Long Island and NYC Fishing Report
Eastern Long Island
The Eastern Long Island Fishing Report is compiled and written by writer/blogger and fly-fishing industry professional, Jack Larizadeh (@jack.lariz).
Captain Tommy LaSala (@montauk_fishing_charters) in Montauk reports: “The bass fishing around the point is spectacular. Most of the fish being caught are from trolling umbrella rigs and parachute jigs. But during some parts of the tide, you can jig them or cast bucktails to them.”
Jeff at Whitewater Outfitters in Hampton Bays reports: “There are some small cocktail blues around the inlet and bass are in and out in waves. The best method seems to be casting tins like diamond jigs. As for bottom fish, blackfishing is difficult so far. The inshore spots aren’t too hot—the tog seem to be in deeper water. In other news, porgies in the Peconic area are still hot, the bass bite at night is a little better, and tuna are still offshore crushing bait. Slay em up!”
Phil at Cow Harbor Bait and Tackle in Northport reports: “A lot of tog are being caught in shallow water, pretty much everywhere you can find some rocky structure. They’re chewing on CT and NY sides of the Sound. The 15- to 20-foot depth range has been killer. 1/2-ounce jigs are working great. There are also lots of schoolie bass and teen-size fish from 15 to 18 pounds. Guys are diamond jigging bluefish out in the middle of the Sound. Big bass are coming on the tube and worm rig and live peanut bunker.”
Steve at Wego Fishing Bait and Tackle reports: “The wind wont stop! There are no albies to report locally, however, blackfish are chewing well for boat and shore anglers. The south shore between Shinny and Moriches has been hot for stripers. Porgies are thinning out in Peconic and blues up to 15 pounds are being caught in The Gut and The Race, where they’re feeding on sand eels.”
Bill (@fishlongisland) at Chasing Tails Bait & Tackle in Oakdale reports: “Tog season opener was a bit windy, but that didn’t stop anyone from going out to test their luck with some feisty blackfish. The local structure is loaded with tons of crab-eating white chinners. Make sure to bring a lot of bait, and plenty of spare terminal tackle. The shop is fully stocked with everything you need to target these incredibly fun fish, from jigs and rigs, crabs and shears, to rods and reels. Surfcasters and boat guys are having a blast with all of the quality striped bass in the ocean. In the surf, they’re catching on needlefish, darters, swimming plugs, diamond jigs, and poppers during sunrise and before dark. Clams and eels are getting slurped up by hungry bass. Weakfish reports are still coming in too. They’re taking bright-colored, small soft plastics on jigheads. We like bright pink or bright green here at the shop.”
Captain Chris at the Montauk Anglers Club reports: “It was another great week of fishing in Montauk. The striped bass fishing was about as good as it gets with fish blitzing on the surface for anglers from boat and surf. A few bluefish were in the mix. Black sea bass and porgy fishing is about as good as it gets with the fish on sand eels. You can catch them on jigs with ease. Opening day of blackfish season produced lots of boat limits. No double digits were seen, but there were still some big fish caught. Anglers fishing from the shore did very well. Squid fishing is back on point with what it should be; almost all of the party boats are doing squid trips at night. Get on your boat and go get them. I recommend the party Boat EbbTide. Call to reserve your spot. Offshore, the bluefin fishery continues to produce overs, unders, and giants. Now is the time of year to chunk butterfish to get on these fish. Everything you need to target these aforementioned species is available in store at Montauk Anglers Club tackle shop.”
Terrence at Smith Point Bait Beach & Tackle in Shirley reports: “Right now we have a good bass bite, and diamond jigs and clams are crushing. Were seeing a lot of slot and over-slot fish between 28 and 35 inches. The factor that matters most is tide; top and bottom of the tide brings the best action. The tide flip, in particular, is key.”
Sean Conway (@long_island_fishing_guy) in Eastern Long Island reports: “Stripers seemed to only want the needlefish lately. I’m seeing mostly high teen to 20-pound fish, however, I smacked a 38 pounder earlier this week. When it hit the wash I damn near lost my mind! That said, a bunch of other guys were getting on 20 pounders too. The bait I’m thinking is sandeels— I haven’t seen any signs of bunker, and never felt like I was going through schools of them, but I’m not 100% on that. Working my plug with a steady slow retrieve and a twitch worked best. The fishing is hot!”
