9/19-22: Montauk Heats Up

[Tuna]

Spent many hours on the water Wednesday through Saturday, the last of which I shared with Dan Duff, who I met through this forum.

Wednesday I let myself go into an "albie funk". Happens a few times a year, but surprises me each time it happens again. Morning started with a quick hookup and loss of an albie at the Point, followed by two quick landings. Thought I was in for albie heaven. Then I slid into a funk. A wrong move here, a blown shot there, and soon I was not enjoying myself. When the action slowed, I headed for Gardiners for a change of luck, but brought my silly bad attitude with me. Left a bit early (as I generally do when I funk out), telling myself I fish to be on the water and enjoy so, having forgotten the enjoyment, time to quit.

Thursday saw a good albie run in the morning at the Point again. Enjoyed it this time (did better as a result) and again went to Gardiners when the action slowed. The wind came up big time at Bostwicks, but the albies came up with it. Could barely keep the fly line in control. Seemed the albies couldn't see my small epoxy in the madness, so I switched to a large clouser, took a few and left before the forecasted (but not soon to arrive) rain.

Friday was pure Montauk magic. Waited until 10 am, thinking I had waited out the rain. Got to the Point and the rain came back, but the albies were there big time. Had a blast. Sun came out about 2 PM, and the blues came up big time, and sometimes the bass. Around 3:30 PM, after the tide shift, albies joined in again. Got some great video of a big pood near the boat.


Saturday my mission was to put Dan onto his first albie. Weather was too nice, and I was hesitant to jinx his chances by saying too much about Friday.

Got to the Point, which was fairly crowded, to see some pods outside. Hooked up soon but lost mine. Then Dan hooked his first albie.

Its such a rush to see someone take their first fish of an interesting species. Got it on video, plus ome others and feeds, intend to create a rock and roll salt water fly fishing video (my new non fishing months hobby) for Dan to remember the day.

The albie feeds were no way near as large as Friday's or even Thursday's, but working the shore from Turtle Cove to Caswells, particularly outside of the frequent bass feeds on shore, resulted in good steady action for a few hours. Dan got in a groove, landing 3 more albies soon and soaking in the sights of the bass feeds.

Then a turn of luck. Dan lost a few albies to weird stuff (including a reel that blew out). Got a bit into a funk.

Things slowed down, so we headed to Gardiners so I could show him spots nearer to his home base (Shelter Island). No fish, but I showed him around. Then we looked at the Gulls and the Race, saw a few pop-ups, but nothing much, then returned to the Point.

The wind had come up a bit and with it the intensity of some of the feeds. Saw a killer bluefish feed, then some great mixed (bass, blues, albies) feeds.

Dan broke his albie funk with some unintended humor. Shortly after cursing his fly ("this clouser s#@$s") and while looking in his fly box for a replacement, with the cursed fly hanging in the water, boom - an albie hits. Dan got this one and lifted himself out of the funk.

We doubled shortly thereafter, and as the day drew to a close, Dan took his 7th albie of the day.

He didn't see the biggest albie feeds possible, but he was out for a great day. Most of the day had sun, and the fishing was very visual - seeing albies race near the boat, seeing the albies hit, seeing incredible bass feeds.

I had fished along side of Dan before (in the springs of 2000 and 2001, our boats side by side as we broke normal rules of bass flats fishing [where you generally DON'T fish near another boat] with good success). But this was my first day with him on the same boat, and a great long day at that. I really enjoyed the experience - not just seeing him take his first albie, or fish his way out of his first albie funk, but hearing his stories and sharing a really good day on the water.

Plus, I got one his flies out of it (left on the rod I lent him after his reel self destructed).

Dan, good luck at Gardiners and give a holler if you make it out to Montauk in your pop's boat (as I suspect you may).

[joshr]

Fished Fri and Sat and saw Tuna out there both days. Friday fished with AndyF from the board and we had a blast....as Tuna reports, the albie fishing was terrific all day, and with few boats on the water, mmmmmmmm. We did get poured on though.

