First Keepers Landed; Uptick in Activity; Other "Stuff" Working

This schoolie hit a one ounce
bucktail jig spiced with a
4 inch curly tail.

The Yo-Zuri Hydro Minnow
was my best producer today.
It also seemed to lure larger fish.

The fishing really took a turn for the better today in some rough and stormy conditions along the RI oceanfront. I had my best day yet with 22 fish onto the shore. Most were bigger than what I have seen in recent days with the average fish running 20 to 25 inches.
I also saw some keepers landed this week.  A couple of days ago, my friend Dick Geldard, fishing right next to me, landed a beautiful fish that had to go at least 15 lbs. (roughly 32-33 inches). I have seen a few other smaller keepers (28 inch range) taken this week. I had several fish this week that were just shy of keeper size, so the average size fish seems to be getting bigger.
The fish are also getting more active. Today was the first day I have been able to catch stripers on something other than a Cocahoe Minnow on a jighead.  Yes, I got a few on that.  I also got a few on a bucktail jig with a curly tail attached to it. But, I had my best luck today using swimmers.  I landed good numbers of fish on both a Sebile Magic Swimmer and a Yo-Zuri Hydro Minnow.  Both of those lures in a white color were getting it done and seemed to be attracting larger fish. If you want to use a swimmer, consider crushing the barbs of the treble hooks for easier catch and release.  With the fish being so active, I'll bet I could have even gotten one to hit a popper, but I did not have one in my bag.