Well summer is here and the fishing has changed. The water in the upper bay has warmed up. The pogies are scarce and the coastal fishing is picking up. However at this time of the year targeting stripers can be tough. So it’s time to adapt. Fluke fishing is phenomenal, black sea bass are hitting like crazy and the occasional striper school or bluefish school pops up here and there.
Here’s my game plan at this time of year.
I usually head out of Galilee early. I take along a full tackle bag and some squid (sea bass and fluke) and some frozen pogies or live eels(Large stripers). With that variety of bait and gear I can adjust to what ever the day brings.
The first thing I do is look for bird action. In the last 2 weeks there have been birds working from Narragansett to Charleston. The issue is finding them. Once you’ve found the birds and fish breaking the next step is to catch them. Sounds easy but they have been very fussy lately. It seems a large number of sand eels have moved in along the coast and when fish are on sand eels good luck. I’ve found success with cocahoes, small teasers, and small dark colored zoom flukes. The other problem is that there is usually a mixed bag of blues and bass and when the blues get a hold of a piece of rubber you can kiss it good bye. So bring along a lot of tackle.
After the medium bass and blues settle down 10-11 am. I go after fluke outside the center or west wall opening. I’m not really a bottom fisherman but the fluke fishing is non-stop lately. If you drop a fluke rig in with a piece of squid on the end and count to 10 you should have one. That kind of bottom fishing I can tolerate. Unfortunate most of the fluke are under sized but their still fun to catch.
Black sea bass is next on the agenda if the water is calm enough I head out near the hooter buoy and drop my fluke rig in about 60 ft of water. The sea bass are stacked up out there like crazy. Again most of them are to small to keep, but they’re still fun and if you get a keeper they are the best eating fish in these waters, very mild and tender.
Finally if the seas are really calm and I’m in the mood for big bass Block Island, Nebraska Shoal or the center wall at Galilee are my choices. This is where the eels and frozen pogies come in. Pitching eels or drifting chunks near structure can lead to big fish but you generally have to work hard for a few fish.
Here’s my game plan at this time of year.
I usually head out of Galilee early. I take along a full tackle bag and some squid (sea bass and fluke) and some frozen pogies or live eels(Large stripers). With that variety of bait and gear I can adjust to what ever the day brings.
The first thing I do is look for bird action. In the last 2 weeks there have been birds working from Narragansett to Charleston. The issue is finding them. Once you’ve found the birds and fish breaking the next step is to catch them. Sounds easy but they have been very fussy lately. It seems a large number of sand eels have moved in along the coast and when fish are on sand eels good luck. I’ve found success with cocahoes, small teasers, and small dark colored zoom flukes. The other problem is that there is usually a mixed bag of blues and bass and when the blues get a hold of a piece of rubber you can kiss it good bye. So bring along a lot of tackle.
After the medium bass and blues settle down 10-11 am. I go after fluke outside the center or west wall opening. I’m not really a bottom fisherman but the fluke fishing is non-stop lately. If you drop a fluke rig in with a piece of squid on the end and count to 10 you should have one. That kind of bottom fishing I can tolerate. Unfortunate most of the fluke are under sized but their still fun to catch.Black sea bass is next on the agenda if the water is calm enough I head out near the hooter buoy and drop my fluke rig in about 60 ft of water. The sea bass are stacked up out there like crazy. Again most of them are to small to keep, but they’re still fun and if you get a keeper they are the best eating fish in these waters, very mild and tender.
Finally if the seas are really calm and I’m in the mood for big bass Block Island, Nebraska Shoal or the center wall at Galilee are my choices. This is where the eels and frozen pogies come in. Pitching eels or drifting chunks near structure can lead to big fish but you generally have to work hard for a few fish.
