NY Fishing Reports for September 2008

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Please post fishing reports here.......as little or as much detail as you want to give.

Please note: NO SPOT BURNING! Posts burning spots will be Edited or DELETED!
Some veteran fishermen have put in years developing and learning about certain spots.Some of these spots can only handle a few guys at a time. We are losing enough access as it is, due to the unfortunate behavior of a few selfish people. No sense in making it worse.

For some areas, it would be wiser to say:
OutFront (Ocean) OR -- OutBack (Bay) -- if you feel too many people will figure out what you are talking about. "Spot burning" also could involve mentioning something specific only to that area. If you do this, your post may be edited, or deleted. Remember that thousands of people could potentially read these posts. You don't want to be fishing next to ALL of them at the same time!


IF you are fishing an area that is NOT residential, being vague is less critical. For example, it's acceptable to say (Any)Park, or (Any)Bay, or mention a specific state park that has loads of parking and can handle the crowds.


If you are unclear on this concept, ask yourself:


If I name this place on the internet, will it be too crowded for me to enjoy tomorrow when people hear I got 30 fish here today?


If the answer is "Yes", then you should probably not be so specific.

We post these reports so our community will have a sense of what is working, what is not. We want to show people how to catch fish, rather than where.Even if you struck out or got skunked, it would be helpful to hear that as well.

If you have any additional details you would like to share - weather conditions, tide (incoming, outgoing, ebb, flood) water temps, bait present, or other mention of techniques or plugs used - feel free, as long as you are not overly specific about location.

Some acronyms -

BP -- Breezy Point

CB -- CrossBay Bridge
CI -- Coney Island

FB -- Floyd Bennett
FI -- Fire Island
FT -- Fort Tilden Park
FW -- Fort Wadsworth


GSB - Great South Bay
GK- Great Kills


Jones -- Jones Beach/Debs
WE -- West End

JB -- Jamaica Bay
LB -- Long Beach

MB -- Manhasset Bay
MI -- Moriches Inlet or nearby
MPP -- Marine Parkway Bridge


LNB - Little Neck Bay
OB -- Oyster Bay
PB -- Peconic Bay

RM -- Robert Moses

SB -- Sheepshead Bay

Shinny -- Shinnecock Inlet or nearby
SI -- Staten Island
ST -- Sore Thumb

NS -- North Shore
SS -- South Shore




Mecca -- if you gotta ask where that is, can't help ya :D

NJ WIR 9-1-08

Folks, it's the last weekend of the summer, and the beginning of the Fall season most surfcasters have come to know and wait for in anticipation.

The children are starting school, most vacationers have left the beach areas, and all sorts of new possibilities loom on the horizon.

With more doormats being caught, the fluke season is almost over. Look for the larger fish to continue being caught in the inshore and nearshore lumps as they make their way out of the bay areas. Now is the time to concentrate on the ocean spots and deepest channels.

Bluefish have returned in the surf, and are providing a more consistent bite. The best times are still dusk and dawn for these and striped bass.

Small striped bass are finally being caught in numbers.

If you know and fish a particular area, try to fish at night and locate places where the bait has been holding. You will find the fish holding there as well. Sorry I can't be any more specific, but some of these places are already starting to get crowded. Members can always pm me for more details.http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/...cons/icon3.gif :)

For all intents and purposes, the Fall Run has started. Bass are now being caught to the point where it is worth it to spend time looking for them. They are regularly and eagerly hitting plugs.

The productive locations sometimes change. The best advice I can give out is if you are fishing some structure at night, fishing hard, and there is no action in 15 minutes, leave for another location.

If you are willing to move around, you will find them, they are there. :thumbsup:

NY WIR 9-1-08

Folks the NY season is coming to a close as well, and that's a shame, as the fluke finally have some meat to them. Remember that for next year, let your voices be heard.

Porgies still remain a good option in the back bays and near the inlets for those who want to take their children fishing. Snappers make fishing fun for children as well.

One thing I wanted to put out there is that sabiki rigs are great if used carefully. For the most part, I see adults and children fishing with the styrofoam one-hook float rigs.

If the children are small, that's the smartest and safest option. However, if they can handle casting and retrieving their own pole and are a little older, you could teach them to use the sabikis. The biggest danger with sabikis is getting snagged or hooked. If you are confident your grown children can handle one of these, they are a great rig to have fun and get baitfish for larger predators at the same time. Remember that the limit on bluefish in NJ is 15, NY is 15 but no more than 10 can be less than 12". This includes snapper blues for bait as well.

