For local fishing information, contact Dee's Bait and Tackle in New Haven at (203) 562-7025.

HOUSATONIC RIVER, STRATFORD
In upstate Connecticut, the Housatonic River is known for its excellent trout fishing. Near Long Island Sound, however, the Housatonic turns into a wide, swift tidal river. With its deep channels, rockpiles, sand flats and muddy marshland creeks, the Housatonic River is one of the top schoolie bass locations in western Connecticut.

The most attractive location for both fly-casters and surfcasters is on the Stratford side of the river. Near the mouth you'll find Short Beach, which has excellent access and anglers can walk several hundred yards into the river. At low tide you'll need to be near the main channel for the best action; however, at high tide the fish will forage up to the shore.

Parking near the beach can be a problem during summer weekends, but striper fishing is always best in the early mornings and evenings, when recreational beach-goers will be fewest.

To find the beach and parking, take I-95 to Exit 32. Take Route 113 behind the Bridgeport Airport.

MIDDLE GROUND
Off Stratford at the midpoint of Long Island Sound is a large reef called "Middle Ground," also locally known as "Stratford Shoal."

Middle Ground is widely regarded as the top all-around fishing spot in the western Sound, and it's one of the best places to find stripers and bluefish each summer. The shoal averages about 17 feet deep at low tide, surrounded by about 70 feet of water except on the north side, where you will cross waters that are 150 feet deep. Only anglers with larger (17 feet or longer) boats should venture here because the sea becomes rough when strong tides and winds converge. Three navigational buoys plus a foghorn and lighthouse mark Middle Ground.

A launch is in Milford on the Housatonic River's east side. Take I-95 to Exit 34. Turn west on Route 1, and then go north on Naugatuck Avenue. The launch is on the left. Parking is available for 80 cars. A fee is collected on weekends and holidays.

To get there, motor downriver to Stratford Point, and then head south across the Sound for five miles. This spot is clearly marked on local charts. For more information, contact Stratford Bait and Tackle at (203) 377-8091.

Connecticut has a two-fish, 28-inch limit on striped bass. Limits on stripers have changed several times in recent years, so check the latest regulations before heading out.

Bluefish mix with stripers in most areas. The current bluefish limit is 10 fish per day per angler, regardless of size. But if you are not going to eat them, consider releasing them.

For more information and a free 2005 Connecticut Angler's Guide, call the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection's Fisheries Department at (860) 424-3474. For a boating guide, call (860) 434-8638, or check out the agency's Web site at www.dep.state.ct.us.

For visitor information, contact the Connecticut Office of Tourism at (800) CT-BOUND or visit the agency's Web site at www.tourism.state.ct.us.

For marine weather forecasts and local tides, visit www.wunderground.com. For waterproof navigation charts that mark all the fishing hotspots in the above areas, contact Capt. Segull's Sportfishing Charts at (888) 473-4855; www.captainsegullcharts.com, or consider sending an e-mail to cathy@captainsegullcharts.com.

Now is the time to grab a rod and get in on the hot July bass bite. Striper fishing should be good this month at these and many other shoreline and boat-access spots in New England. Make an effort to get up before sunrise or stay until sunset for the best action.