Beginner / Freshwater / Saltwater / Extra

NYC Saltwater

Summarizing NYC saltwater fishing is difficult. The easiest way to break it down are the main bodies of water and species that inhabit those areas. You've got the East River, Hudson River, Jamaica Bay, New York Harbor, Rockaway's and New York Bight. NYC works like a fish highway and transitional zone for migratory fish along the Atlantic coast. While there are Resident fish that inhabit NYC year round, the fishery is mainly migratory species during the Spring - Fall. NYC is also used as a spawning ground for many of these migratory species. Depending on the water temperature and bait forage, each year will be slightly different from the previous. 

I would consider visiting each of these main bodies of water to see which one you relate to, or is the closest access to where you live. This will give you more time on the water and practice. Once you have an area selected, pick a species you'd like to target and go fish!

How To Fish NYC Piers With Shrimp (Saltwater)

Shrimp is the ultimate universal bait and a great starting ground for NYC saltwater fishing. It works across the world in both freshwater and saltwater. There are a lot of baits that will work on the NYC piers but for saving money, Shrimp is the best. You can also get it at pretty much any grocery store throughout the city. Keep it frozen and store it till the next time you fish. 

You can also catch the widest variety of species with Shrimp. I personally do not salt shrimp, but some people will to make it firm and stay on the hook longer. Fish seem to sense amino acids stronger without the salt layer. Take the shell off the shrimp before putting it on the hook. This will increase the scent and softer for the fish to eat.

My favorite NYC Shrimp setup is a high low rig with 20lb Fluorocarbon leader, 3oz sinker and size #1 hooks. This setup is great for most species in NYC, but if you are targeting Striped Bass you'll need to switch to in-line circle hooks. The high low rig works excellent in fast current like the East River. This setup will be heavy enough to pull in most fish but light enough to target the smaller species. If you want to fish for smaller species, I like to switch to a size #6 hook. And then if you want to target slightly larger species, I like to switch to a 1/0- 3/0 hook. For Striped Bass and Bluefish I would recommend a Size 3/0 - 5/0 (schoolies) and 5/0 - 9/0 (larger bass and bluefish). 

Daiwa 20lb Flourocarbon Leader - Link

Owner Size #1 Hook - Link

Owner Cutting Point Size #6 Hook - Link

Owner Size #1/0 Hook - Link

ECOFT Lead Free Fishing Weight 2.8oz - Link

ECOFT Assorted Weight Lead Free Fishing Kit - Link

Mustad Demon Perfect In-line Circle Hook 3/0 (Schoolie Striper) - Link

Owner SSW In-line Circle Hook 8/0 (Striper & Big fish) - Link

How To Fish The East River NYC

The East River connects Long Island Sound and New York harbor. An easier way to look at it is a Tidal Strait. While it is similar to a Canal system, the East River is a naturally created estuary with a Bi-Directional flow of tidal current. In addition to flow from both sides, the East River is a drainage point for sewage in NYC. The majority of storm drain sewers discharge into the East River from the city. While there are efforts to clean the river, it is well known that it is heavily polluted daily by discharge.

So how do you fish it?

Unless you are fishing the top of the water column, I would leave your expensive lures at home. The bottom of the East River is full of snags, metal debris, city bikes (yes) and all kinds of garbage. I would focus on bottom rigs like the High Low, Knocker, Drop Shot, Fish Finder and Carolina.

My favorite bait is Shrimp in the East River. Worms are great too. Lures are fun at night for Striped Bass but not very productive during the day. Once the ferry boat traffic starts in the morning, most of the game fish will retreat to deeper water or structure such as piers, docks and landings. Then at night, the boat traffic slows down and the game fish come back out to feed. 

This does not mean you cannot catch predator game fish during the day but they are less active when the boat traffic is heavy. 

I would think less about "Spots" in the East River and more Tidal Movement, Water Temperature and Tidal Coefficient. 

I used to think certain species would hold in certain spots but this is not true. The fish move around, alot. So it is best to pattern the stages of the tide when you notice the bite is active. 

