Friends Of The Housatonic River

Long Island Sound and its many tributary rivers are alive with Striped Bass.  The much anticipated spring run is finally upon us and from it early indicators, it has all the makings of one which will long be remembered. A strong reemergence of the Blue Back Herring run in our local rivers and large, early season schools of Menhaden (Bunker) in all our Shorelines Ports and Harbors, have Hungry Bass and Bluefish feeding aggressively and local anglers are loving every minute of it!
Anglers have had no trouble finding Bass ranging from 24 to 48 inches at all the usual hotspots with the most consistent action being reported from Bridgeport Harbor, New Haven Harbor, Penfield Reef, Smith's Point and Buoys 18 and 20.
 Bass have been striking surface plugs, Swimmers and vertical jigs with some regularity, but fresh, chunked bait such as Bunker, Mackerel, scup, squid or Hickory Shad almost guarantee some action.  Live lining Bunker, Shad or Eels is also a great way to hook up with some trophy size fish.
   Quite a few early season Bluefish have been caught mixed in with the schools of Striped Bass.  Most of the Blues have been of the 2-4 pound harbor variety, although several in the 10 to 12 pound class have also been brought to port.
   Shelton High school Teachers, Rob Darby, Jeff Roy, Mike Nolan and Mike Staples reported excellent action at the Devon Bridges in the Housatonic River Thursday night. The crew captained by Rob Darby landed Bluefish up to 10 pounds and Stripers up to 25 pounds.
   Dennis and Danny Bobbie of Seymour along with Larry Pellegrino of Ansonia had an excellent weekend fishing. The three anglers fished off Middle Ground lighthouse, landing Blues up to 10 pounds and several keeper Bass with the biggest measuring 37 inches.    
  South Central Connecticut Regional Water Authority reported in with the results from the Maltby Kids Fishing Derby which was held on May 16th
Giana Padillo, age 4, took the grand prize with her 12 inch Rainbow Trout, as did 
Ben Mustakos, age 8, with his 12 inch catfish.   Finishing in 1st place were Mitchell O'Neill, age 10, with a 9.25 inch yellow perch and Isabella Padilla, age 10, with a 10.75 inch rainbow trout.  Camaron Jenkins, age 10, came in second with a 8.5 inch yellow perch, as did
Danny Miller, age 6, with his 11.75 inch yellow perch.  Prizes consisting of fishing tackle were awarded to all the winners and 23 children participated in the event. 
   At Lake Saltonstall in New Haven, the Walleye action has been hot with the biggest fish of the week being caught by David Kramer of Woodbridge. Dave's Walleye measured 27 inches and weighed in at 6.75 pounds. 
 That is going to do it for this week.  Don't forget to send your reports and pictures to leonsly65@hotmail.com  GO FISH is now available online at hersamacorn.com and twitter. (fishingreporter)
Until next time..  Tight lines!