Long Island fluke bite fires as bluefin bonanza builds off Montauk

What's biting

What's next

With the full moon driving stronger tidal swings this week, expect the South Shore fluke bite that On The Water called 'firing on all cylinders' on July 23 to hold or improve into early August as bigger tide movement pushes more bait through the bays and reef structure. Fishfinder II and the Laura Lee Fleet both put pool-fish fluke in the 7-pound class over the past week in 60-70 foot depths off Captree, and that deeper structure should keep producing as water temperatures stay in the typical summer range for late July on Long Island.

The bluefin story is the one to watch. LI Outdoorsman and Double D Charters both describe bluefin sitting closer to shore, around 20-40 miles, while the yellowfin bite stays out at the canyons around 100 miles. OTW Saltwater's July 22 offshore report calls it a 'school bluefin bonanza' for New York waters — if that inshore push holds through the coming week, expect more East End and West End boats to target it on troll and jig rather than making the long canyon run, especially around midweek weather windows.

Striped bass should stay in their expected summer holding pattern — daytime action slow, per multiple North Shore and East End sources, with better opportunities concentrated around dawn, dusk, and after dark. White Water Outfitters and Fishing East Coast Bait and Tackle both point to live eels on the right stage of tide as the most consistent producer right now, a pattern that typically continues through August until water temperatures ease and the fall migration begins reshuffling fish.

Watch the full-moon tides for a short window of improved daytime bass activity around the peak exchanges, and expect bluefish to stay opportunistic on sand eels wherever bait balls up, as Tight Lines Tackle described around Shinnecock. Porgy fishing remains a mixed bag by location — strong from the surf per WeGo Bait and Tackle's North Fork spots, but 'terribly slow' per Shamrock Charterboat in western Long Island Sound — a split that should persist since it reflects local bait and structure rather than a broad regional shift.

Weekend anglers should prioritize reef and wreck structure holding fluke over open bay water, where short-to-keeper ratios remain higher, and keep eels ready after dark for a shot at a better class of striper while the summer pattern holds.

Context

The current pattern is on-schedule for late July on Long Island. Striped bass typically enter a predictable summer lull once water temperatures climb through July, with fish sliding to deeper, cooler water during the day and feeding mainly in low light — exactly what East End, North Shore, and West End sources are independently describing right now. On The Water's own week-over-week reports show this arc directly: the 'big bass bite off Montauk' was already 'beginning to slow down' by July 9, with the fluke bite building in its place through the July 16 and July 23 reports, a typical mid-summer handoff for the region.

Fluke fishing appears to be running strong, with multiple South Shore and East End sources describing solid keeper ratios and fish over 5-7 pounds, consistent with NY DEC's Saltwater Fishing and Boating newsletter flagging the recreational summer flounder season underway. Bluefish are behaving typically for summer, chasing sand eel bait around structure rather than roaming open water.

The bluefin tuna story is the standout for this stretch. OTW Saltwater's characterization of a 'school bluefin bonanza' in New York waters, paired with reports of fish showing within 20-40 miles rather than requiring a full canyon run, reads as an earlier and more accessible inshore bluefin push than a typical late-July window, though the angler-intel feeds don't offer a direct year-over-year comparison to confirm how it stacks up against prior seasons.