One day you might be fishing a pier and on a very good Tautog bite. However within that same week you get closer and closer to a full moon. As the Tidal Coefficient increases, so does the range of the water height in the river. That same spot might not provide enough water depth at low tide for the Tautog to feed anymore, or the speed of the current might have increased too fast for them to hold on at high tide. So you would need to adjust your spots as you get closer to the full moon in conjunction with the species of fish you are targeting, ya dig?

OR. You fish that same spot and adjust to target a different species. 

For example: as you approach that full moon, the Tautog might not be able to hold in the fast current. They decide to move BUT the new full moon tide is ideal for game fish like Striped Bass or Bluefish to feed on. So you switch target species and adjust strategy around the tide. 

The same adjustments need to be made for Water Temperature in the East River. In the Winter the water does not freeze but it can get cold. The resident fish will either swim deeper or move to areas with warmer water discharge. 

You can also look at the thermal insulation of structures made of wood vs. rock & concrete. Because the East river is in constant development, many of the old structures are made of wood and many of the new structures are made of rock & Concrete. The fish adapt seasonally to water temperature and will move between these structures to find ideal conditions.

The wooden structures will retain and heat up quicker in the Spring. Conversely at a certain point in the Summer, the rock structure will heat up and retain heat longer because of higher thermal mass (heats up and cools down slower). Once you learn the ideal conditions of the species you are targeting you can use these variables to narrow and locate the fish. 

The rain also changes the behavior of the fish in the East River. The increase and decreasing barometric pressure during rain storms will change the swim bladder and feeding pattern of the fish. As it rains in the East River, the atmospheric oxygen falls and combines with the water. This increases the dissolved oxygen levels and interest for the fish to swim shallow. 

This is easier to wrap your head around in a pond, but slightly different in the East River. When it rains, the NYC sewer system drains untreated water from the city streets directly into the river. So you have to think about it a little differently. 

After a heavy rain, the shallows get muddy from the sewer outflow. This also changes the salinity levels (dissolved salts in the water). So depending on how much it rains, the saltwater species will seek cleaner water. Same goes for an offshore storm in the Atlantic ocean. It might be clear sky's in NYC but the incoming tide brings cloudy dirty water from the New York Harbor. So it is best to plan your trips around the changes of the weather and tides. 

Simple East River Rig: Use Shrimp for Bait and a High Low rig

Owner Cutting Point Size #6 Hook -Link

ECOFT Lead Free Fishing Weight 2.8oz - Link

Daiwa 20lb Flourocarbon Leader - Link

Power Pro Super Slick V2 20lb Aqua Green Braid - Link

How To Catch NYC Tautog (Blackfish)

Even though Tautog are a structure oriented species, they move around a lot in the East River. And one thing to remember is they are asleep at night. They will use the last moments of sunset to retreat to holes and safe cover from predators. 

As the sun rises in the morning the Tautog wake up and begin to feed. They may also wake up and move to better conditions. Then feed at an ideal tide.

That is one of the perks of fishing for Tautog. You don't need to wake up early to catch them, if anything you will be more successful understanding what tide they are feeding on. This will change roughly one hour per day. There are two high tides, and two low tides in the 24hr 50min lunar day, not a solar day (24hrs).

You can catch tautog with artificial lures but if you are going to target them, I would stick to bait.

Soft baits can work great when the water is cold in the Spring: Shrimp, clam, mussels, worms. 

Hard baits work great when the water is cooling off in the Fall: Green crab, Sand flea (mole crab), Shore crab, Blue Crab

Jig vs. Rig

For shallow water 30ft and under, the jig will usually work better because the presentation looks natural and sits on the bottom.  However the East River has a constant bi-directional tidal flow. So while you may get an opportunity to use a jig during the slack tide, in general you can only use jigs when the tide is moving slow. Usually on a half moon phase with a 75 and below tidal coefficient. There are certain areas that have breaks and cuts in the structure to allow jigs during fast tides, but my general rule is that once the tidal coefficient starts moving past 80, its time to switch to a rig.

