Last month, I had the chance to advocate for full funding for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in Washington, DC.

I was with Gretchen Spiers, Vice President of the Cape Cod Salties; Scott Travers, Executive Director of the RI Saltwater Anglers Association; George Baldwin, Past President of the Connecticut Surfcasters Association; and seven other charter captains and anglers.

NOAA is under attack to reduce its staff and budget by about a third. We were in Washington to share with congressional offices how these drastic cuts would impact recreational fishing and the economies of our states. Both the Administration’s budget proposal and the budget Continuing Resolution now in Congress would be devastating to NOAA.

“We spoke with House and Senate staff about supporting NOAA’s Office of Habitat Conservation and Restoration, the National Estuary Research Reserves, and the inter-jurisdictional fisheries grants. Since Massachusetts has the largest commercial and recreational fishing economy in New England, and is the third largest producer of seafood in the country (behind Alaska and Washington State), these cuts will disproportionately impact Massachusetts,” said Spiers of the Cape Cod Salties.

Rhode Island has benefited greatly by these programs including our National Sea Grant Programs at URI Graduate School of Oceanography and Roger Willimas University, Narragansett Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve, and many of the programs run by the Narraganset Bay Estuary Program. Most of these programs would simply go away. 

In Massachusetts NOAA funding supports the Waquoit Bay Estuary Research Reserve in Falmouth and Mashpee, grants assessing the impact of wastewater discharge from the Pilgrim Nuclear Plant into Cape Cod Bay, grants for offsetting losses due to the decline in Atlantic herring stocks, and many other local initiatives,” said Spiers. “NOAA dollars also fund ongoing science-based research projects at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, such as those for the National Sea Grant Program and the Ocean Acidification Program.” 

With budget cuts data-based stock assessments and fisheries cannot effectively be managed. The loss of funding for the Marine Recreational Information Program (MRIP) – direct mail and interview intercept surveys - will significantly harm the ability of NOAA to manage fisheries.

Spiers said, “A reduction in new and more accurate data collection efforts may lead to moratoriums and seasonal closures based on even more uncertain data, or possibly worse, increased deregulation.” 

Our congressional delegation relies on anglers to keep them informed about what they are experiencing on the water, what the issues are and how these NOAA cuts will impact our industry. So please take the time to email them your concerns about NOAA cuts.

Top three tips to catch bigger fluke

The summer flounder (fluke) bite is on. Anglers are hooking up with keeper fluke off Newport, in lower Narragansett Bay, Mt. Hope Baye, along our coastal shore and around Block Island.  

My three top tips 

First you need to plan, plan, and plan your fluke trips. The idea is to select six to eight places you will fish based on wind and tide being in line. This is important as you want to drag your bait over the front of the fluke as they set up looking into the current. I then go to the first place I hope to catch fish based on catching experience and recent fishing intelligence and then go the second, third, fourth places, etc. until we catch fish.

Second, larger fish usually come on edges of structure. This includes inclines and declines around channel banks and ledges, the foot of jetties where it meets sand, between ledges, drifting over humps and bumps, fishing bridge abutment areas where bait gets tossed, etc.

Third, be ready to fish multiple rigs and baits. This means being ready to use multiple-colored rigs, jig types and stingers. And, be ready to tip them with a variety of baits including squid, gulp or the ground fish you have starting to catch and strip up i.e. sea robins, scup, bluefish, etc. The idea is to try a number of rig and bait arrangements until you discover what the fish want on any given day.

Fluke regulations in Massachusetts include a minimum size of 17.5” from a vessel and 16.5” from shore with a five fish/person/day limit. In Rhode Island the fluke regulation is a 19” minimum size, six fish/person/day with special shore areas where anglers are allowed two 17” fish.   

Where’s the bite?

Striped bass/bluefish. Nick Krajewski, an associate at Quaker Lane Bait & Tackle, North Kingstown, said, “The fishing in Narragansett bay for striped bass is spread out, most fish seem to have migrated to the lower Bay around Newport and off Newport at Brenton Reef and the Jamestown Beavertail area.”  

Matt Conti of Snug Harbor Marine, South Kingstown, said, “The stiped bass bite has been pretty good on ells or with soft plastics that mimic ells.  Nice fish are being caught at Block Island and here along the coastline.”  

“Customers are catching striped bass with flutter spoons, ells as well as trolling tube & worm and umbrella rigs,” said Tom Giddings of the Tackle Box, Warwick.

Black sea bass, summer flounder (fluke), squeteague and scup. Angler Matt Haczynski reports on the RI Saltwater Anglers blog, “Last week the bite was insane off Newport. The fluke tossed up squid all over the boat when they came on board. We had our limit before noon each day. However, this Saturday the bite was way off. Possibly due the big blow on Friday.”  

“The scup bite if very good just about everywhere, however, we did not get a lot of reports on anglers catching fluke this weekend,” said Nick Krajewski of Quaker Lane.  

Conti of Snug Harbor Marina, said, “We have a good fluke bite along the Southern coastal beaches however, you need to be fishing when wind and tide is moving in the right direction. At Block Island we are waiting for a second round of summer flounder. The bite last week was not good there. And the black sea bass have been small all around.”

Freshwater. “The largemouth bass bite for customers who like to use shiners seems to be very good.  Wardon Pond, South Kingstown is producing for anglers,” said Krajewski of Quaker Lane.  

“The largemouth bass bite is very good with anglers using plastics and shiners. Ponds producing six plus pound largemouth bass for customers include Gorton, Little and Sandy ponds,” said Giddings of the Tackle Box.

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. Forward fishing news and photos to dmontifish@verizon.net, visit www.noflukefishing.blogspot.com or www.noflukefishing.com