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This past week was tough on the body and mind! I experienced a short weather window where I was able to go out with Matt Haeffner in the latter half of the week. There was an enormous amount of bay anchovies and birds off the North Fork toward Orient, however, there were zero fish attacking the bait. You couldn’t drive two feet without seeing the screen loaded with bait. While we anxiously waited for a hardtail bite to materialize, it was impossible to find the fish, and the ride back to the dock was helacious—the Sound erupted with 3 to 4 foot waves. Finally, before arriving at the marina in Mattituck, we noticed a random school of micro bonito. While it was nice to hook up and release a few, the weather really set in so we sent it back to the dock. It’s safe to say that the hardtail season is either late or a bust this year!
On Saturday, I made it out with Sean Conway (@long_island_fishing_guy) who put me on an amazing bite. The spot we fished was marked by a long fast sweep. As we arrived at the spot I was shocked to hook up on the first cast. Although I dropped the fish, I was able to pull out a nice upper-teen size fish on a Mag Darter. To say the least, it was an epic bite. Sean and I traded slot after slot with a few bluefish in the mix as well. The fish seemed to prefer darker-colored Mag Darters.
Come Sunday, I attempted to hit the same beat of water on the boat. With colder temperatures kicking in I expected to find albies or bones, however, the bait and birds were nowhere to be found. Luckily, I did find sea bass in roughly 80 feet of water. The fish seemed to hug the bottom and ride the column up to 50 feet. We were stoked to have our jigs smashed by quality sea bass after a long day of hardtail hunting.
Eastern Long Island Fishing Forecast
It’s prime time folks. Nighttime air temperatures are in the high 40s to low 50s and daytime temperatures are in the mid to high 60s. October 17th marks the full moon, which means large, migratory bass. With exacerbated currents and strong tides, it’s time to hit the open beach in search of monsters. The primary bait seems to be extra-large sand eels. If you’re fishing in the daytime, you can’t go wrong with an A27 or A47 diamond jig, a 5-inch Savage Gear sandeel pencil in the silver/sandeel colors, and a 5.5-inch, 1-ounce JoeBaggs sand eel. If you’d like to throw the fly, try a 10 weight, intermediate line, 30-pound tippet and an epoxy sand eel fly! When it comes to night outings, be sure to carry a yellow needlefish, a yellow Super Strike darter, and a few bucktails. Slow retrieves and light rod twitches are the key! Keep in mind that these big striped bass move on quickly, so be ready to bounce around to find the biomass.
If you’re after tog, it’s the perfect time to hit your local piers, boulder fields, and jetties. There are big tautog as shallow as 3 to 8 feet of water. Either a lead head or small octopus hook tied on a 1/2-ounce bank sinker should do the trick. Be sure to carry plenty of green and Asian crabs as blackfish tend to chew through bait pretty quickly.
Either way, it’s go time. Big bass are moving down the beaches, tog are biting. Now is the time to get on a hot bite.
The Eastern Long Island Fishing Report is compiled and written by writer/blogger and fly-fishing industry professional, Jack Larizadeh (@jack.lariz).
Western Long Island & NYC
The Western L.I./NYC Fishing Report is compiled and written by NYSDEC licensed kayak fishing guide, Nick Cancelliere (@nick_onthewater).
- Tog season is underway and off to a hot start on the bridges and in boulder fields
- Striped bass feed on sand eels in the surf and bunker pods further out
- Bluefish are in the back bays gorging on peanut bunker
John from Freeport Bait and Tackle reports: “Striped bass are feeding on sand eels so anglers are having success with diamond jigs and other small tins, as well as soft plastics like the JoeBaggs Miracle Minnow and Tsunami sand eels. Stripers have been feeding at the local bridges as well as in the surf. There has also been a decent bite in the ocean trolling mojos, bunker spoons, and livelining bunker. The blackfish bite has been stellar on the bridges so far, with plenty of action and keeper-sized fish to bring home! Stop by the shop for fresh crab and tog rigs or jigs!”
Brandon Weitz from Causeway Bait and Tackle in Wantagh told me: “The surf is on fire! Stripers of all sizes are eating plugs, diamond jigs, and soft plastics right off the South Shore beaches. Last night, I got into 6 fish on a purple minnow plug, with fish from 35 to 40 inches. On the bridges, the blackfish bite has been pretty great, with jigs and green crabs catching the big fish, but also Asian crabs and hermit crabs if you’ve got deep pockets. Rigs work very well from shore and might be a better option, unless you’re dropping straight down from a pier.”
Jamie from Bay Park Fishing Station in Oceanside said: “Bass have been slamming bunker pods off the beaches! The action is incredible, and topwater is the way to go. The bridges and back bays have been producing fish as well, with eels, poppers, and bucktails all catching striped bass and bluefish. Tog have been chewing on the bridges and submerged structure as well. Drop a crab at your local honey hole and get tight! Bay Park is stocked up with all the bait you need—crabs for tog, eels for bass, and more.”
