Rhode Island Fishing Report
The Frances Fleet out of Point Judith once again lost some trips midweek due to the weather, but tautog fishing has been going strong when they have been able to get out. Anglers who wanted to beat the wind found some good fishing on Sunday/Monday, after a little bit of a lull in the bite on Saturday. They found a steady bite and chipped away all day long. By the end of each day, they came away with a good catch, including limits for most of the anglers on board. The fish were eager to eat green crabs on jigs; they didn’t have to bust out the white leggers. After a tough couple of days, the weather looks to be improving toward the latter half of the weekend, so be sure to check their website for an updated sailing schedule.
Dustin at Rhode Island Kayak Fishing Adventures was fresh in from vacation and met with some strong winds for the end of the week, but told me he’s looking forward to getting back out there over the weekend. From what he’s heard, not much has changed for anglers who have been able to get out during the weather windows. Stripers are still pretty active in the middle to upper bay, which should provide some refuge from the weather—and especially northeast winds. Tautog continues to be the most reliable target, with good reports across a number of different depths out front, and some bigger fish being reported up in the bay. Some nice-size sea bass are also being caught by while tautog fishermen. On the freshwater side, the DEM has stocked a lot of local fisheries with some quality trout. Largemouth action has also been decent as they are feeding heavily before the winter. Dustin will keep making trips until things freeze over, so reach out to book your kayak fishing trip ASAP!
Captain Rob Taylor at Newport Sportfishing Charters told me that tautog fishing is in full swing in his neighborhood, despite less-than-ideal conditions on some trips. The fish have been chewing across a number of depths, with the bigger girls starting to hold a bit deeper. Per usual this time of year, the fishing pressure is still relatively high, so look to get off the beaten path and find some untapped structure for your best chance at some big white chins. While temperatures have started to drop, they have yet to plummet, so the shallow jig bite is lasting longer than usual. With fish across a variety of depths in the bay and out front, you should have no shortage of structure to work. The amount of quality, fishable structure also helps with the weather. Outside of the extremes, you can locate some fishable structure in the lee of the wind, so there’s no excuse to stay home!
When I spoke to Jay, at Pamela May Charters, he told me he was focusing heavily on tautog in between bouts of wind and tough weather. Hardtail numbers are down in the area, but the striped bass fishing has continued to pick up the slack. They can be found feeding more frequently out front, with some big blitzes on almost every trip. They are also just as plentiful in the backwaters, which provides a nice outlet during the bad weather. Temperatures are starting to take a pretty legitimate dive into the low 40s, which is helping to fire up the striped bass feeds and should only intensify the tautog bite.
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Dave, at Ocean State Tackle in Providence, told me that the fishing across Rhode Island has remained good whenever the weather is cooperative, which yet again, hasn’t always been the case. Striped bass and bluefish are still plentiful, although the hardtail numbers have started to wane. Anglers are reporting plenty of slot and over-slot bass in the Providence and Seekonk rivers, which has also provided a little bit of shelter from the wind. Tautog fishing has been solid, with good results for anglers in the Providence and Seekonk river areas. Most tautog reports are indicating bigger fish being caught throughout the bay, as far north as the Washington Bridge. The lower Bay and South Shore are providing some good tautog action as well, whenever it has been calm enough to stay on anchor. The water is starting to cool rapidly, so the tautog can be found across a range of depths. That said, most anglers are still cashing in nicely on jigs. Dave will have crabs and everything else you need for some weekend tautog fishing after the wind dies down. He’ll be open 6-6 on Friday and Saturday, and from 6 am – 2 pm on Sunday. After this weekend, he will likely only be open on weekends, so be sure to check his store page or Facebook for updates.
Eric, at The Saltwater Edge in Middletown, reports that fishing in Rhode Island remains rock solid, with slowly dropping temps and the recent northeast blow helping to keep the bass and hardtail bites alive. Inconsistency remains a common theme this season, mostly due to the tough weather swings, but if you spend some time exploring, you’ll find the fish again. Albies, like they’ve been all season, are unreliable. However, the bonito are still showing themselves in decent numbers around the mouth of the bay. The striped bass bite is still going strong out front across the beaches and bays, but it also started to pick up in the backwaters, which is generally expected in late fall. The bass are often attracted to these backwaters for a warm-water refuge and also to mow down all the bait that’s congregating there. Smaller offerings such as the Rebel Jumpin’ Minnow and Game On X-Walk, along with 5- to 7-inch soft plastics are key for late-season striped bass. Tautog fishing remains the highlight of yet another week, per usual this time of year. There are two main methods for targeting these fish right now, and Rhode Island has such an incredible fishery that both are producing results. Anglers are either still using light tackle to present jigs on shallower structure, or heavier conventional gear for fishing deep, rough structure out front. Both options are producing consistent keeper fish, along with plenty of studs.
Rhode Island Fishing Forecast
The story of this fall has been about weather windows; we just keep getting hit with stretches of rough weather every week this month. That said, the fall fishing is still very good when you take advantage of one or more of those weather windows. Strong tautog fishing has been the theme for most anglers, and there’s been an increase in quality, along with the usual consistency that we expect from the tautog fishery this time of year. The Rhode Island shoreline is certainly not devoid of hard structure, and right now you can find quality tautog anywhere from 15 to 100 feet of water. This not only allows you to avoid crowds and work different depths, it also still provides some options on days that the weather doesn’t cooperate, and your range is limited. Regardless of the weather, or the size of your vessel, you should be able to find some fruitful water in most cases. You’re likely to find some big sea bass in the mix still, and possibly a few nice cod in deeper ocean water.
The windy weather continued to kick the striped bass migration into high gear, as reports have intensified from the South County beaches and breachways. This is a telltale sign of the season winding down, but it’s also a great time to intercept some cow bass close to shore, before they make the big move. There are still some bass in the rivers and up inside the breachways as well, so if you don’t want to get smacked by a big swell, you can still find some nice bass to play with in the backwaters.
Bonito and false albacore were still showing themselves (occasionally) before this latest round of wind, but there’s no telling if they’re still around when it settles down.
Another staple of October fishing is fall trout fishing. The DEM has continued their fall stocking program this week, and reports have been good from most stocked bodies of water.