Rhode Island Fishing Report
Aside from some short-lived safe ice, it’s been a mild winter for the most part, which bodes well for sweetwater anglers targeting bass, trout, salmon and panfish in Rhody’s ponds. Lately, though, many of the ponds that harbor good largemouth bass fishing have been locked up with skim ice. However, that may change in the near future. Air temperatures are forecasted to steadily drop into the 20s, and even the teens, through the weekend and into early next week. For the ponds that currently have skim ice, these frigid temperatures will (hopefully) lead to a deep-enough freeze to produce safe ice.
With the sea bass, scup, and tautog seasons now closed until the spring, saltwater fishing opportunities have grown slim. Headboats like the Frances Fleet will continue sailing for codfish when conditions allow, so if you’ve got some space in the freezer and you’re looking to bend a rod, look no further. Other saltwater fanatics who prefer to release their catch are getting their fix with winter holdover striped bass in the salt ponds and rivers, where 4- to 6-inch soft plastics on lightweight jigheads have been the most productive lures.
The Frances Fleet in Point Judith said they’ll be cod fishing for the foreseeable future, weather permitting. For the past couple weeks, the weather not been great but they’re planning to get out during the next lull in wind when sea conditions are right. Sea bass and tautog seasons are now closed, so cod and bergall are the target species. These are great trips if you are interested in cooking up some fresh fish during the winter, or adding some fillets to a depleting freezer supply. Book your trip online at francesfleet.com.
Ralph Craft at Crafty One Customs said he hasn’t heard of much as far as local fishing is concerned because of the holidays. He did add that the shop will be closed until February, but he will be working from the office in the meantime. Give him a call if you’re looking to have a new rod built before things get busy!
The Saltwater Edge in Middletown reported that most anglers are hitting the sweetwater for trout these days whenever they can find open water. There wasn’t much word of holdover activity around the shop, but with the colder temperatures as of late, stocked trout have been biting well on a slew of artificials including tins, tubes, and jerkbaits. A few guys are targeting largemouth bass (when ice isn’t in their way), but the bass have been much less cooperative than the stocked salmonids. Swing by the shop to pick up some lures and terminal tackle before your next outing.
Dave at Ocean State Tackle in Providence wanted to remind customers that the shop is closed for the season, but will be open full-time again in April. As far as the fishing, Dave said a few guys got out on safe ice over the past couple weeks before it all melted off, and they had good results from trout, bass, and panfish. It looks like there should be some ice forming on the ponds again in the next week, but unfortunately, they won’t be open to sell shiners. He also added that there are a handful of dedicated striper fanatics catching schoolies down in Naragansett and in the nearby rivers. The holdover hunt requires driving around a bit, and covering water at each spot; but the trick, he said, is to use small, white soft plastics, like standard paddletails or 4.5-inch Slug-gos. For the foreseeable future, Dave is taking time to focus on his health and is working on developing an e-commerce site that will have gear specific to all the saltwater species in the area, including stripers, tautog, bonito, and more. The site will likely be launched in February, so keep an eye on their Facebook page for updates.
Dustin Stevens at RI Kayak Fishing Adventures said he hasn’t been out for 4 or 5 days now, but last he checked, the local populations of holdover stripers were still chewing. Just about all of the fish he and his buddies caught were on the smaller side, in the 15- to 20-inch range. Dustin said the river near his home was pretty frozen over on Tuesday and Wednesday of this week, and it looks like there’s more cold weather on the way, so launching the kayak for stripers won’t be an option for a bit. Freshwater fishing has been decent when he’s been able to get out. Dustin said he’s waiting for RIDEM to do another round of trout stocking, but until then, there are a few ponds that still have trout to be caught, and a few guys have been doing well with largemouth when there’s been open water. He’s still guiding kayak trips when conditions allow, so give him a shout to inquire about availability this winter or to book dates for this coming season.
Rhode Island Fishing Forecast
The forecast calls for a multi-day stretch of sub-freezing temperatures going into next week, and that means most anglers are going to be breaking out their traps and ice fishing twigs in hopes of safe ice. With skim ice on many of the freshwater ponds already, and even on some portions of the rivers, it looks like we’re already halfway there.
If you plan to go ice fishing, err on the side of caution and remember that 4 inches of ice is the minimum recommended for “safe” ice. Also, keep in mind that bait for traps may be tough to come by, as many shops are closed for the season or are on their limited winter hours. Be sure to secure your bait in advance.
If and when there’s open water, hit the stocked trout ponds and smaller bass ponds for the most reliable action. A few days of sunny, mild weather can trigger largemouth bass to put on the feed bag, and they’re typically more willing to eat a big bait.
Holdover stripers will be in the rivers and some of the connected salt ponds for the duration of winter. Deep holes and choke points with some current are great places to start the search.
As a reminder, we’ll be running monthly fishing report check-ins for Rhode Island until the first week of April. If you have a catch or a fishing report you’d like to share in the meantime, tag us on Instagram @onthewatermagazine or send pics and reports to our Assistant Editor, Matt Haeffner, via Instagram @matthaeffner.
Fingers crossed for some safe ice in the near future! Be safe, stay warm, and catch ’em up.