Another Good Week of Fishing

It's been another good week of fishing for me
with Slug-gos and Albid Snax doing most of the
damage.

This has been another good week of fishing for me.  It wasn't all big fish, though, as I also landed good numbers of schoolies. I did have a couple of over slots up to 40 inches that I landed on Slug-gos.  I also had slots and hefty schoolies that fell for an Albie Snax.  The skinny plastic in a white color has been hot all week as it has been all season long. 

I must admit that the fish have been fussy.  One day this week my son and I could actually see large fish near us that were swimming under pods of herring. They were super fussy and would whirl, chase and sometimes take the Slug-go. Other fishermen using standard swimmers and even glide baits were catching very little or nothing.  Just goes to show the effectiveness of the Slug.

The white Albie Snax has been a hot
lure this week for me.  It caught the
slot shown above.

Memorial Day Weekend Outlook

 

I landed this one a few nights ago on an albie
snax in the Bay. There are still fish around if
you work for them.

That outstanding fishing for large stripers that we saw a couple of weeks ago has really cooled off. They are still around in small pockets but you have to really look around to find them. Just not as easy as it was. Also, for shore fishermen, the bite has really turned to nighttime fishing.  For those in a boat or kayak, it's a lot easier to find the fish since you have the easy mobility to move around. My son, Jon, and I have been been fishing every day/night for the last week in multiple locations from the oceanfront to the Bay to the Cape.  Here are some ideas for those who might want to wet a line this three day weekend.

The Bay- The Bay was really hot a few weeks ago, but fishing has cooled.  Still, I got out a couple of times this week from shore there and landed some hefty schoolies.  There was action every time out with hits and some hook-ups. Slug-gos and Albie Snax have been the hot producers as the fish have been fussy in this heat.  Jon has been hitting it hard from the yak. He had a good night last night with 5 big ones that were all slots and overs.  All his fish fell for 7 1/2 inch white Slug-gos. I have also been out in the kayak, and its been one here and there. He's at the Cape for the next few days at his brother's house as we've heard of some fish down there. There has been a noticeable lack of pogies in the Bay so far.  Normally at this time, they are all over the place but I have seen none so far this year.

I landed this fish earlier in the week from 
the kayak.  Boaters and kayakers who
can move around should have an
easier time of it this weekend.

The Oceanfront-  It's a game of slugging it out after dark.  Jon hit the oceanfront a couple of times in the last week and it was a pick of one here, one there.  Still, I have heard of some good catches if you are at the right spot at the right time. Jon got his fish on Slug-gos so that's working along the oceanfront also. There has been a noticeable lack of bluefish around.  I haven't landed one yet and haven't seen one caught.  Jon got one from the kayak last week.

The Cape-  The Canal has been an off and on deal.  My sons, Jon and Ben, fished there last weekend and Ben had one 40 inch fish.  There were some breaking, but they were fussy. They saw one other fish landed. So, I guess that, too, has been an off and on deal.

Kayak Working

I got some decent ones from the yak today!
This one slammed a 7 1/2 inch Slug-go.

 On the days in which I don't have favorable conditions from shore, I head out in my kayak to slug it out in the calm water.  I'm out further than a shore cast, but still fishing shallow water with lots of boulders. Yes, that is working as we are clicking on all cylinders right now.  Today I landed several decent ones both casting and trolling from the yak.  The hot lure was a white 7 1/2 inch Slug-go, a lure my son Jon loves at this time of year.

So, the hot fishing here in RI just keeps rolling along.  As long as the weather stays cool, it should remain good.  Still, you have to find them, and that takes a bit more effort than just clicking away on social media.

Best Week of All Time in the Spring for Large Stripers

 

It was an epic week for very large stripers. 
There was phenomenal numbers of slots 
and over slots as my son and I caught and
released over 100 stripers this week.

In the last week my son Jon and I landed over 100 stripers. The majority of those fish have been slots and over slots.  In fact, the over slots have outnumbered the slots with many of those overs going over 40 inches. In the past those real large fish were pretty non-existent in RI waters until mid to late May. This year they were as abundant as schoolies.

We got a lot of our fish from shore, but we also found good numbers from the kayak when shore conditions were not favorable. 

Most of our fish this week were caught on skinny plastic.  From shore the 9 inch Slug-go was a hot lure. A variety of colors were working. From the kayak it was more of a finesse game as the  white Albie Snax and 7 1/2 inch Slug-gos were our most effective lures.

