Go Fish. For coastal anglers who work bay, inlet, inshore, near offshore and canyon waters in September, there’s the classic good news and bad news scenario. The good news is that the fish sensing a change in the sunlight angle, wind direction and ambient water temps start to chow down to gear up for their annual winter migration patterns. The bad news is that the usual proces- sion of Atlantic tropical storms that work up the eastern coast do so on a regular basis that create big seas, rough inlets, stiff breezes and generally unfishable conditions for all but the biggest boatsand most adventurous crews. A single“alphabet”storm, even 200 miles offshore, can create havoc
for 3-to-5 days as it approaches the area, does a drive-by and then works its way northeast to follow the Gulfstream current, disap- pearing into themid-Atlantic. Anglers who fish in ocean waters, even close to shore at the local reefs that dot the south side of the island, must be wary of wind-against-tide scenarios where inlets become extremely treacherous and are a challenge to transit, even for seasoned captains in large seaworthy craft. The reward for this risk can be some of the best fishing of the year and September typically delivers big time if you can get out of the inlets and back. Dining Out If you are a boat owner, one of the unique pleasures of the summertime is dining out at any of the numerous waterside eateries that dot Long Island. Areas like Long Beach, Oceanside, Freeport, Fire Island, Babylon, Bay Shore, Oakdale, Southold, Greenport, Hampton Bays, Montauk and more feature a variety of restaurants that typically offer docking capacity for a limited number of boats with a wonderful viewof the water, replete with sunsets, moon light, thousands of twinkling stars and an ambience you just can’t find anywhere else. Back in the days when I used to keep my boat in the Bay shore area, I used to run evening dinner charters to a few of the restaurants located in Ocean Beach on Fire Island. It was just a marvelous experience to be out on the Great South Bay under the lights, driving my customers to and from restaurants that offered great food and fair prices with a totally salty sea flair. That is the essence of living large and enjoying the moment. So get out there and grab some more summer before it’s too late.
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