Scales and Tales

LONG ISLAND SOUND BLACKFISHING IS HOT FROM WEST TO EAST

It would be hard to imagine Long Island Sound blackfishing getting any better than it is right now. From west to east, anglers are reporting a ton of success with some really impressive fish. The open boat Island Current in City Island has bailed big blacks over the past week, as has Huntington's Noli Elieen and James Joseph, Port Jefferson's Osprey IV and Celtic Quest, and the Prime Time III and Orient Star at the far end of the North Fork. The Peconic Star, out of Greenport, has also done well.

Most of these boats saw top blackfish weigh in at 8 to 9 pounds, but the real monster this week was a 13.75-pound bulldog decked aboard the James Joseph by George Pesce of Lindenhurst. An 11-pounder was hauled aboard the Osprey IV last week.

On Tuesday, the Captain Bob in Mattituck ran across to the Conneticut side to work a virgin wreck, according to Captain Bob Ceglowski, and the fishing was fantastic.

"It was the best I've seen in 30 years," claimed Ceglowski. "We limited out all 28 anglers with blackfish by 11: 30 a.m., and creeled 30 keeper sea bass, too. People were tossing back 4-pound blacks in the hopes of keeping something bigger. Just about every fish we took home weighed 4.5 pounds or greater."

All told, seven blackfish over 9 pounds hit the deck, the largest being a 9.75-pound pool winner. Tomorrow's trip (Friday) is already sold out. No doubt, word travels fast when the bite is good.

Be aware that some open boats are now sailing a reduced schedule, so call ahead and check the sailing times before heading out. It's also a good idea to call just in case a boat is already booked full.

With the bluefish hitting fast and furious last weekend aboard the Captain Bob V out of Mattituck (captbobfishingfleet.com,) there were plenty of fishing tips to go around. A few of my favorites:

Captain Bob Ceglowski: "Diamond jigging for bluefish is a team effort. When a party boat passes through a school of choppers, all the jigs in the water appear to be a large school of baitfish. The harder everyone works to keep thier jigs active, the better the fish stay with the boat. When we get a good, hard-working group at the rail, the fish actually follow the boat as we drift. Even if you don't have a fish on, keep working hard. It's all the flashing in the water that gets the blues fired-up. Think team first and you'll get plenty of hook-ups. Four-ounce AVA daimond jigs are the standard lure here at this point in the season."

Mate Dave Meyers: "I like to use hammered spoons and jigs for blues instead of jigs with a smooth finish. The scattered reflections from these lures look more natural in the water, close to the flash of real baitfish. The stripers really seem to notice the difference."

Chris Palermo: "I have my own boat but I still like to come out on open boats. It lets you try new areas, fish for species you might not usually catch from your home port, plus you meet a lot of fun people on these trips. I go as much for the atmosphere as for the action. I love the Captain Bob fleet but also fish out of Captree on the Laura Lee, out of Montauk on the Viking, and on a few other boats as well."

Bill Addesso: "I do pretty well with stripers on these bluefish trips. One key is to work your jig a little slower than you might if you wanted to excite the blues. I like to let my jig settle to the bottom and then leave it there for a minute or two so I get a little scope in the line. That way, the lure stays near the bottom and in the striper's strike zone for a few extra feet on the retrieve. I usually try this after I've caught my share of blues."

Captain Bob Ceglowski: "If you think we might try for porgies or sea bass in addition to blues and stripers, like we do on our wreck trips, bring along two rods. Rig one up for jigging blues and bass, the other for bottom fishing."

According to Captain Paul Risi from the Captree open boat, Tradewinds II (www.tradewindsfishing.com,) bottom fishing has picked up inside Great South Bay and south of Fire Island Inlet. Porgies have offered most of the action inside the bay while sea bass dominate the near shore ocean wrecks. Further offshore, in 100+ depths, ling are now plentiful and a few cod and pollack have been keeping anglers on their toes.

"The bottom fishing isn't on fire quite yet," said Rusi, "but it is pretty good and it's an interesting game because you never know what you'll hook next."

Several reports have filtered in over the past few days regarding some very solid porgy fishing out of Port Jefferson. When the weather allows, the bite has been very strong in 18 to 30 feet of water off Cranes Neck. Just as impressive, however, has been the action with scup to 16 inches inside Port Jefferson Harbor. Set up in 12 to 18 feet of water, and chum lightly to keep the fish excited. Sandworms, clams and strips of squid have all accounted for good catches. If you are feeling sporty, you can also tempt the harbor fish on spinning gear with a three-inch, white, curly-tailed grub tipped with a thin strip of squid.

