Connecticut Fishing Report
Matt at Black Hall Outfitters in Westbrook told me that the local fishing remains in full summer mode. Bass can almost always be caught, but morning and evening, along with after dark is your best bet. The usual suspects, such as GT eels and other big soft plastics, live eels/bunker, large topwaters, and trolling tubes have been the top producers. There are some nice gator bluefish around as well, but they are scattered quite a bit. Keeper sea bass are becoming more prevalent in 80 feet of water or more on Daiwa SK Jigs. The fluke have been shallower, in roughly 30 to 40 feet of water; you have to weed through tons of shorts, but there’s no shortage of big scup on all the rock piles. Anglers targeting sharks are reporting solid results for threshers, without having to travel too far from home. Don’t be surprised if you find a couple big browns or smaller whites in the mix as well!
Heather from the Blackhawk in Niantic provided the following report: “Once again, a great week of bottom fishing. Porgies are coming over the rails all day long, with some nice sea bass in the mix as well. Another great Saturday afternoon kids trip too. Our fluke trip on Thursday was tough, despite our best efforts, the fluke just didn’t want to cooperate. We were able to get a few nice keepers, and some nice sea bass to help fill up the coolers, but it wasn’t what we were hoping for. We had a special fundraiser cruise with the WARM Center on Saturday night; it was perfect timing, as we were able to get the trip in just before the rain started! It was a beautiful night and we raised funds for a great local organization. In other news: we’d like to thank each and every one of our customers, and those who voted in the Best of the Best contest. We are honored to once again be selected as the best charter/party boat! Thank you so much for your support!”
Captain Matt at Stonington Stripers told me that he has had to continue to grind at times, but is still finding some nice fish on light tackle and on the fly. Striped bass from school-size to 40-inches have been keeping rods bent. He’s also still seeing a healthy number of big bluefish this week, which are helping to keep things exciting when there’s a lull in the bass bite. No surprise, but the 9-inch Slug-go remains the top producer, with the 13.5-inch GT eel being a close second. Soft plastics have been killer, but some days you need to fish them on a jig, tight to the bottom, to get them to eat. Fly anglers are still cashing in on Beast Fleyes, big hollows, and snake flies. However you fish, or regardless of your presentation of choice, make sure you’re rigging is up to par! There’s no shortage of big fish, so your tackle stands to be tested. Matt also said hasn’t spotted any bonito yet locally, but reports are strong to the east, so it shouldn’t be long now.
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Joe at Diorio Guide Service provided the following report after another strong week on the water: “Fishing has been pretty damn good lately, especially first and last light conditions. We have been getting them best before the sunup, with most of the fish falling for large soft plastics on jigheads. In fact, the large soft plastics are often outfishing live eels before sunrise. Once the sun comes up the Skipper and Doc come out. Topwater spooks and live eels have been working best under high sun. We have been fishing mostly 15 to 30 feet of water and a few spots from 30 to 50 feet. Bluefish have been very prevalent in these areas as well, with fish up to 15 pounds! We also were able to make it out to the tuna grounds these past few weeks and have been very successful using streaker-style jigs like the Sleek jig and RonZ. As always—find the life and you will find the bait. We have dates available still.” Contact Joe to get in on the action!
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When I talked to Captain Chris of Elser Guide Service he reported that he is still having success on stripers and big bluefish on a few specific wrecks and reefs. The tides have been extremely important to success, so much so that Chris is booking some midday trips to target the right tides. Live bunker and trolling pink tubes with imitation sandworms are still the best methods. Daybreak is offering a brief period of topwater action in the area unless you come upon a mid-sound bunker school getting hammered by big blues and bass. The Spanish Mackerel are still sightings only, no hookups yet as they are spread out thin still. Chris is hoping that picks up by next weekend.
Captain Mike Roy at Reel Cast Charters reported that the bite has remained strong this week, even as stripers have transitioned into their summer pattern. The majority of reefs in central and eastern Long Island Sound have schools of bait on them and are holding big bass. There is a good deal of juvenile herring in the area, and the bass can often be found feeding on them on or near the surface. The bunker schools are thicker in the river as well, and there’s generally some big bass hanging around them, although during the heavy heat hours you may be better off looking on the reefs. The bluefish haven’t shown up in big numbers yet, but there are some gators around, and Mike anticipates a nice push in the coming weeks. Sea bass and porgy fishing has been as consistent as ever in the Sound, so there’s no shortage of fish for the cooler either. Captain Mike and his team have some openings over the next few weeks, which is peak big bass season, so be sure to book ASAP.
Connecticut Fishing Forecast
The summer beat continues in Connecticut, despite increasing water temperatures throughout the Sound. The relatively cooler water in the eastern Long Island Sound is providing some excellent striped bass fishing. Striped bass are also being caught in the Sound’s major tributaries, and the eastern Sound reefs are starting to see better fishing this week. The western Sound has slowed a bit, but there are still plenty of good bass and bluefish to be had. This is especially true for anglers that have the tides dialed in and are targeting specific times and tide windows. The scup bite is as consistent as ever, with no shortage of hubcaps throughout the Sound, coming from just about every piece of hard structure, regardless of depth. Meanwhile the sea bass season has kicked into gear over deeper structure. Those targeting summer blackfish are also finding some success, and you may just find some keeper tog as bycatch while targeting the aforementioned species. Dedicated fluke fishermen continue to pick away at legal sized flatfish, with better reports coming from some shallower water this week. Spanish mackerel and bonito reports haven’t popped up just yet, but they’re being spotted just to the east, so they aren’t far off. Another couple of summer visitors, brown and thresher sharks, are also showing up around bunker pods and are providing another option for anglers relatively close to home.
love the reports! want to get out there for scup, usally go on the middle bank out of Bridgport, because i come from jersey and its close! any other scup boats around there that you know of?
I hope all of those stripers were returned safely to the water. That’s the law. I doubt they survived
Where are the snapper blues