Wind, wind, wind will be the theme of the week. This will give all of our boat fisherman a bit of a pause. We are looking at average winds of 15-20 from the East. We’ll have a bit of a reprieve on Sunday, but otherwise, it sounds like mother nature is doing her thing.  Wind should not dissuade anyone from fishing, it should just make you think a little more about how you are going to approach a fishery.

Many beach guys like the wind, so long as it doesn’t completely inhibit the way you cast.  Albies for one often eat into the wind and as a result, they sometimes sit in the break just like Stripers. Well, it’s a little different, Stripers love oxygen rich water where they can ambush their bait.  Albies are super fast and follow their bait.  When the wind is pushing the smaller bait that Albies are keyed in on, towards the beach, they will follow.    Our boat guys need to be a little more thoughtful in their fishing though process.  Wind like this will muddy the water and create a tough circumstance for fisherman.  That’s if you can even get to the fish with the wind that is presenting itself.  Stay in the lea the best you can and target some of the more stable fisheries, such as great point and Madaket harbor if you can.

Albie fishing last week was pretty good.  It has slowed a bit this week, which is too bad, but we still have 68 degree water and tons of bait. Perhaps we are just seeing waves of fish pushing through.  Guys who are spending some time in the offshore rips are seeing tons of Albies, so we expect these fish are pushing in and out. Unfortunately, we have not seen many fish in Madaket, which is usually our other predictable fishery.  Madaket has plenty of bait, so we don’t have a great explanation for it, but the whole west end, including the Vineyard has had a slower Albie and Bonito season.  With this being the case, let’s hope Great Point stays as productive as it has been!

From the beach, the guys at Great Point and on the east side of the Island have had a great pick at Albies.  Fish have been on the inside of Great Point, all of the way form Coatue to the Point and they run down the east side from the point to Sconset.  Use a bigger metal or Epoxy with a light leader for your best results.

Before the wind, the Bass fishing from the beach has stayed steady and even gotten better.  Guys on the South Shore have done extremely well on all tides, but the end of the incoming has been the most productive.  Use bombers or big soft baits and fish them slowly.  This week I was on The beach with my daughter swimming and a great friend showed up to surf cast. He was 30 feet from me, and sure enough he hooked into a 32 inch fish on his second cast. I’ve never seen a fish caught from the waters perspective- that was awesome!

The harbor has also seen an increase in the number of fish. Not many people are fishing it these days, but those who are, have seen decent activity.  As the water temps cool, expect this fishery to get really good.  Remember that Scallopers will be out in full force at low tide and this will spook fish like crazy, so time your fish appropriately.

Bluefish are thinning out a bit, but when targeting them, exclusively, you’re sure to find some good fish and there are still plenty of 10+ pound fish here.  These fish are on the east side and Tom Nevers this time of year.

We have a few more weeks of the Inshore Classic and the response this year has been so much fun. Look at the IH&M website for the results, it’s really fun to track daily and to see who you know are catching fish.  It’s especially fun to have so many youth anglers involved.  Thank you to the parents for making this happen.  There is nothing more rewarding than seeing a young one catch, catch and catch some more.  Despite the weather, the fish will need to eat, so don’t be shy and go wet a line!