Long Island and NYC Fishing Report
Arthur Cortes of Cortes Outfitters (@captacortes) in NYC reports: “The fishing this week has been nothing short of outstanding. We have been seeing steady action with striped bass feeding aggressively during the early morning and evening tides. Light-tackle and fly anglers have been getting into quality fish along the shoreline, while deeper structure and channels have produced solid catches throughout the day. As water temperatures continue to rise, the bite should only continue to improve heading into the coming weeks. Our fly of choice this week is a Chartreuse Beast Fleye, and our lure of choice is the 9-inch Doc.”
Aaron Diener (@aarondiener) reports: “The New York-area striped bass bite has been very good this week, with fish spread throughout the bays, inlets, rips, and nearshore structure. There are plenty of bass around, but the better action has been concentrated into short one- to two-hour windows during moving water. Most anglers are finding a solid mix of slot fish and overs, with bunker schools holding quality bass nearby. When the tide lines up, the action has been fast, with fish feeding aggressively on shads, bucktails, and swimming plugs. Overall, there are strong numbers of stripers in the area right now, and anglers dialing in the right stage of the tide are getting excellent shots at quality fish.”
Captain Adrian Moeller of Rockfish Charters out of Queens reports: “Fishing in Jamaica Bay continues to be the best we’ve ever seen. Just a nice variety of different-class bass every trip, with most fish around 35 inches, along with the occasional smaller and much bigger bass mixed in to keep things exciting. Mornings have seen a lot of topwater action, which usually dies out by 8 a.m., and you better have bunker by then or go home—or even worse, troll, lol. With these fuel prices, it’s a real blessing to have such a great fishery so close to the dock. Let’s hope it lasts a few more weeks. We have four May trips left. Go to RockfishCharters.com or call 347-661-4501 to get in on this bite before we switch over to tuna fishing full-time in July.”
- Want to get in on the bite? Find an OTW-approved Charter Fishing Captain around Long Island and NYC
Captain Ethan of the Angler Fleet out of Port Washington reports: “The bass fishing in the western Sound continues to produce great fishing. The fish are dropping through the area as they begin their migration north. With a great influx of bunker in the area, the bass are eager to eat just about anything, from mojos, spoons, and big soft plastics to topwater spooks, bucktails, and swimming plugs for the light-tackle enthusiasts. The fish are moving through in great numbers, and it doesn’t seem like it’s going to slow down anytime soon. Now is the time to catch that personal best!”
Captain Stu Paterson of Northport Charters (@northportcharters) reports: “Stripers showed up last week in numbers, with water temperatures slowly rising in Long Island Sound and schools of adult bunker and spearing moving into our area. On both charters we limited out with slot fish to 31 inches, and we released several fish to 25 pounds. As the days get longer and warmer and the winds become more consistent from the south and southwest, the bite will improve. Call or text 631-707-3266 for reservations or go to northportcharters.com.”
Mark at Cow Harbor Bait and Tackle in Northport reports: “Everything is turning on pretty good. The bay has fish in it, and guys are catching 30- to 35-inch fish. Some guys are even getting 45-inch fish on mojos inside the bay. Last week there was a ton of bunker; however, they suddenly disappeared. The full moon changed where the bunker schools were located. The bite is slowly building, and chunking, trolling, and flutter spoons have been the best options. The usual Sound spots have started producing. Weakfish showed up in the bay as well, ranging from 15 to 20 inches. A light jighead and a pink soft plastic like a Bass Assassin is key!”
Desmond Scanlan (@gracious_depths) reports: “The western Sound remains hot. We’ve put in some serious time over the last few nights with some really good chunking, resulting in fish up to 45 inches for Kenny and myself. Working around the bay with some night chunking, we had real success with fish up to 31 pounds over multiple nights, seeing mostly slot-sized bass with a few overs mixed in. Uncle Mo’s Tackle pre-rigged bass rigs made all the difference, having everything already set to go for a really great night of fishing. We found the best action in about 25 feet of water at the mouth of the bay and just off Hewlett Point, mostly on the incoming tide. On the bottom of the outgoing tide into slack, we picked a few shorts and one 31-inch slot bass on a 40-gram Uncle Mo’s Tackle Sand Eel Jig before setting up on the chunk. We managed another three slots right before the incoming tide, where the bite seemed to die off when the wind switched. We were marking a lot of fish in various spots, and it didn’t take long once we set up to start getting bites. Kenny and I also took out a group of 12 on a trolling trip that had a slow pick in the beginning right off Stepping Stone Lighthouse with only a few fish, but once we moved, we found large bodies of bass and got into a good bite with a few doubles. All those fish came on 8-ounce mojos, with white and chartreuse being the best colors. From shore, the topwater action is getting a lot better, with a few days producing a couple overs on the Cotton Cordell Pencil Popper farther back in the bays on the top of the tide into the outgoing. It seems like bait has been outfishing the troll these past few days, and with good numbers of bunker in the bay, we are hoping to get a day to live-line Stepping Stone Reef and a few shallower spots this week while these bigger fish are still around.”
Brandon Weitz of Causeway Bait and Tackle (@causeway_bait_and_tackle) in Wantagh reports: “The striped bass fishing on the beach has been pretty good, to say the least. Fish are all over from Breezy Point to Fire Island. The sunrise and sunset bites have been producing the most fish, but there are still fish to be caught throughout the entire day depending on the tides. The glide bite is crushing the surf. Honestly, just a straight retrieve at a moderate to fast pace with the spinning rod has been working. I’m throwing an 11-foot extra-heavy rod rated for 3 to 8 ounces so I can cast farther in the surf, and I keep the rod parallel to the water rather than pointed upward like I would with most lures. These fish seem to be eating bigger minnow plugs like JoeBaggs Swarters, SP Minnows, and Yo-Zuri Hydros, but there are also big fish hitting metal lips, spooks, and pencil poppers. But glide baits have been producing a lot of quality fish in the surf, and these bass are crushing them. They’re really fun lures to throw if you have the right tackle for it. The fishing is good—now’s the time to get out and catch some striped bass.”
