Fathers Day Fishing Forecast • "Long Island Fishing Updates" • Grilled Striped Bass Recipe

Follow us on twitter:  Follow @jjsportsfishing

The Great South Bay is seeing some good action with bass, blues, and weakfish.  Many of these fish are being taken on bunker chunks from Local Docks when fishing from a boat, head over to the Oakdale, Sayville, areas. Finding schools of peanut bunker or adult bunker and fish along side them will increase your chances of "hooking up" with a  bass or bluefish.

Surf Fishing Update: Jetty fishing alone any of our south shore jetty's seems to be producing bigger striped bass on bucktails. 

Fluke fishing has picked up significantly with many keepers being caught all around the island. Local fishermen Frank Cardino brought in a 5.75lb fluke in to the shop today. This fish was caught right out in the Great South Bay. The best way to target these fish is gulp or bait on a hi-lo rig with a buck tail. Gulp is a great alternative to conventional baits like squid or spearing.my personal favorite gulp is nuclear chicken or pink shine. Nuclear chicken is a mixture of chartreuse and red while pink shine is pink and white. A great way to fish gulp would be to use a bucktail and place a 4.10 inch grub on the bucktail and a 3.8 inch swimming mullet on the teaser hook. If you prefer traditional bait like squid or spearing the best way to fish it would be a simple hi-lo with a bank sinker. This method also works well with a squid skirt or feather as a teaser. Fluke belly and sea robin strips are great bait for fluke as well. Both of these baits are extremely durable and will stay on the hook.Many fluke have been caught in both Moriches and Shinecock bay. The Smith Point County Park  bridge has also been showing a great pick of good fish.

Follow us on Instagram

Bluefish continue to be caught all over the island. While some smaller fish have moved in reports of fish over 10lbs are still coming in. Shop member joe reported 9 good sized bluefish caught at the Shinnecock Inlet last night. Most of these fish were caught on diamond jigs at dusk. Both sides of the inlet have been producing plenty of large blues. During the day most of these fish have been caught on diamond jigs and plugs, while at night a bucktail with a jig strip have worked great. Red and green jig strips have been producing the most fish.

Moriches inlet has plenty of large blues as well with fish being caught both during the day and at night. Bluefish can still be caught at our Local Docks with mascot, West Sayville Dock and bluepoint all having success.At the docks bait has been very successful with bait such as, bunker, mackerel and clam all working well. A circle hook or rig and a 2 or 3 oz bank sinker is a great method for the docks.

Crabbing- continues to improve.  Traps and nets are both producing but traps and doing a little better during the day and netting these critters is better at night.  Bunker is a great bait and so is mackerel.

Porgy fishing has been good on the North Shore as well as the Peconics. Once again this week sandworms and clam both performed well. Using chum helped keep the fish around longer. Some of the Porgies have been quite large too, pushing the 3lb mark.

The south shore has its share of porgies too.  Best to concentrate, around the inlets or Artificial Reefs and local wrecks.

Weakfish are still being caught around our island with many fish being caught on both the north and south shore. places like the peconic bay are loaded with these "vampire fish" with many fish being caught amongst the porgy schools.To catch weakfish you can use some of the same methods that you would use for porgy and fluke such as a simple bait rig with clam or squid and even a bucktail rig with gulp or squid strips. White and pink gulp has shown the best results for weaks. The pink shine pattern of gulp is a great choice.

Tip: During this week Patchogue Locals fishing local Patchogue docks with bunker chunks, have been catching bigger bluefish around sunset.

 

With fathers day coming upon June 18th don't forget about your dad. shop online, come in the store, we have everything your dad will need.  Or get dad  a gift card so he can come in and pick out his favorite fishing lure.

Lake fishing locally have been active. Most customers have been using nightcawlers or live shiners. Species being caught are Largemouth bass,(opens Statewide On June 15th) Yellow Perch, Bluegill and crappie. A few trout are still being caught at west lake as well as upper lake.

