Rhode Island fishing reports
129 reports for Rhode Island — what's biting, water temps, and where to focus.
Night eels keep Narragansett Bay stripers biting as sea bass boom
Striped bass fishing around Narragansett Bay has slipped into what Saltwater Edge Blog (RI) calls the typical summer doldrums — daytime bites have gotten tougher, but live-eel soaks after dark at breachways and rocky stretches are still turning quality fish, per shop reports carried in The Fisherman — Rhode Island. Black sea bass are the story of the week: Frances Fleet, Snug Harbor Marina, and Quonnie Bait and Tackle all describe more keepers moving into the area on recent trips. Fluke fishing is grinding but improving, with keepers now showing from 50 to 60 feet off the beaches, though Booked Off Charters notes numbers are still running below past years. Scup remain a steady bonus catch throughout the bay. One wrinkle worth planning around: sharks are increasingly crashing striper trips near Block Island, per Snug Harbor Marina, pushing some anglers to work closer to shore instead.
Sea Bass and Scup Carry Narragansett Bay as Stripers Stay Hot at Block Island
Black sea bass and scup are carrying Narragansett Bay's bottom bite right now, with Saltwater Edge calling sea bass action "very good" around the islands and the mouth of the bay, while Frances Fleet reports more keeper-sized sea bass pushing in on both full and half day trips, taking pressure off a fluke bite that's also improving. Fluke remain mixed but workable, per Quonnie Bait and Tackle and Snug Harbor Marina, with keepers running up to about 25 inches off local beaches, in salt ponds, and around breachways, alongside plenty of shorts. Striped bass are the headline species around Block Island, where Booked Off Charters is putting light-tackle anglers on 30 to 40 pound bass, though sharks are becoming a real nuisance for boats working that ground. The Fisherman's regional forecast confirms the striper bite has stayed hot between Newport and Block Island this week.
Big stripers hold hot around Block Island as sea bass surge in the Bay
Booked Off Charters has been putting anglers on striped bass in the 30- to 40-pound class around Block Island this week, working light tackle as the bite holds strong — a pattern echoed by The Fisherman (Northeast)'s New England Video Fishing Forecast, which notes the striper bite remained hot between Newport and Block Island through July 23rd. Black sea bass has turned into the story of the summer in the Bay: Saltwater Edge, Frances Fleet, and Snug Harbor Marina all report more keeper-sized sea bass pushing into local waters over the past two weeks, easing pressure off a fluke bite that's improving but still mixed — Quonnie Bait and Tackle calls it inconsistent, while Snug Harbor and Frances Fleet see steady keepers. Scup remain a reliable bonus around the islands and breachways. One wrinkle: sharks are becoming a nuisance around Block Island stripers, per Booked Off Charters and Snug Harbor, pushing some anglers to relocate mid-trip.
Big Block Island stripers lead a strong RI bottom-fish bite
Striped bass fishing remains strong around Block Island this week, with Booked Off Charters reporting anglers boating fish in the 30- to 40-pound class on light tackle, though sharks are increasingly intercepting hooked bass near the island, according to both Booked Off Charters and Snug Harbor Marina. Bottom fishing is carrying the rest of Narragansett Bay: The Saltwater Edge (RI) calls black sea bass and scup fishing "very good" right now on bottom rigs tipped with squid or clams, or jigs worked on the drift. Frances Fleet echoes the sea bass improvement, noting more keeper-sized fish have moved in, which is taking pressure off a fluke bite that's also picking up. Fluke reports are mixed — Snug Harbor Marina points to keepers to 25 inches in 35 to 50 feet off the local beaches, while Quonnie Bait and Tackle calls the bite inconsistent but productive for anglers willing to put in the time. Scup remain plentiful per both shops.
Narragansett Bay stripers key on sand fleas as summer pattern holds
On The Water and OTW Surfcasting both flagged sand fleas (mole crabs) as a go-to bait right now for summer stripers cruising tight to the beach lip, a technique that translates directly to Narragansett Bay's sandy stretches. OTW Surfcasting also points anglers toward inline circle hooks fished with live eels for after-dark linesiders. No fresh buoy or gauge readings came through for the Bay this cycle, so we don't have a hard water-temp number to report, but late July typically has Narragansett running solidly into summer striper range. Offshore, OTW Saltwater's Northeast report has bluefin tuna spreading from New Jersey into the Gulf of Maine, a sign the broader regional bite is active, though that action sits well outside the Bay itself. Bluefish, scup and fluke are the other Bay staples this time of year; we don't have direct reports on any of them from this cycle, so treat their status as typical-for-season until fresher intel comes in.
Narragansett Bay stripers push offshore as summer doldrums set in
Saltwater Edge Blog (RI) sums up the current stretch bluntly: we're in the "summer doldrums," the annual mid-to-late-July lull when the bite slows without shutting off. Per the shop's recent forecast notes, striped bass have already pushed out to the oceanfront and into deeper, cooler water for the season, while scup, black sea bass, and fluke settle into their usual summer haunts in and around the bay. Surfcasters are still finding fish: the shop's rundown of six surfcasters' plug bags stressed covering the whole water column, something for the bottom, middle, and top, to stay connected to bass holding deeper. Rigged Slug-Gos remain a go-to striper bait per the shop's step-by-step piece, and Yo-Zuri's Chris Bishop walked through lure designs built specifically for Northeast striped bass this season. Expect a grind more than a blitz through this window, with fish present but requiring more precise presentation than the spring push.