While fishing on the open boat, Captain Bob V (captbobfishingfleet.com,) out of Mattituck on Saturday, Captain Bob Ceglowski and I got to talking about eating bluefish. I’m not a huge fan, but there have been times I’ve enjoyed them baked, cooked on the grill, or served as ceviche (raw fish in lime juice, the lime actually cooks the fish). My favorite way of eating them is smoked, which seems to work especially well with smaller blues ranging from large snappers to small cocktails of two or three pounds.

Captain Ceglowski noted that this year has seen a relatively tasty crop of bluefish in the Eastern reaches of Long Island Sound. “These blues,” he stated, “have been feeding on butterfish and don’t taste as oily as when they feed on bunker.”

Ceglowski suggested anglers give these fish a try, adding that their flesh this year is both whiter in appearance and more mild in taste than usual.

His suggested recipe:

“Put the fillet on a sheet of foil. Take a little Parmesan cheese, basil and garlic, plus a load of sliced tomatoes, and pile it all on top of the fillet. Fold the foil into a pouch and place it on the grill for 20 minutes."

My favorite recipe is to dip each fillet in mayonnaise, then dip it in seasoned bread crumbs. Place the fillets in the oven and bake at 350 until the crumbs are brown and the flesh appears ready to flake. At that point, raise the heat to broil and toast the bread crumb coating. This recipe works with just about any kind of fish.

Frank Mundus was never at a loss for words, but he didn't just shoot from the lip when it came to technique, gear and battling the big ones. He sized-up his interviewers. If he believed you were serious about learning, he offered some gems. If not, he just recounted the stories that everyone wanted to hear. Here, he continues the Monster Sharks, 101 interview.

"In terms of hooks, I'm partial to the Jap hook for big sharks. (Editor's Note: I believe here Mundus was referring to circle hooks.) That's because it hooks nine out of ten fish in the jaw and it's three times as strong as local hooks. It's shape makes it slide up from the fish's throat or belly when you set the hook and it catches in the jaw. This makes it easier to tag and release the fish. If a fish is hooked in the jaw, it should go back. If it's hooked in the belly, keep it and use it for chum. I don't care what you say about cutting the line and leaving the hook in a fish's gullet. Those fish that are hooked deep, they don't survive well. Take them home and use them for bait or chum rather than waste them. They'll just die days or weeks later so it's better to at least use them.

"Once you get a big shark on the line, you've got to work fast. We had seven sharks over a thousand pounds and every one we whipped hard and fast. The longer that fish is on the line, the better its chance of getting away. We whipped that 1080-lb. mako in an hour-and-twenty minutes. With Peter Benchley on the boat for the American Sportsman, we whipped a 200-lb. swordfish in eleven minutes - of course, we spent a half-hour holding onto him with the gaff, but we had him to the boat in less than quarter of an hour.

"How do you get a big fish up so fast? We'll, one thing's for sure, you can't out-muscle him. You have to pressure him, but with the proper amount of pressure. Don't walk them around the boat, don't idle. These fish know how to swim, if you take it easy, they'll keep swimming for ten hours! What you have to do is apply steady, constant pressure. Do it right and you can whip any fish.

"Believe it or not, you don't need real heavy gear to beat a big shark. In fact, you've got to match the gear as much to the angler as to the fish. You can't hand most ladies or even small men an 80-lb. stand-up outfit, it's just too big for them to handle comfortably. They'd be better off with 30- or 50-lb. gear. Just keep in mind that you have to apply steady, constant pressure and this gear is fine. I can honestly say that we've never been licked on 50-lb. gear. Never had a fish out-fight us on 50. We had one on for seven hours once, only lost it after the wire leader let go.

"With steady, constant pressure, you can lift anything on a 50-lb. setup. We once had a giant tuna die on us, sank right down to the bottom. We were in a rowboat back then and I hand-lined that fish all the way up - all 700 lbs. of him. I raised that fish with my fingers, inch-by-slow-painful-inch on 50-lb. test.

"Slow, steady pressure. That's what you've always got to keep in mind when the big one grabs your bait."

● Check back, more Mundus to come with his thoughts on "Jaws," shark mania, how he caught his giant great white, and changes in shark catches over the years.

Several private boaters I've spoken with in recent days have mentioned super action with false albacore at Montauk Point. A few have also noted solid catches of albies at Gardiners Island and Plum Island. The action has been on any moving water, but best between 7:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m.

Some of the false albacore caught and released have been quite large, with many in the 7- to 8-pound class and at least a few topping 10 pounds. As you might expect, Deadly Dicks, small, white, soft-plastic grubs and bright white or silver streamer patterns have accounted for much of the action.

