BASS BASS And More BASS • Blackfish Update • Tuna Surprise

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BASS BASS BASS, Bass are in from Montauk to Manhattan, Orient to Ocean Beach. Bigger school of bass have been cursing the shoreline. Anglers on the open beaches have been throwing bottle plugs like super strike and Diamond jigs. On the north shore Diamond jigs and bombers seem to be doing just fine. These fish seem to be bait like sandeels and bunker.

If bunker are around, one of the big things you want to look for on the beaches are birds working off the surface, if those birds are crashing in to the water most likely there are some kind of fish underneath them. If the bait isf sandeels , then just fish.  You won't know till you try.  

For once it seems that we are finally getting some colder nights this fall. Up until the past few days the night time temperatures have been rather mild which resulted in warm water for this time of the year.

This past week has some great action. Up front surfcasters who fished the beaches anywhere from Montauk to Robert Moses State Park could find a decent pick at bass up to 32”PLUS..... For bigger fish, night fishing seemed to have an edge over the daytime. Many surfcasters fishing the night tides have had success with Sp Minnows, Mag Darters and super strike Darters.

I don't think its over for Weakfish.  We heard that a few are being caught out west around Fire island inlet. Fishermen are targeting these fish with gulp, squid strips or soft plastics on the drift from their boats. 

On the bayside “casters” also had some success. Moriches and Shinnecock Inlet being good locations. Small bucktails and swimming plugs can account for the action in these spots.

Boaters who have been in pursuit of Striped bass are having some decent luck fishing around the inlets with live bunker or Eels .(Circle hooks are required while fishing for striped bass using bait)  Fish of all sizes are plenty to be had. Shinnecock, Moriches and Fire Island all the way to Rockaway inlet have all been good places to try around. Montauk was still holding some large bass up to last week.

Here are some tips for measuring a striped bass:

Total length is the longest straight line measurement from the tip of the snout, with the mouth closed, to the longest lobe of the tail, with the lobes squeezed together, and the fish laid flat on the measuring device.  

• Use a measuring board or lay a tape measure on the ground to ensure a straight line measurement
• Don't measure along the fish's body, as the curve will skew the length
• Firmly grasp the fish with both hands
• Make sure the head of the fish touches the zero mark on the measuring tool at the same time as the tip of the tail
• Pinch the tail together and measure from the closed mouth to the end of the pinched tail. Make sure the tail is stretched out as far as possible when you pinch it together. This is a straight line measure so it is recommended to use a measuring board or lay the tape on the ground.

Prior to the Columbus day storm, bass fisherman jigging for striped bass were hooking into Tuna......Reports up to 200lbs.......However, no reports this week.

Tuna are feeding on sandeels, so jigs are working very well.   Click Here: Tuna Time ID Chart Commonly Confused Mackerel & Tuna Species

 Tuna Guide (PDF)  

Permit Descriptions: All owners/operators of vessels in the U.S. Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean must obtain a federal permit to recreationally or commercially fish for regulated Atlantic HMS (sharks, swordfish, tunas (bluefin, bigeye, albacore, yellowfin, and skipjack), and billfishes (recreational only; white and blue marlins, sailfish, and roundscale spearfish)  Click Here To Register 

FALL FISHING SPECIALS

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On the wrecks and reefs this week:  the sea bass and blackfish fishing is still good. Most of this fishing is done some deeper water now due to cooling water temps. 40 to 80 feet of water has been the best places to look, anglers fishing with rigs and jig are doing very well with green crabs. With the jigs, it is a different way of fishing, which lets you use lighter tackle. The blackfish jigs are well suited for targeting ocean blackfish, due to the quality components they are made to pull "bulldog tautog" out of the wrecks. See more info NYSDEC Artificial Reef Guide (PDF)

The other bottom fish like seabass, porgies, cod, pollock and ling, will all hit a well baited clam on a hi-low bait rig. When bottom fishing be sure to bring plenty of sinkers ranging from 8-16oz depending on how deep you are fishing.

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if you are fishing from a boat and want to give blackfish a try all you'll need is a some fresh green crabs and a strong hook. Blackfish jigs work the best to get the  the crab to the bottom of the bay or the ocean. Greens and Oranges colors work the best. some of the best places to fish are over rock piles or some kind of structure. these fish find the rocks a safe place from predators. the trick to landing these hard fighting fish is a strong rod. something with along the lines of a medium- heavy or heavy action rod for a good hook set works the best. now hooking the fish maybe tricky with their small mouths but the hardest part is turning the fish up and out of the rock piles. for this you will need to reel as fast and hard as you can. They say you have about three seconds before that fish gets back in the rocks and you lose the fight. As long as you can get him up and out you should have a nice tasty fresh fish dinner that night.

Blackfish has been keeping a good amount of boats busy. The bite has been pretty good off the south shore in the ocean as well as on north shore rock piles. 

We heard of larger Bluefish to the west harassing bunker pods but in our area most of the action has been with cocktail sized blues. Some have been concentrated near the bridges while a decent amount of these small blues can be found running through the south shore inlets at certain times.

This weeks featured wreck is the Mattituck reef. This artificial reef is located 2.37 miles northwest of the Mattituck inlet and is around 50 acres in size and has depths up to 100ft. This reef is made up of undeveloped material including concrete blacks and wood posts. Fish pots are banned at this location under NYS law. This reef provides anglers with excellent fishing opportunities for species like porgy, sea bass and pollock. This best way to fish this location would be to drift along the bottom using bait like clam or squid using clam chum is an excellent idea at this spot. Lures like tubeless diamond jigs are great for this location as well and will work great for sea bass too.

The seabass, porgies, cod, pollock and ling...... the “bite” is on. Find your favorite wreck or Artificial Reef and drop some clam for a for some pretty good action. Fish up to 6lbs!!! have been reported.

We recently heard a stocking of brown trout for West Lake  will occur by thye end opf this month.  This should kept the local freshwater enthusiasts happy. Trout between 12-15" are expected and should be target by using  flies bait and lures. Try nymphs, streamers or scuds for flies, Nightcrawlers or even live shiners for bait and small kastmasters or Thomas lures.

light tackle is best suggested for these guy. you can uses a simple hook with live worms, or try casting a small kastmaster. Gold seems to work the best but chrome or silver will also do the trick. mepps spinners or 

The lake of the week is Great Patchogue Lake   also known as mill pond is located right in patchouge and is one of the best lakes in the area. Great Lake contains excellent fishing for bass, pickerel, crappie and perch.Shore fishing is productive but limited.If you are able to use a kayak or boat it is a great choice. This lake can be fished from both the front and back side with shore access along the roe blvd bridge. The best way to fish this lake would be bait like live shiners or night crawlers. Lures will also work great with spinners, senkos and top water baits like poppers and jitter bugs all producing great results.