Fishing Forecast - April Full Moon

If you're reading this, you made it through the most grueling winter we've had in quite some time. I wouldn't blame anyone for thinking about driving south and not returning until the sun started feeling warm again. We all deserve to give ourselves a pat on the back. We made it, and another season of biweekly fishing forecasts is upon us. Sit back and enjoy a read about brighter, warmer, and fishier days ahead. The ospreys are returning day by day in full force. Herring are making their way up runs, fighting through the onslaught from bass, birds, and mammals targeting them. Peepers are peeping, turkeys are gobbling, flowers are blooming. You get the idea - better days are just around the corner.

Early Spring Bassin'

The first couple weeks of April can be pretty hit or miss. That said, if you do hit it right, you can get on some memorable bites that make the cold (and usually wet) weather worth every minute. At this point in the month, we're mostly targeting resident bass. It isn't too early to start checking spots for fresh fish, though. As far as the resident population of fish goes - think herring. If you can find a solid herring run, there's a strong chance that bass will be right on their tails, both figuratively and literally. The herring seem to be off to a pretty strong start locally, so it's time to get after it. The April full moon in particular is one of my favorite windows of the whole year. It's tough to beat a weightless soft plastic when you're fishing for bass that are feeding on herring. The Hogy Original 7"and Hogy Original 10"are a couple of my absolute favorites. The Lunker CitySlug-Goand Big Water Baits Bag Manare also great options to throw weightless this time of year. I tend to fish them slow with a little twitch every few cranks at night, but during the day, I'll work them much faster. Herring aren't exactly slow, and if you've ever seen a bass chase one down, you know it's no lazy act. The bass are hungry and looking for a big meal, and that's what makes early spring fishing so special. Swimbaits/glide baits are also great options. The G-Ratt Sneaky Pete, G-Ratt Pistol Pete,and Spro KGB Chad Shadare all solid and won't completely empty your pocket. I'm also a fan of basically anything that throws a wake, the best being the Cotton Cordell Redfin Swimmer.The redfin is an all-time April plug, and partcularly if you fish at night, you need to have some in your bag. Minnow plugs like the Daiwa SP Minnow, Tsunami TP Minnow,and Yo-Zuri Hydro Minnoware all year-round fish catchers, too. Last but not least, paddletails like the JygPro Swym 5", NLBN 5",and Al Gags Whip-It Fish can be very effective on early-spring bass.

An early March bass from a couple years back, caught on a weightless 8" straight tail.

Early Season Toggin'

April first means tog season is officially open in Rhode Island. Things usually start to heat up and become more reliable later in the month, but it's not too early to get out there and try. Early-season tog are on the move, looking for (relatively) shallow structure to hang on before they move into even shallower water to spawn in May and early June. If you're after tog in the first couple weeks of the season, I would try targeting mid-range depths, say, 25-45ft or so. Of course there are exceptions. But, in general, they are coming from deep water and slowly making their way up into the bay to shallower water where they'll be very catchable in a few weeks. If you can intercept their movements, you'll run into tog. Expect some long bait soaks, not the drop-and-reel fishing we all love about tog, for the first couple weeks of the season. There are many tales that early tog prefer soft-bodied baits like clams and worms over the usual crabs. Personally, I haven't found this to be the case. I tend to go straight to finding shore crabs and dropping those. But, if you find yourself getting nibbles but not committed bites, it's not a bad idea to drop a soft bait down and see if they'll commit to it. We have a wide selection of Blackfish Jigsthat all get the job done. In general, try to fish the lightest weight jig that you can get away with in your conditions. You want to comfortably hold bottom, but you also don't want to use more weight then necessary and turn off a fish that picks up your jig. We also have Blackfish Rigsif you prefer a rig.

Dustin of RI Kayak Fishing Adventures with his first tog of the 2026 season!

Other Options

Early April isn't the easiest time to get out on the saltwater for other options, but that doesn't mean it's a complete waste of time. Winter flounder are a good fish to target this time of year, although, like everything else, it will only be better in a few weeks. Target shallow, muddy areas with soft baits like clam or worms. You can also get away with using scented artificials like Gulp!and FishBites on small hooks. They have tiny mouths, so the smaller the better. Work the bottom slowly, and see if you can find any! If you do, make sure to keep working that area. Similar to fluke, they tend to be in patches, and where there's one, there's usually more. It's also not too early to try for weakfish. Not to be a broken record, but again, in a few weeks there will be a much better shot at them. That said, I have caught them as early as the second week of April. You'll want to throw small soft plastics on light jigheads in white, pink, or chartreuse. There's little reason to stray from those few colors when talking about weakfish. Small paddletails like the JygPro Swym, NLBN,and Al Gags Whip-It Fish, as well as small straight tails like the Slug-Goand JygPro Y Tailare all great options in the 3-4" range. Lastly, although you can't keep them, it's a good time of year to get on the oceanfront and fish for cod. Look for reefs and structure, drop your Metals/Epoxy Jigs,and work the bottom. Bucktailsare also a decent bet. They respond very well to scent, so tipping your jig with a clam or artificial scent like FishBitesis always a good idea. You may need to cover water to find some bites, but if you can find them, they are generally willing to eat. We just need some solid weather to get out there! Overall, it's that time of year where things start off slow but heat up quickly. It's the perfect time to get out there, shake off the rust, and try to get on your first fish of the new season!