The Benmar Fishing Report

A late day charter for a party of three turned out to be a great outting.  Bass were biting very well and everyone caught numerous fish.  The action was enhanced by a nice mix of Blues and Porgies. 

Freddy from NY was out with some buddies today and they did pretty well with 4 keeper Bass to 32 inches, 11 Gorilla Bluefish, 15 Porgies and a nice Sea Bass to top it off.  A great day to be out on the water!

Capt. George took a trip out towards Block Island today in search of Sea Bass.   The three man group caught 46 keepers up to 7 pounds and also had some jumbo Porgies, three keeper Fluke and a few Bluefish.  It was a super day with constant hookups and great weather!

Benmar regular, Mark A. from Queens caught a lot of fish today and went home with his limit of Bass and Porgies as well as 3 keeper Fluke and a few Blues.  He gives the fish to the guys in his shop and they eagerly await his return from his fishing trips!  Capt. George had a cancellation for this Sunday 8/22 and will give you a deal if you want to get in on this excellent fishing!

The Saturday trip brought a nice family out on the BENMAR and everyone caught fish.  At the end of the day the cooler was bulging with fish including 5 Blues, 3 stripers and 15 jumbo porgies.  There were also a bunch of striper throwbacks.  Sunday’s trip was a fluke outting and included 93 year old Harry Abrumchuk.   As everyone now knows, fluke fishing is mostly catch and release due to the 19.5 inch minimum size limit in CT and RI and the 21 inch minimum size limit in NY.  Despite these tough-to-meet size limits, the group did manage 4 keepers and had a GIANT one on that was lost at the side of the boat.  There were also some sea bass and porgies caught to augment the take home fillets.  All in all a really great weekend of fishing! 

Trips over the past weekend were pretty active with stripers, blues, and porgies biting well.  Stripers up to 36 inches and a bunch of huge porgies gave our anglers plenty to take home for the table.  Of course, a bluefish or two will always mix into the catch as do sea bass and fluke.  Not every trip is a barn-burner but, by and large, this has been an excellent season so far and the BENMAR anglers are doing well and going home with nice fish dinners!  Plenty of chances to get out there…..just call Capt. George at 413-374-4199!

The trips this weekend had decent action with stripers, blues, sea bass and jumbo porgies all hitting the deck.  Todays group had 7 stripers and several “near misses”.  The biggest of the three keepers was 37.5 inches and was caught out by Catumb Rock.  They had a nice blue chopper and about a dozen “dinner-plate” porgies that also went into the cooler.  Let’s hope the super weather pattern continues for the month of August.  Capt. George has plenty of open dates including a few weekend days so give him a call @ 413-374-4199. 

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!