Fishing Forecast - June New Moon

As we roll into summer, just about everything is heating up. The bass bite, bottom fishing, and even pelagics are all great options from surf, boat, or kayak. We're settling into our usual summer weather patterns with calm nights and mornings and windy afternoons - often coming from the south or southwest. It looks like we have our first heat wave of the summer coming through early next week, too, so be prepared for that. We'll probably see a spike in water temperatures, but I wouldn't expect it to drastically change any of the bites we have going on. Considering our temps are still a bit lower than you'd expect for mid-June, we'll probably be right on track by the end of next week. Nature always has a way of balancing things out.

Striped Bass

The bass bite continues to stay strong. As water temps rise in the bay, look for schools of bass of all sizes working their way out front. Particularly the big bass will be seeking deeper, cooler water with current and structure. Those are the places to be looking over the next few weeks, and throughout the summer as a whole. For those big bass, summer tactics are working in full swing. Topwater can still be good in low-light conditions with The Docbeing the most popular option by a long shot. Other big spook options are the JoeBaggs Skipper, Jigging World Rattle Stick, Yo Zuri Mag Dive, and 247 Mully.  Big soft plastics are another great bait to throw all summer long. We recently got a limited run of the 14" Hogy Original which have been productive for big bass for many years. Grab them while you can, because they won't last long. Other options are the Lunker City Sluggo, Gravity Tackle Eel, and JoeBaggs Block Island Eel. Big paddletails can also be productive, especially if you have bass in the middle of the water column as we often see during squid or sandeel feeds. Try the NLBN or Jygpro Swympaddletails and swim them, jig them, or rip them in. They're very versatile, so whatever cadence you need to get those fish to react, you can probably make it happen with a paddletail. For surf guys, the needlefish bite is in full swing. the 247 Needlefish is a shop favorite, and the classic Super Strike Super N Fish is proven. That said, the Lemire's Plugworks Needlefish is flying off the wall, too. Natural squid and sandeel colors have been producing the best. 

Coby with a healthy Sluggo-fed bass recently.

There are a good amount of small-medium sized bass both in the bay and out front, which is great to see. You'll see them indulging on the bait buffet, especially early in the morning feeding on sandeels on the surface. You may need to throw some smaller stuff to get those sandeel-eaters to commit because the bait is toothpick-sized right now. Fly fishermen should have success with Sandeel Flies.  Small topwater like the Rebel Jumpin Minnow and Game on! X Walk are also good options and fun to throw. Look to small straight tail soft plastics if they're really finicky. Small RonZ are probably the best option, but there's also small Sluggos and Zoom Flukes. 

Early Season Bonito!

I wouldn't have expected to be including funny fish in a June fishing forecast, but here we are. And it's awesome. It's not unheard of to see or catch bonito in June here in RI. In fact, more often than not, we hear of one or two random ones caught in the month of June. This year is different though, for a couple of reasons. The first reports this year were from the very first couple days of the month. By June 5th or 6th there had already been several shore-based bones caught locally, and who knows how many by boat. Even for early arriving bonito, that's early! The other difference about this year, is they are actually "in". Most years people get them in June, you may see a random school, or catch a random one on a jig meant for sea bass or fluke. Right now, you can go out and target them with the expectation of seeing some action. If you can get out front, look for birds working and fish slashing across the surface.

A butterball of a bonito caught this week on a floating SP Minnow.

There's a smorgasbord of bait inshore right now, which means very fun bonito fishing. There are heaps of sandeels around, still some squid, and then bay anchovies and silversides mixed in as well. If you can locate the fish, you should be able to cast anything within reason at them and get bit. So far the best producers have been Swimmers.The MVP from last year's bonito run, the Yo Zuri Mag Minnow, has been putting in work recently. That said, don't be afraid to through full-sized 6"+ swimmers. They'll catch and they cast pretty good if you need some distance. Other than that, the usual Metals/Epoxies are great options. They cast well and you can feel confident that you'll get bit if you can put it in front of feeding bones. When it comes to blind casting, I prefer to stick to the swimming plugs or of course the Albie Snax. I wouldn't stress much about color. If you stick to the big 3 - white, pink, and chartreuse - you should be all set. Silver is also a steady producer when it comes to hardtails. It's tough to predict what the funny fish will do next, hence the nickname, but they seem to be well established and there's certainly no shortage of bait. Hopefully they stick around for the summer and into the fall!

Bottom Fishing

The fluke fishing is the best that it's been a couple of years here in RI. Both inshore and offshore, there's been a solid bite. Inshore seems to be holding lots and lots of shorts, but there are some good fish mixed in. I recently saw an osprey try to get one in no more than two feet of water, and it was too big for the osprey to take off with. So don't be afraid to cast up shallow, especially in low light conditions, and don't be surprised if you stumble into a doormat among all the shorts. The classic fluke tackle has been producing. Bucktails with a teaser (either a fly or small plastic) has been working well. Adding a bit of scent to your presentation is always a good idea, so grab some Fish Bites or either frozen squid or spearing to make your jig a little more appetizing. Gulp! is always a go to for the flatfish and this spring has been no exception. The Jigging World Fluke Spoons are also catching some of the bigger fish. I'd expect the fluke bite to stay strong through the end of the month.

A nice keeper-sized fluke caught locally last week.

The black sea bass bite is also in full swing as of the last week or two. Check humps, rockpiles, ledges etc. and you should be able to locate them. The best thing about black sea bass is their willingness to hit just about anything. Metals/Epoxies are often the go to. If you want to cull some bigger ones out from the school, try a good-sized Paddletail or Bucktailand see if you can locate the bigger fish.