Summer flounder (fluke) fishing got off to a great start this year.
“I limited out on fluke in 80 feet of water in the Block Island Wind Farm area this week," Peter Johnson reported on May 21. Johnson is a firm believer in going light. He uses 15-pound braid, jigs and stingers tipped with Gulp and sometimes squid strips.
Two years ago, Johnson caught one of his personal best, a 28-inch fluke right in front of Warwick Light in Narraganset Bay, fishing the banks and deep water in the channel. “This is the largest fluke I ever caught," he said, " … a white, 4-ounce, bucktail jig with white feathers did the trick. The idea is to keep it light.”
Angler Rich Hittinger of Warwick did manage a personal best in 2020 at Block Island when he caught an 11.16-pound, 30-inch fluke. “We moved to 50 feet of water to avoid some of the dogfish," Hittinger said. "The fish hit a trailer hook with a green squid skirt. I had a 10-ounce sinker holding bottom. She fought from the bottom to the top, taking drag several time.”
And who can forget the scream heard off Newport last year when Greg Vespe, of Tiverton, the executive director of the Rhode Island Saltwater Anglers Association, caught a 31.5-inch fluke that weighed 15 pounds, 8 ounces while fishing off Newport with his friend, Capt. BJ Silvia of Flippin Out Fishing Charters. “My rod just got heavy, no nibble or classic kind of tap-tap, the whole thing loaded up," Vespe said. "For a second I thought I had a lobster pot line, then you could tell it was definitely something alive and it came up relatively easily the first 40 feet. Even though my drag was tight, she went all the way back down to the bottom and bulldozed for a bit. Finally, she started to come back up. When we saw it, I let out a holler that is probably still vibrating around Newport.”
Summer flounder fishing in Rhode Island runs from May 3 to Dec. 31. The minimum size is 18 inches this year. The bag limit this year is four fish/person/day. In Massachusetts, the season is May 21 to Sept. 29, a 16.5-inch minimum size with a five fish/person/day limit.
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◘Fluke face into the current to feed, so you want to drag your bait over the front of them, drifting with the tide and wind in the same direction when in a boat or slowly pulling your bait over the bottom when on land.
◘Fish the edges of channels, banks, underwater valleys and humps as big fish ambush bait there.
◘When fishing slack or flood tide with no water movement, try to fish in locations that have a lot of current, like under bridges or around jetties; or try power drifting — putting the vessel in and out of gear to create movement.
◘When it comes to fluking, squid is the bait of choice. Some anglers cut it in very fine strips, and others like to use the whole squid; and still others others use what they catch that day — strips of bluefish, sea robins, etc.
◘Both jigs and jigs with a second stinger hook trailing 30 to 36 inches behind work. Traditional squid rigs work as well.
◘Find the fish and repeat the pattern — drifting over the same location or depth that is yielding fish.
◘One of my favorite fluke baits is a fluorescent green or white plastic squid rig, baited with a squid strip. And, depending on what the fish want, a minnow or silverside and/or a strip of fluke belly. I sometimes use a stinger hook with some type of attractant above this rig.
Another tactic that will enhance your fluke bite is teaser bait placed above the main bait. The idea is to create action above and behind the main bait that gives fluke a second chance to see your bait. A bucktail skirted hook is often used as a teaser with an attractant of some kind.
The freshwater bite for largemouth bass was good this week. “Turner Reservoir in East Providence has been producing largemouth for customers using shiners, and the trout bite has slowed at Willet Avenue Pond,” said John Littlefield of Archie’s Bait & Tackle in Riverside.
“Tautog fishing has slowed," said Manny Macedo of Lucky Bait and Tackle in Warren. "With an enhanced scup bite, many anglers are experiencing scup stealing their crabs before the tautog get a chance to bite it.” Littlefield reported: “Some anglers are hooking up with small keepers at Kettle Point but overall a lot of shorts are being caught all the way up to India Point, Providence.”
Fishing in Greenwich Bay for bluefish was good this weekend. Angler Steve Burstein of North Kingstown kept four fish caught in about 40 minutes trolling lures. “The bluefish have arrived and are pushing the pogies up on the surface," Littlefield said. "We are just starting to see this. Anglers are trolling from Sabin Point to Godard Park and catching stripers with some keepers mixed in. Anglers fishing the Barrington Beach area from boats are doing well with slot-limit-size fish.” Macedo reported: “This weekend was very good for striped bass fisherman. Soft plastic baits worked well as fish were chasing small baits. And at the end of last week, we had a lot of pogies in the water with anglers doing well from the Mt. Hope Bridge to the Sakonnet Bridge.”
Fluke (summer flounder) and squeteague fishing is picking up along the coastal shore much earlier than usual. Block Island fishing has been good, too. Hittinger said he and Bob Murray limited out on fluke one day last week about 5 miles from the wind farm.
Dave Monti holds a captain’s master license and charter fishing license. He serves on a variety of boards and commissions and has a consulting business that focuses 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 noflukefishing.com.
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