Maybe Tonight Fishing Charters » Long Island Fishing Charters- Striped Bass Fishing Charters Fishing Fire Island

Great South Bay Bluefish Invasion

Capt Paul — Mon, 14 May 2012 08:08:10 PDT

I fished a solo evening trip over this past weekend with the hope of finding some of the “mythical” Great South Bay weakfish. Pulled out of the marina at 5:30pm and arrived at my first location right on time. The ebb current was just beginning to build on this particular back bay location.

Unfortunately, a big northwest breeze was also building and combined with the amazing amount of slipgut weed the area was virtually un-fishable. Tucked into some lee and found the first signs of life as bluefish were hammering my offerings soon as they hit the water. The weed was also a problem here so it was off to another location.

Next location offered some relief from the weed and the bluefish were THICK here. Had as many as my arms could take before moving on. With the darkness now starting to take hold, I moved under the Robert Moses bridge span. Fishing bucktails and plastics on leadheads around the bridge stanchions produced more of the same bluefish. After a bunch more of them I had had enough so with tired arms I cut the night short around 10pm and headed back to the yard.

There are definately stripers in the Fire Island area and there may have even been some weakfish, but on this trip the bluefish were the rulers of the day as you just could not get anything past them. No complaints, it was a lot of fun and it turned out to be a nice night as the wind laid off some. Good time

Tight Lines.........
Capt Paul Mandella
captpaul@maybetonightcharters.com
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Fire Island Fishing Report- Striped Bass and Bluefish Action

Capt Paul — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 06:34:05 PDT

I snuck out for an evening run on Saturday night with eyes on stripers. Left the dock approximately 7pm and headed across the Great South Bay into a pretty stiff W/SW wind. Seems the 15 – 20+kt winds have been blowing the entire month of April.

I fished several locations back inside the bay but the infamous Fire Island slipgut weed shut that down in a hurry. This stuff seems to get worse each Spring the past few years.

Made a move to the Robert Moses bridge and fished the shadow lines and bridge pilings with bucktails and lead-head/trailer combos for the rest of the night. I managed to find 4 small stripers that combined together may have weighed 16lbs. Bluefish also made their presence known by cleaning biting off the plastic tails directly BEHIND the hook!! Not sure how they do that so consistently.

As the current turned to incoming I anchored up on a dropoff and found some more the bluefish ruling this area.

Overall, while the fish sizes were not what we would all like to see, it was still a decent night action wise despite the relentless winds. It was very good to see the water temps were up 7 degrees this week and that will surely help in the coming days.

We are off and running in the Fire Island area. Add to the stripers and blues the fact that Fluke season opens on 5/1. Only gets better from here

Tight Lines.........
Capt Paul Mandella
captpaul@maybetonightcharters.com
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Fire Island Fishing- A Mixed Bag Today

Capt Paul — Sat, 21 Apr 2012 19:15:32 PDT

Departed the marina this morning around 10:30am and ran into some pretty decent fog on the Great South Bay. Took it nice and easy going across and thankfully there was not too much other traffic. Arrived at Fire Island Inlet right at the start of the ebb current. The water in the area is CRYSTAL clear this Spring and is actually the clearest I can EVER remember seeing in this area. Very cool to see but the fact of the matter is once the water warms up we’ll get the blooms and we will be back to our normal 2-3ft visibility.

10ft deep and seeing the bottom in gin clear water

Started out on some flats with light plugs and plastics but the slipgut weed was fouling the baits in no time. I made a move just outside the inlet and there was some cleaner water free of the weed. Saw shoals of bait in the rips but only managed to pull one little striper.

With current peaking I anchored up on some pieces inside and doled out the chum. I found several different species except for the one I was looking for. Had a pretty nice fluke take a bait, it was short and the season is closed for them so back he went. Later on a nice blackfish joined in the mix.

Good ol' Chisel Tooth

This guy was right on the 16-17inch range, of course the season is closed on them as well, back HE went. The usual skates, sea robins and crabs also put in appearances.

Ended Up a Sunny Day on Great South Bay

Interesting day fish wise as it got to the point where I didn’t know what was coming up next but it ended up being beautiful out there once the fog burned off. First sunburn of the 2012 season and loving it!!

Tight Lines.........
Capt Paul Mandella
captpaul@maybetonightcharters.com
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2012 Long Island Fishing Season Starting Point

Capt Paul — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 08:42:05 PDT

As the old saying goes, “Ya gotta start somewhere”. So, with that said I started the 2012 Long Island Fishing and Boating season on Saturday 4/7 by getting the boat out of the driveway and back into the water where she’s now ready to chase after those Fire Island striped bass, bluefish, etc.

We’ve been having some wonderful weather around Long Island considering the date on the calendar. Temperatures into the high 60s have been pretty common since early March. Sorry to say that Saturday morning had the thermometer reading 39 when I got outside to get ready for the boat hauler. A decent Northwest breeze was blowing as well making it feel even cooler.

