East End Fishing Report: June 6–12, 2026 — Montauk Bass Bonanza, Fluke Still Picky
The Short Version
It's a one-species show right now, and that species is striped bass. Montauk has been flat-out loaded, day and night. Everything else — fluke, porgy, bluefish, weakfish, sea bass — is still playing catch-up after a cold, cranky spring. Water's been running colder than normal but it's finally climbing, so the rest of the table should start filling in fast.
Striped Bass — The Main Event
If you can't scratch out bass at Montauk this week, check your knots. Daytime crews are loading up casting diamond jigs in and around the Lighthouse, and the troll crowd is doing just as well dragging umbrella rigs and parachute jigs. Plenty of fish are riding well over the slot, so expect to release a lot of quality bass before you pin a keeper in the 28-to-31-inch window.
After dark is where it's getting silly. The Ebb Tide Princess, the Montauk party boat run by Capt. Anthony D'Arrigo, has been putting clients on personal-best fish and double-digit nights, with a lot of bass in the 30-to-40-pound class and bigger. Their daytime trips have been mixing in bass and a few fluke. Check ebbtidefishing.com for the sailing schedule if you want in on the nighttime program.
The pattern's been a strange one all spring: it's mostly been big fish, with very few schoolies in the 12-to-20-inch range. Some of the first bass landed back in early May were already pushing 35-plus pounds, and fish to nearly 50 have been landed and released off the ocean beaches running east toward Montauk. Out of the surf closer to home, bass have been working the East Hampton ocean beaches and in and around Three Mile Harbor. Live eels, jigs and plugs are all getting it done.
Fluke
Fluke remain a grind-it-out pick at Montauk — you'll catch, but you'll work for keepers. The good news is reports are slowly getting more consistent from both the boats and the surf as the water warms. Give it another couple weeks of heat and this should turn the corner.
Porgy
Scup are starting to make a real showing. Porgy fishing showed a clear uptick over the weekend, and Cherry Harbor on the southwest side of Gardiner's Island has been the spot — boats anchoring up and picking away at decent numbers of big scup when conditions cooperate. The Viking Starlite with Capt. Dave Marmeno had one of its better porgy days of the season, with most anglers heading home with full buckets; they started shallow but heavy weed pushed them deeper, where the better bite was waiting.
Bluefish & the Rest
The bluefish finally showed up. Trolling umbrella rigs and bucktails or slinging diamond jigs off the Lighthouse will get you into them at Montauk. Closer to home, Gerard Drive in Springs has small blues for casters, with some bigger fish starting to filter in.
A few tasty blowfish have begun showing in Three Mile Harbor — worth a shot if you want a change of pace. Weakfish, sea bass and squid all remain on the slow side locally, but every one of those should improve as temps push up.
Conditions
Water's been hovering in the mid-60s and finally climbing after a long, cold spring. Bait has been thick on the sounder in plenty of spots. Weed has been an issue in close — if you're getting fouled in the shallows, slide out to deeper water and you'll likely find a cleaner, better bite. One blowout day with 50-knot north gusts kept folks tied up, so keep an eye on the forecast and have a Plan B (and a Plan C) ready.
On the Calendar
The 70th annual Blessing of the Fleet, hosted by the Montauk Boatmen and Captains Association and the Viking Fleet, kicks off at 5 p.m. in Montauk Harbor this Sunday. Looking ahead, the 26th annual Montauk Grand Slam inshore charity tournament runs July 18–19 out of Uihlein's Marina on West Lake Drive — fluke, sea bass, bluefish and porgy. This year's Montauk Fishing Legend of the Year honor goes to Capt. Tom Herlihy of the charter boat Herl's Girl. Well earned.