Saturday I got lucky and when everyone and his mother seemed to be chasing some decent pods at the Point, my Dad and I decided to head to the south side to the stone house where there had been some good beach blitzes earlier in the day. We were rewarded for prospecting big time. We ended up in the middl eof the most massive feed I have seen in a while. In addition to about 15-20 mins of albies exploding all around us for a couple acres, there were bass and blue boils just inside them....fish heaven. We took a few fish each and then decided to call it a day. We left with a good feed still going, although the complete albie mahem had subsided somewhat.

An interesting development: the fish we caught on the north side this weekend and last were very large (Friday we had 4 or so that were 10+ lbs and two may have gone 12+), but the fish we caught on the south side were consistently in the 5-7 lb class. Clearly two different bodies of fish. In some ways the southside fishing was more fun though because the water was so clear and the fish were in very close in quite shallow water, so we were seeing individual fish take flies 30+ feet from the boat. And they were not boat or motor shy at all, so it was quite a spectacle to watch them boil and slash all around--and under--the boat on Sat.

--Josh

[AndyF]

It was great to be out Friday with Josh, who's an excellent captain, and to meet Tuna. We came close to a grand slam but were not disappointed that we didn't achieve it, as the action was fast and furious and the albies were very big as Josh reports. Rain? What rain?

If you guys didn't catch it, the Star had a nice article on the Montauk fly action, which you can read online at http://www.easthamptonstar.com/20010920/out3.htm

Had to cut the weekend short unfortunately but looking forward to next.

[fmw]

Not having the fortune of owning a boat, fished on shore at Montauk both Saturday and Sunday, doing a morning and afternoon session each day. Enjoyed the similar action spoken of here, minus the albies. Given that I was shorebound, I was only sometimes with a fly rod -- although I did manage bass on the fly at Camp Hero. This afternoon (Sunday) was on the north side for a mega blitz of blues and bass as school after school of fish came careening around the Point and on down past the concession stand -- mostly unbelievably thick schools of blues but also schools of 30+" bass. As you can imagine, absolutely no chance of using a fly rod there. That area is a zoo with many people who have no class -- phenomenal to see the blitzes, but unpleasant in many ways. Funny how the crowd on the south side at Camp Hero is so different -- I guess that is the effect of fishing behind a locked gate. Its funny how being out at Montauk motivates me to get a boat. At any rate, looking forward to next Sunday, Monday when I do an annual weekend of boat fishing with former college roommate flyfishers renting a boat.

Here is my question for the board: The water still seems very warm (temperature in high 60s?). I was swimming at the beach in East Hampton for an hour straight. How do current water temps compare with past history at this time? Given that, what are the predictions as to how long this run can last? Absent a hurricane, do people think this year's Montauk "rainbait" run can go till the end of October or November??

[Tuna]

I only took water temps Wednesday, at which point it was about 68 degrees, up 5 degrees from the week before. Comparing this to notes from prior years, this is definitely warmer than usual. However, its always hard to predict, as a cold snap will drop the temps quickly.

I am of course hoping that we get a long season. The area seems filled with bait, and I remember a great albie day I had with my pop one November while he was still alive.

Josh - I noticed the two size classes of albies also, especially Saturday, with the smaller fish on the south side. Sure is nice to have so many 10 pounders around.

Andy - I am so oblivious on the water, I didn't catch your name when Josh introduced you Friday. (Josh knows this happens, from a conversation he had with me in the spring where I didn't realize it was him - I'm not the only one though, as Jeff Palmer, who I have fished beside for years, told me Friday he always thought my name was Elliot). Glad to meet you and that you got out for Friday, which was a great day.

Dan - although the albie feeds were better Friday, there were less visuals (based on the rain for hours) and many fewer bass feeds. I'm still stoked from those two days, but gotta work a few days to feed the boat before I get out there again. Off to our development partner in an hour, where they know I am a fishing nut and hopefully will forgive when, in the middle of the training I will be providing, I yell "put the fly down now!."

[fmw]

Aside from 2 classes of albies, did anyone notice two classes of bass? It seemed to me the bass were either 22"-24" or 32"-34" with not much in between.