One tip: It can be difficult to chase the schools and get in an advantageous casting position without putting down surfacing fish. In the long run, it's often best to cut your engine, take a good look around, and identify the major lanes that pods of false albacore are using (often you can see these slicks on the surface). Get in one of the lanes and drift or idle, nudging the engine into gear just enough to stay in the lane. Give it a few minutes and you'll soon have the the fish swimming toward your boat without sounding.

Keep in mind, too, that a little courtesy between skippers can go a long way toward keeping everyone sane in the midst of all the surface mayhem. There's plenty of water on the East End, no need to crowd.

He had been called the pioneer of shark fishing, the last of the Great White Hunters and The Monster Man. You may have thought of him as “Quint,” the salty charter boat captain from the movie, “Jaws,” who was eventually bested by the biggest mechanical shark of all time. He still holds the world record for landing the largest fish of any type ever take with a rod and reel – a great white shark that tipped the scales at over 3,400 pounds. Through it all, he has easily been Long Island’s most famous, and most controversial, fisherman.

In July 1951, Frank Mundus moved his charter boat from Brielle, NJ, to Montauk Point, NY, and began fishing for shark – considered a “trash fish” at the time. Offshore fishing has never been the same. Single-handedly, he created an industry. Some have called it an atrocity. Others have admired him for his courage and innovation.

Over the years he’s been quoted, mis-quoted, respected and cursed at. It all depends on who you ask. He’s been called illiterate, yet he’s written a book. His pranks at Montauk are legendary, but when spoken to on a serious note he seemed to sail on an even keel. All along, he claimed to have had fun.

Frank Mundus passed away on September 10, at the age of 82, from complications of a heart attack he suffered after returning to his Hawaii home from a fishing trip in Montauk, NY. With his passing, one of the most interesting and entertaining fishing personalities of all time slips into the deep blue beyond.

Simply bring up the name Frank Mundus at your local watering hole or dockside gathering place and eyebrows are sure to rise. It seems every fisherman who's ever come in contact with this salty skipper has a different story to tell. Most are entertaining, some are downright funny, others are scary or even nasty. In reality, the majority are second-hand accounts and, much like the man himself, it's anyone's guess at to how much is fact and how much is legend.

Say what you will about his fishing techniques, brashness, and ability to spin a tale, this much is certain: It was Mundus at the helm of the Cricket II when the first rod and reel mako to top 1,000 lbs. was dragged back to port; it was Mundus at the helm as six more sharks of 1,000 lbs. or more visited the dock; and it was Mundus at the helm when the largest rod and reel shark of all time, a 3,400 lb. great white, was hoisted ashore for a visit to the taxidermist. Still, it is his alleged role as the model for Peter Benchley's character "Quint" in the book and movie, Jaws, for which he may be best known by the general public. Few recognize that, in his later years, Mundus was actually an advocate for shark conservation.

I was fortunate enough to interview Mundus several times over the years. I’ll try to post excerpts from some of those sessions over the next few days, so be sure to check back. The following is from an interview about what it takes to hook and land a monster shark. Mundus was just a few weeks shy of his 70th, birthday at the time, recently “retired” and living in Hawaii. I noted in my notes that he was still “as verbal and vibrant as ever.”

Frank Mundus: Monster Sharks 101

“Yea, it's me. Still here and still kicking. Only now I'm hip deep in pineapples instead of knee deep in sharks. Currently, I'm not doing much fishing at all but there's a guy gonna take the Cricket II from North Carolina to Australia for a few months in the hopes of setting up some charters for great whites. I'll probably go along and check things out for a while, then head on back here to my farm.

"Anyway, as to catching monster sharks, it's the same wherever you go - especially with makos and great whites. While most anglers are busy worrying about what tackle they need to catch these monsters, they'd be better-off watching the sharks and learning a little bit about their habits. I mean, there are some sharks that are hungry and ready to eat and others that you need to make hungry. If you can't tell the difference, chances are you're not going to hook up.

"Take that giant mako you see swimming or gliding out in your slick. Fishermen all the time complain that they see big sharks but can't get them to bite. You've got to know right off the bat that this fish isn't hungry if you're going to have a chance to make him want to eat. Your first tip-off sometimes comes when the fish is still way out from the boat. You see a big mako or great white swim though a school of birds sitting on the water and they don't get up and fly away, that's a fish gonna be hard to catch. You see, the birds know he isn't hungry. They can tell - just like an antelope in Africa can tell if a lion is ready to eat. If, on the other hand, all the birds get up and fly, than you've got a hungry customer on your hands.