Bluefish are still around in the LI sound and they are big. These big alligators and some bass are feeding on the bunker ensconced in many of the harbors.

The bass bite had slowed down in the past week for surfcasters, but has begun to pick up again in the last 48 hours.

Montauk has recently started to pick up for the night guys. I'm thinking the day bite could turn on later than usual this year unless we get some prolonged severe residual weather from the southern hurricanes.



For the NJ/NY bight and offshore areas, the southern areas are still the best bet for the hot tuna bite. For NY guys, you may not want to make the trip from NY ports all the way to the southern NJ areas. I would suggest if you have a trailerable boat to consider trailering it to Mass, as they have a decent tuna bite there not far from shore.

The mudhole and Hudson canyon tuna action has been terrible for many weeks now. In the last week things started to pick up, and a pick of bluefin have been caught in key structural areas. However, many are fishing, few are catching. That's not a great reality for a captain faced with spending upwards of $1000 on a tuna trip.

That's another reason why the Lobster Claw looks like a parking lot. People who don't have a lot of experience reading water and looking for tuna indicators (bait, temperature breaks, etc) will go with a known spot, and the Claw wins by default.

However, that's just like the thinking by some surfcasters that one magic spot will produce all the fish. When the bite is on, it will be all throughout a surf area, often encompasing several miles.

Same with the tuna. If you are going out for a serious tuna trip, don't hesitate to try other areas if they show good temp and bait readings.

For now, the best tuna fishing reported is from 6-11am, sardine and squid baits are very reliable. Some fish are being hit trolling and rigged ballyhoo as well, but the night chunk bite has not developed as of yet. Bigger bluefin ae still being caught and giving guys a run for their money.

The key to this detective work is good electronics. The guys with the higher end systems will be the ones onto the fish. If you don't invest in good electronics, it can be a handicap.

For our perennial inshore cyclical species, the weakfish have not set up in the channels like they usually do. I'm thinking it will be a late season for them. Smaller spikes are in great abundance in many back bays, but the larger fish are just not being caught with consistency at this time.

As for albacore and bonito, they have been caught and observed by guys in boats, but not consistently.

As I'm writing this, the albacore surf run has not started yet. I see there is some interest here, and I'm sure some of our members out looking for them every day will keep us informed.


Hope all you folks out there have a Happy, Safe, and Fun Holiday! Catch em up!- bunkerjoe

Fished shinny very early morning for the last 2 days, nuttin.:skunk: Today it was weedy. There had been bait around, but the last 2 days seems lie the bulk of it went somewhere else.

Had some business in the western sound area this morning, near where some water flows. Saw a guy pull out a bass must have been close to 25lbs, using bunker chunks. Other guys had some big bluefish laying on the ground. All on bunker

Damn shame I didn't have my gear with me.:o

Just got back from mecca. We fished overnight, late afternoon into the dawn. Didn't see any cows caught, but plenty of schoolie bass and blues. Mostly on poppers before dark, then bucktails for more bass at night. My biggest fish was 11 not great, but will taste good tonight. Felt like fall up there, definitely starting to rock.

Last night in the front place of Jamaica bay, blues blues blues! We were using poppers.

Fished behind Jones this morning. Lots of little bait, peanuts, and mullet. 3 bass to 27", almost 10 bluefish to 6 lbs. Yellow bomber.

South beach tonite, blues 2 sizes, some very small, and some 10 pounds. We used bunker.

NJ WIR 9-8-08

The first week of the NJ fall striper run has been spotty, but schoolie sized fish are being caught, along with some decent keepers, at night in rough water and moving current.

Fluke fishing is legally shut down, but anglers will still find themselves pulling up a fluke or so when bottom fishing. Remember to be diligent about putting these back. Now is the time when F&G officers tend to make appearances.

The bluefish bite is still spotty, but there are loads of snapper blues around for the kids to catch.

The weakfish bite in the Raritan Bay has been very disappointing this year. At this point, it's probably safe to say we will not have much of a fall fishery, though some of our members have privately reported weakfish catches here and there in the past week.

As of this posting, the false albacore run has not yet begun. The first reports you may hear of these fish could be anyone's guess, but it's a good bet to start looking for them to show up in the Sandy Hook and Breezy point areas. When they do start feeding, they could be anywhere within 15 miles of those locations. It all depends on the presence and quantity of small bait.

The most positive news I can report is that the mullet run has begun, and mullet are pouring out of the bays and inlets for their southern migration.

Look for the action to heat up as more of these fish stage in the front surf.

