, expect bait to flee the back bays and make their way to an open beach near you. I’ve been documenting all sorts of species swimming our shores. Bunker are still here in good numbers, although their presence is very sporadic. They’re here one day, then nowhere in sight the next day. When they’re here, though, the predators are on them and it’s kind of an awesome show. Whales are still lunge feeding (albeit a bit farther from the beach); tuna are breaching from the water as they attack (peep my shared instagram post with OTW from the other day to see an awesome example); stripers are teaming up and feeding quickly and explosively as they chase down individuals. We had some baits that were similar in size to the adult bunker… I first thought I was looking at snapper blues (and maybe I was, seeing as I caught a couple this week), but then I began to receive reports of juvenile weakfish along the coast. It was cool to watch stripers enter these schools of larger bait and bully them around a bit.
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Then there is the small bait, which seems to be plentiful. I’m seeing hordes of peanut bunker at times. I think we’ll be seeing more of those schools as the days progress. The blitzes that normally accompany these peanuts are few and far between lately, but I’m expecting them to materialize all along the beaches any day now; I’m getting nervous right now that I’m missing something as I write this report. Then there’s the skinny baits, which I can’t differentiate from the air. I’m either seeing schools of spearing or anchovies. My best guess is spearing, but I could be wrong. Either way, don’t hesitate to throw something skinny (tins, SP minnows, etc).
The major structure points are still the place to be, although signs of life are improving along the open beach. A few days ago, I filmed thousands of schoolie stripers swimming west. They had lockjaw, uninterested in eating anything I could offer them. I did get some footage of them feeding on one of those aforementioned skinny baits, but they showed little-to-no interest in any plugs, tins, epoxies, swimmers or jigs we offered. Can’t win ‘em all. It’s just so amazing to see ALL that life moving by your beach. I’ll be posting some cool videos of that encounter soon.
The night bite is still the time to make all your dreams come true. I benched myself for pretty much this entire week as I dealt with a bad back issue. I lived vicariously through my friends who kept the east end honest. Reports of daytime blitzes were coming in, but the real fish were taken on the night tides. Pretty much all my dudes were on the bite. My back’s feeling a lot better today, so I might just risk ruining it again just to get in on this bite. Soon enough, it’ll be all micro bass, or death rats, signifying the end of the season. December isn’t really a month you can count on for a reliable bite. Most years, I’ll see opportunities for 30+ inch stripers; some years, there’s no chance of coming across one like that.
I’m hoping that the still-warm water bodes well for a late season bite. We still have a lot of bait in the bays (although maybe much less after last night’s frigid north wind). There are definitely still a lot of fish that need to swim past me, and mnaybe even some bluefish. With those reports coming in lately, my optimism is only stoked. I’d LOVE a good run of gator blues to make my November a memorable one. I miss those incredible bites that used to last for weeks, not even ten years ago. I’ll just keep my fingers crossed.
To me, the tuna action seems unparalleled to years past. The amount of bluefin we’ve been seeing (not catching) close to the beach is, without question, way more than anyone’s seen in recent memory. I’m not talking about drone shots either, so don’t attribute the sightings to the newfound aerial perspective. Each person on the beach stands the chance of seeing multiple tuna blow up on schools of bunker throughout the day. You just gotta be looking. My buddy Chris saw his first yesterday. I saw two explosions earlier this week, and caught that one on video. It is absurd! I know the giants are around and biting; my dude Tristan reeled in an 800 pounder just the other day. I’m not sure we’re seeing ones THAT big from shore, but I’m pretty sure we’re seeing fish that are several hundred pounds leap from the sea.
Although we’ll still have a few warm days ahead (this weekend’s looking like 60+ degree weather), I’m expecting to see some reports of big blackfish coming in this week. I don’t know enough to say whether it was the moon or the gradually cooling water that caused this, but I’m already seeing consistently better reports of big tog. I’m hoping it’ll only improve from here!
I think the fishing is going to begin peaking this week from shore (at least on the beaches that have been lackluster thus far). I intend to be on the bite. Get out there and enjoy it. Time’s running out!
The Eastern L.I. Fishing Report is written and compiled by OTW Field Editor, drone pilot and NYSDEC surf/fly fishing guide, Tim Regan (@southforksalt).