"So, let's say you've got the swimmer or cruiser out in the slick, the big mako or great white that doesn't want to eat. You'll be able to tell this fish because he kind of glides, he doesn't look busy or overly interested. You'll notice his tail moves slowly from side to side as he swims in no apparent hurry. You've got to get a bait out to this fish fast because it may make only one pass and then disappear forever. In other words, you've only got a limited amount of time to interest this fish. To get this fish going, you've got to treat it like a kitten.

"Ever play with a kitten and a ball of yarn? The first time you toss the end of the string at the kitten, it gives you that 'so what?' look. The second time you toss the end of the string near it you can see a look of interest. Try it again and his muscles tighten. One more time and he'll pounce after it like there's no tomorrow. Now he's got to have it and you can make him pretty mad if you keep taking it away. That's what you've got to do with a shark that isn't hungry. You've got to tell him he can't have the bait. Toss the bait out to that fish and the second he looks at it, take it away. Now do it again. This time he'll swim in a circle and make a half-assed move at it. Take it away again and again. Pretty soon, he's madder than hell and he's just got to have it. Keep watching, you'll know when he's mad enough to take that bait for real. Believe it or not, this is what we had to do to entice that 3,400-lb. great white we caught. That fish had no need for our baits, he was putting bite marks the size of a peach basket in that floating whale carcass. What's he want with a little bait unless you make him mad?

"Now, did you know that there's a pecking order to big sharks? Sure is. I've seen it many a time but the best example was again with that giant great white. We had six huge sharks stacked up under that whale, you could see them on the graph, but we mostly saw them one at a time. They were stacked up like air planes in a holding pattern just waiting to land. They were big sharks, too. Frank Braddick, Jr., hooked a big tiger or something and lost it and we hooked and lost a monster that must have been about 2,000 lbs. before we tied into that giant.

"Anyway, these sharks, they had a real pecking order. Each fish was allowed by the other fish to come up to that whale and spend a half-hour by itself. If it stayed around the carcass too long, another shark would come up and physically push him away. It's interesting to note, too, that the pecking order doesn't have to be based on size. It's simply an order. This one goes, then that one, then the next. Exactly how the order is determined, first come first served, aggressiveness, I'm not sure. But I know it simply isn't based on size. Anyway, if you happen to be sitting over a pack of these monsters, you might not want to bait the first one you see. You might want to wait a bit because you never know how big is the next one. It also means you have a limited time to get the one you want or you have to wait until it has another turn - if it gets another turn.

"Here's another tip that will clue you in to the presence of a big great white or mako in the area: if the blue sharks are thick under your boat and they suddenly clear out, get ready. That big one may be only five or ten minutes away from showing in your slick. Set up your heavy tackle now, before you see him."

● Check back for advice from the late Frank Mundus on how to whip the the biggest sharks.

According to Chet Wilcox at B & B Bait and Tackle in Center Moriches, a few hefty stripers have shown in recent days at the mouth of Moriches Inlet. Several fish in the 40" - to 42" class have been caught - a few have also been released. Most have fallen to pencil poppers worked across the bar outside of the inlet. Be careful if you prospect in this area. The outer bar at Moriches can be nasty if the wind pushes against the tide.

If you like to haul you bass from the suds, take this as a hint to bucktail the inlet after dark, or work large surface poppers at dawn and dusk on the open beach to the east and west of the inlet.

"You should see the porgies we're catching right now," said Mike Boccio, skipper of the Orient Point open boat, Prime Time III. "As we speak, I'm watching a 3-pounder come over the rail!"

In case you missed it, the daily limit of porgies for anglers fishing aboard open or charter boats increased from 10 to 45 per day back on September 1st. All other anglers can creel only 10 per day. The size limit on charter and open boats is 11 inches while 10.5 inches is the minimum size for other anglers.

Since the new regulations took effect, The Prime III in Orient, Peconic Star in Greenport, and other East End boats have been having plenty of success while carrying light crowds. The action has gotten better just about every day with most trips seeing some anglers limit out, but every day ends with plenty of fillets packed into angler's coolers. Mixed in with the scup are some very respectable-sized black sea bass.

"You'd be crazy not to come out now and give the porgies a try," added Boccio. The season will reach its peak over the next few weeks and this is the kind of action you don't want to miss. It's very good fishing, with true jumbos making up a lot of the catch."

Porgy season for open and charter boat anglers ends on October 15. For everyone else, it ends on September 26. Get your trips in now.

Porgy Regulations:

Anglers aboard licensed party/charter boats:
11" minimum size
45 possession limit
Season ends on Oct 15

All other anglers:
10.5" minimum size
10 possession limit
Seson ends on Sept 26

To check saltwater fishing regulations for other species, visit:
http://www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/7894.html

Porgy action has been solid of late in the western Long Island Sound. Many of the fish being caught are in the jumbo league. Fish in 20 to 30 feet of water off any point, chum with clam, and use clam or squid for bait and you should put together a solid catch. Some nice catches have also been put together to the extreme east at Hortons Point.

