The Benmar Fishing Report

A tale of two trips today.  The morning charter had a hard time finding fish.  Just a couple of small bass, a nice sea bass and a blue were brought to the deck.  Capt. George felt it wasn’t up to BENMAR standards and offered a free trip to the group even though they said they were happy and had a great time.  The afternoon trip was much better with a lot more action from the stripers and blues.  There were 6 keeper stripers in the cooler and some blues and porgies as well. 

Mark, Joe and George did a little bassin and porgy fishing yesterday.  The porgies were absolutely huge and they took home a cooler full.  They added a nice bluefish as well.  The bass were not as cooperative.  A couple of shorts were caught but the tide was running really strong and the big ones just wouldn’t bite!

Freddy from NY brought his group down early today and got out for some pretty good fishing before the wind really kicked up to over 25 knots.  The group managed about 8 or 9 bass with four keepers up to 39 inches (caught by the lovely lady who joined the men for the outting).  There were a few porgies also!

Another day of good striper fishing with more than a dozen fish put on the deck and several “almosts”.  The Jason B. group had a good day and brought home seven nice keepers with the biggest going 37 inches…..a nice cow!  For some reason blues took a powder today….maybe it was the full moon. 

Despite temperatures over 90 degrees inland, Capt. George reports the conditions out to sea were beautiful.  Not too hot with a gentle breeze made for a great day on the water.  The fish were pretty cooperative and the group went home with 5 keeper bass and a nice sized blue.  There were a number of other fish caught that were released to fight another day.

Porgies, blues and bass were all biting on this trip and our group of anglers had a ball filling the cooler with delectable fare for the table.  They went home with 7 nice keeper bass and many blues and porgies.  This summer has been great so far and the weather pattern continues to be favorable for great trips aboard the BENMAR.  We have open dates and can accommodate your party.  Call the capt. @ 413-374-4199

Striped Bass fishing continues to be good to excellent.  Todays charter boated over 15 bass and they went home with 7 nice keepers up to 35 inches.  Chunking on the reefs has been the preferred method.  Our anglers like the fact that they set the lines, hook the fish and fight them all the way into the net while the boat is at anchor instead of dragging heavy wire line behind a trolling boat.

The nice couple from yesterday had a return trip on the BENMAR today and wanted to try some fluking down off Misquamicut.  The fish were biting pretty well but the 19 1/2 inch minimum size proved elusive.  About a dozen nice fluke were boated but all were a bit short and thus returned to the briny deep.  On the way back to port, the group stopped for some late tide bass action at Watch Hill reef and pulled up quite a few.  But again, the minimum size was not exceeded and thus it was catch and release.   Saturday is open due to a cancellation.  Give Capt. George a call at 413-374-4199.

Yesterday Capt. George took a nice family group for a cruise around Fishers Island.  The seas were calm, The wine and cheese were out on the table and everyone just kicked back and had a relaxing time.  Of course, Capt. George had his fishfinder on and was looking for new spots and fish concentrations as he motored around the island.  Today, the fog was intense but the BENMAR made it out to some productive areas and caught several bass up to 35 inches.  A bluefish also made his way into the cooler.  The same group is going out again tomorrow so we hope for less fog so the BENMAR can get around a little faster and find the big fish!

The Murphy clan graced the BENMAR today and both adults and kids had a great time hauling in the stripers.  11 year old Meagan was high hook!  They brought home 6 nice keepers up to 35 inches and also had a number of throwbacks. Capt. George has both Friday and Saturday (July 16 and 17) open due to a cancellation.  So if you want to get in on some good striper action give him a call at 413-374-4199.

The Sryacuse gang got up early and were leaving the dock at 5:30 AM to try to improve on their tally of bass from yesterday.  Well I guess practice makes perfect because they scored early and often on their way to a limit of bass by about 10AM.  The biggest bass was around 34 inches and 20 pounds.  Nice fat healthy linesiders, some of which had sea lice on them which means they are still coming in from deeper waters!  Back to upstate New York for these avid anglers with a nice full cooler of fillets to roast on the barbie! 

Capt. George still has available dates especially the during the last two weeks of July.  Sometimes people think stripers are better in the cooler months but our log book indicates otherwise.  July is defintely a great month for stripers and blues, fluke, sea bass, porgies and blackfish are often in the mixed bag of many trips.

