July 2020 Black Seabass are abundant and show no sign of slowing down any time soon. We have limited out at 3 fish per man counting the captain & mate on every trip in July. We have had many over 3 lbs and one 6.5 pound which is huge. Black Seabass are excellent eating fish and biting really well right now. There are also large scup mixed in. The striper fishing is the best I have seen in years. While we are limited to 1 fish per man not counting the captain & mate, 28”-35”, is the size we can keep. We are catching them regularly. We are also releasing many stripers both over and under the size limit. The fluke fishing in several of my best spots, are over run with spiny dogfish. There are some really nice fish around, but

Limited number of 36" x 24" bathymetry maps showing the east & west approaches to Block Island.  The bathymetry data are colored and hill shaded  to emphasize subsea topography features.($100.00 includes S & H.  Makes a wonderful wall poster for the nautical person in your life.    The picture is specifically for framing.   Running a special during the summer of 2020.  ($60.00)

This makes a perfect gift for people who love Rhode Island Waters.

Blog #6

The season is off to a great start as June winds down.  Several exploratory trips have been really excellent for early season fishing.   We have completed seven charters which have yielded cod fish, stripers, black seabass, and blue fish.    The lobstering so far has been good with a total of 22 lobsters for family, one charter, and folks at the dock.  We have tagged and released around 25 stripers with American Littoral Society tags.    We had one really good outing for fluke before the spiny dogfish decided to gather around the Island to spawn.    Hopefully they will thin out enough to allow us to tackle some big fluke.   Fishing for July will be ...

Blog #5 Excellent fluke fishing recently on the Carol J. An exploratory trip netted 14 keeper fluke up to 9.42 pounds, with several others over 5 pounds each. The best part of finding these fish is that there was not a boa within 5 miles of me all day! Pretty exciting to have the fish for yourself for day. It won’t last, as soon as the word gets out an armada of vessels will be jockeying for the best drift. Next week we begin that charter season in unrest with trips 6 trips scheduled for the last days in June. I have a few weekend charter slots open currently, but don’t delay. The weather has been perfect with light winds, calm seas and good fishing.

The Carol J was launched on May 26, 2020.    Over the next week we plan to check our some early season spots that have produced fish in other years.   This included checking out the South Shore for squid and early run Fluke.  Over the past few years I have found some excellent striped bass fishing off of Matunuck State beach.   This is very situational, and the fish don/t stay there long.   They seem to drop by for a snack on their travels North.   I have run into them and expect them to show up mid June.  As I mentioned in previous posts, spring fishing can be tough until the water temperature get in the mid to upper 50' reange.   Currently the water temperatue is 51...

We are ready to fish! Due to the COVID-19 virus, I have delayed the start of the 2020 fishing season.  At this point in time, it appears that the number of positive cases are going down.  For that reason the Carol J is open for business.  RI Governor Raimondo has allowed the charter fleet to operate with a few restrictions.   #1 is that everyone has to wear face mask.  #2 is that we have to practice social distancing of 6 ft. between each person.  #3 is that I can only take 5 passengers until further notice We also have a cleaning protocol for our business posted on board. The stripers are biting quite well and showing up in the usual places. There are lots of small fish. My mate Sam, has tagged and released 7 stripers up

We have had a few exploratory trips over the past two weeks.    Actually the best striper fishing has been right at my dock.  I set a timer for 30 minutes, Sam, goes to the front of the boat and drops a baited hook straight down.   The record is 20 minutes in there is a striper with an American Littoral Society tag returned to the water.  We have tagged and released 7 in the past couple of days.  The pond is pretty loaded with under sized fish.  

All systems on the Carol J have been checked out, we have bait, rigs, tackle, ice and everything we will need to provide an excellent fishing experience.  Our second exploratory trip is set for this Tuesday.   I pipe line of information ...

The boat is in the water at SS dock Galilee Rhode Island.   Our exploratory trips have begun with a South Shore two hour and an 8 hour trip to Block Island yesterday.  There are a few fish around but nothing really exciting.    We released two under sized fluke and kept four blue fish on one trip and got 4 nice cod fish on the second trip.    We have another trip planned for Tuesday June 2, 2020 to check out some additional spots.   Spring fishing is always a challenge. 

COVID -19 Operational Guidelines 

The State of Rhode Island has provided the following guidance to the charter boat industry to insure the health and safety of all participants.    These operational guidelines detail distancing, group size, cleaning procedures and a vessel capacity formula.  The captains and crews of the vessels have reviewed the guidance and have implemented them.  Safety has always been the first priority of the Rhode Island Party & Charter Association

Operations:   The captain will retain the contact information of the group leader and ask them to notify the captain if any member of the group tests positive for COVID-19.  The captain will notify the group leader if the ......

Party and charter boat operation guidelines 

Carol J Charters

Blog #2

Boat Launch, COVID -19 Operational Guidelines

We have guidance from the State on Chartering as of June 1, 2020. Due to the efforts of the President of the Rhode Island Party & Charter Boat Association, Rick Bellavance, Dean Hoxie of DEM, and many others, a comprehensive set of operational guidelines have been published.  The guidance lists physical distancing, group size, cleaning procedures and a vessel capacity formula.  The captain and crew of the Carol J have reviewed the guidance and established how it all works our customers and us. Safety has always been the first priority just slightly ahead of putting a load of fish flopping on the ......