Blues are still running big and thick east of Riverhead, and back west at the Middle Grounds. Anglers sailing out of Port Jefferson and Mount Sinai Harbor have been catching choppers until arm weary. Tubeless diamond jigs have done most of the damage. Most of the blues are in the 6- to 8-pound class, but a few monsters topping 12 pounds have been reported.

Kids love snappers and contests, so it should be no surprize that snapper derbies really go over well when it comes to lighting a fishing fire in your child's heart.

On Tap for Saturday, September 27, is the Cold Spring Harbor Lions Club's 4th Annual Snapper/Bluefish Derby. It's open to children up to and including 16 years of age, and has awards for snapper, catch-and-release, and bluefish categories. The event is scheduled for rain or shine, starting at 9:00 a.m., at Seafarer’s Parking Lot, West Main St. (25A), Cold Spring Harbor. The entry fee is $15. For more information call: 631-692-6896; email at: CSHLions@aol.com.

If you or your organization is planning a snapper derby, drop me a line at outdoortom@optonline.net and I'll try to post it here. Thanks.

Monday, September 1, is the last day for fluke fishing under the current regulations. If you are planning on heading out in search of keepers, target the ocean waters from Montauk to Ambrose Channel along the South Shore. Many of the best scores have come around inshore wrecks, and the artificial reefs east of Shinnecock, and off Moriches, Fire Island, Jones and Debbs Inlets.

Action to the east, from Montauk to Moriches, has been best of late in 50- to 70-foot depths. Whole squid have accounted for an occassional doormat, but fish strips, squid and spearing combos, and small, live snappers have put plenty of 20- to 24-inch summer flatties in the fish box. In most areas, outgoing water has had an edge on incoming over the past few days.

I got out late last week on the Miss Montauk (www.missmontauk.com) and had a pretty good day. Although a lack of wind and, later, wind against tide conditions kept the action to a steady pick, I saw about 25 keepers come over the rail for roughly 30 anglers with a pool fish of 6 pounds. Captain Jaime Quaresimo kept the search active all day long - no skimping on the gas - and his crew was waiting with a net right alongside any angler with a decent fish at the end of the line.

By day's end, I had tossed back seven fluke ranging from 17 to 20 inches, and put a 4- and 5-pounder in the cooler. Not a bad day at all when you consider that's at least four meals for the Schlichter household. Several anglers also connected with nice sea bass. Spearing and squid was the hot ticket.

How do you measure a trip like this, when most anglers took home one fish, but many fat shorts had to go back over the rail? A rail mate put it well. With one keeper in his bucket at the end of the day, he turned to me and said with a smile: "I'll be back out on this boat for fluke season next year - that skipper and his crew worked their butts off."

I shook my head in agreement. I'll be on the Miss Montauk again next year, too. Hard-working crews are a big draw in my book.

With the open and charter boat porgy limit set to expand on Monday, September 1, I asked Dave Brennan, captain of the Greenport based open boat, Peconic Star (www.peconicstar.com,) for this best porgy-catching tip.

"Hook 'em before they bite," was his simple advice.

That may sound like a joke, but it's actually right on target. Porgy fishing can be so hot at times that some anglers have their baits stolen before even feeling a tug. Brennan suggests engaging your reel the instant the line hits bottom, and then lifting the rod tip gently.

"If there is any extra weight at the end of the line, set the hook immediately," explains the crafty skipper. "A fish already has your bait in its mouth."

Most anglers use a high-low rig for porgies. Once you set the hook, let the fish struggle near the bottom for a few seconds and a second porgy will likely jump on the free hook.

On Tuesday, September 1, the daily porgy limit for anglers fishing on open boats expands from 10 to 45 with a minimum size of 11 inches. Private/rental and shore anglers continue to see the bag limit set at 10 fish, with a 10.5-inch minimum size.

Since snappers and blue crabs often share the same inshore waters, it's fun to try for both on the same trip. Once you've got the snappers figured out, catching a few blue crabs shouldn't be much trouble.