NY WIR

NY has some of the same conditions as NJ, except the LI Sound is so full of bait it's ready to explode. Guys who put in their time have been connecting with some nice bass, and of course bluefish. The blitzes have already started in the LI surf and back bay areas. Locations change from one day to the next.

The most promising news was the early fall day action at Montauk in the past week, which sometimes doesn't start till October. This could be the harbinger of an amazing fall run for the LI surfcasters. Time will tell.


Offshore reports have been a little less productive in the last week. Some more fish were caught by anglers concentrating in the southern canyons. The Hudson canyon is finally starting to turn on as well.

Some interesting news is that thre is a decent yellowfin bite off of the Florida coast as those fish make their fall migration southward.

Many of the captains are again reporting more bait and sealife in the offshore areas than they have seen in years, and theoretically they should be doing very well due to this smorgasbord of food.

But they are not, and it can be frustrating sometimes. Again, good electronics, and following the temperature breaks recommmended by the charting services can mean all the difference in the world.

Good luck out there this week. folks.

We still have some tropical storms coming down the pike, so please be careful if fishing the surf out front. Think of the lives who will depend on you if something bad happens. Good luck, and tight lines! - bunkerjoe

Jones area this afternoon, 3 bass to 26" on bunker color shad. Small baitfish moved in, and then bluefish, lost a few shads to the blues, blues to 5-6lbs.

Tried a new spot in the w sound last night. A friend and I fished it hard, there was current and tide there, and different sized baitfish. Fish were finally caught when we figured they wanted a small profile fin-s ona ledhead. He lost a decent bass, pulled in a bluefish.

I missed a few, nothing landed. Still, it was cool to check out a new spot, I'll be back there.

Rockaway area last night, water clear, threw bombers and dannys, no fish.:skunk:

Jones in front yesterday, few small bass on bucktails and rubber.

NJ WIR

Folks, it has been quite a week in the Jersey suds. Although fluke season is officially closed, guys are now reporting catches of keepers with more consistency. Murphy's law.:kooky:

Bluefish are back with a vengeance. Surfcasters and boaters alike are testing how tough their gear is on these toothy critters. There are some reports of bluefish in the 15 pound range being caught, I have some PMs of members getting them up to 17lbs, weighed on boga grips.

These are beyond big, folks -- they are the creatures night-mares are made of.

Although many focus on bass, monster blues will give a surfcaster an honorable battle. Just be careful with your fingers.

In many instances, these bluefish are caught blind casting from the surf or the bay, with no visible signs present.

Along with the bluefish are the ever-increasing sizes of bass up to 44" which some members have privately reported. For the most part, these bass are shadowing the blues, and picking up the pieces of dead bunker and mullet after the blues have had first pick.

Honestly, the bulk of the bass being caught are 20-28", but different nights you will run into different groups of bass.

And you won't find them here on the internet, get out there!;)

If you are targeting bass, again night is best. If you run into monster blues in the twilight, try a little to the left or right of where they seem to be concentrated, and you might score a fat bass!

Weakfish and croaker action is fast and furious in the Delaware and Barnegat bays, great targets for a day of family fishing.

The projected Raritan Bay weakfish fall run has still not developed. However, I have been getting scattered reports of selected good fishing here and there by sharpies using rubber and jigs. There have also been some big weakfish over 12lbs caught accidentally by those using bait for bluefish. Best bet for those is on the flats, but remember the huge ones are breeders, please only take what you can use.

NY WIR

LI sound and back bay areas in LI are producing good catches, from snappers, to slab porgy, to a few big bluefish, weakfish, and bass here and there.

The big news is Montauk has been on fire for a better part of the past 5 days. The thing about reporting good catches in that area is some people will grumble that too many are fishing there.

I agree, that seems to be valid -- sometimes.

How many people who complain know of the rough season some of the charter captains, head boats, guides, and others who derive some income fishing are having? http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/...cons/icon3.gif

Some of these folks are having their worst years ever. My point to all is that Montauk is a huge interrelated system of commerce, relationships, good friends, business transactions, and support of the local people, from lodgings to the restaurants and gas stations.

This all needs to be balanced with the needs of the surfcasters who arguably made Montauk what it was.

If you go there and don't like the crowds, I might suggest you fish at night, lot less crowded then. http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/...cons/icon3.gif

In the meantime, you will always find crowds at the most accessible Montauk areas when the bite is on.




Offshore bite -- has slowed down somewhat, but the tuna catching can change from day to day. Hannah and Ike have not helped the conditions out there. Good electronics and sharing intel with your fellow boaters will help to put you into fish more consistently.