Freshwater fishing at our local lakes has been terrific with plenty of bass, pickerel and panfish being caught in Great Patchogue Lake,  swan lake  and West Lake . The best way to target all of these fish would be bait such as night crawlers or live shiners. The best way to fish both of these baits would a small circle hook and a weighted foam float. If bait is not your thing lures such as spinners and top water baits like frogs and jitter bugs are a great choice for early in the morning and late evening. Trout can still being caught at west and swan lake with the same methods like spinners and night crawlers. The senko worm is another great option for bass and pickerel. This lure works best when on a worm hook either Texas rigged or wacky rigged. Be sure to remember at this time large mouth bass are closed till June 15 due to the spawning season of these fish. They can still be caught but must be released.

Grilled Striped Bass Recipe for Father's Day- Use a whole Striped Bass Fillet removing the skin and all red (dark) meat. Lightly sprikle olive oil on the fillet coating both sides then place on a large piece of aluminum foil (big enough to wrap the fillet) Spread a handful of aspargus stalks with the hard end removed over the fish. Add a little more olive oil along with crushed garlic over the fish and asparagus. Season with coarse black pepper and a little bit of table salt. Slice a few lemon wedges and place on top before wrapping the fillet. Grill on the BBQ at a medium to high heat with the cover closed turning the foil packet over after a few minutes. Cook time will depend on the thickness of the fillet, 3-4 minutes on either side should be enough, when the fish is white and flaky it is done. If you like it more on the done side open the foil and close the lid at a high heat for another minute or two. Serve with some potato salad and your favorite cold beverage.

This weeks Fun Fish is the dogfish known as a pest to most dog fish can provide a fun fight and surprisingly even a meal.In places like England the dog fish is the main ingredient in fish n chips along with cod and haddock.Bait is the best way to catch these small sharks with bunker or mackerel working the best.

Fun Fish- Long Island is full of "other" types of fish that are not only fun to catch but fine to eat too. Did you ever try Triggerfish? A tough critter with even a tougher skin.  However, once cleaned <Fillet A Triggerfish Video>  they are a fine meal.  Plenty of Blowfish around too. <Fillet A Blowfish Video> Called "chicken of the sea" because they are a tasty treat. Easy to catch and (if big enough) a great meal. Don't underestimate the tenacity and taste of Sea Robbins. <Fillet A Sea Robbin Video> These scrappy critters are plentiful and tasty too.  Catch them on bait or lures with a light tackle combo for an exciting time. More Fun Fish Facts on the attached PDF sheets:

Attached is a list of some "Fun Fish Facts Around Long Island." Most are edible and plentiful too. So enjoy the summer and tight lines. (PDF)

Attached is an additional list of more "Fun Fish Facts-2 Around Long Island." Most are edible and plentiful too. So enjoy the summer and tight lines. (PDF) Updated

The Fishing Line

Bass Season Opens June 15

The open season for largemouth bass and smallmouth bass, collectively known as black bass, begins on June 15 and extends through November 30. Not only are there plentiful waters to fish for them, but many provide outstanding opportunities to catch trophies. There's a reason why New York draws national-level bass fishing tournaments every year!

Special fishing regulations exist for some waters, so be sure to check the current fishing regulations before heading out to fish.

If you're interested in taking that next step and going "beyond the bobber," give bass fishing a try! A spincasting (push-button) or medium action spinning rod rigged with a soft stick bait "wacky-style," (PDF) is very popular and can be pretty effective in catching both species. It's great for kids too because fishing the wacky rig really just involves casting it out, letting it sink to the bottom, and reeling it in with a twitch-pause action. Most times, bass will strike on the drop. Some other popular lures include crank baits, spinner baits, and tube jigs.

Our website is a great source of information for learning how to get started in fishing and where to go. Some helpful links are included below:

Fishing the Wacky Rig (PDF) 
Beginning Fishing Information 
Where to Go Fishing 
Freshwater Fishing Regulations