Hello Compleat Angler Friends! We have beautiful weather in store for this weekend, so we hope you’re able to escape and spend some time on the water. No significant changes from last week, which is good news on the saltwater front because the local bite is hot. Our local freshwater fisheries are seeing lowering flows with the lull in rain, however the fishing remains consistent. It’s all about the Blue Winged Olives now as other hatches start to taper off, both locally and in the Catskills. If you’re planning a trip to the Salmon River, Steelhead are starting to be caught further upriver, which should spread the fishing out. We hope everyone is having a great fall season, and if you’d like to show off your hero shot for a chance to be featured in our weekly email, send your photo to compleatanglerphoto@gmail.com. Read on for more!

Rhode Island

This week the Bass fishing has remained good around the beaches and breachways with plenty of surface action from Westerly to Newport. Striper blitzes and rafts feeding on tiny bait have been a regular occurrence in the mornings and afternoons, and this week we are hearing reports of bigger bass being brought to hand. There are some Bluefish and Shad in the mix. Cape Cod has been seeing some of these larger bass, and the bite has improved this week. The main forage has been young-of-the-year bunker and anchovies. These baitfish are small. There have been some scattered shots at Albies from shore, but the consensus is that the bite has been slowing down. If you manage to find some Albies these fish have been super picky and are on small bait. You must “match the hatch” perfectly here to have any shot of a hookup. The Bass will be more forgiving with fly selection, but size is more important for those Albies. Good spots to focus on are the mouths of bays and inlets, as well as the jetty walls for those fishing from shore. A wide variety of flies and colors will work early in the morning, but as the sun comes up in the afternoon, or if it’s a calm day, downsize your fly. Everything from smaller Deceivers, Surf Candies, to Bonito Bunnies will work so don’t be afraid to experiment. The fish will tell you what they want. The salt ponds, inlets, and back bays are still producing good numbers of fish. This is a great time of year to sightfish for Stripers on sunny days. Block island has been seeing some gator blues, as well as some large Stripers. They have been found mostly in deeper water making them a more viable target for boat anglers. While mornings and evenings have been the best, there is the possibility of blitzing fish in the afternoon this time of year. There are a ton of options whether you are fishing from shore or by boat. Water temperatures are around the 60 F mark.

Connecticut

Local Rivers

Mother Nature is providing us with some exceptionally warm weather this weekend. Flows have dropped on our local rivers (the Saugatuck is flowing at 38.6cfs) with no noteworthy changes. The streamer fishing will be good thanks to the stocking, so try some wooly buggers, as well as a variety of nymphs. Once the fish become educated, fishing things like smaller, 18-20 zebra midges will continue to catch fish into the late fall. Smaller flies will help your catch rate while flows remain low and clear. For our Stillwater folks, a lot of the ponds have been stocked, which means now is a great opportunity to take the kids fishing. Good areas to focus on include the Mill, Saugatuck, Farmington, and Housatonic rivers.

Naugatuck

With the lowering temperatures of fall officially underway, Connecticut Fish and Wildlife stocked Atlantic Salmon on the Naugatuck, and more recently another stocking on the Shetucket, with possible future stockings pending. The Naugatuck and Shetucket were also stocked with trout. Now that the trout have been in these rivers for a couple weeks, switch over to your smaller and more imitative patterns as they become wary. For Atlantic Salmon try wooly buggers in pink and purple, as well as your traditional salmon patterns: Blue Charms, Gray Ghosts, etc. The fish will vary in size from five to ten pounds. We recommend a 9’ 6-8wt rod with a sink tip line or polyleader to get the fly into their zone. Some sections of these rivers are conducive to Spey fishing. Most of these fish are 2-3 years old (2-5lbs), while the older broodstock (10-15lb) are stocked in fewer numbers. For those of you that aren’t new to the Atlantic Salmon game, fish them like you would any other Atlantic salmon fishery, but don’t be afraid to upsize your fly or experiment with nymphs. On the sunny days look for fish sunning themselves in the tail-out of pools for a fun sightfishing opportunity. An increase in flows will tend to spread these fish out. During the colder mornings, a slowly swung streamer is a good strategy. The Naugatuck flows have dropped to 127cfs. As a reminder, this fishing is catch and release until 12/6 with a single hook fly. Please report any poaching to law enforcement, 860-424-3333.

