New England - Rhode Island Fishing Reports

Mike Wade at Watch Hill Outfitters said that many anglers were out chasing false albacore and green bonito this past week with good results. Fishing for striped bass was also very good with nice sized fish being caught along the beaches and inside of the breachways. At this point in the season, surf anglers seem to be doing as well or better than boaters targeting striped bass. There have been reports of some larger black sea bass moving into the area and there are still some good-sized fluke around. Reports for those targeting tautog have been very good with many limits catches reported. Offshore, there seem to be some nice sized mahi inside of the shipping lanes and tuna anglers are still having success targeting bluefin along with some yellowfin on the inshore grounds.

Declan at Breachway Bait and Tackle reported that striped bass fishing has been heating up with bass feeding heavily on abundant schools of bait along the beachfront and back inside of the salt ponds. Eels have been producing some nice sized fish especially inside of the breachway around slack water. False albacore showed up in force early in the week and reports were solid right up until the weekend when an increase in boat traffic and fishing pressure seemed to turn things off. There were also still some green bonito mixed in but they seem to be moving off. Fishing for tautog has been producing well in terms of action with some keepers being reported along with a lot of short fish. Fluke reports have been hit or miss with some nice fish being caught out in deeper water, but the season is starting to wind down for them and they will be heading offshore soon. There are good numbers of black sea bass around along with plenty of scup. Offshore, there fishing pressure seems to be letting up a bit on the inshore grounds and there are still fish to be caught. There have been reports of good numbers of mahi inside of the fishing lanes as well.

Abbie at Quonnie Bait and Tackle reported that false albacore have arrived in good numbers locally and anglers have been going well targeting them early in the mornings before fishing pressure and boat activity puts them down. The green bonito seem to be thinning out but there are still a few being caught mixed in with the albies. Striped bass fishing has been productive with most of the reports coming from surfcasters working the breachways or rocky stretches of shoreline at night. Live eels are tough to beat but there has also been an early morning topwater bite that is producing some nice fish. A few customers have reported doing well for tautog with plenty of action from shorts and some keepers mixed in. There are still a few fluke around along with plenty of black sea bass though expect to catch a lot of short fish for every keeper. There have still been some reports coming in of bluefin tuna being caught south of Block and Montauk, but it’s been hit or miss. There seem to be more mahi moving inside of the shipping lanes and there has been some talk of yellowfin tuna on the mid and inshore grounds through not in any specific area.

Tony Guarino of Booked Off Charters said that they fished a couple of times this past week for fluke and black sea bass with decent results. They caught 8 to 10 keeper sized fluke up to around 7-pounds along with a couple dozen nice sized black sea bass. On Saturday, they switched things up and targeting mahi and ended the day with around 30 fish in the bot with several large fish in the 12- to 17-pound range. Looking ahead to this week, they might look to make a run offshore as reports have been fairly good for bluefin and yellowfin tuna.

Matt at Snug Harbor Marina said that there were a lot of reports of anglers doing very well targeting false albacore along with some green bonito this past week. Reports were very good for most of the week around the Harbor of Refuge along with the Narragansett shoreline, but the east wind and fishing pressure seemed to shut the bite down over the weekend. Fluke reports continue to hold up well with nice sized fish reported from deeper water off of the beaches. Those targeting tautog have been reporting a lot of action but most of the fish they are catching are short of keeper size. The same goes for black sea bass where there have been tons of short fish around but very few keepers. Striped bass fishing seems to be picking back up locally with surf anglers doing well from the beaches and breachways. Out around Block, anglers targeting striped bass continue to find more sharks than bass but hopefully the sharks will start to thin out soon. There have been reports of a few weakfish caught along the beaches, but they don’t seem to have shown up in good numbers yet. Offshore, there have been mixed reports from anglers targeting bluefin south of Block and Montauk. There are certainly still fish around, but they have been difficult to catch at times. There have also been reports of yellowfin along with some good sized mahi starting to move inside of the shipping lanes.

The Frances Fleet reported a very good week of fishing on the full day trips with many fluke limits along with good numbers of nice sized black sea bass. They are seeing some of the best fishing of the season right now and with some luck it should hold up for the next couple of weeks. You can view their full schedule on their website where you can also make reservations for upcoming trips. Trips have been selling out especially on the weekends so be sure to make your reservations early!

Andrew at Fishin’ Factory 3 said it was albies, albies, albies, at the shop this week with a few reports of good fluke fishing mixed in. False albacore fishing in the sound heated up this week with customers reporting action from Watch Hill west to nearly the Connecticut River. Others saw albies around the south side of Fisher’s Island and The Race and he said once they are in the sound they can be just about anywhere in a day. The shop was selling tons of tins, epoxy jigs and gear as hardtail fanatics were looking to get in on the action. There is so much bait around locally, Andrew said he hopes the funny fish stick around for a while. Other customers who were less concerned with running and gunning reported a surprising late season fluke bite. Reports came from in the sound, the Rhode Island beaches Block Island and Montauk. The mouth of the river and its tributaries picked up this week as blue crabs and snappers seemed to be more abundant, or easier to catch. The shop is open seven days a week for the season.

Over at The Saltwater Edge there was a lot of buzz around false albacore moving into the area earlier in the week. Reports were good throughout the week with anglers reporting catches of up to a dozen albies along with a few greenies and bluefish. Fishing for striped bass is starting to pick back up locally with more bait around and bass feeding heavily on the baitfish in tight to the beaches. Tautog fishing is producing a few keepers along with some short fish. Not many anglers are still targeting fluke, but there are still some nice ones around especially in deeper areas outside of the mouth of the bay. Seabass reports are holding up well and there are still good numbers of scup around. Offshore, anglers are still reporting bluefin tuna south of Block Island and there have been more mahi showing up around the windmills.