Long Island and NYC Fishing Report
North Shore
Captain Ethan of the Angler Fleet (@anglerfleet) out of Port Washington reports: “The western Sound has seen stellar fishing as of late. There are plenty of stripers to catch, and it doesn’t look like it’s slowing down. The bass are still around in the usual haunts and eating bunker like it’s going out of style. With the warmer water temperatures, you will find better success fishing the sunrise and sunset windows with a moving tide. The fluke have shown up in numbers in the shallows, eating grass shrimp and sand eels. This is one of the best times of the year in the western Sound, so get out there!”
Nick Cancelliere (@nick_onthewater) reports: “The Sound is LOADED right now. A big wave of stripers pushed in over Memorial Day weekend, and the train hasn’t stopped. On the tail end of this full moon, I landed my season PB, which crushed a glide bait when nothing else would get bit. The last hour of the outgoing tide has consistently been the magic window for me. Normally, I see bass on sand eels this time of year, but it’s pretty clear that they are keyed in on bunker. The bays have been loaded with pods of bunker end-to-end, and I think the reason glide baits are so effective is that they perfectly imitate these baitfish, akin to live-lining, but you can make them swim, panic, or die (pause) at your own will. One thing to keep in mind, though, is that most glides come with two treble hooks, and I highly recommend removing the rear one and replacing it with a tiny drop-shot weight or split shot to maintain the plug’s balance. I did exactly that this morning, and it did what I wanted it to: negate short strikes from small fish, make releasing fish effortless (and 100% safer), and keep fish pinned even when completely inhaled by a monster fish. Trying to release a schoolie with a two-treble-hook glide bait in it might as well be like trying to remove it from an active blender. With all these big fish around, it’s important to be a good sportsman and handle them well—keep your fight times low, keep them in the water as long as possible, and be mindful of how you release them. Revive fish by swimming them until their fins are upright and they bite down before letting them go.”
Mark at Cow Harbor Bait and Tackle in Northport reports: “We have a lot of crabs hatching; we think they are peeler crabs. A ton of grass shrimp are coming out, and the sand eels finally hatched this past moon. Fluke fishing is a slow burn—guys are catching, but it’s inconsistent. There just isn’t a big body of fluke around yet. The bass fishing is insane though; the fish are up and down, and they blitz at random times. The fish are slowly moving east, and although there aren’t too many bluefish around, a guy did weigh in a 14-pound bluefish locally. There are also a lot of 2- to 3-pound weakfish.”
Sean Conway (@long_island_fishing_guy) reports: “It seems like there was a recent cinder worm “hatch” (spawn) following the May full moon. The stripers seem focused on them, which has made them very finicky. They are also feeding on grass shrimp, which are pretty heavily loaded up in the back bays. Out front, there are sand eels and spearing. I’m jigging the larger fish off the bottom.”
Capt. Rob Lehnert of North Fork Adventure Charters out of Southold reports: “Spring daytime bass fishing is on. I went Tuesday to Plum Gut and got 2 slot fish and about 12 over-slot fish. I went back out this morning to do the same, and the bass were much more finicky. We had to do a little moving around, but we found some over-slot fish out by The Race. There were lots of boats on these fish for a weekday.”
South Shore
Captain Adrian Moeller of Rockfish Charters (@rockfishcharters) out of Queens reports: “Man, it’s been a real up-and-down week in the NYC area. Some days we absolutely crush both morning and afternoon trips, then the next day, like a light switch, they completely turn off. We still have a lot of bait around and a nice diverse size range of bass, with slot fish to 40-inch bass hitting live bunker in the bay. We’re also starting to eel and troll for bigger ocean fish to 50 inches, but that’s still kind of hit or miss and should improve into June. If you’re looking to catch a PB, these next three weeks are a great time to fish. The Manhattan Cup is this Friday; they still have some spots, so sign up for a great tournament if you can!”
Captain Jess Rogers of Gypsea Charters (@gypseacharters) out of Brooklyn reports: “We had good bassing and good fluking this past week aboard both boats. Plenty of oversized bass to 45 inches were released, with a bunch of slot-sized keepers also making their way to the cooler. Fluking has improved drastically as the water has cleaned up from the last storm and a new body of fish has arrived. The action isn’t hot and heavy, but the fish are all nice sized. Quite a few limits were taken this past week, with the largest coming in at 7 pounds, 8 ounces.”
