Striped bass on the run – here’s how to catch them

Striped bass are here, and anglers are catching them. But it can be hit or miss, either with the strategies being used to catch them or the area being fished. So I thought I would share what experts say happens this time of year and the strategies one can employ to catch striped bass.

Striped bass fishing is in transition this time of year, so anglers need to be ready to employ a variety of strategies and tactics to catch them.

“The bass are moving, chasing food. They are not held up working a rock pile, but they are migrating and chasing bait,” said Ken Landry, long time commercial striped bass fisherman. What Ken meant is that the fish may be in one place, at the mouth of a river feeding on herring one day, and the next they may be on a school of pogies off Poppasquash Point, Bristol.

Jeff Sullivan of Sam’s Bait & Tackle, Middletown, said, “We had a fresh group of large fish enter Narragansett and Mt. Hope bays this week, and they were chasing Atlantic menhaden (pogies).” Which means it would be a good idea to use fresh pogies as bait.

So anglers need to be ready with a variety of strategies and tactics to catch striped bass, particularly during this time of year. 

The idea is develop your fishing plan and determine where you will try to fish first, second, third, etc. and have a variety of tactics ready (some noted below) to deploy. Favorite strategies to deploy in spring:

A love of large lures

Soft plastic, hard plastic, glide baits and surface lures all seem to be working depending on the depth of where the fish are feeding. Anglers love to use surface lures, as there is nothing like a bass hitting your plug/lure on the surface. Lures are a great way to catch fish chasing herring in coves, on rivers, and in the bay. My favorites are a grey Yo-Zuri Crystal Minnow and large surface or shallow swimmers in grey or white/bone color. Some say the larger the lure the better.

Atlantic menhaden or pogies

Snag the live Atlantic menhaden with a weighted treble hook or net them. Hook the bait through the bridge of the nose, find a school of fish and put the live menhaden into the school of bait and let it swim. Chunking fresh or frozen menhaden. Fresh pogies (that are dead) can often be purchased at bait shops this time of year. You can anchor (and chum), drift fish or fish the moving bait schools. Some anglers use a weight slide to get the bait down to the striped bass.

Trolling

Trolling with tube and worm, umbrella rigs and lures. I have had great success in the bays and near coastal waters using lead line weighed with two or three ounces of lead between the line and a five-foot fluorocarbon leader if needed to get lower in the water column. I find that bubblegum or red colored tubes work best in spring (the tube hook is tipped with clam worm).

A few reminders

Recreational anglers are required to use inline circle hooks when fishing for striped bass with whole or cut natural baits, except when fishing/trolling with a natural bait attached to an artificial lure such as a tube and worm. Gaffing striped bass is prohibited. And we have a new way of measuring striped bass, from the snout to the ‘pinched’ tail. The regulations is one striped bass/person/day between 28” to less than 31”.

Where’s the bite?

“Freshwater fishing for largemouth bass was very good this week, with spinner baits and sub surface lures working well and top water frogs working already. The trout bite is still very good too,” said Jeff Sullivan of Sam’s Bait & Tackle, Middletown.

David Danis of Quaker Lane Bait & Tackle, North Kingstown, said, “Customers are catching trout, particularly at ponds that have been stocked a second time this spring by DEM, such as Barber Pond, South Kingstown, and Meadow Brook Pond, Richmond.”

Other ponds stocked last week by DEM include Eight Rod Farm Pond, Tiverton; Olney Pond, Lincoln Woods; and Simmons Mill Pond, Little Compton. For a complete list of stocked ponds visit Designated Trout Waters | Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management.

Striped bass

East End Eddie Doherty, Cape Cod Canal fishing expert and author, said, “The Ditch lit up the first week of May with loads of 12-15-pound stripers caught during the east turn. Striper action should get even better in the Canal, with reports last week of 36 to 42-inch fish in Wareham just outside the west entrance feeding on thick schools of bunker.”

“Striped bass are being caught all over Narragansett Bay with large glide baits that are working well for customers.  Hot areas include east of Prudence Island and in the West Passage,” said David Danis of Quaker Lane Bait and Tackle.

Jeff Sullivan of Sam’s Bait & Tackle, said, “Sunday a fresh batch of larger striped bass entered Narragansett and Mt Hope Bays chasing bunker (Atlantic menhaden). So, using fresh bunker as bait is a good plan. Large lures, both the 7” and 9” Docs are working well, as well as top water lures and soft plastics as herring are still here, too.”

Declan O’Donnell of Breachway Bait & Tackle, said, “The numbers are here, and more fish continue to push into the area every day. Last week we saw a lot of fish over the 28-inch mark. Beaches and breachways have been fishing very well, and fish are starting to stack up inside the salt ponds as water temps climb. You can already see schools moving in and out with the tides.”

Tautog

Declan O’Donnell of Breachway Bait & Tackle said, “Most boats have struggled to get offshore due to high winds, but the few that made it out found fish. Shore anglers continued to report better success overall.”

“Tautog fishing has improved a lot, with keepers being caught in Mt. Hope Bay, at the Warren River and around Prudence Island and Colt State Park, Bristol. Jigs tipped with Asian crabs are working well,” said Jeff Sullivan of Sam’s Bit & Tackle.

David Danis of Quaker Lane Bait & Tackle said, “Fishing for tog is good. We weighed in a ten-pound tautog last week.  The fish was caught in about 20 feet of water with the angler using a ½ once jig tipped with green crag.”

Dave Monti holds a master captain’s license and charter fishing license. He serves on a variety of boards and commissions and has a consulting business focusing on clean oceans, habitat preservation, conservation, renewable energy, and fisheries related issues and clients. Forward fishing news and photos to dmontifish@verizon.net  or visit www.noflukefishing.com .