Rhode Island Fishing Report
The Frances Fleet out of Point Judith reported good fishing this past week on both the full- and half-day trips. The weather did force them to cancel a few trips, but when they were able to get out, the fluke and black sea bass were cooperating. There are quite a few short fluke being caught, with some keepers mixed in, and the number of keeper sea bass has been increasing on recent trips. You can view their full schedule on their website, where you can also make reservations for upcoming trips. Weekend trips have been selling out, so be sure to make your reservations early.
Captain Rob Taylor, at Newport Sportfishing Charters, spent most of his time offshore this week. The weather cooperated for the most part, and so did the tuna. Most of the usual offshore haunts are holding giant bluefin, and he has been getting his clients on some monsters with stand-up gear! The key has been finding clean water. Once you do, you should be greeted with bait and plenty of pelagics. The recreational-class fish have been slow to repopulate the midshore grounds, but they are starting to trickle back in, and there are loads of bait to keep them there when they show up. While tuna fishing is catching quite a bit of attention, Rob also noted that the striped bass fishing has remained tremendous this week whenever he’s targeted them. Bass are taking topwater plugs at times and can be caught all day long on live bait and jigs. Rob hasn’t done much bottom fishing this week, but sea bass and fluke reports seem to be trending in the right direction.
Captain Connor MacLeod, at Tall Tailz Charters, told me that fishing this week has been nothing short of amazing. The bass action is still the best bet in town and has been that way on nearly every trip all summer long. They’re seeing fish over 40 pounds consistently, with the biggest cow (pictured below) weighing a whopping 55 pounds. The tube-and-worm is producing best, but pitching live baits in shallow water is also getting big fish to chew. A few bluefish are in the mix, but they seem to be farther up the bay, feeding on smaller bait. The bottom fishing bite is getting more consistent as well. Fluke seem to be pushing inshore a bit and are now holding slightly shallower, generally in the 40- to 60-foot range, with pink and chartreuse being the two hot colors. The sea bass bite is also improving, with bigger sea bass closer to home on some of the local humps. Jigging metals, as opposed to fishing with bait, culls out the smaller fish. Offshore, the recreational-class bluefin are still trickling into the midshore grounds, and it should bust open any day now. That said, there are still plenty of giants around and within range, so they remain the primary focus for anglers with commercial permits.
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Jay, at Pamela May Charters, put together another week of strong bottom fishing. Much bigger sea bass seem to have settled in, with some big male knotheads in the mix. The fluking has remained consistent, both inshore and around Block Island, but you still have to grind to get some in the box. There is no shortage of big scup to help fill the coolers, as well! Striper fishing has also remained steady. The bite has dried up a bit at the North Rip but is still going strong on the southwest and southeast sides of Block Island. Just be prepared to deal with some sharks. One nice addition this week has been a push of big bluefish off the Narragansett coastline. It’s the first time Jay’s charters have seen them in decent numbers, and they have been eager to hit topwaters. Jay is also hearing of more recreational bluefin entering the mix, as the bait has really started to flood the midshore grounds.
Dustin Stevens, at Rhode Island Kayak Fishing Adventures, told me the striper bite remains hot on most of his trips. On a majority of those outings, Dustin has been getting clients on nice-sized fish, and a few trips have produced good numbers of slot-sized bass. Bluefish are still around; however, they’re catching stripers about 80% of the time. Water temperatures are pretty much at their peak, and with that has come a huge uptick in shark activity. Either fish are being bitten in half, or they’re getting some fun fights on light tackle. Like most people are reporting, they’re seeing more sharks this year than in previous seasons. Bottom fishing has been going well, with black sea bass and fluke yielding keepers with good effort. Scup seem to be plentiful, with a lot of 14-plus-inch fish being caught. They’ve seen bonito but haven’t put much effort into targeting them. Saltwater fishing has been so busy that Dustin hasn’t been paying much attention to freshwater, but usually this time of year is great for frogging, pitching and flipping, and low-light topwater fishing. Summer has been hectic, and he expects the fall run to be as well. It’s right around the corner, so book your kayak fishing trip ASAP!
Eric, at The Saltwater Edge in Middletown, told me that things are still really good out there. They’ve had a push of schoolie- to slot-size bass locally, and the fish are feeding on small bait, so break out your small poppers, metals, and epoxies. They have not seen many bluefish around, so feel free to go light on the leaders. There have also been steady and increasing reports of bonito, again feeding on small bait, so keep your eyes open for those slashing feeds. The black sea bass bite has improved significantly, as has the fluke bite. Go a little bigger on your sea bass lures, and you’ll weed out the smaller fish in favor of some keepers. Think sand eel jigs and larger epoxies. Whenever there has been a decent weather window for offshore fishing, the shop has received scattered reports of recreational-class tuna in the midshore range, so take advantage of this opportunity when the conditions line up!
Dave, at Ocean State Tackle in Providence, said striped bass fishing remains the main draw throughout Rhode Island. The bay is now full of sand eels and is still holding squid, so there is another large biomass of stripers in the bay as well. Bass of mixed sizes can be found from the mouth to the Upper Bay, including some larger fish being taken around Nayatt Point and Sabin Point. The striped bass fishing remains very strong at Block Island as well, and these fish can generally be targeted at any time of day on 3-way-rigged eels and mackerel, along with bucktails and soft plastics on jigheads. Sea bass fishing is providing plenty of action, albeit mainly short fish. The exception is around Block Island, where some knothead sea bass are being caught with consistency. The same can be said for fluke, where keepers can be hard to come by, although there have been some decent fish caught in the shallows of the bay, where they are feeding on squid, and around Block Island. Speaking of squid, they are still active near Newport and throughout the bay. Scup fishing is as consistent as ever throughout the state. In freshwater, anglers are reporting a strong bass bite on nightcrawlers and a mix of topwater lures and soft plastics this week, as there has been a shortage of available shiners. Ocean State Tackle will be open daily from 4:30 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. through the end of July.
Rhode Island Fishing Forecast
With the calendar turning to August, we are deeply entrenched in summer patterns and steady fishing. This past week featured another stretch of better tuna fishing, along with continued excellent striped bass action and relatively consistent bottom fishing.
Giant bluefin tuna reports remain very good without having to travel too far from base camp in Rhode Island. Many captains are taking advantage of the opportunity and putting clients on their first giants, often on stand-up gear, which is quite an experience. The midshore grounds are holding loads of bait, and it seems that more recreational-class tuna are showing up from southwest of Montauk to southeast of Block Island. Bluefin in the 40- to 60-inch class have been prevalent, but there are much bigger fish in the mix, so be prepared! Trolling the usual presentations, especially in purple, has been getting the job done and remains a great way to find fish. The jig bite is also showing signs of improvement, along with dead-sticking the new UVT Chief. Water temperatures are rising quickly, and out by the canyons you can find yellowfin and bigeye tuna, and we’re also starting to hear of mahi.
Back inshore, the striped bass fishing continues to roll along nicely. Fishing in the bay took a turn for the better this week as a large biomass of bass followed the sand eels and took notice of the squid that are still around. Block Island continues to produce day and night, while surfcasters working the night shift have reported better results this week around the breachways and rocky points. Bottom fishing has remained steady across the state, with reliable scup action and steady enough fluke and sea bass fishing to keep things interesting. This is especially true around Block Island, where you still have to grind, but not quite as hard to find keepers of both species. Tautog season opens on August 1, providing another—and often more consistent—option for bottom fishermen. Another great way to spend a summer day is shellfishing, and now is the time, with good crabbing and clamming across the state.