[duffd]

Peter's too modest to mention that he landed 12 albies, and would have doubled that had he not let me hog the bow all day long. He put me on fish time after time and would make a great guide.

Thanks again for an awesome introduction to albie fishing off Montauk!

[venture]

Peter, I'm glad to hear you had such a great stint of Albie fishing and that all your friends aboard enjoyed the fishing you showed them. Wow, twelve fish in one day. That's really great. I'm also glad that Josh, Frank and Andy also had similar good fortune. I also hope the season doesn't end too quickly, but Mother Nature has it's own ways, and maybe we can get an extended season. I've seen shirt sleeve surface bass blitzes well into November, at Shagwong especially. Hope that materializes extending the season for all of us.

I got to Montauk a bit late this weekend and fished inshore on Saturday evenning and Sunday morning. On Saturday evenning I most of my Albie flies to the Bluefish Gods. I know now I was fishing the wrong schools. There were probably Albies mixed, but the Blues got the best of me.

On Sunday morning I did see Albies and caught two nice ones near the point but then the fog moved in and made it close to impossible to fish correctly.

I'll spend some time this week tying, trying to rebiuld a suitable collection of small flies. At the same time I'm keeping my eyes and ears openned regarding the Blue Fin action that materialized on the south east corner of the Dump in the last few days. I hope the new front doesn't disperse the fish. These are the fish and the season where one can hook a bluefin on fly in the slick. The action can be very fast if the fish stay concentrated.

Howie

[Tuna]

Not modesty but perspective. I didn't land 7 albies in a day until many trips with my pop, who also let me "hog" the bow all day with many more chances than you had - you got a lucky 7 on your first shot at Montauk. That's part of what made the day so fun, you catching albies and getting the feel of it quickly.

Sounds from Howie's post below we might be seeing a bluefin on the fly report soon.

[Tuna]

I couldn't tell, but I heard someone else say that Friday.

[Stonyflyer]

Fished Montauk Sun evening and I agree with fmw
on the large group of blitzing bass and blues on
the north side. As far as the type of people on
the north side I'd have to disagree. Following
is what happen to me on the north side of town
Sun night.
I started fishing the north side with
my ten wgt at about 6pm. I wasn't in the water
more than ten min when the long stick boys to
the right and left of me were banging on the
fish. And we're talking some nice fish. This went
on for about an hr without me getting a tap. Just
to far out. A guy name Jim to left said why don't
you grab one of my rods of my truck and give it a
shot. Their just too far out for you to reach with
the fly. When in Vegas!!! Took 3keepers and released.
Lost one of Jim's rigs. Felt bad and wanted to give
him the cash for a replacment. Said forget about it.
Left the rod back at his truck and slipped 10dlrs
under the wiper. Jim if you read this thanks for
making my night. I'll take north of the Dixon line
anytime. p.s. another surf guy came over and gave
me a styrofoam pad with about 6flies attched. He
found it washed up on the rocks. Must of fallen
off one of the fly boy's boats. A couple of large
yellow eyed clousers, crease fly and white /blue deciever. Someone could use some tying lessons!

[fmw]

You are right that there were plenty of nice people there and cooperation. There was a guy on one side of me and we helped each other land fish on several occassions, enjoyed some nice banter, etc. However, it was extremely crowded and there were plenty of jerks. At one point when it was almost dark, a guy got directly behind me and was casting over my head. I thought he was going to put a diamond jig into my neck. In another instance, when I had a fish run to my right I let a guy next to me know and said "look out." His response to me was "I've been here three hours." What did that matter -- my fish was in front of him. Like a fool he cast and instantly was tangled in my fish. Is this the type of behavior that would lead the locals to use the word "googan"?

[jpuris]

Ughhhhh... Am I the only one who has not been out? I missed last weekend but I'll be out this weekend.....I hope!

[peteD]

Frank,

I was in RI this weekend, but I've been on that beach in the insanity. Sometimes the best thing to do is hike south. Most of those guy won't walk far, and usually the fish will show there as well. I hope to get out this weekend and if its nutty I'll be south and out on the rocks.

