The Brian Nigro double-secret junkyard bucktail and the arrival of The Real Fishing Season

I’m going to do something fishermen rarely do. I’m going to reveal my top-secret, fluke-killing weapon and how to make it. First, some background.

In my late teens, I started working on a party boat in Huntington. Like most boats fishing the Long Island Sound, we spent a fair amount of time fluke fishing. I had the opportunity to help a lot of people catch some very big fish over the years. I began to see a common thread running through all of these fish tales. The majority of big fish were caught on buck tails and the stomachs of those fish were filled with baby flounder, large mantis shrimp or some other “dark bait.”

At that time, most of the buck tails sold were simple white buck tails that we would dress up with a strip of fluke skin or squid. Eventually I decided to start tying my own buck tails; dark on top, white underneath. No one ever taught me how to tie a buck tail, I just made it up. The following will probably make many a purist fly-tying enthusiast cringe. Cringe all you want, but my junkyard buck tail has caught big fluke from Huntington Bay to Montauk Point and lots of places in between.

What you need:
1) a lead head jig 3/4 ounce to 1 1/2 ounce
2) a buck tail (literally a deer’s tail)
3) black sewing thread
4) Crazy Glue or Zap-A-Gap hobby Glue
5) a fly tying vise or even a regular vise grip
6) scissors

What to do:
1) Place the jig head in the vise, hook side up. Tighten the vise on the hook.
2) Cut off 18″ of thread. Tie it around the jig head just behind the hook. The knot doesn’t matter.
3) Dab your knot with glue.
4) Cut off a small amount of brown buck tail hair. Place it on the top of the hook shaft behind the lead head and wind some thread around it to secure it.
5) Continue this process, laying the hair one bunch of hair next to the previous, working your way around base of the jig head. Light hair on the bottom, darker colors on top.
6) Use more thread, glue and buck tail as needed, until it looks like a fish would bite it.
7) To finish, wrap tightly with the thread from directly behind the jig head down the shank, about a half an inch.
8) Trim any unruly hairs.

Now you are the proud owner of a Brian Nigro Double Secret Junkyard Buck Tail. I like to fish it with a strip of dark fluke skin or, recently I have been using the Berkley Gulp Alive 3″ mullet baits. In a pinch anything works. Don’t be afraid to experiment.

In Jamesport, the Celtic Quest IV has set up shop in East Creek at the town dock, they are running daily porgy trips for the next month. On Mother’s Day (May 10), moms fish for free, according to The Celtic Quest facebook page.

I talked to Captain Dave Brennan from the Peconic Star fleet in Greenport and he is excited to start porgy fishing on Saturday, May 9. The Peconic Star Express will be fishing for porgies and starting May 17, The Peconic Star II will be taking customers out fluke fishing.

Captain Phil Kess of the Fishy Business out in Orient Point says he is going to take one more week off to let things really “pop.” Fish are starting to appear in some of the local pound traps, but Captain Phil wants to see water temperatures come up a few degrees.

Jenny from the Primetime III and Jenglo boats called to let me know that they have been sailing daily for porgies since Wednesday and have been putting together some solid catches.

Out in Mattituck I spoke with Captain Jon of the Capt. Bob Fleet and he reports that they are staying tied to the dock until the Fluke opener, when they will be giving away one last season pass for the largest fluke caught that day.

Down In Shinnecock, the Shinnecock Star has begun running daily trips for porgies, weakfish and blues.

If you have any questions or want to include your own report, send it to eelocalreports@gmail.com

Tight lines!

Brian Nigro is a lifelong avid fisherman and former charter boat captain. He’s fished from Alaska to Mexico and lots of places in between, but his favorite place to fish is right here on the East End.