Power-drifting can yield big fluke

Power-drifting can yield big fluke. Captain Dave Monti with the 23” fluke caught Saturday while power-drifting , putting the vessel in and out of gear, when fishing the high/low edges at Austin Hollow (an underwater valley) off the west side of Jamestown, RI).

Power-drifting can yield big fluke

Saturday’s wind prediction was off in both intensity and the direction of the wind. Wind and current were not in line. Both of these are needed to establish a good drift for fluke fishing so you drag your bait over the fish. Fluke (or summer flounder) set-up looking into the current for prey that is drifting by.

For anglers still wanting to fish for fluke when wind and tide are not in the same direction, one possible solution is to power-drift your boat in the same direction as the current. This involves putting the vessel in and out of gear slowly trying to mimic the strength of the current.

This Saturday, anglers Dave Sweet and Craig Picard tried to fish for fluke. Dave said, “Wind and tide made the drift not so great, but we have gotten pretty good at the "power drifting" technique, and it paid off for me today with my personal best eight pound fluke.” I went fluke fishing Saturday as well when wind and current were not in line. So I power-drifted fishing the high/low edges at Austin Hollow an underwater valley off Jamestown and it paid off with a 23” fluke.

So when wind and current are not in line and you want to fish for fluke, consider power-drifting.

Warwick residents take top prizes in West Bay Anglers Tournament

The top five anglers in the West Bay Anglers 2012 William Beaudrey Jr. Memorial Striper Tournament went to Warwick residents. The tournament ran from 12:01 a.m., June 2 to 10:00 a.m., June 10. Prizes were awarded Sunday, June 11th at the Warwick FOP. First place for the overall largest fish (a $500 cash prize) was awarded to Jeff Howard of Warwick who weighed in a 43.85 striped bass he caught off Block Island. Lynne Taylor of Warwick took both female category prizes. She receives $200 for her 31.85 pound bass and $100 for her 28.90 pound striped bass. Male category winners were Kyle Armstrong with a 43.50 pound fish and Chris Levasseur who had a 40.70 pound striped bass.

We get mail

Question: Mr. Monti, I often read your column… I thought you might be able to answer a couple of quick questions. I live in Cranston near the waterfront in Edgewood. During high tide two access points to the bay are occupied by fishermen… they often catch striped bass… Is this fish OK to eat if caught in the upper bay?... I just wonder about the quality of the fish caught in the upper bay. We all know that the shellfish is inedible. What about the fin fish?
Barbara Rubine

Response: Hi Barbara, Striped bass are migratory; they are always on the move, most of the time looking for food. That is why they are up in the Bay near Edgewood. They are chasing Atlantic Menhaden (a form of herring). The menhaden go up the Bay to rivers to spawn and the striped bass migrating north follow them. When the menhaden leave and the water warms the striped bass leave. Because striped bass are migratory they usually never spend enough time in any one spot (like the Edgewood area) to be impacted by pollution or harmful algae like shellfish. Striped bass have low levels of mercury compared to other fish but often contain PCB's. However, other fish known to have high levels of PCB's include bluefish, eels, bluefin tuna, marlin, weakfish (or squeteague), shark, swordfish and others. Pregnant women have to be particularly careful of PCB’s. So, to wrap it up, the striped bass caught in the Edgewood area are likely not any more harmful to eat than any other striped bass. Best, Capt. Dave Monti

Where’s the bite

Striped bass. Mary Dangelo of Maridee Bait and Canvas Shop in Narragansett said customers are catching bass early morning and at sun set into the evening. Captain Andy Dangelo of Maridee Charters reports a good bass bite south of Block Island with his largest fish weighing in at 47 pounds. Buddy Thayer went fishing with friends on Block Island with Captain Russ Blank of Striker Charters Saturday. Buddy said, “… he put us right on the fish. North side of Block Island, sixteen blues and eight keepers… trolling two umbrella rigs.” Jeff Barker from the West Bay Anglers competed in their annual striped bass tournament this week. Jeff said, “We fished Block Island and landed a 28, 29 and a 31 pound fish. The fish keep getting larger as the week progressed. The winning fish at 43.85 pounds was caught Saturday night… close to the end of the tournament on Sunday.” Captain Rick Bellavance of Priority Too Charters reports that “Fishing around Block Island has been pretty good. Stripers are just about everywhere, with the largest being taken on yellow and white Poly Jig parachutes. There are a ton of blues in the North Rip, but keeper stripers are mixed in too.” Bass fishing along the southern coastal shores of Rhode Island was good Sunday and Monday with bass up to the 20 pound range along with bluefish mixed in. Reports from Narragansett Bay have been mixed with anglers saying the bite in the mid and lower Bay was slow, however, a good bite has been reported in the East Passage North of Conimicut Light all the way up the Providence River. Jon Blauvelt on the RISAA blog said, “Plenty of bass in the Providence River still. Had one of my best mornings of the year today (Sunday) using chunks on the bottom. Fished outgoing, slack, and incoming with steady bite. All keeper size.”

Bluefish. John Wunner of John’s Bait & Tackle North Kingstown said the large bluefish have invaded Greenwich Bay. Captain John Sheriff said Saturday, “The SW ledge was thick with bluefish. Trolled umbrella rigs. First pass, I had a double header, second pass, a triple header and third pass, a quadruple header.”

