“Customers in Pawtuxet Cove, Cranston, have seen large bass under their boats that have pushed bait into the cove,” said Tom Giddings of the Tackle Box, Warwick. “At Rocky Point fishing pier shore anglers are seeing birds working large schools of bait all day long. We are officially closed for the season but with this great bite and the holidays upon us we are on call for customers that want to connect with us.”

 “The peanut bunker are in thick and the striped bass are all over them,” said Todd Corayer expert kayak angler and fishing writer who fished South County, RI ponds this past week. “I’ve landed 25 fish in two days with three lost, four slot size and one too large to keep. Love this shoulder season for sure.”

Declan O’Donnell of Breachway Bait & Tackle, Charlestown, said, “Striped bass are still being found in the salt ponds and breachways. Bait continues to hold out as the water is warm. Gannets began to patrol the inner coastal waters. They are a sure sign that there are large profile baits in the water like herring, shad, and bunker. These are baits migrating stripers can’t say no to.”

Last week fly fishing guide and instructor Ed Lombardo said, “The bite was on at the Narrow River. We caught multiple striped bass to slot size and hickory shad most days we fished.” I fished with Ed as a student Thursday and we caught about five striped bass and five shad. The largest striper was about 24 inches.

 “The bass bite in the Bay has been good, many have taken their boats out of the water but those still fishing for them are catching. We had some nice bait with birds feeding at Sabin Point and in Bristol Harbor this weekend,” said John Littlefield of Archie’s Bait & Tackle, Riverside. “This has been the best spring, summer and fall bass season in the 24 years I have been in business.”

Now is a great time to fish for striped bass as the fishing is great. The possession limit for striped bass is one fish/person/day that must be in the slot size of 28 to < 35 inches.

Last year we had a striped bass fishery that lingered all winter with fish to 36 inches being taken in our salt ponds, estuaries and rivers. Warm water and lingering bait created positive conditions for striped bass and many did not migrate to the Hudson River and Chesapeake Bay area and decided to winter in our estuaries.

Fall is a good time to buy a boat

Fall is a good time to purchase a boat as sellers may not want to carry winter storage costs and with fuel costs high there are more boats on the market than last year. So here are some tips on how to find the boat that fits your needs.

I look at boats and how well they match up to my changing needs all the time. How is the fishability, openness, space for customers, space for fish, sea handling, does it have a ladder to get on and off, and a place for a port-a-party for customers? This is the type of functionality I need in a boat to do what I want it to do… which is to go fishing and take two or three fishing with me.

Other boaters have different needs like taking the family for a ride, tubing or skiing, going for a picnic and swim, or sightseeing at Martha’s Vineyard, Newport or Block Island.

So you first have to figure out what you want to use the boat for. The National Marine Manufacturers Association (NMMA) has a great online tool to help you determine the type of boat you might be interested in. It can be found at www.discoverboating.com. This web site will ask you the intended use and then recommend boat types so you can seek the out in our search.

Should you buy new or used is always a good question? Like automobiles, new boats come with warrantees. If something goes wrong (and with boats something often goes wrong) it’s nice to have a warrantee to cover costs. Often times old boats take longer to clean, need more time to prepare for the season and will have a greater frequency of repair due to their age.

Used boats cost less, but make sure you add the cost of repairs to the purchase price. A helpful way to determine repair cost and insure you are not buying a lemon is to commission a boat survey.

A boat survey is similar to a home inspection. Surveys are conducted by certified surveyors who closely examine the vessels hull, structure, electrical system and engine(s). Surveys will not only tell you what is wrong with a boat but can give you estimates on repairs which can be used to negotiate the sale price.

Visit the Society of Accredited Marine Surveyors at www.marinesurvey.org for a list of accredited surveyors in your area.

Where’s the bite?

Striped bass bite continues to be strong with an abundance of bait in the water. See above article.

Squid. Greg Vespe, squid fishing expert and RI Saltwater Anglers Association executive director, said, “We didn’t stay long as it was my five year old grandson’s first night trip... but the squid fishing was flat out beat down Saturday night,” Littlefield of Archie’s Bait said, “Customers caught squid this weekend at Fort Wetherill, Jamestown and at the Goat Island causeway, Newport.  Many left with a five gallon bucket full with two to three hours of fishing.”

Tautog.  O’Donnell of Breachway Bait, said, “Tautog fishing continues to produce well with a lot of limit catches report this past week. The tautog are still being found in as little as 15 feet of water all the way out to 60 feet plus.”  “The tautog bite from shore at the t the mouth of the Seekonk River (near the broken bridge) and at Kettle Point, Riverside was good this weekend.”  “Tautog fishing has been good off Newport and in the Bay at Hope Island, Spindle Rock and the Rocky Point fishing pier,” said Tom Giddings.

Freshwater fishing for trout and salmon has been good at ponds stocked by RI DEM including Willet Avenue Pond, Riverside; Barber Pond, South Kingstown; Meadow Brook Pond, Richmond; Olney Pond, Lincoln State Park, Lincoln; Simmons Mill Pond, Little Compton; Silver Spring Lake, North Kingstown; Watchaug Pond, Charlestown; and Wyoming Pond in Hope Valley was stocked with trout only.

Dave Monti holds a captain’s master license and charter fishing license. He serves on a variety of boards and commissions and has a consulting business focusing on clean oceans, habitat preservation, conservation, renewable energy, and fisheries related issues and clients. Forward fishing news and photos to dmontifish@verison.net or visit www.noflukefishing.com.