Captain Josh Rogers from Gypsea Charters out of Brooklyn reports: “Blackfish season is finally here! We have seen some nice fish up to 7 pounds come up on the first few trips, with some decent short life at times as well. Fishing should only continue to improve as the temperatures drop. Halved green crabs have been the ticket for the larger fish, while Asian crabs have been working well for non-stop action. Sharpies have brought hermit crabs to use as well, for targeting the real trophies!”
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Doug Tobeck of Corazon Charters in Freeport said: “Striped bass fishing has really kicked into gear and they are now our primary focus. We will be using light-tackle, including slow-pitch jigs, when the conditions allow it. Offshore fishing is still happening, with oversize bluefin tuna the mainstay of the action. We are still on the lookout for giants!”
Captain Adrian Moeller of Rockfish Charters in Queens said: “The fall run is finally in full swing. The fishing has been improving daily and on yesterday’s trip, we had classic fall run bassing. We found a giant school of bass that ate everything we threw at them, easily catching a few dozen before we lost the tide. The stripers are still really skinny, but there’s a nice range of sizes from slots up to 50 inchers. The bass are still staging up and not necessarily on the bunker schools, so we’re netting our bait, then bringing it to the fish. After this moon, when the bass find the bunker, this bite is going to get crazy! We’re all booked up for October but still have some prime November dates left. See our full schedule and book at rockfishcharters.com or text (347) 661-4501.”
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Al Rotunno from the Staten Island Fishing Club told me: “Striped bass have started to show in Raritan Bay and out front off Sandy Hook. Troller Maja bunker spoons, livelined bunker, and artificial lures have caught fish up to and over 40 inches! Blackfish season opened up this week and I received reports of very solid tog fishing in local bottom areas. Joe Flip, Paul Spina, and Philip DeLorenzo all reported stellar fishing with tog over 5 pounds caught on jigs tipped with green crab. Bluefin tuna have also shown up midshore whenever there are weather windows to target them. Finding the whales and birds almost always equals finding the bluefin. Larger sized bluefin tuna have been caught on the troll in the lanes between Sandy Hook and Barnegat. They move around a lot, so stay mobile when searching for them. Tight lines!”
Paul McCain from River Bay Outfitters in Baldwin reports: “The water is still very warm for this time of year. Last week, I caught a ladyfish out of Jones inlet which I’d never seen before. There have also been exotic catches around the docks and piers. These cold fronts may put an end to that, but the warm front might extend it further. Inland, the Connetquot River has had steady action and is in good shape. I guided a large group who booked the entire park this past weekend and everybody caught fish. The trout were taking all kinds of streamers, plus dry flies, which is great fun. The Connetquot is a great place to go when the wind keeps you out of the salt.”
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Here’s what local anglers have been posting on social media:
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Western Long Island Fishing Forecast
Warm mid-day temperatures with cold nights will make for an interesting dynamic. Couple the fluctuating temps with the “Hunters moon”—a much cooler way of saying ‘The full moon after the harvest moon”—which should generate some ripping tides, and we have a very exciting setup for the weekend.
The isolated bait schools that have been untouched should start moving or getting corralled into spots where bass and blues will blitz on them. The back bays of Hempstead, Manhasset, and Cold Spring Harbor should be full of bait and hungry fish on the North Shore, while the South Shore surf has seen consistent bass action during the day and at night.
Sand eels are the primary forage from the surf, and the diamond jig makes fishing easier during the daytime; but you can also try light-tackle soft plastics like Albie Snax when the bass are on top. This was the primary lure I used last spring, when stripers and bluefish were slurping sand eels in glass-calm water in the back bays. Likewise, needlefish have been working well and so have minnow plugs.
Blackfish season is open and the tog are chewing. On the North Shore, rocky boulder piles have been producing short tog and a few keepers here and there. My buddy, Rob, went out on opening day and limited out using green crabs on jigs from his kayak. On the South Shore, the bridges have been producing nice-sized tog, but it’s hard to commit when bluefish can be blitzing just a few yards away. That’s always been my problem with blackfish season in October; the bass and bluefish action is usually too good to pass up.
Work those peak tides, carry a few extra diamond jigs, and cast beneath the birds for a chance to catch a big bass or big blue this weekend. When the blitzes cool off, drop crabs for tautog and porgy. Sea bass have been on the menu as well, if you decide to pack softer baits like clam or FishBites, which definitely catch blackfish too.
Enjoy the gorgeous weather and get tight. The fall run is firing up now and it’s only going to get better from here!
The Western L.I./NYC Fishing Report is compiled and written by NYSDEC licensed kayak fishing guide, Nick Cancelliere (@nick_onthewater).