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Fire Island Fishing Report

Updated Fri, Sep 4, 2026 from live gauge and weather data

Thirty-two miles of wild Atlantic barrier beach: Robert Moses daybreak blitzes, the lighthouse bar, and Long Island surf casting in its purest form.

2/5
Slow. Work for them.Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.
Next tide
Low 9:00 PM
Air / High
84 / 86 F
Wind
NW 11 mph

Sources: NOAA tides 8515186, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.

Satellite view
Friday
4
September 2026

Today's Fishing Report

Generated this morning from live readings: gauge, weather model, sun and moon. A fresh report is published here every morning.

2/5Slow. Work for them.Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.

Fire Island sits in the sweet spot of the season: active fish and workable weather. Today brings clear skies, wind NW around 11 mph, rising pressure near 1010 hPa and a high of 86. Tides: high 1:24 AM and 2:11 PM, low 7:44 AM and 9:00 PM: the moving water either side of each change is when this place feeds. Water sits around 72 F for the season (estimated). With the last quarter, the solunar majors run 5:39 AM-7:39 AM and 5:39 PM-7:39 PM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

BluefishExcellent

Follow the bunker and mullet schools: blitzes can erupt anywhere on the beach. Wire or heavy leader always.

Striped bassGood

Surface action windows at dawn; otherwise free-lines and planer boards over long points and humps.

Tomorrow: Cooler at 78 F. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Sat, Sep 5, 6:30 AMHow this report is made →

Water and weather

Live readings.

Tides

NOAA station 8515186 (Fire Island Coast Guard Station). Fish the moving water either side of each change.

Fri
HIGH1:24 AM1.9 ft
LOW7:44 AM0.4 ft
HIGH2:11 PM2.4 ft
LOW9:00 PM0.6 ft
Sat
HIGH2:25 AM1.8 ft
LOW8:51 AM0.4 ft
HIGH3:24 PM2.4 ft
LOW10:10 PM0.6 ft

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp84 F
High / Low86 / 71 F
WindNW 11-15 mph
Pressure1010.1 hPa, rising
Sky / Rain12% cloud, 38%
Sunrise / Sunset06:23 / 19:20
MoonLast Quarter, 50%
Water temp (seasonal)~72 F est.

Bite planner

Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today. Tap a bar to see why.

5 AM8 AM11 AM2 PM5 PM8 PMsunrisesunset

Next 7 days

Tap a day for the detailed outlook.

Fri Sep 4 · Showers, 86/71 F, wind 15 mph, rain 38%

Fair or better. A 15 mph breeze puts a working chop on the banks it hits: fish the wind-blown side.

Species guide

The species that matter on Fire Island: seasons, structure and how to fish each one. Today's ratings live in the report above.

Striped bass illustration

Striped bass

Best: spring and fall

The reservoir heavyweight. Follows shad and herring schools in open water year-round. Surface action windows at dawn; otherwise free-lines and planer boards over long points and humps.

Bluefish illustration

Bluefish

Best: Sep-Oct blitzes

The ocean's most honest fish: when blues blitz bait on the beach, everything with hooks gets bit. Follow the bunker and mullet schools: blitzes can erupt anywhere on the beach. Wire or heavy leader always.

When to come: the Fire Island calendar

Activity by species and month, and how the water warms through the year. Tap any cell.

Species activity by month

1 = slow, 5 = peak. Current month highlighted.

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Striped bass
Bluefish
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 72 F (estimated, not a reading).

4050607080JanMarMayJulSepNovSep, ~72 F now

Angler reports

Real reports from real anglers, reviewed before publishing. The water log below tracks each day automatically.

No angler reports yet this weekBe the first: your report helps every angler who checks Fire Island today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Sep 3

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Striped bass led the card at excellent. High of 83 F, wind to 14 mph.

Wed, Sep 2

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Striped bass led the card at excellent. High of 73 F, wind to 16 mph.

Tue, Sep 1

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Bluefish led the card at excellent. High of 76 F, wind to 18 mph.

Where roughly, what depth, what bait. Skip anything you want to keep secret.
Only used to send you this water's report each week. No spam, ever.

Before you go

License

New York requires a valid fishing license for adults. Buy online from the state agency; one-day options exist for visitors.

Regulations

NY No-fee Recreational Marine Registry required. Striped bass: one-fish slot 28-31 inches (verify current). Fluke/scup/sea bass: NY marine seasons.

Access

Robert Moses SP parking fields (walk-on), Democrat Point 4x4 (permit), Fire Island NS wilderness accesses, water taxis from Bay Shore.

About this water

Barrier island off Long Island's south shore, Suffolk County, NY. A National Seashore with a surf-casting soul.

Fishing Fire Island: the full guide

The surf laboratory

Fire Island is Long Island's great surf classroom: no boardwalks, just bars, cuts, and sloughs rearranged by every blow. The western end (Robert Moses State Park, Democrat Point) commands the inlet's currents: stripers working the rips at first light, fluke in the sluices, albies within range on fall's best days. Reading the water is the entire sport here.

Democrat Point and the inlet

The point at Fire Island Inlet is the island's engine room: 4x4 permit holders line the bar on October mornings as bass pin bait against the sweep. Bucktails and darters in the white water, tins when the birds show, eels after dark for the trophy-minded. The inlet's bars break far out: waders respect the drop and the sweep.

The wilderness stretch

East of the developed enclaves, the Otis Pike Wilderness runs miles of foot-access-only beach: solitude surf fishing within sight of Manhattan's glow. Fall mullet and sand-eel runs march the whole shoreline: the angler willing to walk owns water the buggy crowd never touches. The Great South Bay behind adds fluke, weakfish cameos, and protected water on onshore gales.

Season of the beach

May-June: the first body of bass moves through, bunker schools shadowed by giants. Summer: fluke in the cuts at dawn, sharks-and-skates after dark, small blues keeping rods earnest. Fall: the run defines the island: albies in September's clear water, then bass on mullet, peanuts, and sand eels into December. Winter: empty beaches and rod-building.

Common questions

When is the fall run at Fire Island?

Mid-September (albies, clear water) through Thanksgiving (sand-eel bass): the peak moves with the bait. West-end mornings around Democrat Point are the traditional: arrive before light, follow the birds.

Do I need the 4x4 permit to fish Fire Island?

No: Robert Moses' parking fields put you a short walk from the inlet's best water, and the wilderness stretch rewards hikers. The permit buys mobility for chasing blitzes, not access itself.

Is fishing good at Fire Island right now?

Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Slow. Work for them. Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.

Nearby waters

Long Island Sound30 miSandy Hook40 miSaugatuck Reservoir43 miCandlewood Lake59 miManasquan Reservoir60 miGreenwood Lake66 mi
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