For fast current and deeper water 30ft +, I would use a rig. While the jig is fun and often more productive, I have caught nicer fish on the rig. I think the reason behind that, is the bigger tog can swim in the fast current. The high low rig seems to perform best but you can experiment. For a more low profile presentation, you can use a single hook on the bottom and skip the top hook. One dropper loop instead of two.

When To Set The Hook

With enough time on the water you will build a natural sense of when to set the hook for Tautog. They have particular thump in the Fall season when they are feeding aggressively as the water cools down from Summer. Conversely, a very light tap in the Spring when the water is cold from Winter. It can be helpful to watch your line movement. When the fish thumps your bait and you see your line moving, set the hook. This usually means the fish has the bait in its mouth and is swimming away. So you've got a window of opportunity to set the hook. If you give the fish enough time, it'll drop the bait. You have to think quick. 

In some cases it may not make sense to set the hook at all. When the Tautog are finicky, they might not touch a moving line. This is usually the case in very slow current. If you notice the taps stop but you feel like the fish are still there, lean the rod on the rail and dead stick it. Less fun, but very productive in the right scenario. When you see the taps start, slowly pick up your rod and set the hook. 

How To Jig Striped Bass With Soft Plastic Lures

Early in the Spring and late in the Fall the Striped bass will often feed very shallow. This is a great time to jig soft plastics. 

I have noticed a "twitch", pause and "snap" to your cadence makes a very big difference. There is a time and place for a straight retrieve but 9/10 times the striped bass will strike on the pause and fall of the bait. You'll get that semi-slack line, a "Thump" and then you set the hook. 

One way to build "snap" cadence into your retrieve would be to count while you reel in. Similar to drumming. 

Cast out your line, let your lure hit the water. Start your retrieve...

As you reel in, on every third or fourth rotation of the spool incorporate a twitch to your wrist or snap to the line. Kinda like cracking a whip

Then reel in a few cranks, and "snap". Count it out, taking a few cranks and rotations on the spool. Then "snap"...Back to normal cranking rotation on the reel. Repeat.

As you do this the lateral line on the striped bass will get triggered and it will sense commotion nearby. 

Bait fish will twitch and move in the current when they are wounded. And the striper will pick up on any vibrations nearby that might indicate forage. So by "snap" jigging your retrieve, you are basically calling the fish in like a whistle at the end of your line. 

Once the fish is called in, they will usually follow the lure and nose it before striking. This is when the "pause" part of the snap and semi-slack in your line gives the striper an opportunity to strike. 

How To Catch Porgy On Artificial Lures

Jigging for Porgy (Scup) is where it is at. I have caught many large Porgy with this method. They love small metal jigs tipped with Gulp! Hogy minnow jigs, Epoxy jig's, tiny Bucktail's. Replace the treble hook and use a size #2 Single hook and the Gulp! Sand worm. Break off smaller 2-3" pieces of the sandworm to tip your hook with.

Cast out and let your jig hit the bottom. With a semi-slack line snap the jig off the bottom replicating a wounded minnow, sandworm, or crustacean. Let the jig fall back to the bottom and repeat. Try and be inconsistant with your snaps, the Porgy will often follow the jig for a while before grabbing it on the drop. 

Gulp! Sandworm Camo Color - Link

VMC In-line #2 Single Hook Replacement - Link

Hogy Heavy Minnow Jig 14g Pink - Link

Hogy Epoxy Jig Pink 5/8oz - Link

Daiwa 15lb Flourocarbon Leader - Link

Power Pro Super Slick V2 15lb Aqua Green Braid - Link

How To Fish The Knocker Rig

The Knocker rig is a very simple bottom rig. A sliding egg weight and a hook is all you need. In this video we go over how to dig sand fleas and use the knocker rig. 

To make a knocker rig: Slide the egg weight onto your leader. Tie your leader to your hook. The weight should be able to slide and "knock" the hook side. The idea is that the weight is free from the hook so the fish can pick up your bait without detecting the sinker. 