Farmington River

DEEP stocked the river between New Hartford and Unionville as well as the upper river, so try fishing junk flies in these sections until the fish become educated. Think wooly buggers, mop flies, and general attractor nymphs with hotspots. Now is a great time to fish streamers and egg patterns as fish are getting ready to start spawning and are looking for a high calorie meal. Fish will still be rising to Blue Winged Olives in these average flows. The West Branch Riverton gauge is reading 186cfs from the dam release with the Still adding 103cfs, which means water clarity and flows are ideal. For dry fly anglers, trout are continuing to rise, and most hatches are occurring from the late morning into the afternoon. Look to fish Blue Winged Olives as the prevalent hatch, with small Caddis mixed in. Small flies down to size 24 seem to be the norm. Small nymphs will also continue to produce. For you Trout Spey anglers, swinging wet flies can be productive, but don’t be afraid to throw larger intruder style patterns. There is no shortage of options as far as techniques go. With the colder mornings, try fishing streamers and nymphs until most of the hatches start up in the afternoon. Leaves are still dropping, so check your rig to keep it clear of debris often. I would recommend getting to a favorite spot early in the morning to find good water or try fishing on a weekday if you have the chance. Brown trout are spawning now so please be mindful to stay clear of lighter colored patches of gravel, which are their spawning beds (redds). Remember to not high or low hole anyone. Let’s be respectful to other anglers. Good luck! Keep in mind: Please report any suspicious activity and poaching to DEEP by calling 800-842-4357.

Housatonic River

Flows have decreased to a comfortable 646, which is good news for our wade anglers. In other good news, not much has changed fishing-wise on the Housatonic. The fishing has been great since the stocking, and many of our anglers are using a variety of techniques to bring numbers of fish to hand, and streamers are producing exceptionally well. A variety of small nymphs are working, and guys are having success if they can keep their rig clear of debris. Focusing on areas by the park and TMA should result in some fish. The most prevalent hatches will be Blue Winged Olives until the winter, and I would bring a variety of sizes in the adults and emergers. Again, focusing on your streamers (don’t be afraid to throw larger patterns) and nymphs during the colder portions of the day is a good strategy, and look for rising fish in the afternoon. Our anglers have reported that the state has stocked a significant number of Tiger Tout. Now that the temperatures are dropping, and with the anticipation of winter, it’s a good time to think about Pike fishing. These fish should be aggressive so look for them in coves with weed beds, as well as ledges. 8-10wt rods are standard with some form of sinking, intermediate, or sink tip line with a large streamer. Some good flies are Flashtail Whistlers, larger EP Flies, and Deceivers. A floating line with a popper can also work in shallower sections.

Please report any poaching to the DEEP by calling 800-842-4357.

