kenney abrames Archives

South County, Rhode Island – Eastern Fly Fishing

Among saltwater anglers you’ll never hear a peep about Rhode Island’s diminutive size.

The smaller, the better, they say, and anglers in Little Rhody are used to outstanding and diverse fishing opportunities without driving from pillar to post.

South County is one of the prettiest parts of the Ocean State, but you won’t find it on a map. It’s a colloquial reference that has been argued about for more than a century. The official name of the southwestern part of Rhode Island is Washington County, and it includes the towns of Charlestown, Exeter, Hopkinton, Narragansett, North Kingstown, Richmond, South Kingstown, Westerly, and West Greenwich. In general terms, it stretches from the Connecticut border east to Greenwich Bay.

If you drive along U.S. Highway 1, South County spans only 27 miles from Westerly to East Greenwich. Condensed into this short area are reefs, river estuaries, beaches, salt ponds, rock gardens, and rocks and ledges. As if that terrain weren’t enough, anglers can consistently catch five species of fish from shore. Striped bass, bluefish, bonito, false albacore, and squeteague are common targets, and shad, skipjack, mahimahi, and school tuna come close enough inshore that boat anglers can rejoice. Deep Hole in Matunuck is typically the first area to host striped bass in the spring, and the South County beaches are where the final migrating fish are caught. South County is tough to beat.

One of the best parts of fishing South County is that the fishing is equally good by boots, by kayak, and by boat. Because of the open ocean exposure the water is very clear and clean, save for the occasional offshore weeds blown in after a storm. Be sure to wear a pair of cleated soles or boots, such as Korkers, if you fish the rocks; if you fish the salt ponds, be sure to account for the tide variations as the tide comes in quickly on the beach but takes a while to fill up the ponds. The same holds true on the ebb.

On the west side of the state, in Westerly, are Napatree Point and Watch Hill. Napatree Point is a peninsula that is connected to Watch Hill and the mainland by Napatree Beach. Just north of the point are Little Narragansett Bay and the Pawcatuck River. In this tiny little area is a highly concentrated amount of very different water—an estuary system, a bay, a beach, and a point—all of which rolls around to a rock garden. The area is productive all year long for a broad variety of fish. In the spring striped bass chase the herring, alewives, and silversides that move into the bay and then into the river. When squid move onto the Watch Hill Reef, the bass push out and the entire area fills up with bluefish. In the summer and early fall, bonito and false albacore run all around the area. Anglers commonly hook all four species in one day. Napatree Point is close to Connecticut waters, so if you fish from a boat, be sure to comply with Connecticut rules and regulations for all fish caught.

Around the corner is Watch Hill, arguably one of Rhode Island’s most recognized fishing locations. Watch Hill is about as pretty a place to fish as exists on the Eastern Seaboard. Wading anglers follow the path off Bluff Avenue and find a mix of beach, rocks, and ledges. Water moves very quickly here, and there is so much structure for bass to run down bait that when the fish are in you never know if you’re going to hook a 15-inch fish or a 15-pounder. The rocks are slippery and Korkers are a must, but Watch Hill is worth the effort.

The Watch Hill Reef has a tremendous amount of texture, derived from depth changes, rocks, and reefs. When the squid are in and the tide is running, striped bass and bluefish are seemingly everywhere at once. They are low in the water column, on the surface, and in all points in between. Boaters get above the tide line and stem the tide, with the best presentations resembling an up-and-across trout cast with an up-current series of mends. Hold on to your rod grip, because when your fly swings down below your boat and a fish hits you’ll have the current working against you. Many anglers like extra-fast-sinking lines for this area, and use very stout tippets—30- or 40-pound-text—so they can land more bass in the rugged hydraulics. Later in the season, bonito and albies show up to feast on glass minnows that drop out of the Pawcatuck River, and on silversides, bay anchovies, and other juvenile baitfish. The reef is a good place to catch multiple species of fish in one day.