Simple Knocker Rig for NYC:

1oz egg sinker - Link

Owner SSW #1 Hook - Link

Daiwa 20lb Flourocarbon Leader - Link

Power Pro Super Slick V2 20lb Aqua Green Braid - Link

How To Catch NYC Summer Flounder (Fluke)

The Summer Flounder (Fluke) season marks the firm start to the NYC fishing season. Once they show up in late April, the weather begins to warm and your good to go for the rest of the season.

Fluke spawn off shore during the Fall and Winter. Then the adults return to the city in the Spring as the water warms. 

Similar to Striped Bass, the Fluke will typically enter the Bays with mud flats with warmer water and forage in the Spring. They are a fairly opportunistic feeders and will take a wide variety of bait or lures. 

Summer Flounder also have the ability to change body color from light to dark, along with different spot and blotches patterns to match environment. They are often found burrowed in the sand/mud hiding from predators and ambushing prey. 

To catch them it is best to keep your bait or lure close to the bottom. They will often rise up in shallow water to feed on the surface but spend most of the time in the bottom blending into the surrounding environment. 

Bouncing bottom with a jig works great. 

The trick is to adjust the weight of your jig to the current speed to fall naturally. If you are too heavy, it bouncing clunky and look strange. If you are too light, you float in the current and never fall low enough to reach the strike zone. 

So you have the adjust. Whether that is weight, size, shape, hair density, whatever. You should heavy enough to be able to reach bottom, but light enough to present a floating slow fall rate. The idea is you are mimicing wounded prey drifting in the current. And you want it to fall deep enough to grab the Fluke's attention. 

Once you reach bottom, slowly retrieve giving a few pops and twitches to your rod tip. 

Every few cranks let the jig fall to the bottom to ensure you are in the strike zone. Then pop the jig back up. 

When you feel the thump of the Fluke biting the jig, wait a beat, lean the rod tip forward, then set the hook back. You want to be sure the fluke has the jig in its mouth. 

Strips of bait also work great for jigging fluke. Either as a trailer on a bucktail or bottom rigged like a Carolina. 

Fresh squid, snapper, bunker, sea robbin, porgy. Many different baits stripped into long pieces work excellent for catching fluke on bottom rigs. 

Early in the season Worms work great like Sandworm and Bloodworm. They are a natural forage in the bays. 

All Summer throughout early Fall you can catch Summer Flounder until they swim off shore to spawn again in the Winter. 

Gear in the video and productive Fluke lures:

Gulp! 3" Chartreuse Swimming Mullet - Link

Gamakatsu 1/4oz Round Jig Head - Link

Gulp! Sandeel Silver Mud 5" - Link

Gulp! Sandworm 6" - Link

Power Pro V2 Super Slick 15lb - Link

Daiwa Fluorocarbon 12lb - Link

Daiwa Fluorocarbon 15lb - Link

Penn Clash II 2000 Spinning Reel - Link

Shimano Spheros 3000 Spinning Reel - Link

Gulp! 4" Swimming Mullet Dazzleberry Chrome - Link

Hogy Epoxy Jig 5/8oz Silver - Link

VMC Single Hook Replacement 2/0 - Link

How To Catch Striped Bass At Night In The East River

While the tide plays a significant role in how striped bass feed, so does the time of day. As the sun sets, the boat traffic slows down in the East River. The Ferry eventually stops running. If you arrive to the East River at Sunset to fish, the light dims and the automatic timers turn on the street lights. The pier lights turn on and the city begins to glow. 

As those lights turn on, new shadows cast and form in the East River. This creates a new ambush points for Striped Bass to feed. 

The lights often bring in bait fish attracted to the glow and will school up in the shadow lines. The Striped Bass will use the structure from the piers and pilings to stage nearby and feed on these shadow lines. Retrieving a lure across these shadow lines and swinging toward structure can line up a perfect presentation. It will often look like a wounded bait fish drifting in the current. The striper will usually be nosed into the current so floating in the same direction with your retrieve will look most natural. 

