Rhode Island Fishing Report
The Frances Fleet out of Point Judith reports that fishing has picked up nicely after the storm and fluke, black sea bass, and scup have all been cooperating on recent trips. The last few days saw a noticeable uptick in fluke action, and with the sea bass limit going to 6, there are plenty of filets for the cooler. They will continue to run both full- and half-day trips for fluke and black sea bass through early September. Their full schedule can be viewed on their website, where you can also make reservations.
Dustin Stevens of Rhode Island Kayak Fishing Adventures told me that albie fever is officially here! He’s had a couple of shots at them this week, but they were on very small bait and unfortunately, they couldn’t get them to chew. Luckily, it should only get better from here! Bonito are still around and willing to play ball on most days. Striper activity has been incredible some mornings while totally nonexistent the next. We should start to see more consistency as the fall rolls on, but it is certainly a bit up and down right now. Between Rhode Island and the Cape, Dustin has seen huge numbers of small bluefish with the occasional gator mixed in. Tautog fishing is still the most reliable bite and will only improve as fall approaches. Dustin’s September morning trips are pretty much gone however he does have a few dates left. October still has some great opportunities, so reach out ASAP to book your kayak fishing trip in 2025!
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Eric at The Saltwater Edge in Middletown provided the following report for the week: “It’s official, the albies are here in RI! We have a great mixed bag on the south-facing shores of Rhode Island. You might find a pod of bass, followed by bonito, followed by albies. The bait is small, and the most prevalent bait is peanut bunker. Stock up on the Hogy Peanut jigs or similar for the best action. Be wary of roving bluefish bands; they are fun, but they can be lure thieves when fishing light leaders for hardtails. Tautog fishing continues to improve, and some of those smaller sea bass from earlier in the year seem to have grown up. We are getting more reports of consistent keeper sea bass every day. The fluke bite is good if you can find them, but not as consistent as it was a week or two ago.“
When I spoke to Jay at Pamela May Charters, he was coming off an excellent Labor Day weekend on the water. They started the weekend getting into some bluefish and schoolie striped bass on Saturday off Newport. On Saturday night they put together an epic evening of topwater fishing for bass to 40 inches and over, without traveling too far from home. The action continued into Sunday and Monday, with the appearance of more bonito and a few sightings of false albacore. False albacore reports seem to be more common over the past few days around Narragansett and a few spots along the South Shore. Sea bass fishing has been lights out on small epoxy jigs. You need to weed through the shorts, but it’s great action while you wait for the hardtails to pop up. There are still some fluke around in deeper water and a few of the shallower spots around the West Passage. There is a ton of small bait all over the area, so the hardtail, striped bass, and bluefish action should continue nicely. Jay had a cancellation on Sunday the 7th, if anyone is interested in chasing some hardtails.
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Captain Rob Taylor at Newport Sportfishing Charters reported that things have remained status quo since last week. Most of the near-shore tuna haunts are home to some massive feeds. The key has been to find some clean water around the temperature breaks, and you’re bound to find some nice fish. Bluefin of mixed sizes can be found on the jig, troll, pop, or bait, and there has been increased numbers of yellowfin and bigeye entering the fray, without traveling to the canyons. While tuna fishing is catching quite a bit of attention, Rob also noted that the striped bass fishing has remained tremendous this week with the influx of small bait. Rob hasn’t done much bottom fishing this week, but sea bass reports have been steady, and the tautog fishing continues to slowly pick up steam as we approach fall.
Dave at Ocean State Tackle in Providence told me that the continued cool weather has resulted in some better striped bass fishing. There have been large schools of bass feeding on top during the morning hours, especially around Rose Island light. These fish are mainly in the slot class or just over, with a few much larger bass in the mix. Most of the common fall hotspots in the bay and rivers are seeing topwater blitzes at one point or another, including solid reports from Fields Point. Anglers drifting eels at Block Island and around Brenton Reef are also being rewarded with a steady bite of larger striped bass. Bluefish have been in the mix there, along with the bass in Narragansett Bay and in the rivers. The bonito bite has remained steady, and the first few false albacore reports have started to trickle in from eastern Rhode Island. A push of solid weakfish have also entered the bay, and there are some larger schools of smaller weakfish reported across South County. Bottom fishermen are still finding a few fluke and sea bass, but the better bottom fishing is coming from anglers targeting late-summer blackfish and scup. Tautog anglers are reporting good numbers across a range of depths, although there are quite a few shorts to cull through. The offshore bite has also remained consistent, with anglers reporting good shark action, improved bigeye tuna fishing, and a steady mahi bite this week. Freshwater anglers are also taking advantage of the cooler temperatures, with improved largemouth fishing, especially for anglers fishing live shiners, while fall trout stocking is just a few weeks away. Dave is now opening at 6:30 a.m. during the week and 5:30 a.m. on weekends and will close at 7:00 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and at 4:00 p.m. on Sunday.
Rhode Island Fishing Forecast
Early signs of the hardtail invasion are showing, and by the time next week’s report comes around, I think we’ll have the full smorgasbord of hardtail options consistently. We’re already seeing plentiful bonito and chub mackerel, along with the first early-arriving false albacore. There’s no shortage of small bait in the area, and the number of blitzes of mixed species has multiplied like crazy this week.
Striped bass and bluefish can still be found in all their usual haunts out front, and in the bay, but were also much more prevalent on topwater over the past few days. Bottom fishing has remained steady across the state, with strong scup and better sea bass results from the deeper wrecks and rockpiles. Fluke fishing is probably in its latter stages, but this is usually a time where you have one more chance for a doormat before they migrate offshore. Most anglers have the topwater and/or tuna bug, but those targeting tautog are starting to see much better numbers as we approach the fall season.
Bigeye tuna reports have been consistent for those running offshore, as have the mahi reports. There has been a nice influx of yellowfin this week as well, which is always a nice late-summer effort before the fall really settles in. The next few weeks are very promising, with tuna biting consistently, false tuna ready to bust the door down, striped bass and bluefish entering fall feeding mode, and tautog taking another step towards the fall bite.