As of this time, the surf albacore bite has not developed at the most promising early season spots. Lots of guys are looking, but no one has claimed the first surf caught albacore of 2008 yet. Here's hoping the rough weather will shake things up a little.

Speaking of rough weather, we are experiencing some extreme high tides with the full moon this week. Those who are accustomed to wade fishing, please be careful in the back bays.

For the most part, the bays are flat, and you can tell if you are wading when you are walking into a slough. However, in the dark, people get disoriented, and a difference of 2' might mean the difference between walking home dry and swallowing mouthfuls of water, or worse.

Please be careful out there this week folks, Fish are hungry and feeding, perhaps not consistently. If you put your time in, and learn one spot at a time, you will be surprised how perceptive you will become.:thumbsup:

Yesterday princes bay, many small bluefish with small crocodile metals, we got them until dark.

Mecca tues 4pm - 4am, decent bite. Mostly bluefish, action was on and off. Taken mostly on pencils.

Went with 2 friends, managed 15 bass between us, most after dark, nothing big, biggest 30". Most of the rest were around 24", but the action was great. Had to keep moving around from one side to the other.

Back side of Jones this morning, weedy, water dirty. It might need a day to clear up from all the winds yesterday, or maybe tonight will be better.:skunk:

With all the wind, I tried a spot on the inside last night, near a bridge in da Bronx. Chunked bunker for a few hours, outgoing, 2 small bass 27", 6 blues up to 10lbs. Not bad considering the wind.

Fished Shinny this morning outgoing, water dirty, some weeds. :skunk:

OK folks, the winner for the August NY fishing reports plug giveaway is nitestrikes. :clapping:

Please e-mail me the address where you want it sent. The plug will be a Davis topwater swimmer, similar to the ones fishlipper is using. If anyone has not yet checked out the thread for Davis lures, go take a look. He's a good plug-builder, sells them at reasonable prices, and as shown, they do catch fish.

http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/showthread.php?t=78


Attached Thumbnailshttp://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/...1&d=1213203990 http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/...1&d=1213203990

NJ WIR 9-22-08

Folks, the bluefishing has been pretty good, both in the back bays and the ocean. With the full moon, the mullet are pouring out of the bays and swimming down the coast. Bait and plugs are catching these choppers. Sometimes, when the bite is slow, bait is more productive.

Bass are still being caught at night, mostly shorts, but the good news is there is a decent distribution along the Jersey Coast, as long as you are willing to walk the sand and jetties to find where they are holding for that night.

Another great development is the increasing concentration of sandeels inshore. Bass and bluefish are gorging on them. Some captains report some of these sandeels as being the largest they have seen in recent years, and these sandeels are 1/8 to 1/4 mile off the beach. Time for the needlefish plugs and sandeel profile teasers.

Weakfish have finally been caught more consistently in the back bays. While they were in the BB for awhile, now they are being caught in the channels and near the harbors in the RB. Live or fresh dead peanuts are the preferred way to target them if they are feeding. The plain white or pink fin-s are also taking their share of decent fish.

People are still reporting exotics in the back bays and inlets, so don't be surprised if you hook an amberjack, pilotfish, banded rudderfish, or other tropical species.

Albies have finally been caught from the sand in NJ. The run is a little late in starting. With the constant NE winds we have been getting, there is no telling how long they will remain as the water cools rapidly. Enjoy the chance while you can, blink and they will be gone. As others have mentioned, please handle these Southern speedsters with care.

NY WIR 9-22-08

The bluefish bite in the back bays, inlets, and ocean has been good as long as the winds are not kicking up too many weeds. The key to a good fishing experience at this time is to have different spots you can go with different wind patterns. Bait will tend to hide in corners, pockets, and calmer eddies during rougher weather periods. Those anglers who can identify where these locations are (sometimes they change daily) will have the best shot at some decent fish.

Montauk is still producing fish, most of them being bluefish, and a few bass. Most of the bragging bass are caught deep in the dark. If you are inexperienced at night fishing, Montauk is not the place to learn. You really can get hurt out there if you don't take the proper precautions, and the nearest hospital is about 16 miles away. It would be a good choice to get there early one morning during low tide, try to learn as much as you can about the structure, make mental notes, and then return later in the night after you have fished a few areas during the day.

The NY bass bite in other places is heating up, but as I said, the places that held tons of bait last year are empty this year. It pays to scout around, as bass and other predators will be found where the most bait is.



