Watch Hill Outfitters

Mike Wade at Watch Hill Outfitters said that he has been hearing more about people targeting and catching winter flounder this year than in the last several years. The salt ponds have been fishing well for them this spring. Tautog fishing is still kind of slow which is likely due to the water temperature still holding under 50 degrees. Once the temps climb a few more degrees, the fishing should really take off. Striped bass fishing is starting to pick up with schoolies on the beaches and some larger fish reported around the herring runs and up inside of the bay but that could also benefit from temperatures increasing a bit. Mike has started to hear more about fluke this past week with a few fish caught off of the beaches and better reports from out around Montauk and south of Block Island. Squid are starting to filter into the area with most of the better reports coming from areas around Newport this past week. We should start to seem more of them along the beaches in the next week or two.

Mike Wade at Watch Hill Outfitters said that lice covered schoolies were being caught along the local beaches and in the breachways and salt ponds. There are also some larger holdover bass still hanging out around the herring runs. Shad are also starting to show up in the river and along the beaches. Tautog fishing is starting to pick up with some keepers caught locally this past week in relatively shallow water meaning they should be catchable from shore as well as by boat. Squid fishing hasn’t really taken off yet but it should be starting up soon.