Overview
June is one of my favorite months to fish, both in fresh and saltwater. There’s none of the hoping for warmth like in April or wondering about the status of the striper migration like in May. You don’t have to wonder whether it’s too soon for topwater or if you need to wear wool socks because the morning temperature will be 25 degrees colder than that day’s high. June is plain old full-throttle fishing season, and like many others, it’s when I hit the ground running and start to execute my plan for the year. Freshwater bass will be post-spawn and entering summer patterns, striped bass will be settling into their summer homes (which we always hope is our backyard here in Connecticut), and fluke and sea bass fishing starts to take off. It’s the time when we can boast of the embarrassment of riches, we get to choose from here in the Long Island Sound fishery. I love June for all of these reasons and more, so let’s get into it.
Freshwater
June is a great time to spend the day on your local lake or river. Generally, the fish are going to be very active and hungry, and what’s more so is that they are likely quite predictable at this time of year too, as they settle into summer routines. But they won’t have any of that deep summer lethargy that can happen as the water hits its peak temperature of the year, like in July and August. Still, I’d say to choose early or late hours as your target times to be on the water, both for your comfort and to maximize your chance of coming across some hungry fish.
If you are fishing in the early morning or later evening hours, I always love to throw topwater baits. There’s not much more exciting in the world of bass fishing than seeing a 5lb largemouth explode through muck or lily pads to plow your frog or popper, and low-light hours are the best time to do that. There are literally thousands of topwater baits that work well, but a few of my favorites are Savage Gear Lily Ninja frogs, Stanley Ribbit soft plastic frogs, Berkley Choppos, Heddon Super Spooks, and Yo-Zuri 3DB poppers. I tend to be a bit more of a power fisherman, so the Stanley Ribbit is a big favorite of mine because it is a cast and retrieve topwater with a steady, moderate retrieve speed, so you can cover water well and elicit reaction strikes. The magic of the Ribbit is in the legs of the frog, which kick and leave a nice little bubble trail while producing a tough-to-resist gurgling noise. I’ve caught everything from 10lb Northern Snakeheads to 5lb bass to backwater stripers with it, and it’ll always be a go-to.
Fishing vegetation is also a fun June tactic. Veggies provide baitfish places to hide and shade from the sun for bass, so if you can effectively fish within heavy cover, you’re going to find some fish in June. When fishing heavy vegetation like lily pads, always remember to keep your rod tip way up high. This will much more easily allow you to work your bait across the surface of the vegetation without getting hung up and ruining the cast. An added benefit is that with weedless baits like hollow body frogs, you need to bow the rod tip after a strike and allow the bass to fully eat the bait. When your rod tip is up high, that action becomes much more easily done. Bow the rod tip, reel in some slack for 1-2 seconds, and then swing for the fences to embed the hooks.
Overall, June fishing is an absolute blast. You, of course, have tons of freshwater options outside of those covered here, and there are going to be some hungry fish around for sure. Set that alarm early and get some fish!
Saltwater
June is a big striper month here in the Long Island Sound. The migratory biomass of fish will have arrived at some point early to mid-month, and they invade our nearshore rivers and reefs, usually to hunt down bunker. This bite is the green light to our whole striped bass season. It establishes the nearshore popularity of big striped bass, which we always hope is dense and healthy. It tells us what type of year we’re going to have for bunker as well, which does vary year to year. And it gives us the chance to catch 50-inch striped bass within sight of shore, a surreal experience on its own, but when you couple that with the fact that these giant fish are either eating a 7-9” topwater plug off the surface or chasing down a live bunker that you’ve got out there on a circle hook, and you’ve got one of the best experiences you can have striped bass fishing.
To fish a live bunker, you’ve got a few options, and we will cover them here. Your first task is to find the bunker. Usually, they’ll be in marinas, creeks, or backwaters associated with a river system to start the year. You can also certainly find them in open water, but they’re much more challenging to catch in that case. Your best bet is to check near marinas or coves associated with river systems, or even nearby jetties, which will often get some bunker congregating there. If you have a cast net and know how to throw it, that’s your best bet as long as you’ve got a livewell big enough to keep them oxygenated and alive. For those without a cast net and livewell setup, using a snag hook is a good alternative and is what I use personally. Cast a weighted treble snag hook beyond the bunker, which will be visible on the surface from their tails and tightly packed schools and then take sweeping swings with your rod to quickly pull the hook through the school. Once you snag one, you should have an 8/0 – 10/0 size circle hook available on another rod to quickly hook the bunker. Most opt to go through the nostrils or up through both their bottom and lower jaw. I prefer nostrils, but either way works.
Now that you’ve got your bunker, it’s time to send it out among the stripers. If you’re in water that’s slow to moderate current and 15 feet or shallower, I’d recommend letting the bunker swim freely on the circle hook. If you are fishing fast current or deeper water, most opt to have a 2-3 ounce sinker attached to a sinker slide above a swivel and their circle hook. In that case, drop your sinker to the bottom and get ready.
Once a striper eats your bunker, regardless of whether or not you have it on a sinker-slide rig, give it about 4-5 seconds to run with and eat the bunker entirely. Then, start to reel down on the fish. Remember, you’re using a circle hook, so you don’t set the hook. Instead, I hold my rod steady and crank the reel handle until the rod starts the bend. At that point, the circle hook should slide into the corner of the striper’s mouth and give you a nice hookup. Then, the fight is on!
Like freshwater, the salt offers a ton of options in June. While a live bunker for stripers is preferable, there are fluke and sea bass biting, and both bite quite well throughout June. Depths vary, as do colors and styles of fishing for them, but if you find some structure in 30-80 feet of water and work it appropriately, you should absolutely find yourself into some fluke, sea bass, or porgy/scup.
So, get out there and enjoy June! It’s a killer month, no matter what body of water you fish.