Fluke bite steady in Narragansett Bay as offshore bluefin push north
OTW Saltwater's Northeast Offshore Report (July 15, 2026) has bluefin tuna spreading from New Jersey into the Gulf of Maine with quality yellowfin showing in the canyons, a sign that the summer pelagic push is building off southern New England. No captain or shop filed a Rhode Island-specific report this cycle, so this update leans on typical mid-July patterns for Narragansett Bay: fluke should be holding over structure and channel edges, and On The Water's new Z-Man MudStudZ review flags backwater soft-plastic fluke fishing as a technique worth trying on the Bay's mummichog-rich flats. Striped bass remain a summer Bay staple, though OTW Surfcasting's recent piece on lagging spawning success is a reminder to handle and release fish carefully. Black sea bass should stay active over reef and rock structure. Check current RI regulations before keeping anything.
Offshore Tuna Push Builds as Bay Anglers Work Stripers, Fluke
Offshore, OTW Saltwater's Northeast Offshore Report from July 15 notes the tuna bite continuing to evolve this week, with quality yellowfin showing up in the canyons and bluefin spreading from New Jersey up toward the Gulf of Maine — worth watching for boats running out of Rhode Island. Inshore, Narragansett Bay's mid-summer patterns hold steady: OTW Surfcasting points anglers toward live eels and rigged Slug-Gos for stripers worked in low light, while OTW Saltwater flags Z-Man's new MudStudZ soft plastics gaining traction among backwater fluke fishermen imitating killifish and mummichogs. No fresh buoy or gauge readings came through for the Bay this cycle, so water temp should be treated as typical for mid-July until the next check. OTW Surfcasting also flags ongoing concern over striped bass spawning success, a good reminder to handle stripers carefully and confirm current slot limits before keeping any fish. Bluefish, a Bay summer staple, weren't referenced directly in today's sourcing but are typically active through mid-July.
Narragansett Bay eases into the summer doldrums as stripers slide offshore
Per Saltwater Edge Blog (RI)'s July New Moon forecast, Rhode Island anglers are settling into what the shop calls the mid-July "summer doldrums" — hot, windy, and short on sleep after a busy start to summer, though the shop notes there's still plenty to find if you're willing to grind. No fresh NOAA buoy or USGS gauge readings came through this cycle, so check a local instrument before you launch. Saltwater Edge's prior June Full Moon report describes striped bass pushing out of the shallows to the oceanfront's deeper, cooler water as the season warms, while scup, black sea bass, and fluke settle into their usual bay haunts. Surfcasters working the stripers can lean on a rigged Slug-Go, walked through step-by-step in a recent Saltwater Edge how-to, or a bag built to cover the whole water column per shop regular Pete Utschig. Offshore, On The Water's July 15 report has yellowfin showing in the canyons and bluefin spreading from New Jersey to the Gulf of Maine, though that's well outside the Bay itself.
Big Bass at Block Island, Fluke Bite Warms Up in Narragansett Bay
Striped bass are holding strong around Block Island this week, with Booked Off Charters and Snug Harbor Marina both reporting multiple fish in the 30-to-40-pound class landing on light tackle and live eels. Inside Narragansett Bay, Saltwater Edge notes bass are hunkering in deeper water by day and turning on after dark in the boulder fields, a pattern typical as water warms into summer. Fluke fishing continues to improve across the bay per Quonnie Bait and Tackle and The Fisherman's Rhode Island report, with keepers showing in 40 to 50 feet off the beaches alongside plenty of short fish. Black sea bass are getting very good according to Frances Fleet, and Snug Harbor Marina adds scup into the mix on structure. The Fisherman's regional forecast notes Rhode Island shore anglers are seeing more consistent striper catches than much of the surrounding region this week.
Narragansett Bay eases into summer doldrums as squid keep biting
Saltwater Edge Blog (RI) is framing the back half of July as the "summer doldrums" in its July New Moon forecast, the roughly one-month stretch each year when the pace cools off but doesn't shut down. Earlier updates from the same Rhode Island shop had striped bass sliding out to the oceanfront into deeper, cooler water as summer set in, while scup, black sea bass, and fluke settled into their usual bay and inshore spots. The shop's June reports also called the squid bite "fantastic" with no signs of slowing, a pattern worth watching again around this new moon since low light windows tend to turn squid on. Yo-Zuri's Chris Bishop walked the shop through the lure lineup built specifically for Northeast striped bass this season, useful if the topwater bite goes quiet in the heat. No live buoy or gauge readings came through for this cycle, so lean on tide stage and dawn/dusk light rather than a specific temperature target.
New moon eases Narragansett Bay into its midsummer striper-and-squid stretch
Saltwater Edge's July New Moon forecast calls this stretch of mid-July the classic Narragansett Bay summer doldrums — hot, windy, and the kind of stretch where sleep deprivation from three months of fishing starts to show, but the shop is clear there's still plenty biting if you put in the time. Their June reports had striped bass pushing out to deeper, cooler oceanfront water for summer and squid fishing running fantastic with no signs of slowing, while fluke, scup, and black sea bass settle into their usual summer haunts around the bay. On the technique side, OTW Saltwater's guide to going large for summer stripers points anglers toward live bunker, eels, glidebaits, and bigger soft plastics as fish key on larger forage, and Saltwater Edge's Pete Utschig surf-bag breakdown reinforces covering the whole water column — something for the bottom, middle, and top. No fresh buoy or gauge readings came through for this cycle, so lean on local knowledge for water temp and tide timing.