Coming Attractions

I did a show the other night in Braintree, MA for the Mass Striped Bass Association.  The talk around the club was that everyone couldn't wait until the striper season gets started.
It won't be long now as the calendar soon moves to April, the month that starts our season here in RI.
Here are a few highlights of what to expect:

Expect the initial surge of migrating stripers to hit the RI
Oceanfront from April 15 to April 20th.

When? -I expect to see the first stripers along the RI oceanfront to show from April 15 to April 20.  If we suddenly get a warm spell, it could be earlier. If this cool spring weather persists, it could be a bit later. But, it will happen in April. The Bay will start to produce about a week to 10 days after the first ones are taken along the oceanfront.
How many?- Expect that initial surge to be memorable.  Last year there were tons of schoolies around, and I see a big surge of migrating fish hitting our shores. We'll go from one or two fish being caught to a glut of them in a matter of a few days.
How Big?- Last year saw record numbers of stripers in the 20 to 24 inch range.  They grow about 4 inches a year when schoolies.  It should be loaded with fish in the 24 to 28 inch range.  While early spring typically delivers tons of schoolies, expect to see good numbers of small keepers in the 28 to 32 inch range.  I suspect the larger fish over 36 inches will be scarce again this year.
What to use?- Jigs of all kinds rule in the early going. The very best lure will be a white Cocahoe Minnow threaded onto a jighead. Other jigs such as other fan tailed plastics, bucktails and Storm shads should also catch.  Leave the topwater plugs at home. They won't work until the water warms. Light tackle is generally preferred in the early going.
Where?- I'll let you figure that one out.  But, I will say this.  While tons of guys often congreagate in one spot, there's about 15 miles of fishable shoreline along the south shore of RI.  They are not all in one spot!

River's End Striper Surf Day....Sat., March 9

My next stop on my seminar tour for 2019 will be the River's End Striper Surf Day on Saturday, March 9.  This event is put on by River's End Tackle, 440 Boston Post Rd., Old Saybrook, CT. This is a very popular event with CT and southern RI striper fishermen and is a very well attended event.  The day's events run from 10:00 AM till 4:00 PM and feature seminars, raffles, demonstrations, factory reps, and tackle galore. The event is all free from the parking to the food to the seminars.  You can find more information here: http://www.thefisherman.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=page.eventdetail&EventID=1430
Hope to see many of you there!

Onto The Springfield Sportsmen's Show....Feb. 22 to Feb. 24

The next stop on my winter seminar schedule is the Springfield Sportsmen's Show.  This is one of New England's biggest outdoor shows.  The venue is the Big E (Exposition Center) in Springfield, MA.  The show runs from Fri., Feb. 22 to Sunday, Feb. 24.  I have been doing this show for years, and I have found it to be a very popular event with show goers from western New England. Generally the show is filled with everything outdoorsy....hunting, fishing, boating and other outdoor adventures. There are tackle dealers, outfitters and loads of vendors.
I will be doing seminars there on Saturday, Feb. 23.  At 11:00 AM, I will be doing my "Understanding Carp Fishing" seminar.  At 2:30 PM, I will be doing my "Stripers on Artificials" seminar. 
For more info on this show, check it out here. http://www.osegsportsmens.com/

New Fishing/Outdoor Show Coming to CT.....CT Outdoor Expo.....Feb. 15-17

A brand new outdoor and fishing show is coming in a couple of weeks to CT.  The CT Outdoor Expo will be held at the Mohegan Sun Expo Center. This show is being run by the same people who have been running the very successful New England Fishing Expo in Boxboro, MA.
Similar to the Boxboro show, this show will have an all star line-up of seminar speakers to talk about fishing. They will also have loads of booths and vendors. I will be at this show on Sunday, Feb. 17 at 11:00 AM  to run my latest seminar, Stripers on Artificials. You can find all the info and the seminar schedule on the website linked above.
Hope to see many of you there.

