5/7 Westport Report

[avandaalen]

Fished from my kayak off Compo/Old Mill beaches early Sunday morning, at the bottom of the tide. Beautiful morning, air temps very comfortable, but the water still really cold (I passed on the wet suit...). Had no action between 6:30 and 8:00 a.m., and then hooked into a few schoolies as the tide began to come in, using olive and white clousers and a 350 weighted line. Lots of weed/crud in the water. Saw lots of terns diving, but couldn't tell what they were catching. A number of people were working the area from boats and from shore, but I didn't see anyone catch anything, and they were all long gone by the time the action picked up.

[AndyV]

Sounds good. I've been trying Fairfield Beach/Penfield Reef area, but it's been slow.
Any ideas where I can launch my canoe?

[avandaalen]

I haven't put in down that way, but there are several places to do so in Westport. First, there's the boat ramp under I95 at the Saugatuck river (east side). Or, if the tide is high, you can park by the Capri Restaurant on Hillspoint Avenue, just by Mill Pond (parking's good for 2 hours, but I don't think they'll start timing your stay until after 9:00 AM). You can also go into Compo Beach and either launch from the boat ramp to the west, or directly from South Beach. If you go into Long Shore and find the back parking lot, you can put in right at the mouth of the Saugatuck. Study maps and drive around and you'll find plenty of spots from which to embark.

I haven't used a canoe on the Sound, but would likely stick to backwaters and calm days...