The STORM: Before, During and After

Stripers were on the feed prior to the big storm.

Sunday's storm wasn't a hurrincane, a tropical storm or a northeaster, but it has to rank as one of the biggest unnamed storms to hit the state. Besides all the tree damage and knocking out power, it really tore through the oceanfront.  Two days later, the ocean remains unfishable.
Before: Prior to the storm the fishing for stripers was on the upswing.  I was out just about every day/night at the end of last week and I found good numbers of fish up to small keeper size just about everywhere I fished along the oceanfront.  Even when nothing was showing, I was able to pick off fish here and there in white water. I also found good numbers of hickory shad that were on the feed. Albies were heading downhill but even on Saturday, I heard about several being landed.
Day of the Storm:  I did not fish, but my son Ben was out Sunday afternoon while the storm was just beginning to get cranked up.  He found good numbers of hefty schoolies up to near keeper size in some clean, white water. The fish were definitely on the feed and the float and jig did the trick. He never saw another guy fishing.
After: Forget it.  I don't know of a single area along the south shore that is fishable right now, two days after the storm. The surf is still real rough and the wind continues to howl.  The south shore beachfront is especially bad with sand and silt out as far as one can see. I suspect the rocky areas around Narragansett, Jamestown and Newport will clear first, but even those places are all fouled up right now.
The reminds me of Hurricane Sandy, which by the way hit on the same date.  It took almost two weeks for the water to clean and settle down, and the good fishing never really recovered. I'm hoping this is not the case, and I will be out trying by the end of the week.