Heading to the Water for the 2012 Fishing Season

Mike from M&L Marine in Patchogue NY was right on time (as usual) for our 9am appointment. In no time at all he had the Maybe Tonight loaded on the trailer and off we went to the Smith Point County Boat Ramp. The launch went smoothly, the motors fired right up and hummed beautifully.

Eased out of the marina and into the channel of the Narrows and then onto Great South Bay. Nice and easy to start making sure the motors were good and warmed up. Jumped the boat up on plane and cruised down the Great South Bay on the way to the slip in Seaborn Marina in Bay Shore.

Thanks to Capt Paul Peluso for the picture of us backing off the trailer

Of course before heading to Seaborn I just had to take a detour down around the Fire Island Inlet area for a little recon. The inlet itself showed signs of the shoaling that has been well documented this winter. It was very obvious that some pieces were going to be high and dry on the lower tidal stages. Running back through West Channel and the flounder fleet we even got to see one of the boats land a nice flattie. It was awesome being back on the water despite the chilly morning and I was very happy with how the boat ran.

It won’t be long now before the moby sized stripers are prowling the local waters and I’m looking forward to being out there when they show.

Tight Lines.........
Capt Paul Mandella
captpaul@maybetonightcharters.com
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2012 Long Island Fishing Season Growing Near

Capt Paul — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 08:38:03 PDT

It’s March 21 2012 as I write this and the weather forecast is for record breaking WARM temperatures on Long Island reaching into the 80s. Truth be told, the weather for the entire winter has been very tolerable. There was none of the large snowstorms and bitter cold we experienced during the previous two winters. For me, personally, this is a GOOD thing. I guess if you are a skier, not so good.

Even with the extremely mild winter we had leading into the month of March I was hesitant to jump the gun of removing the boat’s winter cover. I’ve been burned in the past by a late season snowstorm hitting us AFTER taking the cover off so I was still skeptical.

When the thermometer hit 70 this past weekend I had seen enough and decided it was time. With the tugging of a couple of bungees cords, and the swift pull of the canvas, off the cover came. I was able to get some of the punch list items started and get the parts ordered for the motor’s.

Spring in here on Long Island and not a minute to soon as there are already bunker in the western bays, reports of stripers on schools of mackerel in the ocean and flounder being caught in the creeks. I am planning an early April launch. Another season on the beautiful Great South Bay is at hand.

Getting Ready for the Long Island Striper Season

Winter is OVER!!!!

Tight Lines.........
Capt Paul Mandella
captpaul@maybetonightcharters.com
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Fishing Reels for Striped Bass Bluefish and Other Local Saltwater Species

Capt Paul — Mon, 05 Mar 2012 07:16:54 PST

I recently received two separate inquiries over on my Youtube channel asking for my opinion on some quality reels for striped bass fishing on my local waters. After considering my answer on this subject it became apparent that it was too lengthy of a discussion for the Youtube messaging feature. With this in mind, I decided to create the following video describing some of my favorite reels, both spinning and conventional, for my fishing on my local waters.

This video discusses Quantum’s Cabo line of spinning reels as well as the fancy (and expensive) Van Staal reels. The video offers alternative suggestions of some older spinning reel models that have served me well.

I also speak about some quality conventional reels, new and old, that are my go to choices for live baiting and casting large artificial lures. Shimano’s Tekota, Penn’s International series and Penn’s old 980 Mag are among my choices here.

Some of my other reels that did not get on the video but are very suitable for this type of fishing are Penn’s 525 Mag, Garcia Amabassdor series as well as the Daiwa Sealine SL-X30SHA.

The 2012 fishing season is rapidly approaching here on Long Island and I hope this video helps those who may be searching for that new reel for the upcoming season.

Tight Lines.........
Capt Paul Mandella
captpaul@maybetonightcharters.com
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Favorite Fish Hooks for Striped Bass Bluefish Fluke and Weakfish

Capt Paul — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 08:36:59 PST

During the course of my fishing season here on Long Island I use several different models and sizes of hooks in the fishing rigs I use for targeting striped bass, bluefish, weakfish and fluke. Mustad, Gamakatsu and Owner are among the manufacturers I use.

I love fishing live baits for striped bass but at different times of the season a mix of cut and soft baits will be used for them as well. Live baits are also effective for me during the summer months when fluke and summer-run weakfish are the targets.

The hooks in the following video have worked well for me over the years and I hope those of you reading this find something of use for your saltwater fishing as well.

Tight Lines.........
Capt Paul Mandella
captpaul@maybetonightcharters.com
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LIVE Streaming Video Live Fishing Action from Fire Island Inlet

Capt Paul — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 10:51:03 PST

I have always loved technology and am constantly dabbling with all the latest and greatest toys as they hit the market. A few years back I ran across sites that introduced the ability to stream live video broadcasts over the Internet. I looked at a couple of different providers before finally signing on for U-Stream’s service. At the time it sounded amazing but, for me personally, the promise was far greater than the delivery.

