Lots of Pogies; Very Few Stripers

I was fishing some dead calm water last night in the upper Bay.  Menhaden dipping on the surface looked like big raindrops on the water.  They were all over the place. You'd think that would attract some big fish.  Nope.  I got one small schoolie that was loaded with myco skin fungus, and that was about it.  I saw several other fishermen trying, but they got nothing.
So, lots of big bait, but very few fish.  Winter fishing should be hopping by now, but it isn't.  Realize that this has been a poor year of fishing in the upper Bay for stripers.  Their numbers were way down in this area for much of 2011, so it only makes sense that winter numbers will be way down.  I've been out at least 8 or 9 times so far.  The bad news is that I have landed a total of 4 stripers.  The good news is that 2 of them were keepers. If I didn't live so close, I would say the effort was hardly worth it.  I saw on a recent striper Forum that someone was commenting that it was time to head north (upper Bay) for some hot winter striper fishing.  I have to wonder what planet this guy is living on.

Menhaden Still in the Upper Bay, CRAZY

In the last post I added a picture of a decent sized striped bass that I landed last night in the upper Bay.  What I didn't say was that this fish was taken with a jig (4 inch Zoom fluke on jighead) fished under a school of menhaden (pogies).  Yes, they are still in the Upper Bay in big numbers. Crazy, they should have left a month and a half ago.  In fact, there was so many of them, it was rare for me to retrieve the jig without snagging one (see pic) on the single hook!  I'm guessing they were in schools that may have been 10-15 feet THICK. With menhaden still around, I'm hoping we see good number of large stripers around. In the past I have landed wintering over fish that measured over 40 inches. This could happen this year with the abundance of big bait around.  We could also see some big blues. You would be very surprised if I told you I landed a blue one year in the upper Bay on Christmas Eve, and that was in a cold winter. You never know if this winter fishing will materialize, but I am hopeful that we will at least see fair to good numbers of keepers in the coming weeks.

Winter Fishing Has Arrived...."A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words"

Still a Few at South Shore

My son, Ben, who lives in Narragansett called to give me a report on the fishing.  I was on the ski slopes at Wachusett Mountain when I got his call from the RI south shore. He went out fishing this afternoon and landed 2 schoolies and a hickory shad.  Yes, they are still around, though few fishermen are trying.  Ben ran into one other guy who reported getting one schoolie earlier in the day. Some "oldtimers" I know tell stories about people they knew way back who went for walks along the shore on Christmas.  Some saw fish breaking so they went to their cars, got their fishing outfits and landed schoolies on Dec. 25.  If ever there was a year in which that could happen again, it is this year.  So, if you head out to take a walk on the beach on Christmas, my suggestion is to make sure you have a fishing outfit in the car. You just never know.  It's been one heck of a crazy fall!

Let the Winter Games Begin

I've been looking and I've finally found some fish.  First cast in one of my winter spots in upper Gansett Bay produced a small keeper tonight, making this the start of my winter fishing.  Half an hour later I landed a 26 inch schoolie.  The last two nights were cold and the days have been seasonable, and I think that was just enough to drop the water temps and get the fish moving into winter spots.  It's not hot and heavy, but those two fish represent the start of winter striper fishing for me.

Not Much to Report

I have absolutely no news to report.  I have tried fishing the upper Bay for wintering over stripers several times in the last week and I have not gotten a hit.  I met others who have tried and they report nothing.  A few fishermen have been trying along the south shore and it appears to be slim pickings with a small fish here and there, generally what you'd find at this time.  Most likely, you will blank.
So, the waiting game for wintering over stripers continues.  My theory is that the water is still too warm and the few fish that are around in the Bay are in deeper water.
Meanwhile, my freshwater carp fishing is still going in high gear.  I landed 20 fish in the last 4 days with many going in the teens. Check out some of my December catches on http://www.ricarpfishing.blogspot.com/  That is one fishery that is still hot at this time.

Shifting Gears

I am now shifting gears.  I have ended my striper fishing along the south shore due to lack of fish.  However, realize there are still a few fish around, and for those who want to put in the effort, you may even catch some right up until Christmas.  I'm figuring my best bet is to now focus closer to home in the Upper Bay and the Providence River for holdover stripers.  In the past this area has been productive in December and I am hoping it's good this year.
I'm also looking forward to winter carp fishing.  As many of you know, I do fish seriously for these monsters of freshwater, and last winter I  did catch them all winter long in moving, ice free water.  I am also planning to ice fish if the ice ever comes.  In the past I have jigged extensively in many of the ponds in RI and usually catch good numbers of crappie, bass, bluegills, perch and pickerel.


Finally, what I do more than fish in the wintertime is skiing.  What many of you don't know is that I am a nationally certified ski instructor, something I have been doing in the wintertime for the last 40 years (yikes, I am getting old).  I ski 3-5 times a week, teach at Yawgoo Valley, and usually get up to Wachusett Mountain once a week. On many winter days I am skiing in the daytime and fishing for striped bass at night. You gotta love New England winters!
So, I am in the process of shifting gears and have already started looking for wintering stripers in the Upper Bay.  I haven't found any yet, but it is only a matter of time.