Fluke fishing was often difficult for anglers this week as tide and wind were not often in the same direction. Mary Dangelo of Maridee Bait & Canvas said, “Customers are catching fluke inside and outside the Harbor of Refuge with shorts and keepers mixed in John Wunner of John’s Bait & Tackle said, “Customers were catching fluke before the storms of last week, it was shaping up like a great fluke season. So I expect things to pick up this week.”

Scup. Large scup still being caught in the Bay and near coastal waters.

Shark and tuna. Captain Rick Bellavance said, “Shark fishing is good, Bill Brown put his clients on a 325 pound mako this week. There are a few bluefin tuna around the Acid Barge.”

A Fluke Cocktail That Will Enhance Your Catch

Summer flounder or fluke is a great fish to catch and eat. They can be caught from a boat (usually while drifting) or from shore with little knowledge, so they are an ideal catch for beginners and children. This year the fluke season starts June 17 in Rhode Island and runs through December. To keep a fluke it must be at least 21” and the catch limit is six fish per person per day.

Use these fluke facts and strategies to enhance your catch and keeper ratio.

In May, fluke move in shore from deep Continental Shelf waters where they spend the winter. They stay inland until October and then move back to the deep water. They are a flat fish with two eyes on the same side of the fish. They are bottom fish that do not look aggressive, but they will chase bait aggressively and eat the same bait that blue fish and striped bass eat. The difference is that they eat off the bottom.

I have caught several blue fish, particularly when retrieving my fluke bait rig as I brought it up through the water column. Last year, on a light tackle fluke rig, my brother-in- law hit a monster blue fish that nearly pulled both of us overboard.

A rubber squid with a wide gap hook, color beads and a spinner blade is my favorite bait. I have found florescent green to work best. This bait has a float inside so the bait hangs just off the bottom and it attracts a lot of attention as it has to, because it is fished on the bottom, where the fluke are, where it is often dark.

I spice-up the artificial bait with what I call a Captain Dave’s fluke cocktail. This consists of a previously frozen minnow or silver side (ideally the size of a finger) placed on the hook horizontally so it would appear to be swimming horizontally when on the bottom. (This tactic was taught to me by Gary Leatherberry of Ericson’s Bait & Tackle of Warwick a couple of years ago). This simple change in bait position has doubled my keeper ratio.

Next, I place a three to four inch squid strip on the hook and top it off with a three to four inch strip of fluke belly (the white skin of the fish). This completes the fluke cocktail. Be careful not to stack so much bait on the hook that the fluke cannot bite it. One may ask where you get fluke bellies. Next time you clean your catch, cut the left over fluke belly into strips and freeze them in zip lock freezer bags along with a bit of salt water. Fresh fluke bellies would be ideal, but frozen ones can get you going until you catch a fish that can be used for this purpose.

Water movement or bait movement is essential to catch fluke because they often stay in the same place for a while and you have to go to them. From shore, bait should be slowly dragged across the ocean floor (so rocky areas are out of the question for shore and boat fishing). From a boat the wind and/or current will move the boat and bait on the bottom. If slack tide or no current/wind, boat movement created by starting the engine can enhance your odds. Slowly put the boat in and out of gear to create movement. A good tactic is to move the boat in a circle; this slows the bait movement and allows you to cover a favorite area or hot spot over and over.
So when you get a bite on a drift, you should mark the spot and recreate the exact drift line again. Because remember, the fluke are often stationary and you want to go back to where they are if you are getting hits.

Sometimes there is too much wind, current or boat movement and your bait is not holding bottom and you are blowing by the fish. In this case shore and boat anglers should increase the sinker weight until you can keep the bait on the bottom. Often times, boat anglers employ underwater parachutes that fill with water to slow the boat speed (these can be found at local boating/fishing /bait & tackle shops).

When you feel a bite wait and let the fluke eat the bait, if you jerk the rod to set the hook you may pull the bait out of the fluke’s mouth. So after you feel the fluke bite and then the line tightens, move the rod upward to set the hook and start reeling in, keeping the pressure on the fish as the fluke will try to shake the hook loose.

Where’s the Bite
Striped bass continue to be plentiful in the Bay. The East Bay area from Bristol Harbor to Providence is hot with a few fish in the 40” range and fish in the 30’s fairly common. Dave Henault of Ocean State Tackle, Bristol/Coventry/Providence, said customers were catching fish by live lining menhaden and chunking with menhaden, with eels and with tube & worm. Dave related customer Mary Sokolowski of Providence caught her first salt water fish (a keeper striped bass) last Tuesday. Ray Ferrara of Ray’s Bait & Tackle Warwick weighed several customers’ fish in the 40” range this week. I had the privilege of taking publisher John Howell fishing this week and he caught a 41” striper on the shipping channel bank just off Poppasquash Point. Craig Mancini of Continental Bait & Tackle reports that customers continue to land big fish off Gaspee Point. Mike Shepard reported that his son Ian caught a 25 lb. bass off Breton Reef. Mike related that the fishing off Newport is now fantastic with a lot of bait in the water. Surf fishing is still one day on and one day off on Aquidneck Island. Big bass are also being caught on Block Island. David Appolonia and his friend Brian Hogan caught a 48”/42 pound striped bass this past week on the Southwest Ledge, other big fish were caught during the outing too.
Fluke (or Summer Flounder) season starts next week, June 17, 21” minimum size, six fish per person per day.

Caption Dave Monti has been fishing and shell fishing on Narragansett Bay for over 40 years. He holds a captain’s master license and a charter fishing license. Your fishing stories, comments and questions are welcome… there’s more than one way to catch a fish so e-mail Captain Dave at ­­­dmontifish@verizon.net .