My goal was to broadcast live from the boat but quickly found the resources required just were not feasible on a boat in the marine environment. I’d need a laptop ($$$) with web-cam attached to go along with a wireless air-card (more $$$) to provide adequate bandwidth for the streaming video. I just could not justify the costs of the hardware and monthly service charge for the air-card.

Fast forward to today. The smart-phones of today with their 4g wireless Internet have upped their game and brought this idea back to the surface for me. Add to the fact that U-Stream has introduced an app (there’s an APP for that!!!) that enables their streaming service on the I-Phone and Droid devices. COOL!!! U-Stream also made it VERY easy to incorporate my video Channel on the Maybe Tonight Charters Facebook page as well as right here on my website.

So, I am VERY psyched to announce that I am going to give this live feed thing the old college try. Some initial tests I’ve done were pretty surprising at the quality of the video when sent from my phone. Hey, it’s surely not a Blu-Ray display but for what it is, it’s pretty neat!!!

LIVE From the AC Boat Show

With that said, I have plans to visit the Atlantic City Boat Show on Saturday Feb 4th and am going to have a go with the first LIVE event that morning while strolling the floor of the show. It remains to be seen what sort of cell service I will have while in the Convention Center but with any service at all I will be coming to you LIVE from the show.

If you’d like to catch the BETA trial run you can find the stream on the Maybe Tonight Charters Facebook page or right here on my website. The Facebook option offers the ability for commenting so if you’d like to see a particular boat at the show I’ll be watching the comments and will take a stroll past as many of the requests as I can before the battery in the phone dies!!!

I am very much looking forward to seeing how this all works. With any luck at all the next step will be LIVE from the Great South Bay !!!

Tight Lines.........
Capt Paul Mandella
captpaul@maybetonightcharters.com
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How To Tie Your Fishing Line to your Spinning Reel Spool

Capt Paul — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 08:54:10 PST

Time for New Fishing Line

Winter is moving along here on Long Island and with it so are my off-season tackle maintenance tasks. After the clean up chores on the rods and reels it’s time to get new fishing line back on the reels. Spooling all these reels is a chore and anything I can do to save some time is well worth it.

The following video represents the method I’ve used for tying my line to the spool of my spinning reels since I was a kid chasing sunnies down at the local ponds. I have tried many other methods I’ve seen over the years but always come back to this one. For connecting my monofilament and braided fishing line to my spinning reels this works best for me. I hope it helps someone out there.
Maybe Tonight Charters YouTube Channel

Tight Lines.........
Capt Paul Mandella
captpaul@maybetonightcharters.com
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2012 Long Island Fishing and Boat Show Calendar Dates

Capt Paul — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 12:46:17 PST

It's SHOW TIME!!!!

Happy New Year to EVERYONE!! After a pretty nice December where we had some historically warm weather, the New Year is off to a bad start here on Long Island. It is currently 15 degrees outside with a wind chill factor down around 5!! I’ve had enough of Winter already and we’ve only just started.

One upside to the Winter season are all of the Fishing and Boating shows that visit the Long Island area. I’m sure there are others that I have missed on the following calendar but these are the ones that I have always enjoyed attending and usually get to most of them every year. The next best thing to getting on the boat and fishing is checking out the new products from the boating and fishing industry at these shows. Have fun!!!

As in the past I would suggest you visit the websites included for each event below for further details.

January 4-8: New York National Boat Show at Jacob Javits Convention Center Manhattan New York www.nyboatshow.com

January 6-8: Long Island Recreational Fishing Expo at the North Amityville Firehouse, 601 North Broadway (Route 110) in Amityville

February 1-5 Atlantic City Boat Show at Atlantic City Convention Center, Atlantic City New Jersey www.acboatshow.com

February 3-5: Long Island Recreational Fishing Expo at the Marriott Islandia. More details at www.lifishingexpo.com

February 3-5: Long Island Boat Show, Nassau Coliseum, Uniondale NY

February 5: Rte 110 Fishing Flea Market, Camelot Hall 585 Broadhollow Road, Melville NY 9am-3pm

February 17-19: NY Sportfishing Federation Forum & Auction at the Freeport Recreation Center Freeport, NY – www.nysf.org

Feb 25-26: Suffolk County Boat & Sportfishing Show, Suffolk Community College Sports & Exhibition Center. Brentwood, NY

Feb. 26: East Meadow Fishing Flea Market, TEMPLE EMANU-EL, 123 MERRICK AVE, East Meadow NY. 9AM-4PM

March 1-4 World Fishing and Outdoor Exposition at Rockland Community College Suffern NY http://sportshows.com/suffern/

March 16-18 Somerset Saltwater Fishing Expo at the Garden State Exhibit Center Somerset, NJ http://sportshows.com/somerset/

Tight Lines.........
Capt Paul Mandella
captpaul@maybetonightcharters.com
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