There are additional ways to retrieve your lure like bouncing bottom or casting under the pier. By casting under the pier and retrieving back you swing past the strike zone and if the bass are aggressive that night, it will work great. Bottom bouncing can be productive in slow current but you are most likely going to get snagged at some point. 

Alternatively you could soak bait. Clams, Worms, Bunker, Shrimp, Eels all work very well at night and in some cases can out perform lures. However night is one of the most fun times to use cast lures for bass. 

Best Lures for night striped bass in the East River are: 3-10" Soft plastic paddle tails on a jig head, 1/4- 1.5oz bucktail jig, 5" Zoom fluke, 5" Gulp! Jerk shad

• Extreme Paddle Tail 4.5" Purple/Chartreuse - Link

Pair with

Owner Ultrahead Saltwater Bullet 3X Strong Hook 1/2oz size 3/0 - Link

• Extreme Paddle Tail 5.5" White - Link

Pair with:

Owner Ultrahead Saltwater Bullet 3X Strong Hook 3/4oz size 5/0 - Link

• 5" Zoom Salty Fluke (white) - Link

• 5" Gulp! Jerk Shad (white) - Link

Pair Fluke and Jerk Shad with:

• Berkley Fusion 19 Swimbait Jig Head 1/2oz size 3/0 (white) - Link

• Berkley Fusion 19 Bucktail Jig 1/2oz size 4/0 (white) - Link

Pair with:

Top Bucktail Trailers - Senko, zoom fluke, jig strip, gulp! jerk shad 

• Gary Yamamoto Senko Worm 4" (black) - Link

• Zoom Salty Fluke 5" (White) - Link

• Fat Cow Jig Strip 5" (White) - Link

• Gulp! Jerk Shad 5" (White) - Link

Productive colors for night striped bass lures - Purple, Purple/Black, Purple Chartreuse, Black, White

My favorite Line/Leader for this type of fishing:

Power Pro Super Slick V2 30lb Aqua Green Braid - Link

Daiwa Fluorocarbon 30lb Leader - Link

How To Catch Porgy (Scup) In The East River

During the Winter months, porgy spend most of the time off shore before returning to NYC in the Spring.

Around Mid-May the Porgy will enter inshore and flood the city by June. They take a wide variety of baits and artificial lures. 

Early in the season worms will work best in the East River but as the water warms in late June you can begin to experiment. Take notice to the local forage. If there is an abundance of Snapper, maybe try a chunk of snapper. If there silversides in the harbor, try a silverside or replicate it with a jig. If the blue crabs are in heavy late summer, maybe try a piece of blue crab. 

I have noticed the larger porgy are locked into whatever forage is prevalent. So it can help to match the hatch with porgy, even though they will take a variety of bait. 

For affordability, use shrimp. It'll totally work throughout the season. 

When targeting larger porgy with bait, I like to use size 1/0 hooks. This will also work great in the Fall when tautog are mixed in. 

Owner SSW Needle Point Hooks Size 1/0: Link

When targeting smaller porgy a good starting point hook is Size #1 or #2. And if the bite is slow, try switching to a smaller hook like Size #6

Owner SSW Needle Point Hooks Size #1: Link

Owner SSW Needle Point Hooks Size #2: Link

Owner SSW Cutting Point Hooks Size #6: Link

Porgy are mostly bottom dwelling and structure oriented but can swim mid water column in the East River as well. I would focus on getting your hook close to or on the bottom. Try and target Porgy on pier pilings, channel drops, bridges, rocks, or any structure that provides a break in the current. 

The high low rig is the ultimate porgy setup for the East River, however you can experiment. The knocker rig works great but more prone to snags. If you can get away with a lighter weight, the drop shot works great on the slower tides. Try  1/4-3/4oz drop shot weights

1/4oz Drop shot weight: Link

3/4oz Drop shot weight: Link

How To Fish The NYC Beach and Surf

The NYC beaches are magical. For many reasons. In a city with millions of people and constant noise, it is one of the few places you can go to escape the chaos. Until peak Summer, then it gets a bit crowded.