Showtime

It's that time of the year.  I've already been off and running with my winter seminars on striper and carp fishing. Next week brings me to the first big outdoor show of the season, the New England Fishing Expo in Boxborough, MA, right off Rt. 495. This show, located at the Boxboro Regency runs from Friday., Jan. 25 to Sunday, Jan. 27.  This is one of those up and coming shows that seems to get better and bigger every year. It has loads of booths and vendors about every type of fishing from fly fishing to freshwater bass to saltwater fishing and more.  This show also features an all star seminar line-up of some of the very best fishermen in the Northeast.
I will be there on both Saturday and Sunday.  On Saturday I will be running my new striper show of 2019 called "Stripers on Artificials". This will take place at 5:00 PM.  On Sunday I will run my new carp fishing show called "Understanding Carp Fishing". It will take place at 11:00 AM.
Hope to see many of you at the show. What better way to cure the winter doldrums than to attend one of these big shows.  And, by the way, this one includes free parking!
For more information, visit the website, https://nefishingexpo.com/

Another Winter Option: White Perch

Here's a white perch landed today on a
small homemade bucktail jig spiced with
a plastic curly tail. They are active in the
cold winter months.

I can't seem to find any holdover stripers, but in my travels I have been finding white perch. These fish, close relatives of the striper, inhabit many of our brackish waters where freshwater rivers dump into bays, tidal ponds and even the oceanfront. White perch roam around these brackish waters to feed in the winter.  They can be found anywhere from the freshwater sections of rivers and streams to the brackish areas, and I have even caught them in salt water. They remain one of our most active winter fish.
I've caught many white perch in some of the freshwater lakes around inland New England.  These are land locked fish which were either stocked or got trapped years ago when streams and rivers were dammed up. The freshwater white perch are considerably smaller than their relatives that inhabit brackish waters.  I've landed many over 2 lbs. in brackish waters while targeting holdover stripers.  Years ago, I landed one which would have been a state record had I officially weighed it.  Rather than kill it for the record, I released it.
These fish are aggressive even in the cold water.  They have small mouths so your need to go small with the artificials.  I was out this week and I landed a good number of them on small 1/8 oz. white bucktail jigs spiced with a small plastic curly tail on light tackle. Sometimes they will hit other fluke-like plastics or just curly tails mounted on jigheads.  Some will even hit small metal.  When I used to fish the rivers of the Cape for sea run brown trout, I often caught these perch on shrimp flies.
So, if you are looking to bend a rod in ice free water in the next few weeks, white perch are waiting in the brackish rivers of southern New England.  They are one more option for those cabin fevered anglers looking for winter action.

Still Fishing, but Not for Stripers

How's this for a January carp!  This fish, landed on Jan.1 while
fishing in the the Carp Anglers Group First Fishing Folly
Tournament, was the biggest carp landed in the event in the
northern division of the US. It weighed 20 lbs.

I've always believed in going after the "best bet" in fishing. Right now, for me, it is not stripers. I know there are a scant few being taken in holdover locations, but those fish seem to be few and far between unless you hit a lucky day.
Instead of chasing stripers, I have been chasing carp in the freshwaters of RI and MA on the warm and ice free days. With this warm weather of the past couple of weeks, the fishing for carp has been very good considering the time of year. While I usually can find some small ones at this time of year, I have found some decent ones in January this year.  I've put two "big" fish of over 20 lbs. (weighed) on the bank, the first time I have ever landed 20 lb. carp in January in open water. I've also had some good numbers of fish between 10 and 15 lbs. All have been caught on sweet corn fished on a hair rig. If you are looking for carp fishing tips, check out my carp fishing blog at www.ricarpfishing.blogspot.com
My son Jon and I have tried several times for stripers in the Providence River, a hotspot over the last two decades.  In recent years, this spot has dried right up and there was not a fish to be found in the outings we made.  I have not heard of a single striper being caught there this winter. Ten years ago I was catching over a thousand stripers a year here in the cold months of Jan., Feb., and March. I have no idea why this place has died.