Long Island and NYC Fishing Report
North Shore
Mark from Cow Harbor Bait and Tackle in Northport reports: “This past week I caught a monster bass on a white mojo; the fish barely fit in my lap! The fluke bite east has gotten better, and the local weakfish bite has been killer. Believe it or not, guys are catching some flounder already as well!”
Nick Cancelliere (@nick_onthewater) in the Western Long Island Sound said: “My vehicle looks like an absolute mess—sandy boots and waders, plugs in cup holders, 4 to 5 rods sitting shotgun, a 14-foot kayak accompanying me everywhere I go… why? Because the big fish are in and it’s only the beginning. More cows are on the way. The Western Sound has had fish over 40 inches over the past week, plus the occasional sand eel blitz with tons of slots mixed in. Things have been full tilt usually around the middle of the outgoing tide. I have yet to see bunker pods by me, but hopefully they’ll be in soon. With small bait around, I’ve had more luck throwing paddletails and small plugs instead of topwater. The bass are also super keyed-in at times, meaning a lot of short strikes and follows. I’m losing sleep chasing that first 40 incher of the year and won’t feel right until I find her. Best of luck to everybody out there!”
Mike Querfeld (@mike_querfeld) over on the Connecticut side of the Long Island Sound reports: “Things are really starting to heat up now across Long Island Sound. With the high numbers of herring returning to local tidal rivers this year, the fishing has been excellent for both striped bass and bluefish. The reefs and points are fishing well, and we’re seeing more and more big migratory fish each day. In specific locations, weakfish are making a solid return this year and that bite should improve through the end of this month. As the season progresses we will continue to see more migratory fish flood into Long Island Sound.”
Sean Conway (@long_island_fishing_guy) in the Central Sound reports: “Nighttime action has been productive. Mag Darters and jigging soft plastics or bucktails has been the ticket. I haven’t been out much during the day, but when I have, I’ve been able to pull a few fish on topwaters like the Super Strike Little Neck Popper in the backwaters.”
Steve at Wego Fishing Bait and Tackle in Southold reports: “Fishing is pretty good locally—the porgy bite is hot from Middle Grounds to Greenlawns. Bass fishing is still pretty consistent at Jessups on the incoming tide on bucktails and diamond jigs. There are some monster blues moving in chewing just about everything you put in front of them, and in another week to ten days, The Gut should be hot. Porgies are just starting to show up along the beaches, too.”
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South Shore
Brandon Weitz (@bweitz1) from Causeway Bait and Tackle in Wantagh reports: “Striped bass fishing is picking up a little, with some big bass showing up on bunker pods out front. There are still not a ton of bunker around but we’re seeing more and more each day. Big fish from 45 to 50 inches are chewing Mojos and flutter spoons. We have bluefish all over the bays still, from the inlet to the bridges. Fluke fishing, on the other hand, is decent; the bay fishing has been a little tough but some keepers are coming up. Look for warm water on the outgoing tide for the best action.”
Bill Falco (@fishlongisland) of Chasing Tails Bait and Tackle in Oakdale reports: “Bass and pickerel action is turned on in the local lakes. They’re going after bigger stuff like swimbaits and spinnerbaits—even topwater is kicking off in the early daylight hours. Mid-day, I like to slow it down and throw a jig or Senko around. Panfish are schooled up and super hungry for a worm or small jig. Trout are starting to go after terrestrials and more dry flies. The hatches are starting to get pretty good. In the salt, we had such an incredible week of fishing in the books. Big bass and bluefish are all over the place, fluke are raiding the Great South Bay and weakfish reports are getting more solid by the day. Weakfish reports are picking up all over the island, on the North Shore and South Shore. My buddies, Dave and Jay, are doing well up north throwing flies around. Small pink and chartreuse clousers are getting picked up. Down here, the reports are all on small, bright-colored jigs and light spinning tackle. Fluke reports have been improving daily since opening day; the bay is loaded with some nice flatties, and they are ravenous for Gulp! Bluefish reports are pretty standard—they are literally everywhere, from the bays to the inlets and beaches. They love anything topwater, especially a spook. They’re also swiping at SPs, bottle plugs, and darters. Speaking of those particular lures, it seems like the bass are showing preference for big baits this year. Darters, bottle plugs and shallow divers like SP Minnows and Mag Darters are getting demolished. We had a few nights of 20- to 30-pound-plus fish ripping through the open beaches; my buddy, Todd Kowal from Fat Cow, had a monster that tipped the scale at 35 pounds. Boat anglers are doing exceptionally well in the early morning and evening hours, crushing really nice bass on bucktails, metal lips, SPs, and poppers. The local docks are all lit up with bluefish and striped bass, and they love a good bunker chunk. We get them in the shop pretty much every day this time of year. This spring run started a little late, but it came in with force with quality stripers up and down the island right now.”
From the South Shore, Nick Cherkas (@surfcasting_the_island) reports: “Since the moon peaked earlier this week, fishing has been more sporadic. However, with fewer fish came the bigger fish , which allowed me to recycle my old stomping grounds for winds and tides that have remained a staple for consistency. Turbulent water around jetty pockets calls for heavy bucktails to get down into the strike zone where most other plugs would not reach. Expect better action with larger profiles since the predominant bait these bass are feeding on includes squid and bunker. The night shift remains a little more consistent while the day shift seems to be hit or miss.”
Will King (@willie_fish) on the South Shore reports: “This past week has brought in some good-sized bass filtering in among a plethora of 30- to 38-inch class fish. Large metal lips and, as always, bucktails, are doing most of the damage. Metal lips are producing fish to the upper 30-pound range.”
