Stripers
May comes in like a lamb and goes out like a lion. The beginning of the month marks the return of good numbers of schoolies. Shortly after, we start catching slot stripers: 28-35 inches. Mid-month typically brings the first worm hatches. All in the backwaters of the Westport River. Then the offshore reefs and rockpiles turn on. By the end of the month, there are stripers everywhere, all day long. There are lots of opportunities for fantastic fishing in May. It’s a great month to shake the dust off and get up to speed in a hurry.

Stripers, Bluefish
By June, you want to be up to speed. There’s a lot of fishing to be done. Early mornings typically bring great topwater action. Mid-morning, anywhere the water is moving is likely to spur a surface feed. Mid- day there’s great sight fishing in the Westport River. Dusk trips bring more shots at the “worm hatch.” And… bluefish show up in June. Gators. Many fly guys lament the bluefish for stealing their flies. We tie on some wire and go looking for them. In our fishery, there is no more vicious take and persistent fight than that of a big bluefish.

Stripers, Bluefish
July brings massive sustained blitzes of schoolie stripers and bluefish – often travelling together. Up and down the coast, and along the Elizabeth Islands, boulder fields hold big stripers waiting to ambush small bait. Offshore humps and rockpiles hold big blues. And sight fishing reaches its peak along the beaches, on offshore flats, and on incoming tides in the Westport River. If you have the time, there’s great fishing to be had all day. But maybe you’re on vacation, and a ‘beach day’ is on the agenda. Try our ‘Dawn Patrol’ trips. We’ll put you on fish and get you back home before the rest of your crew sits down for breakfast.

Stripers, Bluefish, Bonito
August starts out a lot like July. Blitzing stripers and blues. Big fish on structure. Sight casting. Then it gets a little funny. The funny season begins. “Funnies” are one name for the various tunoids that show up to excite and torture us over the 2 nd half of the season. The first to show is the Bonito. Bonito are usually found in small schools, porpoising out of the water. A well-placed fly gets a normal hit followed by an abnormal fight featuring long runs away from and then back toward the boat while the angler tries desperately to clear line, recover line, unwrap the reel, and undo a knot. Panic inducing? Yes. Addictive? Absolutely!

Stripers, Bluefish, Bonito, False Albacore
In September the fishery breaks wide open. Stripers that passed through in June, on their way north to feed for the summer, now pass through again on their way south; bigger and stronger and hungry from the trip. A regular stop is right here in Westport, where they can gorge on the conveyor belt of bait being flushed from the river. Bluefish and Bonito join in. But it’s the albie that often consumes our days and sleepless nights. False Albacore are (undoubtedly) the hardest and (arguably) most exciting fish to catch in our fishery. One might say they’re like Bonito on steroids. Harder-hitting, faster-running, longer- fighting, and more difficult to hook in the first place. In September, albies are out there – somewhere – dawn to dusk. Often, so are we.

Stripers, Bluefish, Albies
The first half of October is really the third half of September. Though the Bonito have typically moved on, the fishing for stripers, bluefish, and albies is still at full speed. The days are cooler, but the fishing is still hot. The 2 nd half of October is often marked by fewer – but sometimes more extraordinary – days of fishing. Weather permitting, the October blitzes that occur offshore, and sometimes right on the beaches, can be breathtaking. All the more enjoyable with a long winter ahead. After a long season chasing fish, October is a chance to take a moment – mid-blitz – and marvel at this extraordinary fishery.