A nice group from Syracuse who have been out on the BENMAR before, came down for the weekend for trips today and tomorrow out to the reefs for bass.  Today’s trip involved some heavy fog in the morning so Capt. George made his first stop at a spot near Mystic harbor.  The group bagged a couple of nice keeper bass plus a decent sized blackfish.  As the tide started to turn, the group changed locations to a rockpile out by Watch Hill.  The fishing was a bit spotty but three more nice keeper bass were added to the cooler along with some fat porgies.  The blues weren’t around like yesterday but there were a couple of “cutoffs” that were probably the work of the “choppers”.  They plan to get an early start tomorrow to fish the incoming tide from the start. 

After a few days off, Capt. George was back on the water today with the Foley group from West Springfield MA.  The warm weather must have really got things hopping because the fishing was really good!  Lots of bass (11 keepers) and now the big blues (4 keepers) are also here to keep the anglers busy!  A full cooler, and tired anglers is always the goal on the BENMAR and today was another home run!

We finished up the month of June with some hot fishing for bass and jumbo porgies.  The weather was very kind to us and the forecast is for more of the same.  Capt. George has been enjoying some well-earned rest over the last few days.  He is out today and called in with a report of some early action on the reefs but things had slowed down and he was trying some different areas.  It’s all about the bait fish……where they go….so go the bass and blues we are after.  This warm weather should get some large schools of baitfish moving into Fishers Island sound.

We had a nice group from Springfield MA out on the BENMAR today.  The bites were pretty constant.  Some of the fish were caught, some were missed and some were “lost at the boat” according to Capt. George.  This usually means that a little overexuberance at the critical time allows the fish to get away just before it is netted.  However, 3 nice bass keepers did get into the cooler along with 17 jumbo porgies.  A bluefish was on for a while but cut the leader with its sharp teeth.  The ride back to the dock was extremely foggy so that Capt. George had to use his vast captaining skills (combined with modern electronics) to avoid the rocks, lighthouses and tacking sailboats.  Another good June day!  We’re going to be sorry to see this month come to an end but July, August, September and October hold the promise of many great trips and fine adventures.  Capt. George has excellent dates available for your private charter experience.  Give him a call at 413-374-4199!!

Another group of regulars returned for some chunking out on the rockpiles around Watch Hill.  The fishing was a bit slower than yesterday with only 3 keepers caught but the group had a good time and appreciated Capt. George staying out a little longer than usual to get a few quality fish to take home.  We are still waiting for the Blues to show up in force and we expect them any day.  Not everyone likes to eat them but their fighting ability cannot be questioned.  When the blues mix in with the stripers the action can be hot and heavy! 

Steve P and several of his buddies came out to enjoy one of the best weather days of the season.  Steve has been going out on the BENMAR since the boat got into chartering and he always has the classic attitude that “a bad day of fishing is better than a good day at work”!  Fortunately the guys had a pretty good day of fishing catching numerous stripers including 5 keepers up to 34 inches.  The fish were very fat and healthy looking and I’m sure the fillets will be put to good use, perhaps during a backyard barbeque!  A few of the boys were going on to the casino to complete their mini vacation.  Hope the tables were as friendly as the ocean was today!

Some sites may only write a report when the fishing was good.  We try to give our anglers a report on every trip so they can get an accurate picture of whats going on out there!  Todays trip was pretty slow with only a few bass caught, one of which was a keeper.  Everyone tried their best but for whatever reason, the fish were not active.  However, the company was great and the folks had a pretty good taste of ocean fishing and want to come back for another charter.

We had a nice return visit from our Poughkeepsie NY friends who were out the previous week.  They had another nice day with lots of hookups. 5 Bass exceeded the legal size limit and they also scored a bunch of the jumbo porgies which sometimes bite on the striper baits.  Meanwhile Capt. John and a buddy went down to Misquamicut to check out the fluke fishing.  Because fish have to be over 19.5 inches to keep, he fished in deep waters with large baits.  They caught 9 nice fluke and 4 of them were keepers up to 22 inches. 