If you like beaches, salts ponds, and break walls, you can enjoy fishing three popular haunts between Watch Hill and point Judith. Running from west to east, Weekapaug, Quonochontaug, and Ninigret each offer such features and get the most attention from fly fishers. The beauty of these three venues is that you can fish them from shore, from a kayak, or from a boat. They are productive from the early season when the first bass of the year arrive, through the summer bluefish and shad blitzes, on to the bonito and albacore mayhem, and finishing with the final fall striper run. Early- and late-season fishing is excellent during the day, and midseason night fishing is ideal. The spring full moons are a great time to fish in Ninigret Pond because of the outstanding cinder worm hatch. And if you’d like to run the beach in a 4X4, you can. At the east end of East Beach Road is 3-mile-long East Beach.

The outer beach is open from April 15 through October 31, from 7am until 11pm. Over-sand permits cost $50 for residents and $100 for non-residents, and can be obtained din person at Burlingame State Park or through the state park website, www.riparks.com/eastbeach.htm.

The ponds are virtual baitfish factories, which is what primes the beaches and the break walls at their mouths. In these ponds are nearly every type of bait imaginable, from early-season herring and alewives to silversides, sand eels, shrimp, cinder worms, bay anchovies, eels, mullet, and crabs.

On the east side of the breachway, off Charlestown Beach Rod in Charlestown, is a beach that is owned by the town and open to the public. In the early and late season you can park fro free, but during the day in the rest of the season you have to pay. Fly casting this beach can be tricky because it attracts so many families for summer fun on the sand, but the night fishing can be good. There is an easterly current swing as the tide drops, and you’ll find bonito and albies running along the drop-off. Around the stand of 5 Cottages is an ocean hole and a rocky point that is a productive area to prospect.

While most people know of Point Judith as the spot to catch the Block Island ferry, it’s a working harbor that has some great fishing. In-season boat traffic can be heavy, largely because of the public ramp that is located off the Galilee Escape Road. Kayaks are good for early- and late-season fishing, but leave ‘em home when the boats are running. Point Judith Pond is big and runs far upriver. Aside from the main channel, the ponds are soft and shallow. With so much bait around there is usually some species of fish to catch.

There are four walls in front of the pond that get a lot of attention: the West Wall, the Short Wall, the Center Wall, and the East Wall. The West Wall is well known for early striped bass, and for being a great place to catch bonito and albies from shore. A tremendous current line runs close to the West Wall, and the bottom drops off very quickly, creating a hard edge perfect for pelagic species, particularly with copious amounts of bait dropping out of the harbor. It’s an easy jetty to walk out on, and there is ample room for anglers using any and all methods.

Be advised, though, that the West Wall has a lot of obstructions, including numerous lobster pots and lines, and commercial fish traps (false albacore are used commercially for pet food and fertilizer). Hooking a fish isn’t necessarily the hard part, but landing it with all of the buoys, lines, and cages is challenging. Increase tippet size so you can lean on the fish during that first run and steer your catch away from all the obstructions.

The Short Wall is adjacent to Sand Hill Cove. In the spring and fall enormous numbers of mullet, silversides, sand eels, bay anchovies, and peanut bunker fill the area. To the east are Seaweed Beach and some rocky areas, ideal for bait. The rocks create a perfect place for spring and fall bass and summer and fall bluefish. Floating and intermediate lines are best.

The Center Wall is nearly a perfect barrier. All species of fish filter in and out between the walls, and when the bait is in it attracts all kinds of predators. One year, while looking for bass, bonito, and bluefish, I caught none. But I had a heyday with shad to about 4 pounds.

Finally, the East Wall fishes best early or late in the season. Some of the first bluefish arrive here in the late spring and early summer and it’s a quiet spot for night fishing. Of particular note is the fall fishing, as the area between Point Judith and the East Wall is the southern corner for fish heading from Rhode Island to points south. The wall runs on a southwest line from shore, so odds are you’ll get seas and wind in your face. Look for bonito and false albacore.