Bill Falco of Chasing Tails Bait and Tackle (@chasingtailsbait) in Oakdale reports: “More bluefish are showing up, but the bass are holding strong! We have fluke staging up in the channels and making their way toward the flats, and weakfish ripping through schools of baitfish. Late spring is a hot time to fish, so get out and get you some! Blues are sporadically showing face—spawned-out skinny fish looking to fatten up to their full potential. They’ll eat pretty much anything that looks like food, so be ready when you see them. Fluke and weakfish are loving the small, finesse-style lures right now. Smaller soft plastics, a nice bright color, and fishing light is always the way to go to pull the hammer flatties and potential tide runners. Striped bass reports are still red hot. From the bay to the beach, stripers keep their territory on lock. Boat anglers are having fun trolling around, finding schools of bait and tossing swim shads and poppers into the mix. In the surf, we are doing very well with bucktails, darters, bottle plugs, and SPs. The full moon provided some chubby bass ripping through the inlets and open beaches. I hit the beach with Vinny Cagnina for the moon, and I stuck a nice chunker right before dark. The S&S bucktail with a chartreuse Fat Cow Fork Tail hit him right on the head, and the fight was on. We even managed to finally come across some schoolies. The water is cool and clear; more good fish are absolutely on their way here.”
Captain Doug Touback of Corazon Fishing Charters (@corazonfishing) out of Freeport reports: “After our slug of cold weather and high winds, we are off and running. Striped bass, sea bass, and fluke are all in full swing. We are starting to see fluke showing up in the ocean, and sand eels have arrived, which is a great indicator of an excellent fluke season ahead!”
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Aqualina Charters (@aqualinacharters) out of Moriches Bay reports: “Fluke fishing is still slow—guys are working for their keepers. A lot of cocktail blues and weakfish are in the mix, along with some big smooth dogfish, which have been a nuisance. However, with more bait showing up and warmer temperatures, the fluke fishing will improve.”
White Water Outfitters in Hampton Bays reports: “Bass fishing has been really good. There are almost no bluefish around; normally, we have hammer blues the whole month of May and into early June. Fluke fishing is a little tough due to the cold water, but there are concentrated fish in select areas. The cold water has kept things slow, including the weakfish bite in the Peconics, but the striper fishing is off the hook!”
Nick Cherkas (@surfcasting_the_island) reports: “Following the full moon and post-storm conditions, the striper bite has inevitably changed in my local waters. While many may say I will be packing it in too soon, the writing is on the wall. This time of year usually calls for working your local patterns in hopes of a handful of large, staging bass, considering there are fewer fish spread out across different areas. Your best bet is a slow presentation, whether that be a metal lip, darter, or any variation of a swimmer. If you were to go with the option of bait, these next couple weeks can provide excellent opportunities for eeling as well as chunking. On the other hand, if you are willing to make the trek and have the hours available, your best bet for continuous action is to start focusing efforts on the eastern end of the island.”
Scott Monahan (@bonesyfishing) reports: “South Shore beaches are showing a slower bite this week. Anglers willing to grind it out with bigger plugs are being rewarded with nice fish in the 30-pound range. The JoeBaggs Skipper and Cowdozer metal lips have been the key for me; this is the bite I enjoy—working hard for that one solitary big fish. This next moon should see a nice wave of fish. Hit those beaches before it’s over!”
Capt. Pete Douma (@doum_flies) of Windward Outfitters out of Montauk reports: “Another really good week here in Montauk. More of the same with water temps in the low-50s and tons of bait. Sand eels of all sizes seem to be everywhere, but the best bite has been when they get on the squid and butterfish. At times, getting a fly or jig deep is practically an automatic bite. Six- to 7-inch Flatwings across the whole water column have been my number 1 fly this year, with bucktails and XL Fish Snax shining on the spinning-rod side. There have been plenty of topwater opportunities too, mainly at first and last light, but you do get shots all day, especially if the tide is flooding. The bass have all been really quality-sized, with an average size in the low 30-inch range and a good number of 40-inch-plus fish in the mix. If you have ever wanted a big fly-rod bass, this is a great time to do it. The bluefish bite has continued to improve as well.”
