Another Cold April But Fish Are Moving In

The marinas are open, the bass are here, the weakfish are here, some of the fluke are here, the porgies are getting very close and there’s no bluefi … wait, no, I’m not going to say it.

I wouldn’t say anything is in “full swing” really yet, but there are plenty of fish in the area for anglers looking to bend a rod.

Weakfish have been caught by draggers working a few miles off the beaches (I know — don’t get me started) and there have been some grumblings about some being found in pound traps. I have not heard of one caught by an angler yet, but it should be just about any tide. By this time last year, there had been some caught already.

The first skirmish lines of fluke have apparently arrived, too — the guys at East End Bait & Tackle in Hampton Bays say that a few have been caught in the canal by those prospecting for early weakfish or stripers. The season opens Monday, and if the weather cooperates, there may be some hope for opening day fillets in the frying pan.

There are striped bass in just about every general area of our waters now, from the necks of the Peconics to rocky shores near Montauk Point. The ocean beaches have them wherever there is a little structure to hold bait. They are in the bays, both in the deep runs and in the shallows, and they are in Montauk when the wind blows right.

They are also all pretty small still. I’ve heard only anecdotal mention of a smattering of fish making the 28-inch minimum.

Speaking of which, I’d like to remind anglers with a hint of concern for the future that despite the new rules leaving the minimum size of bass where it has been for more than 20 years, there are a lot of conservation-minded fishermen who are voluntarily self-imposing a 32-inch minimum for keeping a striper. This will mean that any fish they catch will almost certainly have spawned at least once or twice, and they will throw back a lot of fish that may not have spawned at all but will not get the chance.

Or, and perhaps even more importantly, please remove the treble hook from the back of your lures, crush your barbs and be gentle when releasing striped bass. None of these things will reduce the number of fish you catch or take up much of your time.

Now, if only the weather would cooperate.

Another persistently cold spring following a forebodingly warm winter — our new seasonal normal, it would seem — started us off with mild water temps but chilly days and some downright cold nights have only barely inched them up. Frost on two mornings in the last few days is not helping get things going (either the fish, or the fishermen).

Congratulations once again go out to the hard working guys and gals of the Eastern Suffolk chapter of Ducks Unlimited for boosting the Southampton-Water Mill based chapter onto the rolls of the state’s highest fundraisers for the organization. Eastern Suffolk came in behind only the New York City juggernaut thanks to the hard work of the local organizers and a robust and loyal membership that has a great young contingent giving it a lot of promise for years to come. Keep up the good work, everyone.

Groups like Ducks Unlimited and other non-profits are going to be hit hard by the coronavirus crisis, they will need that loyal base of support this year. So if you are one of the lucky ones not taking a hit to your pocketbooks from this thanks to union protections or whatever, please consider giving something extra this year to whatever your favorite charity or non-profit organization is since a lot of your friends probably won’t be able to.

Then go catch ’em up. See you out there.