East End Fishing Report: Cooler Air Will Speed Up Fall Migration

All this rain and wind has put a damper on some of our local fishing, but the previous days were in the range of good to red-hot. When the cooler air moves in, as promised, it will surely speed up the fall migration.

SHINNECOCK

Bunker is swarming through such inlets as Shinnecock, frenzied by groups of hungry bluefish.

MONTAUK

Out at Montauk, this past weekend aboard the Halfback Charters, a group of landscapers dealt with the brisk winds and limited out on striped bass to 20 pounds. They coped with laughter about how their daily job was more difficult than dealing with the bouncy seas, making the trip a tap on the easy button.

Aboard the Elizabeth II charter, live eels and parachutes worked well for stripers off the Point, letting all limit out in spite of challenging wind conditions. One excursion included a 40- as well as a 45-pound mammoth striper.

On the charter boat Montauk, last Saturday’s trip with Steve Herman and family saw the group catch fifteen keeper striped bass, some huge bluefish and a single rewarding false albacore. This past Monday, all limited out on stripers with live eels, although parachute rigs worked almost as well. Tons of cocktail blues were noticed in the water, doubling what we saw last week.

On the Capt. Mark, an Oct 14 trip held some striped bass in excess of 26 pounds which were caught on live eels. The Montauk rips have been excellent for yielding
strong quality striped bass on both the day and night tides.

Hermit crabs, greenies and Asians have been attracting not only the blackfish population, but were successful in fishing for porgies over the past week. The Capt. Mark got tog to 5 pounds and some porgy surprises. In spite of rough, howling seas last Sunday, the boat had its limit of stripers and a mess of huge, hungry blues.

On the Lazy Bones, the charter drifted beyond the Point and the action was fast for striped bass and bluefish. Westerly winds did not deter the experienced
captain and crew.

ORIENT

Out at Orient Point on the Prime Time III, last weekend was successful for Jim Ryan and friends with nonstop action getting 45 blackfish to six-pounds and a good showing of big keeper porgies. Another excursion allowed all those brave anglers on board to limit out on porgies and leave with more than 20 tog to five-pounds. The Peconic Star dealt with strenuous weather conditions, catching blackfish to seven pounds with only one tog shy of the boat's limit. Keep in mind that all this action happened in winds that frequently gusted in excess of 40 miles per hour.

GREENPORT

Out at Greenport, The Captain's Table Charters worked early and hard last Friday before the stormy, windy downpours. They had solid striper action in Plum Gut on buck-tails. Since their bluefish frenzies were not in evidence on the trip, anglers had limits generally in the 17-to-20-pound range. Off Plum Island, dealing with a steady southeast wind, those on board limited out on blackfish to just under six pounds on the return. Crabs worked to their advantage, but a few had best success with whole chowder clams, whose soft innards must be very appealing to togs.

Before you can blink, our season for fishing will be drawing to a close. Striped bass are still a best bet, as well as those blackfish we refer to as tog. The best thing about going after stripers is that both surf and boat work for all at this time in the season. As for tog, you can get them over any reef that is rocky if you happen to be on a boat or you can go light on both lead and use crabs to gently drag the bottom close to any jetty or dock where those hungry blackfish will be looking for their next meal.