Towards the end of this phenomenal run of big fish which brought out more and more fishermen thanks to social media, I saw a lot of fish being caught on a number of different lures.  Docs, Yo-Zuri Hydro pencils, swimmers and even standard poppers were getting them.

I sense the big push of large fish has gone downhill in the places my son and I were fishing. But, no problem, since I'm sure they are still around somewhere, and I have a few good ideas about where I will be looking this week.

52 INCHES!

 Last evening I landed the longest striper I have ever caught from shore.  The fish measured 52 inches.  So, was it 50 lbs.? No, this fish was a streaker- very skinny for its length.  It had a huge head but nothing in the belly.  Still, I'm guessing it was in the upper 30 lb. to low 40 lb. range.

We are in an unpresented time with massive numbers of large stripers in RI waters right now. I've never seen anything like it in the spring.  It reminds me of the heydays in the Cape Cod Canal about ten years ago. While there are a ton of large stripers around, there are very few schoolies.

While I had that 52 inch fish last evening, I also had about 7 or 8 more fish at or over 40 inches.  Numbers and sizes like this are unheard of in the spring from shore here in RI! I think this spring's striper bonanza is a once in a lifetime event here in RI. Jump on it while you can.

By the way, all my fish were landed on 9 inch Slug-gos.  I was using a discontinued rainbow trout color with a BKK Titan Rider, 6/0 hook up front.  My son, Jon, who was with me, was doing equally as well with a white Slug-go.

Big Stuff from the Kayak

 I went out on my first voyage of 2026 in my kayak tonight, and it was just like I had been experiencing from shore all week. I landed good numbers of fish with slots, over slots and hefty schoolies in the mix. Like from shore, I had never landed fish this big from the kayak so early in May.

The hot lure tonight was a white Albie Snax.  It was a finesse game as the water was quite calm and the fish were quite fussy on the take. I had a Varivas fluoro leader tied to the end of my line and I used a slow "twitchy" retrieve below the surface with a "stop" once in a while. That worked great for me.  My son, Jon, was also out with me, and he had equal success with  7 1/2 inch white Slug-go.  The Slugs have been hot numbers for us in the past week.

Fishing for large stripers has carried right over into May. I'm hoping it continues as it is as good as it gets right now for this time of year.

Real hot fishing tonight for big fish from my kayak.

Best April EVER for Big Fish?

 

Holy Smokes- this big fish was landed this week
as a slug of big stripers have entered RI waters.
Jon and I had many slots and overslots this week.

Conventional wisdom says April fishing for stripers is a schoolie game here in RI. But, this year has been far different like I have never seen before.  In the last week, the last week of April, my son Jon and I have fished every evening and we have been into some big stripers with good numbers of them. We caught several in the 40 inch range with the biggest of the week at 43 inches. Along with these big ones, we had good numbers of slot fish.  I had only one schoolie this week.  The small fish have just not been around.

In all my years of fishing, I have never landed a 40 inch striper in April until this year. These large fish generally come around in early to mid May when the water warms up and the menhaden come around. 

 Nine inch Slug-gos were the hot lures all week.

Everything was wrong this week- cold northeast winds, cold water, no bait, but the fish were just around in real good numbers.  We landed nearly all our fish on 9 inch Slug-gos.  I was using a rainbow trout color (discontinued), and he was using a white one. This single hooked lure made for easy catch-and-release fishing. The Slug-go was also the most effective lure as we tried others with nowhere near the success.

No question, this April was the first year we have even seen large fish this early.  I hope it continues into May.

First Migrating Fish of the Year- An OVERSLOT!

 

First migrating fish of the year
for me proves to be an
OVERSLOT.  It was landed 
on a Slug-go.

I was into some big fish this evening.  My first fish of the night blasted my nine inch Slug-go.  That fish proved to be an overslot in the 36 to 38 inch range.  Next cast- a slot fish of 30 inches. A few casts later- another 30 inch fish. Twenty minutes later, I lose another big fish. Clearly, I was into something hot tonight. It's about time!

No doubt, there are some large fish around if you can find them. I've been reading on social media about many of these large fish being caught in RI waters.  Interestingly, there is a lack of schoolies or smaller fish.  No surprise here as the spawns of the last 5 years have been poor.

This is real early for these big stripers to be around. I saw no bait where I was fishing and no bird activity but the fish were just there prowling around. I guess it's a matter of getting out and casting and putting in your time, and good things will happen.

