Seals in the Providence River Add to Misery

It was a day that should have been good. The conditions and tide were just right this afternoon and temperatures were in the forties with drizzle. In the past that would have led to banner winter fishing. Not this year.
The lousy winter fishing in the Providence River just got worse with the addition of seals. It's bad enough that I haven't gotten a hit in the last four outings, but now I have seals to contend with. And, we all know that seals have a very negative effect on any fish that may be around.
Today I saw two seals actively working the river right in the city about a fifty yards south of Heninway's Restaurant. One was a small gray one and the other was a large brown one. Not being a seal expert, I have no idea what kinds these were. I did see a big commotion as one seal was thrashing near the shore in an obvious attack. I'm sure he got a small striper.
This seal had far better luck today than I did as I blanked.....once again.

Worms Working

There are not that many stripers in the Providence River this winter. To make matters worse, it seems that the fish that are around are on the fussy side. The ole reliable Zoom flukes on a jighead are not working these days. Instead, these winter fish would prefer to hit a plastic worm fished on a jighead right along the bottom.

The few fish that I have taken in the last week after dark have all been caught on worms. The best worm to use is one with a long curly tail. You'll find these in stores under the name of "ribbon tail", "C tail", or "curl tail" to name a few. The dark colors such as black, brown and motor oil all work well. Mount them on quarter ounce jigs. Cast your offering out, let it sink to the bottom and reel in very slowly trying to keep the offering near the bottom. The hits are usually very subtle as the fish just mouth the offering.

ASA Eastern Fishing and Hunting Expo

I will be at the ASA Eastern Fishing and Hunting Expo at the DCU Center in Worcester on Fri., Feb. 12 (1:15) and Sat., Feb. 13 (3:30) doing striper fishing seminars. I will be doing my new striper show for 2010. It is called Striper Techniques from Shore and Boat and features lots of hot tips and new ideas for catching striped bass from shore, boat and kayak. The ideas come from my successes and patterns that produced in 2009. This is a digital Power Point show that I narrate. This year's show features a number of video clips as well as loads of pictures that are sure to enhance the show.
The ASA Eastern Fishing and Hunting Expo is one of the biggest and most popular shows in the Northeast. I features hundreds of exhibitors, outfitters and displays. It also features the latest in equipment from some of the biggest tackle manufacturers. For more information about the show, go to the link below:
http://www.sportshows.com/worc_main.html