Overview
I don’t think I ever would’ve guessed after growing up in New England that September would eventually become my favorite month of the year. More likely would’ve been the early blooms of June or the nostalgic and cool October, which is often punctuated by the smell of wet eaves and wood smoke, a long-ago-chosen favorite combination of smells. Even July, with the midsummer buzz of life and infinite possibility, could’ve been a likely choice for the number one month of the year. But as I sit here approaching 40, with a young son, a house on a decent chunk of land, and a job I love, something about September has creeped in and established itself as the month I enjoy most.
On the fishing side of things, September is a transitional month. Summer heat starts to abate, particularly with nighttime lows that dip into the 50’s more consistently, cooling shallows, causing bait to move out into open water and their predators to come in closer for an easy meal. Leaves aren’t quite changing over entirely, but you can tell they want to.
In September, after a long summer of chasing striped bass at night and tuna during the day, I look forward to the later mornings and cool starts of September. In the Long Island Sound, your target species list can be longer in September than in any other month of the year – striped bass, bluefish, sea bass, fluke, porgy, Atlantic bonito, false albacore, and chub mackerel are all possibilities. I always refer to it as a weird species month, because you never know what kind of stuff you’ll find out there.
As far as freshwater is concerned, things start to change when the bass sense the oncoming cold weather. It becomes feeding time, and largemouth will often school up and gather around bait rich locations such as weed beds or current heavy areas. It can be a great time to get on some excellent fishing.
Above all, I always feel that in September, both fish and humans share a fervent desire to prepare: humans prepare for a long winter spent staring at fishing rods waiting for spring, and fish bulk up in preparation for a migration or a winter spent dormant and slow, also waiting for warmth.
Freshwater
Largemouth bass sense cooler temperatures and the oncoming winter, their feeding habits change from those of summer. Bass, along with many of their saltwater counterparts, need to prepare for winter by bulking up and feeding heavily. This means that in the right conditions, you can run into some truly excellent fishing opportunities.
As far as locations, in September, you should try to hit shallow, bait rich areas. Bass will likely begin to school up and feed heavily around these areas, so finding anywhere that bait can hide is as smart a starting point as any. Weed beds, logs, and rock piles are great choices. Try to focus your fishing later in the day if possible. Cooler nights mean that early morning water temperatures will be quite low, and depending on where you’re fishing, this could mean that bass will feed later in the day after the sun has been warming shallows for many hours.
For baits, anything that mimics baitfish is a good starting point. Spinnerbaits, jerkbaits, and big swimbaits are all great options. Vary your color based on water clarity. A good rule of thumb is that the clearer the water is, the more lifelike your color presentation should be. If you know you’ve got a particular type of bait in your local river or lakes, make sure to try and match the hatch in your presentation.
Saltwater
In my mind, there is no better month to fish the Long Island Sound than September. School is back in session, so the waters will have a bit more room on them. Big striped bass are still around and active. Seabass and fluke fishing usually sees a nice uptick in activity. Baitfish pouring into the nearshore waters begins to fuel the fall run. And, for me, most importantly of all, we start to see some pelagic visitors arrive – Atlantic bonito and false albacore.
September is also the time of year I begin to change up my gear – I put away my heaviest striper setups and begin downsizing, prioritizing fun and fight over power and muscle. The 8-foot heavy rods are swapped for 7’ 6” medium heavies, leader goes from 50lb down to 20lb or 15lb, and bait shrink to match the bay anchovies, peanut bunker, silversides, and juvenile butterfish that tend to make themselves known in September.
When targeting striped bass in September, you can anticipate them beginning to congregate around tidal rivers and creek outflows where they’ll find a heavy presence of juvenile baitfish. This bait has spent its summer growing in warm and protected tidal creeks. Now, it’s their time to push out into the open water, and predators are ready. We begin to see much more action in big river mouths, and cloudy or overcast days can trigger epic topwater feeds for hours on end.
I have long said that during summer months, whichever tide happens early or late in the day is the best tide. I pay no attention to picking an incoming or outgoing tide to fish during high heat months, rather prioritizing time of day. Part of this is because I only have mornings and evenings to fish, but it’s also when stripers are most active. In the fall, I still have mornings, but an outgoing tide will give me a bit more juice and excitement if it occurs during the mid-morning hours. Outgoing tides help push all of that built-up bait out into open water – gasoline, meet fire.
I don’t do a ton of fluke and sea bass fishing in September, opting instead for more visual striper or albie fishing, but running a tackle shop means I get daily reports, and in September, those reports often present an uptick in the success of fluke and seabass fishermen finding nice fish. I would credit this to both their sensing the oncoming cold and, like most other fish, bulking up in preparation, but also because there is decreased boat traffic and more water to explore for those still out there. Revisiting your favorite reefs, humps, bumps, and gulches is a good idea in September. If you’re into a more active style of fishing, I always recommend trying the Daiwa SK jigs and slow-pitch style fishing them. Drop to the bottom and immediately take a big swing of your rod upwards. Then allow the jig to flutter down, lowering it not on a slack line and not on a taught line, but right in the middle on what I refer to as “controlled slack” line. This lets the jig do its thing and also gives you enough contact with the jig to feel the bite, which almost always comes in the fall.
False albacore. Albies. Little tunny. There might not be a more exciting fish to target in the Long Island Sound. And September is when we first have the possibility of seeing them reach our shores. I’ll save most of my albie advice for the October report, as that’s when our Long Island Sound fishery is most likely to include a heavy dose of albies.
For now, I’ll offer my most basic advice for targeting them – Get a 7’ 6” medium power rod, a 3000-5000 size reel spooled with 15lb braid and a long, 6-8’ leader of 15lb fluorocarbon. Tie on an epoxy jig or metal in the ½ to 1-ounce weight range. Then, get out there and look for slashes and splashes. I always tell customers that albie blitzes look like someone hitting the water with a sword. Mackerel look more like someone spraying the water with a garden hose. If you see those slashy splashes, get there quickly, cast fast, and retrieve your lure at twice the normal speed. Then, cross your fingers and hang on!