● Start by bringing a long-handled crab net. Although blue claws are known for swimming near the surface after dark, they also come to the top on occasion during the day. Having a net handy will allow you to scoop up any crab that happens to swim past.
● Blue crabs can often be found hanging onto bulkheads. Simply peak over the edge and look carefully, especially in areas where a ladder enters the water, the bulkhead comes to a corner, or a loose plank juts out into the water. Here the crabs will perch in the shade, picking away at small organisms which lie hidden in the moss or weeds that grow on the submerged wood or concrete. (Be careful not to trip over dock lines, boat cleats, etc., while looking over the edge).
● Bringing along a crab trap is probably the most effective way of taking crabs while snapper fishing. Simply toss out a trap or two and give a check every five or ten minutes. Some days it's possible to take a dozen or more crabs in this manner while collecting enough snappers for dinner. Bait the trap with chicken wings, a whole bunker or a fish rack secured to the trap floor with a length of wire.
● For more sport, leave the traps at home and use a simple drop-line with a chicken leg for bait. You’ll need a net to scoop any crab that takes this offering – and you'll miss as many as you catch – but it is a lot of fun.

Snapper season is in full swing and these feisty little bluefish are a pleasure catch, especially if you target them with light tackle. Here are a few tips to keep in mind when heading out for these tiny but tasty critters:

● Choose a lightweight spinning pole with four- to six-pound test line.
● Use a “snapper popper” tipped with a single spearing or sand eel as a lure/bait combination. Hook the baitfish once, through the eyes.
● Work the popper by chugging it along the surface so the baited tube and hook rides just below the surface. Keep reeling as you get bites, forcing the fish to commit to a solid strike.
● Rigging for bait fishing is best kept uncomplicated. Opt for a simple, silver-colored snapper hook tied directly to the end of the main line with a clinch knot. Suspend the hook two to four feet below a small float. The standard snapper hook comes with a long shank, making it easy to remove from the toothy jaws of this tiny predator. Bait up with a two-inch long piece of spearing or sand eel.
● Live killies, suspended two to four feet below a float, are a great bait for large snappers.
● Small, silver, Johnson Sprites and KastMasters will produce fewer but bigger snappers, especially during September.
● Snappers are especially fond of feeding at creek mouths at the start of outgoing tide. They often prefer incoming water around shallow beaches and marsh edges.
● As with most species of fish, dawn and dusk are often very productive feeding periods.

For the first time in several years, there appears to be a solid set of juvenile weakfish mixed in with the snapper crop. Be careful when snapper fishing that you don’t accidentally take the small weaks, which must be released if they measure less than 16 inches total length, 10” filleted, or 12” dressed. The possession limit for weakfish is 6 and the season is open all year.

A quick inspection makes it easy to tell the weaks from the snappers:
● Snappers have forked tails, weakfish have broad, broom-shaped tails
● Snappers have a full set of even teeth, weakfish have a pair of small fangs at the front of the mouth
● Snappers are blue and silver, weakfish have yellow pectoral fins with some speckles and slight hues of purple on the body

With snapper and blue crab season now in full swing at local docks, beaches and bulkheads, this is probably a good time for a reminder about size and possession limits. They are more detailed than some anglers realize.

You can find New York State Fishing Regulations for all species of salt water fish at: http://www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/7894.html.

Crabs:
● Season open all year
● The maximum possession limit for any species of crab caught in NYS waters is 50 per day
● Hard shell blue crabs must measure at least 4.5”, from point to point, across the shell
● Soft shell blue crabs must measure at least 3.5”, from point to point, across the shell
● Peeler or “shedder” blue crabs (those about to bust free of their hard shells) must measure at least 3”, from point to point, across the shell
● Blue crabs smaller than the minimum sizes may not be kept – not even for making sauce

Snappers:
● Snappers are juvenile bluefish and fall under the bluefish regulations
● Season is open all year
● No minimum size for the first 10 fish. The next five fish must measure at least 12 inches in total length
● Daily possession limit is 15

In Friday's Outdoors column, I noted the fine action with porgies and blues aboard the City Island open boat, Island Current. While Captain Chris Cullen had fun putting his fares on the action last Tuesday, he also enjoyed watching his three-and-a-half year-old daughter, Marie Helena Cullen, jig her first bluefish before she put a dent in the porgy stocks. Grown-up anglers, noted Capt. Cullen, also took home plenty of fillets.

Shinnecock fluke fishing is still pretty-good in the areas just east and west of Ponquogue Bridge, according to Scott at East End Bait and Tackle in Hampton Bays. Sand eel and Peruvian spearing have been the hot baits of late, with bucktails accounting for most of the keepers. School stripers, and an occassional keeper, are also at the bridge, although these have shown a preference for clam bait.

Outside, in the ocean, short fluke litter the sea floor but keepers remain scarce. If you want something to take home for dinner, try for Peconic Bay porgies in the South Race, off Robins Island. Some bluefish are there, too. Snappers are starting up inside Shinnecock Canal but they are still running too small to keep. Give it another week or two on that front.

