If you have been thinking about taking the kids fishing,
now is a good time to head out. With school ending, and staying close to home the current policy in many households because of high gas prices and a tepid economy, a day on the water can offer a great escape. Better still, there are plenty of fish around.
"Bass and blues have been hitting hard inside Jamaica Bay," said Frankie Schiano at Bernie's Bait and Tackle in Brooklyn. "Nothing big, but you can have a blast live-lining bunker near Cross Bay Boulevard or around the Marine Parkway Bridge. Some keeper fluke are also under the bridge."
At Woodcleft Fishing Station in Freeport, Richie Rosenkranz said big stripers are still harassing bunker in 20 feet of water between the Jones Beach Needle and Cedar Beach. He called the fluke action "very good" in 30-foot depths from Jones Inlet southeast to the Stone Barge. Offshore, mako and blue sharks to 200 pounds showed in 65-degree water at Rock Pile #1, and the Glory Hole. The 15th Annual Woodcleft Shark Tournament is scheduled for tomorrow. Call (631) 516-378-8748 for details.
Fluke action has improved vastly in the waters around Fire Island Inlet. According to Dennis Manzari of the Captree open boat Island Princess, the brown tide has begun to fade in Great South Bay, allowing half-day boats to work between Fire Island Lighthouse and Robert Moses Bridge, where the waters are gentle but keepers remain a possibility. Loads of bluefish have been caught, most evenings, under Robert Moses Bridge. If gas prices have kept you from heading out to Captree, check out the new MTA/LIRR getaway package. It includes a round-trip rail, bus and boat fare of $40 for adults, or $34.50 for kids under 12. Visit http://www.mta.info/lirr/getaways/BeachPackages/CaptreeFishing.htm for details.
North Shore action remains solid to the west, with keeper stripers and chopper blues slamming bunker outside of Hempstead Harbor. Fluke continue to respond well off Matinecock Point, with a surprising number of 4-pound keepers falling to chartreuse bucktails tipped with spearing.
Farther east, blues dominate North Shore fun inside Smithtown Bay. They are hitting even better at Buoy 11, east of Port Jefferson, where the open boat Osprey IV has hammered 6-pounders on diamond jigs. North Shore porgy action slowed this week because of strong moon tides but should improve.
"Fluke numbers are amazing inside Moriches Bay," said Chet Wilcox of B & B Bait and Tackle in Center Moriches. "Quite a few keepers are mixed with the shorts at Buoys 14 and 15." Stripers to 38 pounds, added Wilcox, will smack live bunker at either end of the inlet. Shinnecock anglers have enjoyed similar action, with a solid fluke bite on bucktails inside the bay, and bass to 35 pounds at Ponquogue Bridge.
On the East End, Montauk offers a decent shot at keeper fluke in the north rips and along the south side, while striped bass have favored parachute lures in the rips and, after dark, plugs along the beach.
Striper fishing is also hot at Orient Point, with night tides producing several fish more than 40 pounds for the open boat Prime Time III. The fluke keeper ratio at Gardiners Island is now one in three. Bluefish are ravenous inside Plum Gut.
E-mail: outdoortom@optonline.net
Hot spots
Marine Parkway Bridge (blues, stripers, fluke)
Jones Beach Needle to Cedar Beach (stripers, blues, fluke)
Fire Island Inlet (blues, fluke)
Hempstead Harbor (blues, stripers, fluke)
Matinecock Point (fluke, porgies)
Mt. Misery Shoal/Buoy 11 (blues,
porgies)
Moriches Bay/Buoys 14 and 15 (fluke)
Ponquogue Bridge (stripers)
Orient Point/Gardiners Island (stripers, blues, fluke, porgies)
Montauk (stripers, blues, fluke)
