Fishing is hot, get out and fish

Fall is a transitional period and a great time of year to fish. Fish are active and on the move to warmer or colder water, so they are chasing bait, which creates opportunities for anglers on fresh and saltwater.

The bite is good from both shore and boats with a lot of species to target. Striped bass mixed in with bluefish are still running strong; both bonito and false albacore are being caught.

Dave Henault of Ocean State Tackle, Providence, said, “The black sea bass bite is still on as the water is fairly warm.”

Squeteagure are being caught too, and tautog fishing is moving forward full throttle in Massachusetts and Rhode Island, with anglers landing a lot of great eating fishing in the 19” range, along with double-digit fish over 10 pounds being caught, too.

East End Eddie Doherty, Cape Cod Canal fishing expert and author, said, “A busy area of the Canal went off with huge schools of big fish a couple of hours after first light during an east tide last week. The crowded spot gave up dozens of big striped bass, to surfcasters like Donnie ‘Hawkeye’ Willis, Bob ‘Bull’ MacKinnon and John ‘JD’ Doble, who landed fish up to 38 pounds on a magic swimmer. These were fat fish with full stomachs whom JD described as, having a belly like Santa Claus!”

We also have some great freshwater fishing occurring, with warm water keeping the largemouth bass bite alive, and with trout stocking occurring in both Massachusetts and Rhode Island waterways, the trout bite is outstanding in stocked ponds.

That is nine popular recreational species to target, so get your gear and go fishing while the weather is still fairly mild.

Where’s the bite?

Striped bass and bluefish: Neil Hayes of Quaker Lane Bait & Tackle, North Kingstown, said, “The striped bass bite has slowed quite a bit for anglers, but they are still catching them with false albacore and bonito still being caught too.”

Declan O’Donnel of Breachway Bait & Tackle, Charlestown, said, “Striped bass numbers have dwindled, but there are still some heavers around, along with plenty of schoolies to keep things interesting. We’ve seen an influx of smaller bait this week, with shad showing up and blitzing on it. The bass have gotten a bit pickier as they've keyed in on these smaller baitfish, making it a little more challenging to get them to commit. Reports have been relatively quiet on the bluefish front.”

East End Eddie Doherty, Cape Cod Canal fishing expert and author, said, “Many anglers did well fishing the Canal this week. including ‘Bloodhound Steve’ Colleran, who fooled some nice sized stripers over 40-inches with his favorite Al Gags pink paddle tail. Schools of striped bass continue to remain in the Canal after entering from Cape Cod Bay, with white jigs and green mack paddle tails the best key to success.”

Bonito and false albacore

“There could still be some fish around, but it is tough to know exactly what is happening when nobody can get out to look for them. If you are heading out this weekend, keep a few small jigs handy just in case you stumble upon some breaking fish. At this point in the season, they are more of a bonus than something I would spend the entire day searching for,” said Declan O’Donnell of Breachway Bait & Tackle.

Black sea bass continued to make their presence known, with anglers catching them when tautog fishing or with jigs off the bottom.

Tautog fishing has been outstanding, with anglers catching keepers in the East Passage of Narragansett Bay from the Providence River down to Newport. And, in the West Passage, anglers were hooking up with keepers at Wickford, Hope Island, north of Jamestown Bridge and at Beavertail. The number of anglers at Quaker Lane Bait & Tackle Sunday morning at 6:30 a.m. reminded me of the holiday shopping frenzy that occurs the day after Thanksgiving. The parking lot was filled with vehicles with kayaks, boat trailers as about a dozen anglers stood in line to purchase green and Asian carbs.

Neil Hays of Quaker Lane, said, “Tautog fishing has been very, very good, with anglers focusing on them now, good luck fishing.” The ‘good luck’ wishes worked, as we hooked up with tautog to 20” Sunday.

“Blackfish continue to be one of the highlights of the fall season, and now is an excellent time to start stocking the freezer. One thing to remember is to fish while the tide is moving. Moving water can make a big difference in getting these fish to feed. Work the rocks, wrecks, and other structure, and make sure you have enough weight to stay on the bottom,” said Declan O’Donnell of Breachway Bait & Tackle.

Freshwater fishing for both trout and largemouth bass has been good. Regular Rhode Island stocking updates are available at www.dem.ri.gov/troutwaters. In Massachusetts visit Mass Wildlife at Trout stocking report | Mass.gov .

Dave Monti holds a master captain’s license and charter fishing license. He serves on a variety of boards and commissions and has a consulting business focusing on clean oceans, habitat preservation, conservation, renewable energy, and fisheries related issues and clients. Forward fishing news and photos to dmontifish@verizon.net  or visit www.noflukefishing.com .