Why go to Broadway when you can go to Broad Channel? The latter is just one of the Jamaica Bay areas where our favorite saltwater stars are raising the curtain on the season.
Long Island Sound waters are attracting migrations, too, with westward bound porgies out near Bayville and Oyster Bay, stripers still flowing in from the Hudson River and blues coming up from the South. Huntington’s James Joseph II is now into regular fluking schedules: days starting at 7 a.m. and evenings at 4:30 p.m.
New York State’s fluke and porgy seasons opened May 1, joining the tail end of what has been one of the better flounder seasons but is already slowing down towards its end-of-May closing. However, City Islanders Frank Williams Sr. and Frank Williams Jr. recently were still able to show off at Jack's Bait and Tackle with their two-flounder daily limits from local piers.
So now anglers have six major species to scout for: Bluefish, flounder, fluke, ling, porgies and striped bass.
New Jersey anglers can also get in on fluking Saturday, with their daily allowance of five fish measuring at least 171/2 inches. That’s compared to New York’s fluke regulations that specify four fish at 191/2 inches.
The Sheepshead Bay Jet has been cruising in 30-foot waters off the Rockaways for porgies that are often in the nice-sized weight of two to three pounds. When porgies get picky, Capt. Chuck Patterson turns to fluking.
Sheepshead Bay’s Golden Sunshine is all spiffed up and ready to launch her two half-day fluking trips as of this morning.
Capt. Robert Sapanara on his Brooklyn VI is has been giving custormers lots of action on stripers and blues, on both daily and weekend nights. The skipper said that last weekend he returned with a hundred-plus qualified stripers. And he reported that the six- to 10-pound bluefish are so abundant that often anglers just relax with some catch-and-release fun.
Meanwhile, the Capt. Al out of Point Lookout continues to enjoy the super plentiful supply of ling. Customers are hauling them in from Ambrose waters at depths of 90 to 110 feet. In fact, last weekend Lam and Carmen Gong from Clifton, N.J. were high hookers, boasting between them a tally of 87 ling and their limit of stripers up to 24 pounds. Friday and Saturday nights the Capt. Al switches to stripers and blues.
Not to be overlooked: As of Saturday freshwater fishing also kicks into high gear with the season opening for warm-water sportfish. That means going for species like walleye , northern pike, pickerel and tiger muskellunge.
