Fall striper bite stays strong from the beaches to the bays
Water at the three NOAA CO-OPS stations reads 59 to 61°F this morning (8510560 at 59°F, 8516945 at 59.7°F, 8518750 at 61.2°F), a range where striped bass feed hard and the fall run stays fully switched on. Tight Lines Tackle on the South Fork reports excellent ocean-beach striper fishing from East Hampton toward Shinnecock Inlet, with fish up to 55 inches at night on SP Minnows, bottle plugs and darters. Bar Breaker lures are covering the distance by day. Bob's Bait and Tackle in Amity Harbor has bass outside the inlet on the troll, live bunker or Diamond Jigs, and live eels producing after dark inside. Captree Bait and Tackle calls the bay bite very good on bait and Diamond Jigs.
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Plan around moving water. At station 8510560 the next high lands near 8 a.m. EDT. At 8516945 the low is near 4 a.m. and the high near 10 a.m. At 8518750 the high is near 7 a.m. and the low near 1:45 p.m. White Water Outfitters in Hampton Bays says stripers inside Shinnecock Inlet are taking live eels when the water is moving, so the morning push and the dusk change are the windows worth building a trip around.
Wind is the main variable. Double D Charters in Montauk notes striped bass of all sizes are around the Point, but persistent winds have limited boat days lately. A break in the weather should reopen that fishing quickly. Tight Lines Tackle says false albacore continue to give opportunities farther east around Montauk.
On the North Fork, WeGo Bait and Tackle has bluefish mixed in with the stripers, with bucktails, poppers and tins working in daylight and eels after dark. Expect crowds near Captree this weekend with the Fred Golofaro Memorial South Shore Fishing Classic running October 23 to 25, per The Fisherman's Long Island video forecast.
Context
Late October is typically the peak of the fall migration on Long Island, with bait pushing along the beaches and bass feeding most heavily around dawn, dusk and after dark. Water in the upper 50s is on schedule for the season, and the pattern of night plug fishing on the ocean side with bay and inlet fishing on eels fits a run that is well underway. Black sea bass and weakfish are still around on the Sound side, per Shamrock Charterboat and Rip Tide III.
Synthesized from real-time NOAA buoy data, USGS stream gauges, and current reports across regional fishing blogs, captain updates, and angler forums. Check local regulations before keeping fish. Never trust a single source for a trip decision.
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