Columbus Day Fishing Forecast • Striped Bass On The Move •Fluke Closes Soon-Blackfish Set To Open

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Officially fall has began. The days have been fairly warm but the nights have been chilly. Bait is starting to move and  Stripers are feeding on them. The past days it has been tough for most boats to get out due to high winds but many surf fishermen have found a way to get into some fish. We have heard of some fish being taken into the 30 pound class.  Many are being caught anywhere from 28" to 31".   Anglers have been sucessful from the sand beach using sp minnows, bombers, darters, bottle plugs and needlefish as well as the inlets by using bucktails tipped with either a fat cow strip or a curly tail.  Rubber shads such as tsunami and al gags lures have also produced.

Breaking News: Striped bass are all over our island right now and in particular the inlets. Both Moriches and Shinecock Inlet  have produced bass up to 40 pounds. This bite has been late a night with the incoming tide. Most anglers have had success on bucktails with jig strips, white buck-tails have been the most productive with anglers using pink, red or green jig strips. The best way to fish a buck tail would be to cast it out and let it drift once it hits the bottom.

When fishing moriches or Shinnecock a 3 to 4 oz bucktail is your best bet because in these areas the current can move very fast When night fishing at the inlet it’s crucial that anglers have the right gear including waders and korker boots. Without this gear a fishermen can put himself in great danger.This bite can be picky and requires no shortage of patience.

 Live bunker on a circle hook  was the bait of choice (Reminder: (Circle hooks are required) 

Albies continue at the south shore inlets. Best action on the incoming tides that has let to some good fishing. The hot lures of the week have been Shimano Coltsniper jigs,  and  Joe Baggs Resin Jigs,. 

Columbus Day 7:00AM-7:00PM

Sea Bass have been steady when conditions make it favorable to get outside to the Artificial Reefs and wrecks. With Blackfish set to open on 10/11-15th a Sea Bass/Blackfish trip should make for a lot of tasty fillets for your freezer, check out the recipe section on our website.  See more info NYSDEC Artificial Reef Guide (PDF)

porgies down at the inlet. They have mainly been taking squid and clam. These are some of the largest ones ive seen the whole year. The North Shore is still loaded with them also. A little bit smaller but many around. They have been less picky, taking clam, sandworms and squid.

Weakfish are not out of the question this time of year as well, they can be caught with squid strips, clam and artificial’s such as bass assassins and gulp baits. 

Bluefish have seen a fair action but you can still be picked up to 8 pounder in the south shore inlets. Most fish are being caught on bucktails and tins. It seems that the best time to go would be a few hours before dark, although some can be picked after dark as well.  The #1 fishing rule applies. " Just when you think you figured it out, it changes."

Fluke fishing is fantastic!!!

The Fluke is officially over on October 15th so anglers are getting ready to get their last licks until next spring. Fluke fishing in our local bays like the west cut of  Moriches to Narrow Bay, Shinnecock,   Fire island have been lights out.  The smiths point and fire island bridges have been holding plenty of keeper fluke with some weakfish in the mix as well. Lures like bucktails with gulp or squid strips is a great choice for these fish................ BREAKING NEWS-keepers and doormats have been plentiful with fish toping the scales at 10lbs plus.  

Just in-Patchogue local, Erick muller, fished Moriches inlet, and landed an impressive 4lb Fluke.

Snapper fishing anyone???  Considering that we're in October, the snapper fishing is  turning into "cocktail bluefish" fishing.  They're getting big and fighting hard.  They're good eating too at this size.  Spearing, lures all will catch the limit.  Day time is best with a moving tides.

Freshwater fishing has been good within the past week or so according to our customers. Live shiners have been doing the damage. Some who have been using the live shiners have been coming in saying they are getting hit almost every cast with one. This is excellent action for freshwater. We will be carrying live shiners the rest of the fall into the winter if you need them.

Reminder the fall Blackfish season opens on October 11th for the north shore and October 15th for the south shore (including Peconic Bay). The shop will be fully stocked with Blackfish Jigs, Rigs, Hooks and Green Crabs.

Weather permitting, Offshore action is red hot with plenty of yellowfin tuna, mahi mahi and billfish. if you get a good weather window to get out you won't be disappointed.

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Send your reports, photos or your favorite fish recipe to: REPORTS@JJSPORTSFISHING.COM 

Don't forget to include, names, location and details (when possible: lures or bait used, tides, etc….) comments or questions are welcome. 631-654-2311

Freshwater Report
October is a great month to get in on some of the best Largemouth Bass fishing of the season. The fish will all be on the feed getting ready for the winter months, so the time to fish is now! The fish will generally be active throughout the day but early morning and evenings are best. Artificial lures are a great way to get in on the fall action, so if "cast and crank" is your thing then swimbaits, crankbaits, jerkbaits and spinnerbaits will all get attention.
Top water is also an option but this works better on the warmer days of fall. If you are willing to "bait and wait" then you cant beat a large live shiner fished on a float rig. Don't be surprised if you hook into a gator pickerel, jumbo perch or slob crappie while trying your luck for largemouth. The panfish like blueguills, pumkinseeds and perch are also still active and they can't pass up a nighcrawler suspended under a float. Small plastic grubs, hair jigs and trout magnets will also produce very well too.

The Connetquot River State Park  has been great, with anglers averaging half a dozen or more trout per outing. They have been taking dry flies, nymphs and streamers like woolybugers and epoxy bait fish (yup. that's a fly too). These fish are seeing less pressure this time of year being most of the crowed is targeting saltwater species of fish.