Starting in the Winter the beaches are very quiet. On a full moon low tide, it can be helpful to examine the beach you are intending to fish. The water level will be lower than average and you can get a good look at the structure and depth. When the tide rises, you will have a better understanding of the underwater landscape.

One similarity between the city and its beaches are the constant change. The NYC beaches rest next to the lower NY bay. Not only is the bay a connection point for The East River and Hudson River. It is also a major shipping channel with a lot of daily sand displacement. 

In October 2012 Hurricane Sandy hit NYC. Since then the US Army Corps of Engineers has added over 3 and a half million cubic yards of sand to restore the beaches. 

They've changed a lot and continue to change a lot. But somehow within this change, in recent years the beaches have exploded with life. Tons of dolphin, bluefin tuna, whales, sharks, massive bird migrations. You almost can't believe you are in NYC. 

So how do you fish it if it is constantly changing?

Look for the rips. Walk the beach until you find a cut, break or rip current. These will shift and move so you have to be diligent is moving around. A typical beach fishing day is a few miles of walking.

There are times when bait will settle into sand flats, especially a sand eel hatch (sand lance). However this is only certain times of the year and a better strategy is to look for structure. Fish love structure. 

So how does structure work at the beach?

As the waves move toward the beach and break, the water needs somewhere to go back into the ocean. 

A rip current will usually cut through the first bar and is easy to spot. You'll be able to see foam, seaweed, bubbles, debris, and a zone of water that looks to be moving back toward the ocean. 

If you are looking out over the ocean from the beach, you've got a trough of water, the first sand bar, a gut/hole and then the second sand bar.  Depending on the tide, game fish will use these areas to stage next to bait fish that are disturbed and flushed out by the rip current. So rather than casting through the center of the rip, I'd suggest working the side edges. These side edges of the rip current provide relief for predator fish and ambush points to feed. The baitfish are basically getting vacuumed back out to sea and the game fish are hanging in less current ready to feed. 

This is a simple way to build a direction when approaching the beach. There are many other ways to approach it visually. I like to use other species to narrow in the bite.

If a giant school of dolphin show up, theres a good chance there are bluefish or schooling fish like striped bass they are searching for.  

I would take notice and learn how the birds feed. If you see one cormorant searching around the water and then quickly flys away. Theres a good chance there is no bait in that area. If you see twenty cormorant stacked up in an area diving around, there is probably bait. When they surface, take a look at the bait they are feeding on and match the hatch with your lure. 

If you see an Osprey flying and carrying a bunker in its claws, it might be worth it to backtrack its direction and fish that bunker school. If you see the northern gannet diving, theres bait around. The bait brings the fish around and you can use the other species to narrow in on where the bait is from the beach. 

How To Catch Bluefish in NYC

Mid-May the blues start showing up in NYC. Usually with the warming trend around the 55-58F water temp. By June they become a resident fish until around early November when they leave for warmer water. 

Bluefish swim fast and feed visually. In most cases they feed aggressively and will take a variety of lures but there are times when they will be selective. 

I've found a straight retrieve to work great for them, at a moderate to fast pace. Silver spoons and metal jigs with flash works great to grab the bluefish attention in cleaner water.  

They also like topwater lures like spooks and poppers. Work a quick and tight sweep with the spook and it will "call in" the school of bluefish to your lure. 

Great lures for targeting Bluefish: 

Heddon Super Spook 5" Bone - Link

Diamond Jig A17 with Red trailer - Link

Hogy Epoxy Jig Silverside - Link 

Super Strike Needlefish Yellow/White 6 3/8" - Link

Kastmaster 1oz Silver w/ Bucktail single hook - Link

Bucktail Berkley Fusion 19 White - Link

You can also chunk and live line for bluefish. This works excellent when you are fishing around menhaden schools.