If you like rocky points, offshore bars, big boulders, and a sweeping current, head to the Point Judith Lighthouse. This is the point where South County makes a turn to the north, resulting in a complex mix of current. Exposure is significant, and all winds except those from the northwest affect the seas. That chaos makes for really good fishing, and when the bait is in you’ll see some of the biggest fish of the year come off this point. Watch the rocks—they’re slippery when wet.

Just north of the point Judith Lighthouse are a few miles of rocks and ledges that define classic striper water, with an access point at Bass Rock Road. The boulders and ledge just offshore and the erratic coastline offer plenty of holding water and areas for stripers to pin baitfish. The best places are those that offer moving water. Any break in the terrain is an opportunity for a bass. With the exception of the weeds associated with summer or following a storm, the water clarity is good. That means you can see fish swimming past or coming up to your fly. (One time while I was sharpening a hook point, I watched a tremendous bass approach and grab the tail of a small bass that my friend was fighting.) A stripping basket is really helpful to keep your line organized, and you’ll need to routinely check your tippets and hook points to make sure they’re in good working order. In June you may find stripers right up in the rocks trying to root out the lobsters that have shed their exoskeletons.

In the fall, albies run the current seams. They’re easiest to reach by boat, but shore anglers occasionally hook up. They move in against the current, usually on the dropping tide, and you’ll notice them because of the water they kick up and displace.

Once you’ve gotten an adrenaline rush from fishing the rocks and need a little quiet time, head north to the Narrow River, aka the Pettaquamscutt. Spring draws an excellent run of herring and alewives looking to get into the freshwater pond at the upstream end.

In addition to striped bass, shad, squeteague, and bluefish cruise the river. Albies show up in the fall, particularly where the river meets Narragansett Beach. At the mouth you can expect substantial turbulence on a dropping tide and wind from the south. All of that turbulence is good because it concentrates the silversides, sand eels, bay anchovies, crabs, and worms-and in turn the game fish that eat them.

You’ll see lots of folks from many different regions fishing in South County. Charles George, owner of The Bedford Sportsman, in Bedford, New York, just outside Manhattan, is a South County regular. “Being a stone’s throw from the city, I have a pick between urban New York Harbor, Long Island, New Jersey, or the Connecticut coast,” he explains. “Whenever I have the opportunity I head to South County, Rhode Island, because it’s not only a beautiful place to fish but there are so many different conditions and a lot of different fish to catch. In my opinion it’s a hard place to beat.”

South County is a good place to eat fish and seafood, but there are two local favorites you should try. The first is Rhode Island clear chowder. Many Yankees argue that this is the true chowder, made from salt pork, onions, potatoes, ground clams, and clam juice only; unlike traditional New England clam chowder, it has no cream or butter, and unlike Manhattan clam chowder, it has no tomato sauce. The second is a stack of cornmeal johnnycakes for breakfast. You will enjoy their crispness with a cup of coffee after a long night of fishing for big striped bass.

Abrames’s Razzle Dazzle (Originated by Kenney Abrames)

Hook: Eagle Claw 254 NA 1X short, size 5/0-2/0

Thread: WhiteDanville 3/0

Tail: 2 strands of blue Mylar, 1 olive saddle hackle, 2 strands of light-green Mylar, 1 long white saddle hackle, 1 long silver-doctor-blue saddle hackle, 2 strands of red Mylar, 1 yellow saddle hackle, 2 strands of gold Mylar, 3 long white saddle hackles, and white bucktail, respectively

Body: Silver Mylar piping

Throat: Long white bucktail on the bottom and on both sides

Wing: Silver doctor blue saddle hackle tied flat over an olive saddle hackle

Topping: 7 to 14 strands of peacock herl, just beyond the wing

Fish Patterning – Fly Fishing in Salt Waters by Tom Keer and Kenney Abrames

Fishing

FISH PATTERNING IS a modern term for a very old methodology. It is a reasonable, deliberate and highly effective way of fishing. It depends on understanding the dynamic relationship between predator and prey in their environment. The phrase describes the essential survival approach to fishing that enabled commercial and professional fisherman to succeed in their day-to-day quest for a good catch that would ensure their livelihood.

