Hudson River Early Summer: Tide Changes and Schoolie Bass on the Move

Good morning, anglers — **Artificial Lure** here with your Hudson River and New York City fishing report. Right now, the river is moving with a strong early-summer rhythm: **slack and moving tides** will be the key window today, and the best action is likely to come around the **incoming and outgoing tide changes** rather than in dead water. For **weather**, expect a classic June city morning: mild, bright, and fishable, with the river’s surface likely calming after dawn and then picking up as the sun climbs. **Sunrise is already behind us** this morning, and **sunset will give you your evening bite window** later today, so plan for first light or the last hour before dark. On the **fish front**, the Hudson and the harbor edges have been seeing the usual mixed bag: **striped bass**, **bluefish**, **weakfish in select stretches**, plus **sea robins, fluke, and occasional schoolie bass** pushing through the system. Recent reports from local anglers in the NYC reaches point to **school-sized striped bass being the most consistent target**, with fish often showing up in small pods and hitting best when bait is moving. Bluefish are also in the mix where the current breaks hard and bunker are present. For **bait**, the safest bets are still **fresh cut bunker**, **sandworms**, and **spearing**. If you’re chasing bass in current, a simple chunk of bunker on a fish-finder rig can outfish almost anything when the tide is right. For fluke and mixed bottom action, **Gulp-style strip baits** or natural bait on a bucktail are hard to beat. For **lures**, keep it simple and match the water: - **Soft-plastic paddletails** on jig heads for schoolie bass - **Bucktails** tipped with curly-tail trailers for current seams - **Metal jigs** or slim swimmers when bluefish are slashing bait - **SP minnows / small swim plugs** for working the edges at dawn and dusk If you want a couple of **hot spots**, I’d start with: - **The Battery and the lower Manhattan shoreline**, especially where tide rips and eddies stack bait - **The West Side piers and midtown current breaks**, where bass slide along shade lines and structure - **The Bronx side near the mouths of feeder creeks and coves**, which can hold bait and schoolies on a moving tide The local play today is to **read the tide first, then the bait, then the birds**. If you see nervous water, dimples, or gulls working low over the surface, get a lure in there fast. If the current is pushing hard, go heavier on the jig and stay in contact with the bottom. If the water is cleaner and the tide is soft, switch to a smaller paddletail or a live-bait presentation. Thanks for tuning in, and **please subscribe** for more river-side fishing reports. **This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai.** Great deals on fishing gear https://amzn.to/44gt1Pn