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Fishing Reports
LOOKING TO UP YOUR GAME OR FIND SOME NEW IDEAS TO TAKE YOUR FISHING TO THE NEXT LEVEL? CHECK OUT OUR COMPLEAT JOURNAL FOR TIPS, TRICKS, AND INFO FROM THE FIELD.
Northeast Fishing Report: 7/28/23
Hello Compleat Angler friends! The heat is on but thankfully it’s going to be short lived. The fishing should improve by Sunday with more favorable temps in store. Flows continue to be erratic, but are generally on the downswing across the board. The highest is the Housatonic and the Farmington and the Naugatuck are getting closer to wadable water. Our suggestion would be to stick with our local rivers in the early part of the day in order to minimize stress on the fish. Not much has changed regarding the Sound. With the full moon approaching some may have the worm hatch on their mind, and with any luck that will lead to some great night fishing. Fingers crossed! Bass have been chasing bait up high which means that topwater and flies presented with intermediate sinking lines have been working well. There have still been large bass hanging around deep water structure and also chasing bunker near shore. Anglers that are covering ground searching for fish have been the most successful in their efforts. Flows are currently at good levels for floating the Delaware River, specifically on the West Branch, where the main hatch continues to be Sulphurs. Make sure to check flows and temperatures before deciding to fish, as a little planning will help you have a safe and successful day. The weather should improve in the Catskills Sunday, and should hold up throughout the early part of the week. Read on for more…
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Northeast Fishing Report: 7/21/23
Hello Compleat Angler friends! Another week of high flows continues, with some areas being more fishable than others. Our Connecticut rivers that are currently the highest include the Housatonic and Farmington, which are currently at unsafe levels for wading. Our suggestion would be to fish our more local rivers, which are currently above average but fishable. Another option that has been holding strong for this time of year is saltwater fishing. Bass have been chasing bait up high which means that topwater and flies presented with intermediate sinking lines have been working well. There have still been large bass hanging around deep water structure and also chasing bunker near shore. Anglers that are covering ground searching for fish have been the most successful in their efforts. Flows are currently at good levels for floating the Delaware River, specifically on the West Branch, where the main hatch continues to be Sulphurs. Make sure to check flows and temperatures before deciding to fish, as a little planning will help to have a safe and successful day. The weather should improve after our thunderstorms on Friday, and should hold up throughout this upcoming week. Read on for more…
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Northeast Fishing Report: 7/14/23
Hello Compleat Angler friends! Significant rain early in the week caused many of our rivers to blow out and most are still quite high. Many areas issued flood warnings and unfortunately, with thunderstorms in the forecast for parts of the region over the next few days, anglers may have to wait a bit longer for things to settle down to more fishable levels. Hopefully when they do and when the turbidity clears, the water temps will be a bit cooler and prolong what has been a pretty good season, especially this deep into the summer. Striper fishing remains consistent, with many schoolies still claiming territory around the islands and coves. Bunker are pushing closer into the harbors and nearshore, and during the early mornings you may see large Bluefish or Stripers blitzing on them. Also, some of our night fishing friends have been doing well in many of the coastal tributaries from the shore. The consensus is that every day has been different, some days are lights out while others not so much. Rhode Island is still experiencing large numbers of adult Sand Eels nearshore and larger Stripers have moved into the area. Overall, there are still plenty of great angling options if you are looking to get out on the water right now. Read on for more…
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Northeast Fishing Report: 7/7/2023
Hello Compleat Angler friends! After rain and release our river flows are looking more promising for this upcoming week. With that said, keep an eye on water temperatures as most of our local rivers will heat up during the afternoons. Water on the Farmington River is up, which is good news for our streamer aficionados. Smallmouth fishing on the Housatonic has been great however flows are over 2000 cfs which makes for stained water and tough wading. Striper fishing remains consistent, with many schoolies still claiming territory around the islands and coves. Bunker are pushing closer into the harbors and nearshore, and during the early mornings you may see large Bluefish or Stripers blitzing on them. The consensus is that every day has been different, some mornings are lights out while others not so much. Rhode Island is still experiencing large numbers of adult Sand Eels nearshore and larger Stripers have moved into the area. Overall, there are still plenty of good options especially considering the hot temperatures we’ve had. Read on for more…
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Northeast Fishing Report: 6/30/2023
Hello Compleat Angler friends! After some rain this weekend there has been some change in flows, most notably on the Delaware River which has seen a slight improvement while the Housatonic received a considerable amount of water. This will make the Housy tough for wading and the water is pretty well stained, so it is best to wait until the flows have dropped a little more. The Farmington is still below average, and the general consensus is that more rain will definitely help. We still have our regularly scheduled bugs: Blue Winged Olives, Caddis, Cahill, Isonychia, Sulphurs, and Terrestrials, so there have been no significant changes there. Everyday has been different in terms of hatches, and overcast and rainy conditions early next week will help. On the saltwater front the fishing is still good with large Stripers and Bluefish still hanging around. If fishing by boat it’s key to work your rocky points, structure, and Bunker schools in order to find fish. Bring your Gurglers, Bob’s Bangers, large Clousers, Hollow Flies, EP Peanut Butters, and Deceivers. Both Rhode Island and New York have been hot for Stripers and Blues, as well as their surrounding islands. Read on for more…
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Northeast Fishing Report: 6/23/2023
Hello Compleat Angler friends! We’ve had another drop in flows this week, and low water has been the name of the game so far this summer. Fortunately, cooler air temperatures have kept water temperatures at a fishable level on many of our local rivers. With Spring Stocking schedules complete, there are a lot of options available with plenty of trout. In addition, things are looking hopeful with rain expected from this weekend into next week. Hatches that you can expect to see this weekend and into the following week are Caddis, Cahills, Sulphurs, and some Isonychia. There are also plenty of Ants out this time of year, so it is worth bringing some terrestrials. On the local saltwater scene, there are still Bunker schools around, mainly seen off Westport, with Bass and Bluefish hanging under some. Many of the larger fish have continued to migrate East, however there is still plenty of action to be had. Everyday has been different, with some anglers finding great fishing on top in the morning, while others struggle to produce. The deep water fish are still being marked and caught around structure, however this is a game of quality over quantity.