Offshore, seveal makos in the 100 to 120-lb range were caught and released during the past week. Most have come from within only 10 or 12 miles of teh beach. Tuna action has been only fair.

A nice shot of North Shore fluke seems to have turned on in the waters east of Port Jefferson. Action has been solid at buoy 11, and on Mount Misery Shoal. Plenty of fish, enough keepers to squeeze out a dinner or two. Bucktails have been good, but spearing and squid combos have been even better. It's possible this is the same shot of fluke that was off Riverhead just a few days ago. Certainly worth investigating once the rain comes to an end.

To the west, the bite is also pretty good right now inside Smithtown Bay. Look in 12 to 14 feet of water, or move deeper and probe slopes in 25 to 35 feet of water. Plenty of small blues here, too, so bring along some poppers or small tins.

With the water a bit roiled and off-color in some ports today, a little added color on your teasers and bucktails should help excite the fluke. I usually prefer white for my teasers and bucktails, but late summer often sees hot pink hit a productive streak, especially if there is a strong hatch of calico crabs in the area. Hot pink is also highly visible in waters where brown tide is well established. As for chartreuse, it's always worth a try when the water is murky. To increase your chances of the fluke spotting your offering, make the teaser chartreuse and your bucktail pink. This combo works especially well in the shallow south shore bays, and in less than 20 feet of water on Long Island Sound. Give it a try if the waters are still cloudy tomorrow or later this week.

Check back later for more reports.

I had some time last week to poke around on the south shore between Patchogue and East Moriches and found some great crabbing taking place. If you are in the mood for a crab dinner, now is the time to head out. West Sayville Dock, Browns Creek, Bayport Dock, Bluepoint Dock, Carmans River and the Smiths Point Marina all had plenty of crabs available. The biggest ones were the furthest east. Chicken seemed to be the top bait for those working traps and drop lines. Some of the crabs I saw measured more than six inches across the shell.

It was pleasing to see that so many crabbers were tossing back the females.

Check back later today for more reports.

Fluking continued it's torrid pace along the south shore on Friday and Saturday. Inside Fire Island Inlet, plenty of action kept rods bent on the morning tide. Outside, there are fewer shorts, but the action is still fast-paced and the percentage of keepers is better. Capt. Paul Risi, of the Trade Winds II out of Captree (www.tradewindsfishing.com,) said he has been picking between 150 and 300 shorts on each full day ocean trip, along with 28 to 35 keepers. Most of the action has been south of Fire Island Inlet.

Out in the Moriches, there are still plenty of short fluke in the main east/west channel, especially around buoys 14 and 15. For a better shot at keepers, head one-half mile southeast of the inlet and drift in 35 to 50 feet of water.

With small snappers now roaming both Great South and Moriches Bay, this should be a good time to try using the baby blues for doormat fluke bait. Remember, however, there is a 15 fish limit on blues of all sizes.

Michael Potts, skipper of the Montauk charter boat, Blue Fin IV (www.bluefiniv.com,) has been trolling limits of striped bass on a daily basis, with most fish falling to parachute lures. According to Potts, "there are stripers in most of the rips at Great Eastern, on The Flats and at The Elbow.

Offshore, Potts has been having good luck wtih sharks, a bit south of Block Island. "We've had makos, plus some blue sharks, on each of our past four trips," revealed Potts. "The biggest mako weighed in at 208 pounds. The blue sharks have ranged between 100 and 180 pounds."

I received a phone call from Captain Neil Delanoy this afternoon. The skipper of the Captree open boat, Laura Lee (www.captree.com,) was excited about what he called "the best fluke fishing he has ever seen!" This from a captain with a lot of years on the water.

"We had 812 fluke on the morning trip today, fishing right under the Robert Moses Bridge," said Delanoy. "We kept 15, up to 4.44 lbs. and many people caught and released between 20 and 30 fish. Eight-year old Natasha Daeger caught 32 by herself!'

According to Delanoy, the best action has been on the last of the flood and the first of the ebb. That means the fishing should be best in the morning for this weekend, and in the afternoon next week. If you have been waiting for the perfect time to take the family fishing, this may be it.

As you can see from today’s Newsday cover story, the brown tide is still blooming on Great South Bay. While nobody enjoys fishing in discolored water, sometimes there isn't much choice. Experts note that the brown tide does not seem to harm fin-fish, so you might still catch a few if you try hard enough. Here are a couple of tips to help the cause.

