Connecticut Fishing Report
Matt at Black Hall Outfitters in Westbrook told me that things haven’t changed much since last week, besides a slight increase in bird and blitz activity. There are massive schools of bay anchovies, silversides, and peanut bunker, especially to the east. From Charlestown to Groton there have been loads of mackerel and plenty of small stripers and bonito, along with some nice bluefish. Unfortunately, the false albacore have still been almost non-existent out that way. A few schools have supposedly popped up here and there, but the more encouraging false albacore reports are still coming in from the Western Sound. Even to the west it’s not guaranteed, but your odds seem better. Big striped bass are definitely still around among the rocks, rips, and reefs, along with loads of smaller fish hitting paddletails, small topwaters, and soft plastics. Sea bass are still deep, 80-feet plus, and the big porgies are still easy to find on clams and sandworms.
Heather from the Blackhawk in Niantic provided the following report: “We had a great day on our Block Island trip on Wednesday. The weatherman got it wrong, and it was a beautiful day with a steady bite of jumbo porgies, sea bass, and a load of mackerel mixed in too! We’re looking forward to more Block Island trips as the season progresses. Locally, we had some excellent fishing for stripers and bluefish on our weekly bass/blues trip, as well as on one of our private charters, which did a combo of some bluefishing and some bottom fishing. Our bottom fishing trips were a bit up and down—some days were better than others. We continue to fish every day, with our bass and blue trips once a week leaving at 7 a.m., and other trips leaving at 6 a.m. New tickets for each week will be posted online on Monday night at 8 p.m. throughout the season. Check the website for details and grab your tickets to come join us soon!”
Captain Matt at Stonington Stripers told me that he found some improved fishing this week, including all the classic fall run stuff. There are big numbers of striped bass in his area, and most can be found by just scanning the surface. The fish in the far Eastern Sound are mainly feeding on peanut bunker and small anchovies, so small offerings and the fly rod have been working. Despite this, Matt has been throwing some bigger topwater plugs and/or the Albie Snax XL at some of these blitzes, and it has resulted in fooling some bigger fish.
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Joe at Diorio Guide Service provided the following report after another week of strong fishing: “It’s the first week of October and the fishing has been nothing short of incredible. The new moon has brought in some really large schools of stripers that have been consistently in the 20- to 25-pound range. Before the sun comes up, we have been doing best on large soft plastics on a jighead. The Joe Baggs Block Island Series eels on SPJ jigheads have been a top producer. When the sun comes up, the topwater bite has been pretty awesome with all the bait around. Large spooks like the Doc and Joe Baggs Skipper have been working best! We are still holding onto some hope that the albies and bonito will come into the Eastern Sound in better numbers over the next few weeks. This upcoming week, the bass fishing should continue to get even better as more baitfish exit the river systems and fish continue their migration down the coast; plus, we have next week’s blackfish opener to look forward to. We have a few dates available for the next month if you’re looking to get out before the season is over.”
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Anthony from Game On Lures told me that, aside from some larger bait and more bass getting pushed into the area, not much else has happened this week. Unfortunately, his prediction of the mass arrival of hardtails after the storm didn’t come to fruition like we’d hoped for. There have been some pods of albies scattered throughout the Sound but nothing consistent. There is still plenty of time for them to show, so fingers crossed! Striped bass fishing, on the other hand, has been lights out. Bass up to 40 pounds have been blitzing on adult bunker during low light hours, and these fish have been loving the 8-inch X-Walks! When they’re not actively on bait, those larger fish have stayed shallow and can be caught on the usual stuff— live eels, bunker, 13-inch Duratech eels, 7-inch Duratech jerkbaits, and trolling tubes have been working best for anglers. Topwater feeds of schoolie/slot bass continue to rage on, and they are still primarily on peanuts and silversides. Snapper blues have stayed in the area consistently and anglers have been having a blast targeting them on light gear. Sea bass and porgy fishing continues to be productive with some tanks of both species being caught recently. The 1.5-ounce EXO jig—specifically, in pink—has been the ticket for anglers looking to fill the cooler.
When I talked to Captain Chris of Elser Guide Service he provided the following report: “The false albacore fishing has been very good in select areas, but the real story is the number of bonito in our area. The last 2 outings we averaged close to 20 bonito a trip! The albies remain independent of the bones and are running in much smaller schools with about a dozen in a school, but the bones are in very large schools and are much easier to coax into hitting a jig. Their feeds also last much longer on the surface than the albies, which are up and down quickly. Peanut bunker and anchovies are the primary baits in the 1.5- to 3-inch class. The 3/4-ounce EXO jig has been excellent for both species and my best success has been with white and pink. Since the arrival of the little tuna about three weeks ago, my trips haven’t paid much attention to stripers and bluefish, but they are around in fewer numbers than the albies and bonito. I haven’t seen a bonito run like this since 2009, and it’s great to have them back in sizes ranging from 3 to 7 pounds. Time of day has not been important, but tide has. I have actually had great action mid-day and there are typically fewer boats on the water after the morning rush”.
Captain Mike Roy at Reel Cast Charters reported that the recent northeast winds have fired up the fish into fall run mode. Good fishing for stripers of all sizes has been the norm on recent trips and the fish have been much more receptive to artificial lures, not just live baits. Topwater action has been excellent and now is the time to book a trip if you’re looking to get in on some explosive bass fishing. Trips this week are still seeing big numbers of mixed sized striped bass, without traveling too far from home. They are also seeing lots of bluefish gorging on sand eels, especially around The Gut and Sluiceway areas. In addition to the sand eels, there are a ton of peanut bunker around. There are still plenty of bottom fish, including porgies and sea bass at all the reefs, so they’ve been able to finish off trips by filling the cooler. The Connecticut tautog opener is October 10th and Reel Cast will be adding tog to the targetable species list as well. Captain Mike and his team have openings over the next two weeks, which should be primetime for fall run bass and tautog action. Give him a call today to book your spot.
Connecticut Fishing Forecast
It certainly feels like October fishing in Connecticut this week, with strong fall fishing throughout the Sound, although species/results have varied depending on location. The Eastern to Central Sound saw a nice influx of anchovies, which have joined the peanut bunker to fire up some excellent topwater striped bass fishing. You’re bound to find some blitzing bass just about anywhere across this range, and sizes can vary from 20 inches to 40 pounds plus. Light-tackle and fly anglers are in their glory chasing these schools, but don’t be afraid to throw some bigger offerings into the mix to try and cull out some bigger bass. Some solid bluefish have been in the mix as well, but if you’re looking for big bluefish numbers, it seems your best bet is out by The Race and Plum Gut area.
False albacore reports have been almost non-existent to the east, but you have a chance at running into a pod of bonito or two on most trips. In the Western Sound, the bass blitzes are nearly as prevalent, but the hardtail reports are much better. Bonito numbers are very strong to the west, and on any given trip you’re bound to run into a few smaller pods of false albacore. Here’s to hoping that these hardtails continue to make their way east!
Bottom fishermen across the state are gearing up for the blackfish opener next Thursday, and in the meantime, there is no shortage of sea bass and scup to fill the coolers.
For the freshwater enthusiasts, the fall trout stocking program is firing up, and flows are great. This is a great time to keep a fly rod or ultra-light spinning setup in your car, and quickly hit a local trout stream for the fish or the fall scenery.