What you need to know about the ever-growing Block Island Fishing Tournament
“The Block Island Inshore Fishing Tournament doubled the number of participants and added a flyfishing shore and boat division last year,” said Capt. Chris Willi of Block Island Fish Works, a bait & tackle shop/charter fishing business on Block Island.
This year the tournament starts Saturday, July 22, at 5:30 a.m. and ends Sunday, July 23, at noon. Therewill be an after party at Capt. Nick’s Rock & Roll Bar, Block Island on Sunday from 2-4 p.m. with a brief awards ceremony.
“This is a length only Tournament. Anglers can practice catch & release for striped bass and bluefish.When registering online participants download our Tournament app on their smartphone. When they want to make a Tournament entry they take a photo of their catch up against the Tournament supplied ruler and send their entry into the Tournament electronically,” said Willi. “Thanks to the Block Island Wind Farm and Whalers Brewing Company of Rhode Island, we are able to donate 100% of Tournament entry fees to the Block Island Fire Department and Rescue.”
Tournament highlights include: cash cards/swag/and sponsor prizes totally $10,000; fluke, black seabass, striped bass and bluefish with boat, shore, fly fishing, youth, team and photo divisions; take aphoto with the Block Island Wind Farm shown and you can enter three photo categories each with $200 prize: most scenic, best fish photo and best team photo; pick up participant bags at one of six locations including Block Island Fish Works, Block Island; Ocean State Tackle, Providence; The Saltwater Edge, Middletown; Snug Harbor Marina, South Kingstown; Quaker Lane Bait & Tackle, North Kingstown; and Watch Hill Outfitters, Westerly.
Register at sandypoint.com, (click the BI Inshore Tourney tab) or contact Block Island Fish Works at bifishworks@gmail.com or (401) 742-3992.
Mount Hope Bay opens to shellfishing
Great news for recreational and commercial quahoggers, 515 acres in Mount Hope Bay are now open as‘conditional’ rather than a ‘prohibited’ shellfishing area says the RI Department of EnvironmentalManagement.
The area can be fished ‘conditionally’ as DEM opens and closes ‘conditional’ areas based on rain events. If it rains more than ½ inch in a 24 hour period, the conditional area closes for seven days to allow the water to recover from enhanced runoff.
For information on conditional closures, call DEM’s 24-hour shellfishing hotline at (401) 222-2900or sign up for their listserv at RishellfishOWR-subscribe@listserve.ri.gov.
Where’s the bite
Striped bass and bluefish. Fishing for striped bass and bluefish in Narragansett Bay has been very good but often times anglers are having to hunt for them. Tim Rounds of Idaho caught a 38-inch striped bass Saturday just off Popasquash Point, Bristol. And Tuesday morning we caught both keeper bass (28-31 inches) and large bluefish just north of Conimicut Point using light tackle with tube & worm. Dave Henault of Ocean State Bait & Tackle said, “The striped bass and bluefish bite continues to be great north of Conimicut light all the way up to Providence as this past week there has been an influx of pogies.” “I landed nine very nice size striped bass at Narrow Rive this weekend and dropped three others. Most of the bass were in the 18" to 20" range. Four bass on my hot pink fly and then changed to my brown one the rest of the time,” said Ed Lombardo, fly fishing expert and guide. Declan O’Donnell of Breachway Bait & Tackle, Charlestown, said, “Fishing for striped bass has been producing well with catches reported at the Breachways, along the beaches and back in the salt ponds. Bluefish are still around coming in and out of the Breachway in waves.”
Squid, black sea bass and summer flounder. Angler Rich Hittinger, 1st vice president of the RI Saltwater Anglers, said, “There are fluke at Block Island and south of Newport. So far we have landed an 8-pound, a 5 1/2- and a 4 1/2-pound fluke near Block Island with a 4-pounder south of Newport along with many in the 18-20 inch range. The sea bass are spotty, but they are on rock piles south of Newport,” angler Dariusz Kolodziejczak said. “Saturday outside the center wall of Point Judith I caught a 10.17 pound summer flounder (fluke). The big fluke hit my buck tail tipped with gulp.” Squid fishing is good and the fluke are in deep water (60-80 feet) and reports continue to improve. Customers are finding a few along the beach and out at Block Island,” said O’Donnell. Neil Hayes of Quaker Lane Bait & Tackle said, “The fluke bite is getting better every day with reports of Bay fish just north and south of the bridges with a good bite off Newport and at Block Island.”
Dave Monti holds a captain’s master license and charter fishing license. He serves on a variety of boards and commissions and has a consulting business focusing on clean oceans, habitat preservation, conservation, renewable energy, and fisheries related issues and clients. Forward fishing news and photos to dmontifish@verison.net or visit www.noflukefishing.com.
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Block Island Fishing Tournament gets bigger and better
