Places to Fish Saltwater on LI

If you don’t own your own boat there are many ways to fish saltwater on long island such as: surf casting, piers, party boats, private charters, private boat rentals, jetties, calm shore lines and bulkheads.
Major inshore saltwater game fish species include: striped bass, bluefish and snappers, summer flounder (fluke), weakfish, summer flounder, blackfish, porgy, and sea bass.
There is also a great blue claw crabbing season that occurs in summer.
Remember, if you are planning on fishing the rock jetties you must wear studded soles such as Korker brand for traction on slippery rocks.
These are just a few suggestions and there are many other places to fish. If you take the time to do a little research and scouting you can find even more great places to fish. Remember, you live on an island! You are surrounded by water and fish, go catch them!

Surfcasting:

Long Beach:While public parking can sometimes be difficult there is such a vast amount of beach to fish that it makes Long Beach an excellent location. There are dozens of rock jetties that provide structure for game fish.

Jones Beach: Head out onto the Ocean Parkway and you have arrived at Jones Beach. There are many parking fields that you can park during daytime hours and fish the seemingly endless beach running west to east. Seasonal parking fees may apply.  If you plan on fishing at night you are required to obtain a Night Fishing permit. You can contact the Belmont Town Hall for that info.

Field 6: is a parking lot located south of ocean pkwy in jones beach. There is always ample parking and a moderate walk to the surf line. Try fishing the sandbar troughs and rips for stripers and bluefish.

West End Beaches: there are a few places to explore around here including bulkhead, inlet beachfront and rocky shoreline, ocean beachfront, and if you are willing to make the long walk you can access West End 2 jetty. All of these areas provide excellent fishing access under a wide set of weather conditions.

Gilgo Beach: Located off Ocean Parkway approximately 15-20 minutes from the Needle. This area is 4X4 access only. You are required to obtain a 4X4 Beach Fishing Permit at the Belmont Town Hall to access this beach. You can actually drive your truck right onto the beach and fish 10 steps from your vehicle! Make sure you air down your tires or you will get stuck. Bring your own air compressor because there is no place to air up your tires.

Democrat Point: Located on the east side of Fire Island inlet and west of the Robert Moses State Park. This is another 4X4 access area and you can drive right onto the beach with your truck. Make sure you air down your tires or you will get stuck. Feel free to use the supplied air compressor to air up your tires, but you must provide your own air hose. If you don’t have 4X4 beach access capability you should be able to park in the lot and walk to beach.

Montauk Point: Also-known-as the “Mecca” for surfcasting. People drive and fly from all over the world to fish here. There is no place like Montauk. Even a bay day in Montauk is sometimes better than a great day in other places. Montauk Point is located at the very end of Route 27. You can park in the parking lot across from the lighthouse. There are many areas to explore on the north and south side of the point. False bar, the bluffs, turtle cove, etc. Montauk is famous for its daytime “blitzes” that occur where it’s not uncommon to see over 50 anglers lined up on the beach and everyone is hooking up with bass and bluefish.

Fishing Piers and Other locations:

Bay Park: located on the border of East Rockaway and Oceanside. This is a great place to take the family because it is very low impact. There are plenty of bulkheads to fish off of adjacent to the East Rockaway Channel. If you continue past the boat ramps you will find a nice quiet marsh bank and sandy shoreline to fish from. This area is a nursery for small baitfish and the larger fish are never far behind. Bay Park also has some excellent blue claw crab fishing.

Captree Fishing Pier: Located off Ocean Pkwy, features large parking lots and two large fishing piers.

Green Island Fishing Pier:  Located off Wantagh State Pkwy.  Features parking lot and close access to fishing the bridge structure.  

Magnolia Fishing Pier: Located on Magnolia Blvd off Park Ave in Long Beach. Very large pier that juts out into Reynolds Channel that has night lights and a fish cleaning station.

Point Lookout Fishing Pier:  Located off Lido Blvd in Point Lookout.  Large pier that just out into Reynolds Channel. 

Jones Beach Field 10 Fishing Pier: has a parking lot located north of ocean pkwy in jones beach and faces the bay. There is a very large pier located here which offers excellent fishing and crabbing

Jones Beach West End 2 Work Docks (Construction Docks): has parking lot located adjacent to Reynolds Channel Jones Inlet area. Parking permit required. 

Boat Rentals:

Scotty's Fishing Station has small boat rentals and is located in Point Lookout. Great for drifting for fluke in the channels! Contact them at (516-432-4665).

Party Boats and Private Charters:

Party boat fishing is great because it is inexpensive and fun. You can go out with a few friends and catch lots of fish and it doesn’t cost you an arm and a leg. There are so many party boats out there that I am not going to list them all. Instead, I will tell you that if you do a quick Google search for a fishing party boat in your area you will find that you can go fishing quite close to home because there are so many boats out there. The pricing ranges from approximately $40.00 and up per person. Pricing depends on the type and duration of trip. Closest location of party boats to our store is in Freeport. There are a fleet of boats down there to choose from.

I am also not going to make a list of the private charter captains out there because there are too many to list. Although private charters do cost more, you are getting more of a one on one experience because you don’t have to share the boat with other anglers. Do a Google search for charter captains in your area and book a trip.