Offshore report:

The heavy NE winds and the enhanced swell from the 2 latest hurricanes has kept many tuna fishermen at home. Some are getting out, and the success is inconsistent.

However, there is some positive news for the Hudson Canyon and some Northern inshore lumps, which until now had been very spotty. Bait is finally being seen in those areas on a regular basis. Mahi, smalll yellowfin and bluefin, and albies and bonito have arrived to give inshore anglers some action without going all the way to the canyons.


We still have a week of NE winds and swells, folks. If fishing the surf on an incoming tide, please realize the waves may become worse than you think as the tide comes in. Please be careful out there.

Fished Jbay in the back late last night, beginning of the outgoing. Bombers, swimmers, dannys, not even a bluefish.:skunk: Peanut bunker all around, nothing on them.

Took the afternoon off yesterday and made the run to Montauk. Winds were bad, only managed a few bluefish on the N side. Next time.

Back of Jones yesterday into sunset. Conditions were windy, but water not that bad, lots of bait around. Some nice blues up to #10 on SS littleneck poppers, and pencils.

Shinny inlet this morning, a little weedy. All blues, no bass, on poppers, and bucktails.

Back of Jones this morning/ still weedy, water dirty, bucktails, shads, and bombers.:skunk:

NJ WIR 9-29-08

Well folks it has been a tough week in NJ with the storms. There are still fish to be found, but the inclement weather makes it a little more difficult.

The weakfish bite in Barnegat Bay is still on, and Raritan Bay is developing a spotty weakfish bite. Better late than never, it almost looked like it wasn't going to happen this year.

As for our prized striped bass, they are again being caught chiefly at night, with the addition of an early morning bite that has developed in certain key areas that are around or near inlets or large rivers.

Bluefish are giving boaters a good fight, but the bite has been more spotty for surfcasters. Sometimes they are the only thing to save the day for those traveling far distances to enjoy our fishing. However, the sustained surf blitzes that many look forward to have not been happening on a regular basis yet.

As for the tuna bite, the severe weather has kept a lot of captains home. The last reports sent to me indicated a spotty bite right now. I would advise those spending precious cash for a tuna trip to hold off for a few days until things stabilize. The fall tuna bite is usually spectacular, and I am hoping it will develop into one to remember.

NY WIR

Folks in New York waters are facing similar conditions as those in New Jersey. I would call this a week in transition.

In NY as well as NJ, bait is dumping out of the bays and inlets as part of its annual Southern migration. However, there are still some NJ and NY back bay areas holding a smorgasbord of tasty bait, from adult bunker to peanuts to spearing. Until these baitfish consistently make their way Southward, fishing will continue to appear to be spotty, except for the guys fishing at night, and targeting areas known to hold large bait concentrations. Moreover, these "known" areas change from week to week, which makes it all the more challenging.


The good news from Montauk is still coming down the pike, and decent catches are being made. What has happened in the last week is a skewing of the bait concentration in the LI sound. Large amounts of bait are being found in the Connecticut portion of the sound. There was a significant bunker kill in that area from lack of oxygen as the fish were pushed upriver by the predators.

Additionally, there are large concentrations in the most Western and Eastern parts of the Sound. It could be that they are finally ready to move along the coast or through the rivers. Maybe the next big storm will spur them on.




As for the almost absent albacore (say that 10 times fast):), boaters have been into albacore and bonito for at least 2 weeks now, depending on the area. Yet the traditional NY and NJ early season spots for surf albacore catches have had very little activity, save for a few reported catches. We are rapidly losing opportunities to catch these great fish as the ocean temps slowly decline. Hopefully this week, there will be some decent surf catches put together.

Have a great week out there folks, remember to be careful, as we still have some storms rolling in.

Jones area, in the front last night, 2 bass to 27" clams. Conditions were not that bad, fished the outgoing.

Fished half a day in Montauk today, great fishing! Started at sunrise with poppers, nailed a few bass to 28", then it was bucktails in the daylight on the outgoing, few blues mixed in, but mostly bass. Were eating spearing. Fishing was decent after the tide turned, but not as good as the morning. Total bass about 15 up to 34", maybe 6 blues. lost many more.

Front of Fire Island sunset, 2 bass on a bucktail pork rind. Shorts.

Another day at Montauk, fished most of the day, more blues than bass, but I still managed 6 bass to 32", all put back. Most on bucktails and pork rind.

The blues were voracious, but so were the fishermen, at some places it was shoulder to shoulder. Not too many idiots out there, though, in all it was a great day.