POOR

 

Here's one that I landed last week
in the backwaters. I'm guessing it might
have been a holdover.

The striper season is off to a very poor start.  The weather has been cold, especially at night, and the winds have not been favorable for the migration to get underway.  And, there are no fish in the areas where they should be at this time.

I know of no fish that have been landed along the oceanfront, and I certainly know a lot of good fishermen who have been trying the usual early spring hotspots.  I landed a few fish over a week ago in the backwaters.  I'm guessing they may have been holdovers since there was no lice on them.

This is late for the migrating fish, but we have seen these late starts.  It may have been decades ago, but I have seen April starts that happened in the closing days of the month.  Maybe this will be one of those years.

I've been trying along the oceanfront and my son Jon has been hitting a lot of early season hotspots in the Bay.  Neither one of us have caught anything in these locations.  Heck, I can count the fishermen on one hand that I have seen out trying, and that should tell you a lot.

Photo of the Day- "First One for 2026!"

 

I landed my first striper for 2026 today. I actually landed 2 fish
tonight and had multiple hits to begin my new striper season.
Both fish fell for a white Albie Snax, one of my hottest
lures last year.

One Month From Now

 

It's coming roughly one month from now!

It's coming.  In about one month from now we will begin to see the first of the migrating stripers along the south shore oceanfront of RI. I expect we will see the fish at about the same time as we've seen them in recent years.  Yes, it's been a cold winter this year, but I've seen cold winters and warm winters in the past, and it all has little effect on when the first ones arrive. They always seem to get here around the same time.

Here is a rundown of when I have caught my first ones in the last five years:

2025- April 15

2024- April 15

2023- April 18

2022- April 15

2021- April 19

Note that I started trying before these dates above, but April 15 seems to be the ticket, give or take a few days. On all those dates above I know I had migrating fish since all of them had sea lice, a dead give-away that these were migrating fish. Of all those dates above, the most interesting was in 2023.  That date, April 18, on my first 7 casts with a one ounce bucktail jig, I landed 7 stripers, all slot fish. With the low numbers of schoolies around these days, don't be surprised if your first one of the year is a slot fish.

Here is one other common theme of all those first fish of the year.  They were all caught on jigs. Some hit the bucktail, some went for a Cocahoe on a jighead and in recent years the NLBN paddle tails have been hot. All these first ones were taken right off the bottom, the main strike zone where you will find the first ones.

Highlight of the Day- A Huge Perch

 This yellow perch is about as big as they get.  My son Jon and I got out on the ice today.  We were just jigging, and it was all yellow perch. I got this big one on a small Kastmaster tipped with a plastic maggot. 

We continue to see the thickest ice in a decade especially away from the coast. Looks like the ice fishing is going into March this year!

Ice fishing remains hot in RI and nearby MA.  This huge 
perch that I jigged up today was the highlight of the day.

Catch of the Day!

 My son, Ben, holds up the catch of the day as he jigged up this beautiful largemouth bass through the ice today.  It was a banner day as we jigged up 8 largemouths along with numerous perch, sunfish and crappie. They were all caught on small gold Kastmasters tipped with either a plastic mealworm or a Gulp maggot.

By the way- over 12 inches of ice, the most we've seen in decades!

 

Next Seminar Stop- Springfield Sportsmens Show

 My next stop on my winter seminar trail is the Springfield Sportsmens show at the Big E in Springfield, MA.  I will be there on Saturday, Feb. 21.  This show is billed as the biggest pure outdoor show in the northeast. There are a lot of fishing related booths and exhibits for freshwater and saltwater fishing enthusiasts.  But, there are also a lot of other outdoor features like hunting, camping, taxidermists, kayaks, boats and more. It's a very well attended and popular outdoor show that has been running for a long time.

I will be doing my "Situational Striper Fishing" seminar which is all new for 2026.  It will feature various situations striper fishermen encounter and how you fish those situations for best results. The seminar is mostly about shore fishing but I do also have segments on kayak fishing for stripers.  I did this seminar a couple of weeks ago, and it was very well received. I will be doing my first seminar at 1:00 and I will be doing it again at 4:00.

For more information on the show and seminar schedules, check out the website HERE

Only Show in Town- ICE FISHING REMAINS HOT

 

I jigged up this nice crappie today in some bluebird
weather.  This fish hit a small gold Kastmaster
tipped with a Berkley Gulp Maggot.

The weather is cold, really cold, but the ice fishing remains hot.  I've gotten out several times in the last week jigging several different ponds and I've gotten good numbers of fish.  It's been a lot of variety with perch, pickerel, crappie, largemouth bass and bluegills all hitting. 

