Fishing Forecast - June New Moon

The second half of June is when the options really open up in Rhode Island. This year, water temperatures have been staying cool, and though we're getting some warmer days and nights, that might be a theme for another couple of weeks. That is great for both the striped bass fishing and the squid fishing - both of which have been fantastic and aren't showing sings of slowing down. I'm sure in two weeks' time by the next forecast, the squid bite will have be more tame. For now, though, if you can get out there, it's been lights out. Bottom fishing has also been heating up. Keeper-sized fluke and black sea bass have been regular, and the scup fishing is heating up. There have been a handful of bonito caught locally, which makes for June hardtails inshore three years on the bounce. It isn't consistent fishing at the moment, but enough to get out there and give it a shot. I won't be surprised at all if they fill in more and more over the next couple of weeks.

Striped Bass

The bass bite has been solid recently, and should continue to be in the next couple of weeks. It is a bit hit or miss because the bass are so keen on the abundant bait around. Right now, that is mostly squid and sandeels. It can equate to some phenomenal fishing, but there have been days they are really difficult to fool. This is a common theme when they are feeding hard on a particular bait. They know exactly what they're looking for, and if you aren't presenting it, good luck. But again, it totally depends on the day, and there have been some pretty lights out bites in the mix. Squid is a great bait to have around. They are relatively easy to imitate and they allow you to throw a plethora of baits - most of which are just fun to fish. Pencil Poppers like the Cotton Cordell, Tsunami Talkin' Popper, and 247 Sea Special Pencil Popper are all great daytime options. Spooks like The Doc, Yo-Zuri Mag Pencil, 247 Mully, and Lemire's Plugworks Wave Jammer are all great to throw during daylight, too. Bucktails will catch day and night, and are probably the best squid imitation out there. That said, the Nomad Squidtrex is pretty cool, and they've been flying off the rack. Dartersare tough to beat for the surf guys at night. Soft plastics like the Lunker City Slug-Go, Albie Snax,and Big Water Baits Bag Man will all do the job, too. Sandeel bites generally involve a mix of plastics and metals. Straight-tailed soft plastics aren't a bad call, as well as Metal/Epoxy Jigs and Diamond Jigs. If you're fishing from the surf at night, Needlefish are probably your best friend. Either a sandeel-looking Striper Fly or a Red Gill Original make great teasers when sandeels are present.

Solid bass on a weightless 13" soft plastic last week. 

Offshore

It's a little early to talk tuna, but not by a long shot. By the next forecast, there may be some rec-sized reports floating around. As of now, there have been a small handful of guys that we know of that have tried the tried and true areas south of Block and in our general area. The reports have been positive with warm water temps and clean water. With the abundance of squid and mature sandeels inshore, as long as they have bait out there to find when they arrive, good things should happen. In general the bluefin season begins with a troll bite, which then grows into a jig/pop bite after a couple of weeks. We have some spreader bar options from Hogyand Chatter that are both great for early season searching. Once the jig bite begins to pick up, I would guess right around the turn of the month, we have a great selection of jigs. UTV was the hottest last season, for what that's worth. The Hogy Sandeel Jig, Joe Baggs Sleek Jig and Point Jude Deep Force Jig all have their day, too. Straight-tailed soft plastics like the NLBN 8" Straight Tail, Big Water Baits Bag Man, and of course, the RonZ are all good options. The latter is definitely the most prominent throughout the course of the season around here. Paddletails like the Hogy Pro Tail, Big Water Baits Hit Man and JygPro Swym are all good options for early bluefin, too. A few solid jigheads that you can trust include the tuna grade options from RonZ, JygPro, and NLBN. It's never too early to start looking, and in the next couple weeks there will most likely be some chatter about good things happening offshore.

My first bluefin from last season on a pink Big Water Baits Hit Man.

Everything Else

The squid bite has been insane for at least the last week or so. It probably won't go too much longer, but for now, it's not slowing down. When I've been out, the exact style, size, or color of your Squid Jig hasn't seemed to matter much. They've been pretty fired up and willing to hit just about anything you put in front of them. Look for areas with ambient lighting like marinas, harbors, and bridges. That said, if you set up a light on just about any dock around the bay, you'll have a good chance at drawing in some squid. The beauty of a great squid bite isn't just the freezer-filling midnight fun, but also the species of fish that come into the bay right behind the squid. The fishing for fluke, back sea bass, and scup has been heating up nicely. For fluke, I'd target the 25-45 foot range, though you can certainly find them both shallower and deeper than that range. It's a starting point, though. Bucktails or Tsunami Ball Head Jigs tipped with either fresh squid or a FishBites should do the trick. The Teezer Fluke Rig and Flippin Out Fluke Rigs are also great options. With all the sandeels around, a small teaser like a 4-5" Gulp! isn't a bad idea. If you're fishing up shallow, a simple small plastic, either a Paddletailor a Jerkbaiton a light jighead will work just fine. For black sea bass, you should find them in the same areas and depths. They tend to roam a lot this time of year before settling in on deep structure for the summer. Your fluke rigs will work. You can also drop Metal/Epoxy Jigs, a mix of soft plastics on jigheads, and Gulp! for black sea bass action. They're rarely picky, and they're tasty as can be, so they are a fun target for beginners or anybody looking to do a relatively easy catch and cook. The same can be said about scup. A small chunk of squid or FishBites on a simple rig will do the trick, but they'll also hit just about any artificial they can fit in their mouth. Look for relatively shallow areas with warm water and a soft bottom this time of year. 

Tyler King with a stud sandeel-munching flatty.