To the Point: Wildlife Refuge Good Bet for Stripers

It's been a tough season for stripers due to an unusually hot summer, but at least local anglers looking for more opportunities can take advantage of night fishing at Sachuest Point National Wildlife Refuge.

The Point, a 242-acre peninsula between the Sakonnet River and Rhode Island Sound, boasts a long and proud history of excellent saltwater fishing. Eight marked access points ring the rocky shoreline, and there are no limitations on where you choose to fish, or how many people use the sites. The Point attracts fishermen from all over the state, as well as Massachusetts, who typically live less than an hour away. 

Among the Refuge features are the night fishing permits, which can be purchased there during normal business hours daily.

Night fishing tends to lure anglers seeking the Striped Bass, or Stripers. There's a wide variety of fish to be caught around the Point, but the most popular by far are Stripers, Bluefish, and Tautog.

Peter Graeden, general manager of The Saltwater Edge fishing tackle shop in Middletown, is a regular at the Point and says there are many good spots to fish for stripers and blues there, from Flint Point to the "southern tip." 

The Point has good "bottom structure [and] sticks out into the ocean," Graeden notes, which usually makes for good fishing. However, this season has been tough on  fishermen seeking stripers from the shoreline and he attributes this to the above-average hot weather this summer. 

Stripers and bluefish are typically found in Rhode Island waters from April to October.  The bluefish like the warm water and the bigger blues don't arrive until summer.  Stripers can grow to enormous sizes but fish under 50 pounds are more common. The bluefish are typically caught in the 10- to 15-pound range, but records show they can grow to 30 pounds.  Both stripers and bluefish are attracted to bait, such as menhaden, mackerel, and squid.  They will also bite surface lures like poppers.  Advice as to which bait or lure to use can best be suggested by local tackle shops.

Bluefish travel in unpredictable schools but when they are feeding near the surface they are almost hard to miss, due to their frenzied splashing. But Stripers are  harder to spot. 

Many anglers who fish from the shore do enjoy fishing for stripers at night.  Still, there's usually not a lot of competition, Graeden notes. There are "not too many people [who choose to fish at the refuge in the evening and] …few stay all night," he says.

Night fishing permits can be purchased at the visitor's center between 10 am and 4 pm every day but Wednesday, when the center is closed, according to a Sachuest Point National Wildlife Refuge park ranger.  Fees are $20 dollars for an annual permit or $5 dollars for one night.  There are no access fees for day fishing at Sachuest Point National Wildlife Refuge.  However, a state saltwater fishing license is still required. Enforcement of permits, licenses, size and number of fish are all monitored by the federal park police.  Fishermen are asked to pack out their trash. Camping anywhere in the refuge is prohibited.