Too Much of a Good Thing?

 We are in the grips of a northeaster and it's wreaking havoc on the oceanfront. I've fished 4 days in a row this week and conditions have gradually gone downhill making fishing very difficult in most areas.

I landed this hefty schoolie in some
wild, but clean white water this week.
There have been some impressive
catches in the blows this week. Look
for clean white water with lots of
bait.

I love fishing rough water and over the years it has really produced for me.  However, this past week has been marginal with a fish here and there in some beautiful white water. Yesterday, conditions really took a turn for the worse with a lot of weedy and sandy water, stuff stripers try to avoid. It was the first time in a week I got skunked.

While I have not been lighting it up in this week's northeast blows, I have heard of some great catches. These have mostly occurred in places of clean, white water with a lot of bait.  My son Jon had the best outing I heard of with 10 stripers over 40 inches two nights ago. So, you can score in the roughness if you find the fish.

There are many well known "Northeaster Spots" to fish in RI.  Most of these are either points that offer fishing on three sides which gives you some shelter from the wind, but still gives you white water.  The backwaters are also good bets and within the breachways on the outgoing tides might offer some good fishing in clean water.

If you do get out in the next few days, proceed with extreme caution and stay safe. The wind and surf are really supposed to ramp up.

Marathon Outing in the Yak Really Produces!

 

One of the big black sea bass that I jigged up.

I was just supposed to fish for a couple of hours along the oceanfront for albies today from the kayak. I did do that, but plans quickly changed and what turned out to be a couple of hours turned into 8 hours!

Man, how plans can change, and sometimes you just have to make adjustments.  In the area I fished there were basically few or no albies around today.  I saw one small pod of them crashing into huge schools of bait.  I decided this was a waste of time and began jigging the bottom.  The bottom was absolutely covered with black sea bass.  I had one on just about every drop and jig of my Clarkspoon. While most of them were small, I did mange to get a couple of big ones.

I left the oceanfront and decided on a whim to hit the Bay on the way home in a place where I got

First blues of the year today and it was loaded!

skunked earlier in the week. Today was a different story. Immediately after launching, I ran into a massive school of blitzing bluefish.  It was like the good ole days with boiling water, huge numbers of fish in a frenzy and loads of birds hitting the water. Even when the blues weren't blitzing or showing they were scattered in a big area where I was fishing and hitting.  Using a Rebel Jumpin' Minnow, I landed well over a dozen of them.  They were generally 3 to 5 lbs. Mind you, these are the first blues I've landed THIS YEAR!

Mixed in with the bluefish were big stripers.  Every once in a while I would see a big boil at my lure.  I finally got one to take, and it was either a good size slot or one that was slightly over the slot. My son Jon was with me and he also got a decent striper.

So, the day did not go as planned, but I am happy with the results. There are fish around, but you have to really look to find them.

One good size striper was the icing on the cake!

Must Have Lures When Stripers on Tiny Bay Anchovies

 

Three MUST HAVE lures when fussy stripers are
feeding on small bay anchovies.

The key to catching when stripers are on small bay anchovies is to try to "match the hatch" as fly fishermen would say.  That means going small with small offerings with a thin profile.  I have three killers in my bag which that I use when I encounter this small bait. One of them usually works the best although there are days when all three will be effective. These lures will catch albies, stripers and bonito with deadly efficiency on some day. 

1. Float 'n' Fly- This is so effective and worked the best in that blitz type day in my last post.  I am using a homemade wooden egg float with about two and a half to three feet of Varivas fluoro (usually 30 lb. test) trailing off the egg. Onto the fluoro I am tying on a homemade pink Deceiver fly (other colors/patterns will also work).  Cast it out and reel in slowly with occasional twitches of the rod tip.  Stop it occasionally. This set up outfished everyone else fishing on that hot day for big stripers a few days ago. 

2. Albie Snax- This lure is a bit bigger than the bay anchovies but it has the profile and the movement to attract fussy  stripers.  I like the white color and I rig it with a BKK Titan Rider 5/0 hook.  Cast, let it sink a bit and reel in slowly with twitches of the tod tip.  Stop reeling occasionally. Many hits will come on the stop.

