Long Island and NYC Fishing Report
Paul McCain at River Bay Outfitters in Baldwin reports: “It’s the first time in a long time that the Connetquot is closed down. The only part that is open is the handicap section, and it’s been this way for four days! This is the first time in 5 years folks can ice fish out on eastern Long Island ponds. There are tons of different ponds filled with pickerel, bass, carp, and walleye.”
Steven Figari (@bassholes_surfcasting) reports: “I was fishing a 5MM tungsten jig tipped with a wax worm in 20 feet of water, and jigging it near the bottom was the key to success. That said, I had to work for bites and do some hole hopping and drilling in order to find areas of the pond that held life. The setup I was fishing was a 500-size Pflueger President reel and 30-inch ultralight rod. Luckily I was able to catch a few sizable yellow perch. If you’re ice fishing, the key is having technology—a standard ice fishing finder will do wonders.”
Bill Falco (@fishlongisland) from Chasing Tails Bait and Tackle in Oakdale reports: “The Connetquot River has been closed due to ice and snow, but as of today, a few beats have been cleared and re-opened to the public. Give them a call before you head down. Speaking of ice and snow, a few diehards have been out ice fishing our local lakes and ponds. Some really solid yellow perch, a few pickerel and quite a number of nice largemouth bass have come up. If you fish the hard water, you’ll know you need to bring your arsenal of jigs and baits to make it happen. If you have tip-ups, live baits always work wonders too, if you can get some. It’s super windy, so an insulated shelter and a portable heater will definitely help. If you’re hardcore and already have your Vexilar or Livescope going off, you know the deal. My stuff is all at the cabin upstate, but I may have to grab it the next time I’m up there and grab some chilly fish myself. This winter is too long and brutal already and I need to bend a rod, and bending a 24-inch super ultralight on some chunky perch is always a good time.”
Gary Huang (@gh_fishing26) reports: “With this recent cold snap, lakes all over the Long Island/NYC metro area have locked up. On Saturday, my buddy Raul (@_raul_andres_) and I made our way not too far upstate to go pike fishing. With a bucket full of XL shiners and medium suckers, we trudged onto the ice on an absolutely frigid morning. With the recent snowstorm and cold temps, the ice has become layered. The top layer was about 5 to 6 inches of either hardened snow or slush, depending where we were on the lake. Then, there was a layer of cloudy ice, followed by a bottom layer of maybe 3 to 4 inches of hard, clear ice. Some slushy parts of the lake only had about 2” of ice under the slush, so I quickly left those areas after drilling test holes. No ice is safe ice, as they say, so always exercise caution. We set out all of our tip-ups and Jawjackers around a point that looked fishy and sure enough, flags were flying before we could even finish setting up. The first fish was a slab crappie, followed by a smaller pike. The bite died down for about an hour, until I got a flag that had the tip-up spool ripping. I got a little too excited and set the hook way too hard for these sharp-toothed predators, which immediately cut my 30-pound leader. We caught a couple more smaller pike and then the one we were looking for made a crazy run on another tip-up. I set the hook firmly but not too aggressively this time. I got it almost to the hole and saw the fish before it made a deep run straight down. After landing the fish, we taped it out to about 30 inches and sent it on its way. Right before we left, we got a surprise 3-pound largemouth on a Jawjacker. The groundhog saw his shadow, so we’re stoked about another 6 weeks of winter and more ice fishing!
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Sean Conway (@long_island_fishing_guy) reports: “Connetquot had been producing 2 weeks ago and the fish seemed more hesitant to eat, but overall I did okay there. Various size Woolly Buggers that I tied seemed to be the only thing I could get a bite on. Conditions now are perfect for ice fishing. I’ve only managed little perch while jigging wax worms on tiny tungsten ice jigs.”
Joseph R (@nothingeverchanging) reports: “Well, it’s not news to anyone that this winter set in hard and fast. With stretches of water that usually remain open throughout the winter now frozen solid, fishing opportunities are at an all time low. However, for those of us crazy enough to keep up the fight against Old Man Winter, there are definitely still fish to be caught. Finding and catching these deep-freeze bass requires a slightly different approach from even our typical winter spots and tactics. Ordinarily, when looking for holdover bass, I’m looking for still backwaters and very slow-moving stretches of rivers. Bass are cold and are trying to conserve energy. They’re not going to be sitting in high-current areas (like they would in-season) wasting precious energy just to hold position. But this exceptionally cold weather brings another hurdle. These calm, slow moving stretches of water that typically hold winter bass are now also the first to freeze. Faced with this conundrum, I pivot back to looking for higher current flows that are just adjacent to pockets, holes, or “cul-de-sacs” holding still (now frozen) water. The faster moving outflows subjected to significant tidal swings will resist freezing longer than any other stretches of water and many will remain fishable through these tough months. Access remains a problem, with fishing these typically central areas of flowing open water made difficult by the multiple feet of ice extending from the shore on either side. But, if you can find the right spot to fish from, I am having luck catching bass that seem to move out from under those frozen pockets and into the open flows on an outgoing tide. Technique remains the same, with slow being the name of the game. I will even just cast out into the outflow and simply hold the plug there letting the flow do the work, with only a small crank every so often slowly working the plug back in. As always, choose lures that have subtle action at slow speeds. SP and Hydro Minnows, and curly-tail or paddletail plastics held wobbling just near the bottom will often be the ticket to treating cabin fever and getting your hands on a winter bass.
The Author’s Experience
I can’t say I’ve been fishing much locally! It’s the coldest winter we’ve had in a long long time. I’ve been hunkered down tying flies and preparing for spring. While I’m used to fishing neutral colors like tan, olive, and white, this year I’m expanding my arsenal to include some bright colors like pink over chartreuse, chartreuse over white, and chartreuse over blue. Each season presents a learning opportunity so I’m excited to try out some new stuff. As I always say, you can never have enough flies!
In other news, there are plenty of fishing shows and expos coming up. The big Ward Melville Fishing Expo is March 7th and 8th, and it’s the perfect opportunity to buy custom plugs, new rods, and stock up on tackle from local vendors before the upcoming season.
Long Island and NYC Fishing Forecast
Spawning data around striped bass indicates that a cold winter with heavy snowfall—which equates to plenty of runoff in the spring—is conducive to better spawning conditions. With the consistent snow and cold we’ve had, keep your fingers crossed that the Chesapeake Bay is in for a good, long spring spawning season with above average recruitment for once. The way that things have been going out here on the island, I don’t anticipate an excellent early spring bite—but who knows! Mid-March is a long way off. Let’s hope that Punxsutawney Phil’s forecast was wrong and that February has some warmer temperatures in store for us!
If you haven’t already, get your reels and rods serviced or repaired. There are plenty of shops across the island that are ready to help you get your gear in tip-top shape in anticipation for the saltwater season.
If you’re into ice fishing, it’s a great time to go poke around some local ponds on the eastern end. As Paul McCain said, we haven’t had a good ice fishing season in almost 5 years so take advantage of these conditions while you can. Micro jigs, an ultralight rod paired with a small spinning reel, and some light fluorocarbon line is all you need to get started fishing for yellow perch. Electronics will help you refine your skills and better locate the fish.
Stay warm and hang on tight! Spring isn’t too far away.