Best Fishing Times in Rhode Island This Week
Near Narragansett, Westerly and Providence: today on a 24 hour timeline and the next seven days rated Fair to Best.
Working out the moon and the sun for Narragansett, RI, and reading the forecast.
Fishing somewhere else? Enter any ZIP for your own spot
Photo: “Fall fishing on the Madison River at sunrise”, Jacob W. Frank, Yellowstone National Park (NPS), Public domain
Rhode Island at a glance
Solunar windows plus the agency calendarWhen fish bite in Rhode Island
Rhode Island's fishing year runs from the trout opener on the second Saturday of April to bonito through summer and fall, Spanish mackerel peaking in September, and fall trout stocking in October.
Each entry below is from Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management, Division of Fish and Wildlife and Division of Marine Fisheries or its published guides, quoted word for word and linked. Line the season up with the week above: a run in its prime and a Great day with a window at first light is the morning to take off.
- Second Saturday of April
Trout
Trout season opens on the second Saturday of April, a tradition for tens of thousands of Rhode Islanders.
“Opening Day is a special event and tradition for tens of thousands of Rhode Islanders who head out on the second Saturday of April to a favorite fishing spot to reel in their first trout of the season.”
Opening Day of Trout Season, Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management, read October 9, 2026 - Summer through fall
Bonito
Bonito are mostly a summer fish and stay through the fall, with pods reported as early as April.
“Pods of bonito have been reported as early as April, but typically are associated with summer fishing and persist through the fall.”
2023 Rhode Island Recreational Saltwater Fishing, Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management, read October 9, 2026 - August to September
Spanish mackerel
Spanish mackerel show up in August and peak in abundance in September.
“Spanish Mackerel are toothy schooling scombrids that prefer warmer water temps and will show up in August and peak in abundance in September.”
2023 Rhode Island Recreational Saltwater Fishing, Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management, read October 9, 2026 - Early October
Trout
In 2026, brook and rainbow trout were stocked in selected waters from October 2 to October 8.
“The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM) is stocking brook and rainbow trout in selected areas throughout RI starting Friday, Oct. 2 through Thursday, Oct. 8.”
Hooked on Autumn: 25 Waterways to be Stocked with Trout, Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management, read October 9, 2026
License, stocking, ice and tides in Rhode Island
Reading the Rhode Island timeline
Each day has two major solunar periods of about two hours, centered on the moon overhead and underfoot, and two minor periods of about an hour at moonrise and moonset. A window within an hour of sunrise or sunset is marked in gold. The rating adds the moon phase, the gold windows and a capped nudge from the National Weather Service forecast for each town. Every factor and its points.
Dawn and dusk are the reliable part; the moon windows are the old angler’s rule.