Another nice day on the water but the stripers were harder to find.  Jumbo porgies were stealing the bait right and left but the nice family from PA were persistent and did get two nice keeper bass to bring home to Harrisburg.   Capt. George has plenty of openings in July and August including some prime weekend dates.  So far, this season has produced good to excellent bass fishing.  Porgies are biting great and are really huge!  The blues are starting to come in stronger now.  Fluke fishing requires patience due to a minimum size limit that requires most fish caught to be returned.  On a full day charter Capt. George will provide a “combo” trip (bass and fluke or bass and porgies) at no extra cost.  To book a charter please call 413-374-4199.

A group of Hartford firefighters was out today.  This trip was a special “makeup” that Capt. George provided at cost because their blackfish charter last fall was cut short due to weather issues.  This time the weather gods and fishing gods decided to smile on the group because everything was in the A+ category.  Perhaps due to Dan Flynn’s secret offering to the sea, the group caught a whole bunch of stripers and brought home a nice limit catch.

Another good day at the reefs.  8 nice keeper bass and 7  “accidental” jumbo porgies  with pretty consistent action.  We have a nice pattern going.  The weather has cooperated and so have the fish!

After a rare day off Capt. George was back on the water at 6AM this morning with Chad from Washington D.C., a veteran BENMAR angler and a couple of his buds.  They had pretty constant striper action on a rockpile east of Fishers Island.  By noon, the limit was in the cooler with the biggest about 35 inches.  Nice fat fish with deepwater sea lice here and there that indicate they are still arriving from offshore.  In addition to the stripers, a number of jumbo porgies were caught with one measuring over 19 inches.  Now that’s a beeeeg porgeeee!

Captain George had promised a fishing excursion to various family members today.  Despite the brisk west winds, everyone was ready to go and brave the wavy conditions out on the Watch Hill reefs.  The intrepid anglers were rewarded with a good striper bite and they managed 10 keepers before calling it a day.  Ryan Piper had the biggest linesider of the day and therefore has bragging rights at least until the next trip!  The BENMAR is booked up for the rest of June but there are plenty of open dates for July and beyond.

See more photos on the BenmarCharters.com Photo Gallery.

Fred from NY and four of his buddies had a nice trip today taking advantage of the bargain-priced weekday special.  They managed ten nice keeper stripers and lots of action out near Catumb Rocks in a half day of fishing!  Capt. George plans to keep the weekday special going throughout the summer……$500 for a great outting on one of the best charter boats in CT! 

Today was a beautiful day on the water with mild temperatures, light wind, and low humidity.  We were glad to share it with Mark A. who has been going out on the BENMAR for many years.  He is a vivid character who loves to fish and appreciates all the gifts of the ocean, large and small.  We started  fishing for Stripers out near Watch Hill and boated a couple of beauties.  Then we drifted in several spots for bottom fish and scored a few jumbo porgies and a sea bass.  We ended the day on an inshore reef and picked up another striper along with some more jumbo porgies.  A large fluke and a few black fish which had to be returned since they are out of season, spiced up the day’s catch. 

The weekend provided knockout striper fishing with all three trips coming back to the dock with limit catches.  The fishing was challenging due to faster tides associated with the new moon.  On Monday, the tides were really ripping and the numbers were down a bit but Capt. George and his anglers kept at it and came home with 5 big keepers.  The bite continues to be in the “good to excellent” category for stripers, “fair”for fluke and “heating up” for porgies.  Blues are not around yet in good numbers but we expect them to arrive in force very soon.

Capt. George just called in from the Watch Hill Reefs to report that the Junior Falcon Hockey Dads limited out on Striped Bass up to 35 inches.  It was another great day on the water and everyone had a blast!

Last year Joe booked a trip and we never got out due to weather.  He let his deposit “ride” into this season and was finally rewarded with a great day on the water!  A limit of stripers, a 24 inch fluke, some very large porgies and assorted other denizens of the deep made up a great day for this nice group of guys!  It looks like the season has really popped!  June is quite booked up but there are plenty of days available in July which is traditionally when we catch the most stripers.  Blues will also be running pretty good by then and of course the porgies should be a great side catch. 

Nice day on the water and very productive!

Red and his bartender crew from work quickly “limited-out” on Striped Bass today.

Today’s catch included:
12 keeper Striped Bass up to 39″
1 keeper Fluke

4 Blackfish (Tautog) throwbacks
(Can’t keep…they are out of season.)

Pictures to come soon.