● Fish near inlets. The brown tide is generally less intense where ocean water enters a bay or harbor.
● Fish on rising tides. Again, clean water from the ocean floods into the bay, diluting the tide at least a little bit.
● Use bright- or black-colored lures. Chartreuse, florescent orange, hot pink and pure black are more visible in murky water than white, silver, tan, olive, green or “natural” minnow colors.
● Use big lures to provide a larger, more easily seen, target.
● Choose lures that make a rattling sound when retrieved. If using soft plastics, insert a small, inexpensive, fishing rattle, available from bait and tackle shops or on-line catalogs, into the body of the lure. The clanking sounds emitted as you retrieve will help predator species zero in on the target.
● Fish with real bait. Fresh whole clams and bunker chunks work well for stripers and blues. Live killies or strips of squid attract fluke. School weaks and kingfish will strike sandworms, strips of squid or pieces of clam. A chum pot full of ground clam or bunker can work wonders with porgies, weakfish and even fluke when you fish at anchor.

If you've taken a look at our Newsday cover story about the brown tide on Great South Bay, you might also want check out my recent video clip: Fishing Through The Brown Tide. From www.newsday.com, go to Explore LI and then click on "Outdoors." You'll see the clip toward the bottom of the screen. Hope it helps.

Just got a call from my buddy, Paul Demchuk. Despite the wind this morning, he and fishing partner, Gary Zuhoski, decided to make the run to Hortons Point in search of stripers. The trip paid off big-time as Paul decked his biggest bass ever, a 35-pound cow. Gary also had a keeper. Several more nice bass, plus some hefty blues to 10 pounds, rounded out the morning.

Fishing on another boat, but within shouting distance of his Dad all morning, Demchuk's 15-year old son, Jordan, drilled a 21-pounder with his pal, Rob Pisano.

"All the fish were caught on live eels during outgoing tide," noted the elder Demchuk. "It was a bit rough on the Sound today," he added, "but we stayed out there and gladly took the pounding."

Plenty of action taking place in the Nor'east Fluke Smack Down. Some nice Long Island entries, but a lot of competition from across the Sound and down along the NJ shore. Leaders as of 2:15 p.m. on Sunday are as follows:

Place; Name; Weigh Station; Weight in lbs.:
1. John Schopey, Jack's Shoreline Bait & Tackle, 11.28
2. Walter Morgis, Westlake Fishing Marina, 9.85
3. Joe Fischler, Crabby's B&T, 9.5
4. Jack Castella, Westlake Fishing Marina, 9.35
5. Karen Sorrentino, Captain Morgan's Bait & Tackle, 9.21
6. Patrick Mcendrick, Barnegat Light Bait & Tackle, 8.69
7. Diane Moore, Causeway Bait & Tackle, 8.58
8. John Morelli, Snug Harbor Marina, 8.0
9. Scott Andalome, Captain's Tackle, 7.8
10. Marc Deptula, King Cove Marina, 7.56

A few nice stripers were caught at Horton's Point this morning. Check back later for details.

Slipping through the cracks last week was news of a 15.6-pound fluke caught in the ocean west of Moriches Inlet on Sunday, July 5th. John Yander of Middle Island was the angler. Some might call him lucky, but John's previous best summer flattie weighed a bit over 10 pounds so I figue a bit of skill has to be in play here. The huge doormat took a live killie and squid strip combination in 50 feet of water.

"For a big fish, there were no complications once I lifted it off the bottom," said Yander. "It fought okay, but I've had eight- and 10-pound fish fight harder. John Willis gets the assist for a perfect job with the net."

Yander was back out yesterday, this time working outside Moriches Inlet "toward Westhampton." He reported fast action but tallied only one keeper among 40 shorts.

Day one of the Nor'east Fluke Smack Down complete. Current standings, from www.noreast.com, are as follows:

Place; Name; Weigh Station; Weight in lbs.

1 John Schopey, Jack's Shoreline Bait & Tackle: 11.28
2 Joe Fischler, Crabby's B&T: 9.5
3 Jack Castella, Westlake Fishing Marina: 9.35
4 Patrick Mcendrick, Barnegat Light Bait & Tackle: 8.69
5 diane moore Causeway, Bait & Tackle: 8.58
6 John Morelli, Snug Harbor Marina: 8
7 Eric Hannon, Westlake Fishing Marina: 6.9
8 Bob Reese, East End Bait & Tackle: 6.48
9 Allan Beaudion, Jack's Shoreline Bait & Tackle: 5.8
10 Brian Knight, Causeway Bait & Tackle: 5.62

Had a chance today to catch up with John Montione at J & J Bait and Tackle in Patchogue. He said that blue claw crabs were starting to show pretty well at the docks between West Sayville and Bellport. You'll need to pick through a few to gather a meal, but enough keepers are in the mix. Even better, dock fishermen using two- to three-inch segments of sandworm have been catching tasty kingfish.