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Northeast Fishing Report: 6/16/2023
Hello Compleat Angler friends! Flows have seen a slight improvement in all of our Connecticut and New York rivers thanks to some much-needed rain, and the good news is that more rain is expected over the weekend. Trout fishing has stayed consistent with plenty of fish and bug activity on the surface to keep our anglers’ interest. The most notable change on our saltwater front is the large migration of Bluefish passing through our area. This has resulted in some fun topwater action. While there are still some Stripers 40” and over hanging underneath them, it is tough to get through that Bluefish bite. Anglers that are fishing from shore have been getting into some schoolie action fishing Clousers and Deceivers. Break out those larger flies as well, because we have been seeing schools of Bunker in the bays and coves. Our friends out East are seeing an improvement in larger migratory Stripers in Rhode Island, Long Island, and Block Island, and the action has been hot! Read on for more…
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Northeast Fishing Report: 6/9/2023
Hello Compleat Angler friends! After some tough winds this past weekend our local saltwater bite has recovered, and the Stripers and Bluefish are feeding on Bunker pods once again. The shore fishing has been good as well, and planning around incoming tides will help your success, especially as we come off the full moon tide cycles. Light winds are in store for this week which should bode well for our boat anglers. Larger numbers of big Bluefish are the focal point recently, and our friends out in Rhode Island and Long Island are seeing both an increase in size and quantity of Bluefish and Bass. On the freshwater side of things, we still have low water conditions but the trout are up and happy on small Caddis in our local rivers. The Housatonic is still fishing great, with the most prolific being the Blue Winged Olive hatches, and we have ideal conditions for wading. The Delaware should improve as we get cooler temperatures and rain in the forecast, and the bug activity can be ideal if timed right. Read on for more…
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Northeast Fishing Report: 6/2/2023
Hello Compleat Angler Friends! We have low and clear flows this week, which should open all rivers for wading this weekend. Trout fishing continues to remain consistent, with the hotspot being the Housatonic at the moment. There have been blanket hatches towards the evening, with the most notable being Sulphurs, and many anglers are catching them subsurface and on emergers. Similarly, there is a lot of bug activity happening on the Farmington, with the recent addition of Caddis. Our incredible saltwater season continues with larger Stripers being brought to hand, and there is still plenty of bait nearshore to keep up the action. The push of big Bluefish has also moved our way, so it is worth bringing leaders with steel wire. The notable bait are Bunker, Silversides, and Sand Eels. Winds for local saltwater will be from the East reaching up to 20mph, but the good news is that winds will subside and switch to the North early this upcoming week. For our trout anglers, a little rain is expected this weekend, which should cool water temperatures and improve flows. Read on for more…
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Northeast Fishing Report: 5/26/2023
Hello Compleat Angler Friends! Another wonderful week of fishing has many people happy and eager to get back out on the water. Our local trout streams have been consistent, with good fishing still at the Saugatuck, Mianus, Mill, and Norwalk rivers. The Housatonic has been fantastic this week with many trout happy and rising. Our anglers are catching fish on Caddis, March Browns, Sulphurs and Blue Winged Olives as the main course for dry flies. Water temperatures have spread the fish out in a variety of water types, so it pays to fish the faster water, especially with your Sulphur dry flies. We also have more good news on the saltwater front, as Bunker have pushed near our shores, and anglers are finding larger Bluefish crashing the schools. Striper fishing remains consistent, with beach anglers catching schoolies and some larger fish in the mix. Sand Eels are still close to the beaches and are hatching in the mornings, and Stripers will be on them if there is tide movement. Clousers, Deceivers, Epoxy Sand Eels, Flatwings, and large Bunker patterns are all fooling fish. The Connecticut River has been fairly slow which suggests that fish are on the move, but there have been improvements in Rhode Island and New York. Read on for more…
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Northeast Fishing Report: 5/19/2023
Hello Compleat Angler Friends! Good news for our saltwater anglers is that Stripers have infiltrated a lot of the beaches and coves around Westport. Look for boils as these fish are hitting Sand Eels on the surface. The cold front should dissipate by Sunday, which will give way to temperatures in the low 70s. The saltwater fishing has been great leading up to the new moon, and we are seeing quality Stripers caught on the fly. The cold front didn’t have enough time to affect the fishing negatively, so there are plenty of options for wade and boat anglers. Bluefish have started to show up sporadically, and it should be a couple of weeks before they show up with more frequency. Our local trout fishing has been steady, and since flows have dropped considerably one tip would be to use more drab and smaller offerings. While Hendricksons are tapering off on the Farmington and Delaware, Sulphurs and March Browns are picking up where they left off, especially in the lower sections. Read on for more…
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Northeast Fishing Report: 5/12/23
Hello Compleat Angler friends! While freshwater fishing remains consistent with improved flows for wading, the saltwater fishing scene has been the hot talk. Larger migratory fish are being brought to hand, and there has been more consistent action for wade and boat anglers. The beaches off of Southport, around the Norwalk Islands, and the Westport beaches are all holding fish now. While the primary forage is adult Silversides, fish have been spotted chasing Bunker and Herring around the bays and open water. The Connecticut River also has improved holdover Striper action, and the mouth of the Housatonic is still consistent with schoolies and the occasional fish over 30”. We have great weather in store this week whether you are heading to the salt or the river! Read on for more…
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