Patterning fish behavior is similar to hunting. With all methods of hunting, you must study your quarry to understand their behavior. Many modern sport anglers simply arrive at a familiar spot and hope to catch fish. Their fishing strategy is limited to chance occurrence. Anglers who fish that way are dependent on happenstance alone rather than observed, fact-based knowledge. Fish, like all successful predators, base their feeding routines on the habits of their prey. Fish do not starve to death because of poor luck. They have an intimate knowledge of how to find food. Like these fish, the best fishermen are familiar with their quarry’s routines and use this knowledge to form strategies that enhance their chance of success. Learning how fish find bait in their environment is fundamental to becoming a consistently successful angler.

Develop a Plan

The fast lane to learning how to pattern fish is to study the flats. Flats have finite borders that are filled with classic structures like bars and channels, coves and points, rips, basins, and various bottom types (mud, sand, cobble and grass). And fish are restricted in their ability to move. They are subject to the boundaries of the environment. Flats are first and foremost laboratories for observing fish behavior. The first task is to develop a plan or a strategy that you can use to find fish. Simplicity is the order of the day. Start by heading to a flat at slack low tide so you can study its structure. Fish move along structure lines, and it is critical to note where the bars drop into channels, where one bar ends and another begins, where there are grass beds and where there is higher ground. The bait will follow those edges when the tide floods, and larger fish will follow the bait.

Then start at the shallowest edge that you can get to and move along, and head into the current, parallel to the flow. This will do several things for you in short order. It will eliminate water that is not holding fish in a matter of minutes. Using a depth line as a guide and following it allows you to observe and quantify the life on the flat. This is the most important skill you can master. If you cover an edge thoroughly and find no baitfish, move to a slightly deeper edge. You should spend at least 45 minutes to an hour scouting out the depth line before wetting a line. Resist the urge to cast, even if you see fish. After several passes, you will begin to notice the baitfish moving along an edge, and you will see their relationship to the water’s surface or the bottom. You’ll see how they move along the edges of current seams created by bottom structure and moving water. You’ll notice their depth and whether they are high in the water column (closer to the surface), low in the water column (closer to the bottom) or somewhere in between.

As you move along the depth line, you will come upon shallow bars and edges that focus the current, consolidating the bait into dense schools. These schools will pause and gather together to move over a bar or through a small rip as they move into the current. Observing the patterns of how individual schools of baitfish move is significant; this determines how the predators locate bait in order to feed easily. The patterns of bait change daily, depending on water temperature, light levels, wind velocity and wind direction. Once you locate the bait and register their patterns, it is natural to look up-current and notice where the water flow provides an easy place for predators to ambush them. Use your GPS to mark spots, or do it the old-fashioned way and take ranges (line up two vertical landmarks, one behind the other, like in a rifle sight, such as a house chimney in the back and a flagpole in front of it). Once you have identified the baitfish’s patterns, repeat the same steps, with the focus turned toward predators. Return to the shallowest water you can get into, and this time move quickly along the edges and start looking for your quarry. Move along an edge until you have eliminated it, and then move incrementally into deeper water until you find the depth that the fish are moving in. The difference between your shallow-depth runs and your deeper-water runs will probably be only a matter of inches. Note the depth in which you find fish, for they will stay at that depth as the tide rises. That means if you find them at 21/4 feet, they will constantly move in a depth of 21/4 feet, regardless of their physical location on the flat as the tide rises. If the depths are uneven, then the fish will reposition to move at a depth of 21;4 feet. They will mill at a bar and only pass over it when the water rises to their preferred depth of 21/4 feet for that day. They may go around the bar rather than wait, but that type of movement is not hard to notice. Once they go over the bar, they will continue to move at their preferred depth and search out baitfish as they go along. This depth orientation is one of the most amazingly consistent patterns fish display on flats and an important one for you to know.