Saltwater

The bass fishing continues to be strong. There have been great and consistent reports of Stripers and Blues in our area, with some of our anglers finding Albies towards the middle and southern part of the Sound (however they have proved difficult to fool). Plenty of Bass are being found nearshore on a variety of bait (peanut bunker, bay anchovies, etc.) with some quality fish brought to hand. Larger Bass of 40 inches and over are being found in some of the blitzes near shore, with the majority of Bluefish being found in deeper water around the 12–15-pound range. This is good news for shore anglers looking to get into Bass, so search the coastline for birds and bait. Be mindful of your tides, and fishing near lowlight hours (dusk and dawn) will bring the most success. Some hotspots right now are the shorelines around Southport to Bridgeport, the Norwalk Islands, near the mouth of the Housatonic, the Connecticut River, Cos Cob etc. Some of the fish around the Norwalk Islands have been cruising in shallow water, so look for surface disturbance/tailing. Our boat anglers are having good success near shore in coves and harbors, so there is no shortage of options right now, especially sight-fishing near the beaches. There is also some good fishing towards Niantic and Old Saybrook, namely bass with some Albies mixed in. Fall weather windows can make things tough to get out there. I recommend choosing a day with a Westerly wind, keeping in mind your low wind speeds to make casting easier. Colder nights can create a slow start to the morning bite. Any decent effort to locate Stripers has a high probability of success. If you are running around this area this week, keep your eyes open for blitzes and/or birds working bait. Please report any poaching to the DEEP by calling 800-842-4357.

New York

Salmon River

Most of the Salmon in the river are in spawning mode, so there are plenty of eggs in the system for our Steelhead anglers. The Steelhead fishing has proven consistent with chrome fish pushing in daily and the occasional Brown Trout. We are now starting to see Steelhead up in Altmar, which indicates they’re spread throughout the river. Water temperatures have been in the low 50’s in the morning, and reaching the mid 50’s for the afternoon. The water temperature are also ideal for swinging flies with Switch and Spey rods. For Steelhead focus on using egg patterns: Glo-bugs, Estaz, Sucker Spawn, as well as Egg-Sucking Leeches. For our Spey anglers a variety of colors: black, purple, blue, and pink work well. For those still looking to get their last Salmon fix in, try fishing from Pineville to Altmar, and the fly zone, where there is the most concentration of them. Cohos are still being brought to hand. The tributaries are also producing. With the colder morning temperatures underway, make sure you have a good layering system and gloves to stay warm! The flows are currently 430cfs and holding, which is below the average. On the windier days the leaf hatch has become an issue, so try throwing colors that stand out in the mix of debris.

The Catskills

Warmer afternoons have kept the fishing consistent despite low water. West Branch flows are 246cfs at Hale Eddy, while the East is 447cfs at Fish’s Eddy. The Mainstem at Lordville is flowing at 874cfs, below the average. Low flows will make it easy for our wade anglers to access spots, however this makes conditions tough for those fishing out of a drift boat. Please be mindful of trout spawning beds (Redds). We realize that these flows make things easier for wading, but because the fishery is now open all year round these eggs are susceptible to being crushed by wade anglers. In general, the most prevalent hatches continue to be BWOs in the afternoon, with some great hatches reported. There will be varying degrees of hatching depending on what system you are on with some Isonychia and Hebes in the mix. Look to fish Olive nymphs in size 18-24, as subsurface has been the most productive especially in the mornings. For our dry fly anglers try small Rusty Spinners, BWO emergers, and focus on the slower pools and tailouts this time of year during the afternoons. Be prepared to switch flies often. The Willowemoc and Beaverkill have ideal flows for wading. The streamer fishing has started to pick up, so definitely spend some time fishing the sinking lines, but be mindful of spawning trout. For our wading anglers using Trout Spey rods, now is a great time to swing larger patterns. Fishing streamers and nymphs in the morning is a good tactic until the hatches become prevalent in the afternoons.

Saltwater 

I wish I had some more positive news on the Montauk front, but the blitzes have been extremely tough to find. If you’re heading out there check the South side of the lighthouse for Bass and Bluefish chasing Peanut Bunker near the rips. Besides that, the Albies haven’t been seen with frequency. If I were planning to fish somewhere this week, I would recommend a more Western area of the sound (Orient to Point Jefferson). Otherwise search the rips for Bass pushing bait to the surface and try fishing the coves and flats. Sunny skies can result in some fun sightfishing opportunities! The bite will also pick up in the fall for Bass on the Northshore, and great fishing can be had in the evenings. Shore anglers should also focus on the rock gardens near the lighthouse, as well as searching the beach for blitzes erupting near-shore.