The Author’s Experience
This week I ventured out into the middle of the Western Sound, and it’s safe to say I left ’em where I caught them last. As the sun came up, I watched as fish began raging on a small pod of bunker. My buddies Marc and Matt immediately had fish blow up on the Doc. In the madness, I had a 40-pound fish absolutely smoke the Surface Freak. The fish seemed to love the outgoing tide headed into dead low. We had a pretty awesome bite for roughly an hour and change before the tide petered out. Fast forward to the afternoon, we got back on the outgoing tide and the fish were again raging on bunker. The JoeBaggs skipper, Surface Freak, and Doc were the hot plugs. The key is not to chase the blowups—there are a ton of boats stirring up conducive areas which makes the fishing tough. Hanging out where you last saw fish instead of chasing them down has been a killer way to stay on fish away from the crowds.
Long Island & NYC Fishing Forecast
The bass fishing has been insane, but things are beginning to slow down on the South Shore, and fishermen are scratching their heads waiting for bluefish to arrive. Don’t get me wrong, there are still large fish around, but it’s a bit more of a pick.
The Western Sound still has plenty of fish; however, the larger class of fish is actively migrating east. The big bass we had west are on to greener pastures. Of course, there are still slots and over-slots around; however, the 30- to 40-pound-class fish are moving fast. A large body of fish is heading toward Orient and Montauk, with plenty of fish already chewing in both areas. The Sound is flooded with an array of bait, including alewives, small bunker, sand eels and more. The fish certainly have a buffet to choose from. There is definitely a lack of bunker around, but if you can find them, there seem to be bass cruising the edges of the schools, quietly waiting to attack.
When chasing large schools of bait on the surface, the key is to throw giant topwater plugs around the edges. If the school isn’t getting actively blasted, don’t be discouraged—large fish often track and follow schools of bunker even when they are not actively feeding. Work the edges near the perimeter of the school for the best results. Bass will often wait for one baitfish to step out of line when targeting tightly packed bait.
If you can’t find a blitz or bunker school, don’t worry—the fish love changes in bottom contour. This means drop offs, ledges, and edges. If you have a wolf pack of fish on your screen, a flutter spoon, bucktail, or deep-diving troller-style metal lip will do the trick.
In the Eastern Sound, the fish are flooding in by the day. Large fish from the west are filling into the flats, the Gut, and local boulder fields for the guys out east. As for Montauk, the bite is still red-hot with more fish on the way. The water temperatures are ideal for large resident fish in June. It should be interesting to see how the weather shapes up as we head into early summer.
On the fluke front, everything looks strong except the water temps. Ideal fluke water temperature is 62 and up, and we are sitting right around 60 degrees which makes the bite tough. I’m not saying that there aren’t fluke around, but it’s way more of a grind than it should be! The good news is we have no shortage of bait. With June kicking in and temperatures rising, we should see a spike in water temperatures and an uptick in fluke activity.
Looking ahead, the weather is going to heat up fast, which should turn on the fluke bite and slow down the bass bite on the North and South shores. In just a few short weeks, beaches from the Sound to the ocean will be full of fluke. If you’re interested in shore fluking, I’d recommend swapping out your usual 4-cylinder bag for a 2 cylinder option to keeps things light and manageable on those hot days! My favorite bag for the job is the Ebb Point Beach Walker. Load up with a variety of jigheads in different weights for your standard jighead/Gulp & teaser rigs. I’d recommend the Stack Tackle screwy head system due to the ease of switching out jigheads of different weights, along with their distinct line tie on top and bright skirt. Additionally, Bluff Lures just launched their Doormantis Jig, which is a fantastic option for chasing giants—it is the spitting image of mantis shrimp, which are fantastic fluke baits. Pair it with some Pro-Cure scent for the most effective results. If you’re using Gulp, tip your teasers and jigs with the standard 3- to 5-inch Swimming Mullet. Otherwise, try a single jig with a 5-inch Gulp Jerk Shad for a large, slender, spearing-like presentation.