Here’s the tough part: To learn how to pattern fish, you’ll need to leave fish in order to find fish. Now is the time to see if the pattern you observed is correct. If you find fish on the southeast corner of a point bar at 2 1/4 feet, go to the next southeast corner of a point bar at 2 l/4 feet and see if they are there. They probably will be. As the tide rises, the bait and the bass will also move up the bar in that 2 1/4-foot zone. They will follow the structure line until it ends. Then they will use a current line to bridge their move to an adjoining structure, always maintaining the same amount of water over their head. Leapfrog your way across the flat, and observe as you go.

Pay Attention to Subtleties

If you have a pattern that is producing consistently and you find a similar structure or current that does not produce fish, do not assume that the pattern has changed. So why is this area barren of fish? Try to discern a difference. You’ll likely notice something, like the current has changed or your pattern was for offshore bars and this one is an onshore bar. Perhaps there is a point bar forming an uptide rip current that pushes the flow into deeper water. Remember that bar, because it may fit into a different pattern that you learn about later on. While that bar did not contain fish on the flood tide, it may be an escape route for the fish once the tide ebbs.

Now you can make your first cast. Because you patterned the fish, you can station your boat or yourself so that you can catch them consistently. You’ll know where they are coming from and where they are moving to. You can deliberately position yourself above them to make a proper presentation. You will not spook them because you are waiting for them, not chasing them.

By patterning fish, you will notice the different mannerisms of fish. You will become aware of whether fish are positive, neutral or negative. Positive fish are easy to catch. Negative fish are spooky fish, jittered by even a sea-gull shadow. Neutral fish are inquisitive and can be caught if you make them interested enough to strike. Hunger governs positive fish, wariness governs negative fish, and indifference governs neutral fish. Positive and neutral fish can be caught through patterning. Negative fish can be caught if you use patterning to intercept them with stealth.

When the tide drops, the direction of the current reverses, and fish will slowly drop back off the flat, always facing into the current. They will move off the flat at the same depth in which they came onto the flat. To learn to pattern fish, you must get rid of your preconceptions. Just go to the water and observe. Avoid routines. If you return to the same spots you always fish, you won’t broaden your skill set. Instead, notice the current, examine the wind, and note how the two interact. Watch how the current and the wind move on structure and form edges and pathways for fish. Look for those edges, and look for bait. If you incorporate observations like these into your fishing, you’ll be able to read water and understand the structure of every flat you encounter.

Fishing is much more than just catching fish. If it were passive, then we might as well go and watch a spectator sport. Sometimes when we go fishing, we spend the entire day and make only a handful of casts. Our day is spent studying the baitfish, the environment and then the fish to see how they interact. When we do make a cast, we hook the fish deliberately. As you spend time patterning fish, test out all hunches, no matter how irrational they seem. If you are wrong about a current or a location today, you may find that it is useful tomorrow. When you are right, log the pattern. You’ll quickly become a savvy angler.

Current Events

When the water begins to move, study the current to see which direction it is going. The fish will move into the current. Note if the current is moving to the left or to the right. Observe how the wind interacts with the current. An onshore wind will push the current and the fish closer to the structure, while an offshore wind will push the current and the fish farther out. A wind that blows into the current slows it down, and a wind that moves with the current increases its speed. If the wind is faster than the current, it will form a surface current that predatory species might move into. Notice what speed of current the fish prefer. See if they favor the hard currents around the end of a point bar or if they prefer the softer current in the middle of a shoal. Look for edges where currents meet and join or where they separate and split. Cardinal points are critical; use these compass directions to note how fish approach bars and which side of the humps they use to move into the current. These behaviors may seem random, but they are patterns that are predictable and consistent.

This article originally appeared in the September/October 2012 issue of Fly Fishing in Salt Waters.