Today I got out on the ice with my son Ben. I was amazed that there was almost 10 inches of ice in the pond we fished.  For the most part, we were jigging small Kastmasters tipped with Berkley Gulp maggots. That seemed to do the trick but the biggest fish caught today actually hit a Kastmaster with a plastic maggot.

My son, Jon, hit a first yesterday as he jigged up a pike, the first we ever caught while jigging. It was a small one, about 3 to 4 lbs. A day earlier he got a bigger one on a tilt. He's been scouting around in a number of places and doing quite well jigging after his work day is done.

Yellow perch have been on a tear this
winter. This one was caught today.

VARIVAS on the Ice

 

The weather was cold, but it was
hot fishing today while jigging.
I had a chance to try out some 
Varivas nylon line today, and it
worked out well as you can see
from the photo!

As many of you know, I am a line tester for Varivas lines.  I've written a lot about their braided lines and fluorocarbon for saltwater applications. Now, I'm back to ice fishing when I'm not skiing, and I had a chance today to try out some of their monofilament lines (called nylon line) on my ice jigging rods.

I received several samples of Varivas lines to try ice jigging. I spooled up one of my outfits with 6 lb. test Super Trout Advance line, a thin monofilament line.  On the end of the line I tied on about a three foot shock leader.  I used Varivas 10 lb. test Extreme Shock leader.  Like their braided lines, these lines were super thin for their pound test, but provided a great feel for those "soft" hits you get while jigging. I was jigging a small gold Kastmaster with a Berkley Gulp maggot on the hook. I was trying out the maggots for the first time.

I got a chance to put the lines to the test as the action was very good.  I landed about fifteen fish with a lot of variety- largemouth bass, crappie and yellow perch. Some of the bass were decent size. So, the two things I was trying out today- the Varivas line and the Gulp maggots worked great.

By the way there was about 8 inches of ice where I was fishing in nearby MA although about two to three inches of it was that crappy, snowy ice. Still, there was at least 5 inches of hard, solid ice. There was also a good amount of snow on the ice as you would expect.

If you are interested in Varivas lines, visit the website at https://www.varivas.fishing

The main line on the reel was Varivas Super Trout Advance
in 6 lb. test.  My shock leader was 10 lb. test Extreme Shock Leader.

St. Croix LEGEND Surf Rods

 As many of you know, I did a review on my St. Croix Avid surf rod a while back on this blog. That rod was great and served me well. One day last fall I was using it along some rocky dropoffs when I hooked a decent size striper. I was on a high perch and when I got the fish rear the rocks, I did something really stupid.  I attempted to lift the fish up, and when I did, I heard a "snap". My favorite surf rod was now in two pieces. I knew the rod had the best warranty in the rod business-no questions asked if it breaks, one of the great advantages of St. Croix rods.  I filled out all the paperwork and sent the required $60 payment for replacement under warranty.

Unfortunately, the replacement rod was not in stock, and I would have to wait till December for the rod to come in.  In the meantime, I planned use an old Mojo surf rod I had. It was just way subpar compared to the newer Avid rod.  With two months left to the season, I decided to check out the St. Croix website and see what else was available. That's when I noticed they had the 10 foot Surf Legend in stock.  So, I went ahead and purchased it.

I bought a 10 foot medium power, moderate fast action rod, #GSS100MMF2.  The website describes this rod as "an elite surfcasting performer" and I have to agree 100% with that evaluation. This rod has a legendary feel to it.  It's a bit stiffer than the Avid, and it has a real solid feel to it. But, it's still lightweight. It has a lot of power on the cast and is super solid when fighting a good size fish. The website says it can handle 1 to 4 oz. plugs and I agree with that assessment. 

Everything about this rod is elite- a beautiful blue color, titanium guides and a unique a handle of neoprene overlay that looks and feels cool. In addition, the Legend carries an incredible 15 year warranty. Yes, it's pricy, but not any more expensive than some of the top brands of surf rods these days.

So, I finished off my season with my St. Croix Legend, fished in some rugged terrain with big water and came away with a good number of large fish. I have to say the rod performed flawlessly. 

I think I have found my ultimate surf rod.

This is my new St. Croix Legend surf rod that I used at the
end of the fall. It was a elite performer and was flawless
on the cast and on the fight.