3. Albie Jigs- These metal or epoxy lures are great casters and have the looks to catch a predators' eyes. I especially like an all silver Clarkspoon Stick Jig. Fool around with the retrieve.  Sometimes fast works, sometimes up and down jigging works. Sometimes a slow retrieve with twitches of the rod tip is best. The biggest fish I landed the other day, a 45 inch stripers, was taken on this lure. I also landed a couple of bonito on this lure.

So, there you have it. While I know most fishermen are stocking their bags with big expensive wooden plugs these days, sometimes simple and cheaper is better, especially when stripers are feeding on tiny bay anchovies!

Massive Schools of Bay Anchovies Arrive; Fishing for Big Stripers, Albies and Bonito Blow Up along Oceanfront!

 

Huge numbers of big stripers hit the shore in the
last two days along the oceanfront.

The shore fishing along the oceanfront in the last few days has exploded. Huge schools of bay anchovies arrived right after Labor Day and the fish were on them big time.  Yesterday I saw massive schools of bonito and large stripers busting all along the shoreline where I was fishing. It was an on and off ALL DAY feed.  Right before dark I saw one of the biggest schools of stripers I have ever seen. There were acres and acres of them. They were right on the shore at times with their fins and tails on the surface just gorging themselves on the bay anchovies. And, these were all BIG fish in the 30 to 45 inch range.

I had the best day of fishing I've had in the last five months.  I ended up with 10 large stripers (mostly over slots) and 2 large bonito. I had three stripers in the 41 to 45 inch range. I also saw probably a dozen fish over 40 inches landed by other anglers along with dozens of bonito.

Big numbers of good size bonito have been
in abundance in the last few days.

I tried to key my offering on matching the bay anchovies so I used a wooden egg float and a homemade pink Deceiver fly to catch most of my fish.  It seemed to be the most effective artificial as it seemed to outfish many of the lures other fishermen were using.

Clearly the migration of fish has started.  Let's hope this action continues. It's just what we have been waiting for!

The float and fly was a killer yesterday.  It's a great imitator 
of bay anchovies and caught most of my fish.

Photo of the Day- A "Rare" Striper from the Yak

After blanking the last two days from shore, I decided to
get out in the kayak tonight. I got one striper, a hefty schoolie
on a Finesse Fish.  Stripers have been tough to come by
these days as there are not many in RI waters right now.

 

Labor Day Weekend Outlook

 

There are a few resident stripers around but the
action overall is slow. Hope for some rough,
white water this weekend to have your best shot.

The fishing is moving slowly into a fall mode. Some stripers, some blues, some bonito and even some albies around, but there is not a lot of anything right now. Still, you can find some action is you really look.  Boaters have a big advantage in that they can move around.  Shore fishing is a hit and miss deal. So, here's the report:

Stripers- Tough right now since you are targeting resident fish. There are no migrations yet. I got out several times this week and hit a bunch of spots from shore.  The best action was in white, rough water where I landed 5 fish.  These were mostly schoolies with a slot or two. I got all the fish on a wooden egg float and jig. My sharpie friends who have been slugging it out at night report poor fishing. Some of my boating buddies are also reporting poor striper fishing.

You had to really look to find anyone else casting for stripers.  Most are sitting on the sidelines and waiting for something to happen. Still, if we get a shot at northeast winds, cloudy weather and rough water this weekend, you could find some fish. I know I will be trying.

Pelagics-  That bonito bite that we had a few weeks ago has fizzled.  There are still some around but you have to really look.  The boaters are faring much better since they can move around a lot. It's been a slow bite for shore fishermen.

Albies hit the shore a couple of days ago in one particular location.  It was hot for a few days but poor this morning as my son Jon was trying.  He had one blow up and saw a couple landed by huge numbers of guys/boats.  The word is out. They are not widespread yet but this just might be the start. Worth looking around in the reliable spots this weekend.  Advantage for boaters.

Blues- I still have yet to land a blue this year, and I have not seen any. I heard of a few small ones being caught this week by shore fishermen, but no numbers.  Look for spots where lots of bait gathers.

Beware of Sharks- We are still loaded with brown sharks.  I know of a couple of surfcasters who won't wade past their knees to fish.  Some guys fishing eels at night have hooked sharks.  Others who manage to hook a fish have had their fish cut in half.  It's a big problem.