[fmw]

Yes. I spent a good amount of time on the south side on rocks around Browns, the Sewer Pipe and Kings. There was often a steady pick of fish there and some blitzes. No crowds at all. Easy to fly fish if you could get perched on a rock. Was only on the north side Sunday afternoon because it was convenient for taking a quick last look before heading home for the weekend and because it truly was a large and continuous blitz that was way more intense than anything I saw on the south side.

[venture]

After listening to both Frank and Pete speak about the south side versus the north side, I'm happy to say that some things never change. Even 30 years ago, the surfcasting from the north side was always a hostile place when compared to the south side or the "Fort" as we called it.

Maybe one of the reasons for this is that the south side, the tough white water at Browns, the deep wading at Kings, and the long walk to the Caswells and Coconuts attracted the loner, the adventurous, the very keen. The north side attracted the masses which always developed into a mob scene on the weekends. The keen fisherman didn't tolerate those conditions. If there was a north side blitz, we used to park our vehicles high on the beach, away from the water either at the North Bar or Jones's Reef and amuse ourselves by watching the fisherman crawl all over eachother.

There was always that one guy who would always fish up-current, all the way to the left of the mob, but when he hooked a fish, he'd yell "coming through" and he'd weave over and under each line, yelling and screaming at each guy to "watch out", until he was on the otherside of the entire mob. Then he'd pick-up, go all the way upcurrent, and repeat the whole damn thing while everyone else was busy yelling and defending their inch. I'm sure that guy is still there. Or the guy throwing a 3/4oz rebel into a stiff wind, crossing over 10 lines on a bad cast. For some strange reason, no matter how many enraged guys cut him off, he managed to find another little rebel to put on and within two more casts, wind up in another mess with the same guys. I am sure he's still there too, if no one drowned him yet.

On those days, we didn't fish, we just watched and laughed, and waited for the ambulance to arrive especially if big bluefish were blitzing.

The north side was always for fishing during the week, if you wanted to fish there at all. The south side was the place to go. During the day we'd camp in our trucks on the cliffs, and at night we'd fish the reefs. It's good to see that things haven't changed, even in thirty years.

[peteD]

Howie,

I have heard that you should fish the north side on outgoing and the south on incoming. I'm not sure if its true, but I noticed that if they are catching them on the north, soon or later they show up on the south. Has that been your experience?

[venture]

Pete, I haven't fished the Montauk surf in over 25 years, although my surf fishing continued on Martha's Vineyard through the eightys. But I do remember some of the rules that we used at Montauk.

North Side:
North Bar / False Point (Bar) - Fish on outgoing only. The False Point is also good on north east blow when fishable.

Jone's Reef - Fish here on the changing tide.

Scotts - Incoming tide

The light - Incoming - best. Outgoing, sometimes, but north bar/false point usually better.

My favorite place on the north side was always Scotts. I hooked many a big fish there, and man are they tough in that rough water expecially when there is a good tide moving. There were a few rocks you could get up on if the water let you, and I can remember some nights when I was into some fish into the forties on that rock.


South side : We always fished the south side on outgoing starting at half tide to the bottom ebb, and from the ebb to the mid tide on outgoing. We did this because on the low water, we could wade or swim to the outer rocks on the reefs and fish from those vantage points. We found that the outer rocks off Kings and Caswells put our casts right into the wholes that are just off the reefs.

Browns was a different story. Because there are no real rocks on the outer edges of that reef, you could fish it at the top of the tides by just standing on a high inshore rock without other rocks infront of you. We also used to fish browns for big fish, in the white water with big white swimmers like Danny's and Big White Atom swimmers. We also fished bucktails at the light during the day and during the week only. Too much of a crowd at the north side.
We fished the north side with Stan Gibbs plugs like darters, needlefish, bottle plugs and water loaded red fins (like rebels). On the south side we fished swimmers like Dannys,Big Atoms, and Junior Atoms, along with the Gibbs lures and Red Fins.

Let me know if things have changed. Somehow, I can't imagine that they have. Howie

[peteD]

Howie,

Thanks. I haven't had the chance to fish it as much as you, but I'm trying. This was really terrific information and if the weather cooperates this week I'll take another crack at it. Thanks again.