First "Big Show" Seminar- New England Fishing Expo, Jan. 31

 

I start my 2026 fishing seminars at the big shows on Saturday, Jan. 31 at 2:00 at the New England Fishing Expo in Marlboro, MA. This is one of the biggest pure fishing shows in New England.  It features a lot of freshwater fishing as well as saltwater fishing.  There are reps from a lot of companies showing their new stuff as well as independent tackle dealers selling their wares along with guides and charter boat captains. They also feature an all-star line-up of seminar speakers.  The seminar schedule is on their website at nefishingexpo.com

I will be doing my all new 2026 striper fishing seminar titled Situational Striper Fishing. From the high surf of the oceanfront to the backwaters of bays and ponds, we’ll explore a number of situations (how-to approaches) that striper fishermen encounter as they cast for these gamesters. Such topics as how to fish skinny water (from shore and kayak), how to tackle rocky shorelines, how to take a finesse approach, big bait tactics, storm tactics, and many more situations will be covered to help anglers to catch more fish and bigger fish.  The seminar mostly focuses on shore fishing, but has segments for boaters and kayakers.

The New England Fishing Expo runs for three days from Jan. 30 to Feb.1. It is held at the Best Western Royal Plaza Trade Center in Marlboro, MA (181 Boston Post Rd.) right off Rt. 495.

Hope to see many of my followers at the show!

On the Ice

I landed this nice size largemouth
bass today while jigging.

 With all these cold temperatures the ice is thickening all across southern New England.  I got out in the last couple of days and found safe ice in northern RI and nearby MA. The ice seems to be running 3 to 6 inches thick with higher amounts the further north you explore.

Today I got out with my two youngest sons, Ben and Jon.  Jon is an avid ice fisherman and fishes extensively in the three state area of RI, MA and NH. He's already been steadily hitting the ice for the last couple of weeks, mostly in NH. Ben is on "maturnity" leave and has some time on his hands. He also lives on lakeside property along a very productive shoreline so that makes things easy.

We mostly jig when we ice fish and that usually leads to a lot of fish and a lot of variety.  Today we landed perch, pickerel, largemouth bass and yellow perch in good numbers.  Ben and I were jigging small, 1/12 oz. Kastmasters tipped with fake, plastic meal worms.  Jon, who landed the most fish, was using a 1/12 oz. grub jig. We cut a lot of holes looking for fish using my power auger, a real valuable tool when ice jigging. It's a trial and error game and we hit the jackpot after about a half hour of fishing.

Jon landed this good size pickerel on a grub jig.

If you are looking for some wintertime action, think about jigging freshwater ponds in southern New England.  If you are fishing in RI, CT, or NH, you will need a new 2026 freshwater fishing license.  In RI, your old 2025 license is good until the end of Feb.

St. Croix Avid Inshore Rod- Love this Rod for Light Tackle/Kayak

 

My St. Croix Avid Inshore rod was a perfect
choice for the kayak as well as light tackle
fishing from shore

This past year I bought a new St. Croix Avid Inshore Spinning Rod.  My choice was a 7 foot, 3 inch model that was rated medium heavy for lures in the 1/2 to 1 1/4 oz. range.  By the way, that rating was perfect. This rod was a beautiful light blue color, something many other fishermen commented on.  Aside from its great looks, the rod was lightweight, sensitive and durable, and performed admirably.

I had originally bought this rod to fish from the kayak as 7 to 7 1/2 feet are ideal sizes to fish from the yak. I also wanted it to be a bit beefier since that is also a plus when catching big stripers and blues from the yak. On it I mounted a Daiwa BG 4000 reel along with 37 lb. test Varivas braided line  This was my primary rod I used from the yak all season. I must say the rod performed flawlessly when fishing from the yak, and I landed a good number of big stripers up to 40 lbs. using it.

I used this rod a lot in the fall for
in-close fishing for fussy stripers
feeding on micro bait. It was great 
for light tackle applications

As the season wore on and the game along the oceanfront turned to a finesse type of approach, I began using this outfit more and more for in-close, light tackle fishing for fussy stripers. This rod was terrific for fishing smaller lures like Albie Snax, small NLBN paddle tails and the float and fly, all hot lures for stripers feeding on micro bait. I landed lots of stripers over 20 lbs., some blues and even some albies on it. Perfect for finesse fishing when the fish were in close feeding on small stuff.

If you are looking for a light tackle rod that can be used from shore, boat or kayak, consider the St. Croix Inshore series. They come in a lot of different sizes. I highly recommend this rod.