Connecticut Fishing Report
Matt at Black Hall Outfitters in Westbrook reports that things are going very well in the Central Sound, and it seems like we’re knocking on the doorstep of full/lights out summer fishing. Water temperatures have started to rise in the Sound, and despite the rising temps, there has been a nice push of local striped bass. There is still a massive number of bass at the Gut that should continue to work their way inshore over the next few days. Bunker reports have been scant, but there seems to be plenty moving in to the west, so we shouldn’t be too far away from a full bait smorgasbord in the central to eastern Sound. Similar to the Rhode Island reports, the early CT reports have been very good for fluke. If you’re a bottom fisherman, you should be taking advantage of the fluke bite while it lasts, along with a strong sea bass bite in 60-plus feet of water.
Heather from the Black Hawk II in Niantic provided the following report: “Our porgy trips showed some ups-and-downs; earlier in the week the fishing was pretty good, but the end of the week was more of a pick. Our private charters made the best of it and were able to do some bass fishing as well, making for some great days on the water! Our After Work Special trips were once again fantastic, with boat limits of slot-sized bass. We’re still booking charters—we have only a few dates left in July, so be sure to book your date soon! New tickets for each week will be posted online on Monday night at 8 p.m., just like in years past. Be sure to check out our calendar so you see what’s coming up!”
Captain Mike Roy at Reel Cast Charters reported that things continued to improve over the past week. Many of the reefs in Long Island Sound are chock full of bait and the bass are feeding heavily. There seems to be a nice influx of Atlantic mackerel in Long Island Sound this year, which is providing big feeds for multiple species. If you come across those massive feeds, soft plastics are generally the number one producer, but you can occasionally get them to hit a small topwater offering or small swimming plug. The results from The Race and The Gut have also been very solid over the past few days, with big numbers of fish from 25 to 35 inches getting fooled by small bucktails and diamond jigs. Reports suggest that sea bass fishing is good and there are even a few weakfish out there. There are still some massive bluefish around as well, which are taking advantage of all the recent big bait entering the area. The bluefish numbers have waned a bit from previous weeks, but there’s enough around to keep things interesting.
View this post on Instagram
Captain Matt at Stonington Stripers reports: “The fishing is still good, however, following the new moon it’s been more of an early morning bite. It seems that the fish took a break from gorging themselves all day long, though looking at the tides coming up, I would expect them to start to bite better for fly/light-tackle anglers during the day. The 13.5-inch GT eels have produced best for me in the dark through first light, then 9-inch Slug-gos and Fish Snax XL’s in colors resembling squid as the morning progresses. Fly wise, Beast Fleyes and squid flies have done the most damage. I’ll be off the water for a few weeks, so my next trips are tentatively scheduled for July 1. I’ll be posting fly tying and rigging videos on my social media in the meantime. July is starting to book up, particularly the first half of the month. I’m expecting a great summer of fishing both locally and at Block Island.”
View this post on Instagram
-
Want to get in on the bite? Find an OTW-approved Charter Fishing Captain in Connecticut
When I talked to Captain Chris of Elser Guide Service he told me that the local sand eel bite slowed down a bit since last week, but there are still plenty of them around! Fish have moved in and out on a daily basis; some days they find big bass and blues on bunker, the next day they cover miles of water and can’t find them. Fish will start settling into their summer hideouts very soon and daytime action will get very consistent. They caught bass to 44 inches earlier this week, but finding larger fish is still very dependent on finding the bunker.
Captain Andy of Carolyn Ann Sportfishing has continued a strong start to his season. He told me that the Watch Hill reefs are producing, while the fishing closer to home has required a bit more work. Striped bass have grown picky locally, but he’s still finding plenty of slot fish, along with a few giant over-slot bass. Bottom fishing trips have been successful, with more than enough keeper sea bass and fluke to keep things interesting. There is also still a massive amount of bait in the estuaries, so things should only improve from here, in terms of all species.
Max at Fishermen’s World in Norwalk reports striped bass activity remains red hot as fish continue to spread throughout the region. Fish can be caught from shore and inshore around the islands. Anglers fishing with swimming plugs and topwater plugs are scoring, as well as those fishing from shore with chunks. There has also been a good bite around the islands trolling the tube and worm. Bigger bass have set up shop on deep-water structure and they have been caught using a variety of methods including topwater, jigging or trolling soft plastics, and chunking. Finding the schools of bait has been key to connecting, especially if you’re looking to get them to eat on the surface. This week saw fish up to 45 pounds. Gator bluefish joined the party over the last 10 days or so and have poured even more fuel on the fishing fire. Fluke fishing remains the same, it’s still a bit slow to the west and better along the north shore of Long Island. If you’re looking to target flatfish in Connecticut water, the Sherwood Island humps are a good place to start your search. Porgy fishing is ramping up; the shore bite continued to improve this week and anglers fishing rigs with squid, clams and sandworms all reported doing well. The boat bite has been better for porgies, but that will shift soon as more fish make their way into the shallows in our area.
Connecticut Fishing Forecast
Fishing throughout Connecticut continued to follow a positive trend, and it may have taken a bigger step this week, with increased water temperatures and plenty of adult bunker. There are still lots of big bass to be had at the Race and the Gut, but over the past few days, reports of bigger bass adjacent to the river mouth have taken over. That would lead me to believe that fish are entering their summer patterns, and we may also be seeing some bigger bait entering the rivers. The trend of big bluefish showing up early has continued, to an extent, with reports of them throughout the Sound from the far east to the far west. Fluke fishing has reportedly been as strong as ever, and once again, it’s a stellar gameplan to get after these early season doormats before the true summer patterns set in. As opposed to every other summer fishery, fluke fishing will likely drop off from here, so now is a great time to target some flatties. The first hit at big sea bass is generally also fruitful, and it appears we’re starting to see that bite improve. Striped bass can be found throughout Long Island Sound and the big bait is finally showing up in the estuaries, so the common June hotspots should be chock full of big bass by the time this is published. Don’t forget about the freshwater bite either, as it’s currently a great time to find some big largemouth and smallmouth.