Kyle Ellis (@kyle_lsx) on the South Shore reports: “There are bass and blues all over the place right now, and they’re still hammering slim-profile plugs. This moon phase really fired things up. The daytime bite’s been solid too, with mostly blues showing up. At night, though, the bigger bass come out—plenty of fish well over the slot. Darters, as well as needles, SP Minnows and Hydro Minnows—just about anything skinny—are getting the most attention.”
Derek Monfort (@derek_sucks_at_fishing) on the East End reports: “Bass seem to be making their way east. Huge schools are just out of casting range from the beach. Not much is happening in the back bays in my neck of the woods, but blues came screaming in and have been super aggressive. The fluke fishing has been hit or miss with lots of small fish, but some nicer ones are getting picked here and there.”
White Water Outfitters in Hampton Bays reports: “Fishing has been pretty good; bass are all over, but they’re really chewing in the ocean. Porgies just showed up in the Peconic and the bite is HOT. Fluke fishing has been good for keepers and while it’s been slow, it’s looking better than last year. Bluefish ranging from 2 to 10 pounds are everywhere.”
Timothy O’Rourke (@mtkpointflyfishing) in Montauk reports: “Striped bass fishing in Montauk is excellent. There are lots of quality fish being caught on jigs, plugs and fly. We are consistently catching fish in the upper 30- to low 40-inch range.”
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New York City
Captain Arthur Cortes (@cortesoutfitters) in NYC reports: “Fishing this week has really improved, with stripers being caught in Jamaica Bay and along the ocean side. Most, if not all, of the fish this week have been caught using topwater flies and plugs. The bass are actively feeding on schools of bunker and small anchovies.”
Ilan moss (@ilanmoss) on the NYC beaches reports: “I had great shots at large gator blues on the fly in the east end creeks last weekend. I threw Flatwings and larger-profile flies for amazing action, mostly on the incoming, in the dark and during dusk. Nothing like fighting a massive bluefish in skinny water on an 8wt! Need to hit the tying bench now for that wave of stripers that hopefully follows.”
Karl Neumann (@kan313), first mate on (@rocksteadycharters) in Brooklyn reports: “J Bay is still active with plenty of bunker and bass around the back, as well as fish starting to push towards the ocean front and jetty. I’ve been hitting the surf as well, with blues and bass hitting swimming plugs and topwater in our local area. There’s plenty of bait and lots of life right now, so the bite should continue to get better out front after this moon.”
Captain Josh Rogers of Gypsea Charters in Brooklyn reported: “We’ve been covering a lot of ground the last few trips in order to put a catch together. Quality fish continue to come up each trip. A new body of fish should show up with the moon having just passed as well. Early season is your best bet to catch a true doormat. Striped bass fishing aboard the Lil’ Gypsea remains red hot with limit catches each trip and lots of releases. We also received word that the big ocean fish have shown up, so come on down and catch a trophy. We sail daily for fluke by reservation only. Call/text (516)659-3814 for info and availability.”
The Author’s Experience
The past few trips, we’ve gone out with the “quality over quantity” mindset. A giant is what we wanted and a giant is what we got! The full moon brought in massive fish up to 40 pounds on giant metal lips, Pikies, and trollers. The key to finding fish is certainly finding large schools of bunker. While these bunker are merrily swimming along, they suddenly get smashed by packs of a dozen or so extra-large bass. Then, within a minute it gets quiet. Although the fish aren’t all-out feasting on bait, they seem to find the Doc, metal lip, and fly on the blind cast. When it comes to nighttime, the class of fish seems humongous. I can tell the pods of fish I’m on are migratory Chesapeake fish. A black and red Time & Tide Lure Co. troller has been crushing them.
On Monday and Tuesday I was able to locate large pods of bunker getting destroyed by some huge bluefish. In order to get the fish off the pod, I meticulously worked the edges of the school. This approach resembles a bunker stepping out of line, which makes it an easy meal. Once the tide slowed down, the bass made another appearance and were more than willing to smash a Doc or NLBN on a lead head. Over the next few days, we’re going to get a gnarly east wind. Hopefully I can sneak out and continue to stay on these large fish!
Long Island & NYC Fishing Forecast
This moon brought in some absolute wompers throughout the Sound and ocean. If you’re a striper psycho, it’s time to grind for a big fish. Grab your 11-foot setup and plug bag, break out the 40 to 50-pound fluorocarbon leader, and hammer the night tides! While it may be a grind, this is when the largest fish of the year are caught. In your quest for greatness, pack two metal lips. One should be tuned to stay on the surface, the other should be tuned to dive a few feet. When tuning a metal lip, it’s all about bending the hook eye. If you bend the eye upward it swims deeper, and if you bend it down, it swims closer to the surface. Under no conditions should you ever touch the lip portion of the plug. Aside from metal lips, be sure to break out a Super Strike Zig Zag Darter in yellow; these are lethal, especially in areas with heavy sweep. Work the current sweeps properly by casting with the flow. And don’t overlook SP Minnows, Mag Darters, and basic swimming plugs, as they’ll still catch plenty of fish!
As May settles in, bass and bluefish should be littering the entire Sound in force; no bunker is safe. Large migrating fish should be hanging around bunker schools looking for an easy meal. The name of the game is finding the bait. If you see a school of bunker, be sure to work some large plugs around the edges. Regardless if the fish are getting hit or not, bass will follow close behind! It’s the perfect time of year to hop from pod to pod looking for monsters. This goes without saying, but a live bunker is a sure-fire way to hook big fish at this point in the season.
Looking ahead, we’re just a few more warm days away from a great fluke bite. Prepare your bucktails, Gulp, and live bait rigs because it’s about to go down. The shore fluking should be hot come the first week of June, and by that time the fish should be in shallow water looking to eat!