Nick Cherkas (@surfcasting_the_island) reports: “The backside of this moon offered up some nice bass well into the 20- and 30-pound class hitting the sand. For anglers who were able to get out this past week, both day and night shifts provided action if conditions aligned with the area being fished. An assortment of minnow plugs, bucktails, and topwaters have been taking the majority of fish during daylight hours. Bottle plugs, darters, and metal lips have been producing once the sun tucks away. I use the words ‘variation’ and ‘assortment’ because what should be thrown is based upon maintaining contact with your plug. With the volatile weather and some bites being better than others, you need to be willing to adjust day by day to changing conditions.”
Bill Falco (@fishlongisland) at Chasing Tails Bait and Tackle in Oakdale reports: “It’s been another great week of striped bass fishing. Stripers are hanging off the beaches, in the inlets, and scattered all over the bay. We’ve been seeing some really good bites this week. The bay is loaded with solid fish, with good schools moving through and following every bit of bait they can find. Hit them with paddletail shads, SPs, and poppers. I’ve been having some pretty good luck on the poppers, but the paddletails have been finding fish that aren’t showing themselves. Bucktails and soft plastics bounced on the bottom are also great options if you’re heading toward the inlet. On the beach, I’ve been having a killer season with bucktails tipped with a Fat Cow strip—it’s hard to beat. Bigger-profile baits like paddletails, darters, bottle plugs, and bucktails have been putting in serious work while these fish gorge themselves on bunker. My buddies and I have been finding them at all hours of the day and well into the night.”
White Water Outfitters in Hampton Bays reports: “Some guys are catching stripers in the inlet at Shinnecock, and the canals are holding weakfish as well. Areas east and west of Shinnecock are heating up. The Peconics are turning on, which is nice. A couple fluke are being caught as well, and the porgy fishing is heating up. Swimming plugs and subsurface plugs are producing best.”
Wulber Alberto Ruiz (@the_striper_hunt) reports: “The full moon kicked off with a bang. There were many fish in the 30-pound class that pushed into the inlets, and if you were lucky enough to be throwing an 8-inch metal lip, it was only a matter of time before you hooked up because the fish would not touch anything else. Now that the full moon has passed, the bite seems to have become spotty during the tides, so you have to get out and put in the time to find them and eventually be rewarded.”
Kyle Ellis (@kyle_lsx) reports: “Pick your favorite spot along the open beach on the South Shore—pretty much anywhere will do. The bigger bass have shown up, and the last moon phase brought in a solid wave of good fish. Right now, it doesn’t seem to matter what you’re throwing—Super Strike bottles and darters, SP Minnows, Swarters—they’re all getting hit. Profile and color aren’t making much of a difference, either. Both tides have been productive on the open beach, and fish up to 30 pounds are in the mix. Even during the day, bass are popping up all over the South Shore, especially if you’re working topwater plugs. Pencils, spooks, and metal lips are all producing, with plenty of solid fish in the 10- to 20-pound range. The weather is finally starting to cooperate, though you’ll still have to manage some wind.”
The Author’s Experience
This weekend was an all-timer. On Friday night, I fished from 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. in Raritan Bay on my boat, with white Monster energy drinks on the menu. I pretty much ground my teeth and tweaked off caffeine all night—a familiar and welcome feeling when pulling an all-nighter.
That said, fishing has not been easy. This full moon flipped everything on its head, and finding fish in general was tough. The fish I did find were in super-shallow water ranging from 1 to 4 feet. The prime tide was dead-slack low, and with a light south wind, the shallows were calm and quiet. At 4 a.m., I landed a 30-pound-class fish on a @carrollcustomtackle Giant 8-ounce Phat Boy.
On Saturday, I found a generational bite of gigantic fish in the middle of the day in the Raritan at dead-low tide. The fish only wanted one thing: an enormous spook that I make called the “Surface Freak.” The fish came out of nowhere—no boil, no hesitation, just pure aggression.
Fast-forward to Monday afternoon, when Sean Conway and I found XL fish on glide baits and the Freak. The highlight of my week was breaking my personal best not once, but twice. What matters most is that both fish swam away strong.
Long Island & NYC Fishing Forecast
Water temperatures are warming up in the Sound, and the western Sound is chock-full of fish ranging from schoolies to 40-pounders. Tides and winds definitely play a factor in getting the right fish to eat. If you’re jumping on your boat, you can’t go wrong with mojos, flutter spoons, and, of course, glide baits.
It seems that fish in the deep western Sound are staging on deep ledges and drop-offs. On super-calm days or with light south winds, you can find fish blasting bunker on the surface, and most topwaters will get the job done. The mid-western Sound just received some migrators, and the eastern Sound is about to get slammed with fish any day now.
As for Montauk, it’s still bananas, with XL bass chewing at night. The ocean bite has been extremely good, particularly in the wash with minnow plugs and metal lips. The night bite has been especially productive, with giant fish being caught on bottle darters and Mag Darters.
Fluke fishing opened on May 4, so it’s time to stock up on fluke gear. This year I’ll be stocking up on Stack Tackle jigheads, Pro-Cure, and, of course, Gulp Swimming Mullet. I’m excited for these fish to move shallow—it should be a stellar fluke season.
It’s good to be back in the saddle. Sleepless nights and long days!