Montauk Sportfishing Report 7/6/04

7/5/04

There have been scattered reports about tuna, but nothing red hot yet.
Locally there have been a few school bluefins taken. (By locally I mean
within 30-35 miles) Out on the edge, there have been some yellowfins around
the Dip, and some bluefin way out to the east, but again, apparently no real
concentration.

The NMFS has loosened the regs on bluefin, at least until the end of the
month. We are now allowed two per boat. Throughout the month of June we were
held to only one, but I guess nobody caught one so they decided they could
take a chance and be a little more flexible. But, these regulations are
always susceptible to change. To check on their latest brainstorm you can
call 1 888 USA TUNA.

Shark fishing is continuing to be excellent with plenty of bluesharks still
around to provide action, and enough threshers and makos to add quality to
the mix. Most of the boats are fishing out to the east a bit, and south of
the thirty fathom line.

This weekend is the last of the major shark tournaments. It is sponsored by
the Montauk Boatman's and Captain's Association and will be held at Star
Island on Saturday and Sunday. All of the proceeds go toward scholarships
for local youngsters, so this is a non-profit event. The long range forecast
is calling for northwest winds, so I guess there will be no fog.

Inshore the fluke fishing is holding up very well, with lots of action.
There are a lot of shorts though, so you have to expect to catch a certain
number of those in order to get a limit of keepers. Most of the action is
out in the Midway Rips. There are also some fish just around the corner past
the lighthouse, but not much further down the beach.

Seabass fishing is till screwed up by the "horny dogs". You can catch fish,
but you have to pay the price, and that price can be a little too much,
especially if one of the horns jukes you while you are wrestling with it's
owner.

Porgies continue to surprise me. I keep catching the biggest kind of them by
accident while fluke fishing. If the dogs don't go away soon, maybe they
will be the fish to turn to for a little variety after striped bass and
fluke limits are filled.

If you would like to have these reports sent to you directly, just drop me a
note at . And for more information about
fishing in Montauk, you can give me a call at 800 280 5565 or check out
ht.//www.montauksportfishing.com.


--

Capt Gene Kelly
Tropical Fishing Adventures
Montauk Sportfishing
800 280 5565
631 668 2019