Spring Stripers Part II: Crushing Schoolies
The tree is the key. Since my family moved to their current residence in 1999, we have noticed a strange correlation between a crab apple tree in the backyard and the beginning of striper season. Every year without fail, the first day those flowers start to bloom comes the first reported stripers of the year in the Merrimack. Last Thursday, my father texted me one line, "It's time!" and I knew precisely what he meant! Facebook had been relatively active that day with some posts from shore local anglers catching their first run of freshly - lice covered schoolies. Later that afternoon, Dan went out on his boat and caught his first stripers of the year. Almost a week later, the tree is nearing full bloom; we have a string of warm weather and a preferred moon stage. By the end of this week, the schoolie striper fishing should be fire. (In my last article, I predicted things would blow wide open in the afternoon on Friday the 13th!)
Schoolie striper fishing is one of my favorite times of the year. Fishing is relatively easy, and there are days when you can put some serious numbers on the boat. It's a good tune-up for our equipment, boats, and ourselves. Our fishery is a light tackle game this time of year. I want to talk about some light tackle striper setups to help get you started before discussing situational fishing patterns.
Schoolie Striper Weapons of Choice
I base my rods and reel off their primary intended use, and in this case, I want rods that can cast lures in the 3/8 - 1.5 oz range when fishing from a boat. We are trying to mimic the small bait like sandeels, herring, and other small rain bait located in the river; thus, a fast action rod that allows us to throw these light offerings and work lures is paramount importance. I own a few different models of Temple Fork Outfitter Tactical Inshore Rods that I have been impressed with, not only for their lightweight and action but for how the rod continues to bend deep into the blank when fighting a fish. The tactical inshore series are very crisp and responsive as you direct the dance of a spook across Joppa Flats. I like my 7'0 and 7'6 MH 10 - 20#, 3/8 - 1 oz models for schoolie striped bass fishing. Bigger lures and bigger fish require stepping up a size to the Heavy 15- 30 # model. There are many other capable rod manufacturers, but I would try to keep my specs in the 10 - 20# fast action range with a 3/8 - 1.5 oz rating. Since rod ratings are generally not universal, I like to pull a rod out to see if it has a softer bend once you have a fish on.
For reels, I love my Shimano Stradic FL 5k's spooled with 15# braid. These reels are super smooth, have an appropriate gear ratio, hold plenty of line, and provide tons of power in a small package. All four of mine have held flawlessly through two seasons of taking a beating on our charters, which is rare with spinning reels. The Stradics also make great spinning reels for Albies, Black Sea Bass, Tog, Bluefish, etc. Again, there are many other suitable options at different price ranges. I look for reels that weigh under 11 oz, can reel in 40" per crank, and hold about 250 yards of 20-pound braid. (I backfill my reel with mono, then put on 200 yards of 15-pound braid. Here is a link to a previous blog on calculating the amount of mono needed.)
Generally, spring can bring on some windy days, and the thinner 15-pound braid can knife through the wind better than 20 or 30. When fishing open water areas like flats and the beachfront, the extra casting distance is paramount to cover more water when searching for fish. Conversely, accurate casts are needed when fishing backwater structures, and that's where a fast action rod comes into play to toss lures where you want them.
For the leader, I start with a 3 ft section of 20# Seaguar STS Fluorocarbon tied to the braid mainline via an FG knot. At the end of the leader, I connect a 50-pound Tactical Angler Clip so I can quickly swap out lures and not have to cut the leader to tie knots. If the fish are finicky, I will drop as low as 8-pound test, but I rarely have to drop that low.
Finding the Fish
I focus my early season fishing in the estuaries inside the Merrimack and a little on the beachfront. I look for three basic types of structure:
1) Open water (flats) with dark bottom: The dark bottom heats the water relative to the surrounding water. You can find pockets of fish feeding in these areas more consistently than on a sandy bottom due to the warmer water. Rock piles in shallow water are also great places to target, mainly when they are outliers in an otherwise featureless area. If you are fishing on the beachfront, I can't begin to tell you how many fish we have caught in the wash of the waves in a foot of water. So if you are a surf fisherman, you don't have to bomb out 100-yard casts to get into fish. To put into perspective, when I'm on my boat, I have to make sure I move away from people surfcasting, so I don't interfere with them. Time of day matters here as well. Typically, the afternoon has a better bite than the morning because the sun warms up the water throughout the day, enticing the stripers to start feeding. The key to fishing these areas is to use search pattern type of lures and cover water. I look for lures that can fish faster and make a commotion to entice bites. You can create a commotion by sound, sight, or wake patterns. Spooks, poppers, metal lips, and minnow plugs are great search lures for this situation but don't forget small rubber on jig heads with a faster than average retrieve.
2) Ambush points inside the river are another type of area I'm looking to hold fish. There are countless edges, holes, rocks, points, and creek mouths to target that supply ample ambush areas for stripers to trap bait. I start by targeting areas tight to banks in the marsh where tiny creeks flush bait out to awaiting stripers. I'll start throwing either paddle tails or small rubber on light jig heads to reach the fish sitting on the bottom waiting for a meal to be swept over their heads. I'll move my boat around different structures until I hit paydirt. Having the advantage of my Humminbird Apex with Side Imaging and Down Imaging is invaluable to mark fish and see how they relate to the structure so you know where to cast. Today's technology is almost unfair to the fish! As I mozy around the river, I look at my fish finder on every hole, hump, point, and inlet until I see some fish. I don't want to spend time fishing if I'm not seeing anything. Another situation that I consider structure is current rips. Current rips confuse and trap baitfish for stripers to chow in an otherwise featureless area (actually, it is usually along a channel edge or a big hump/rocks). These rips constantly change throughout the tide; however, the fish will chew if you find one with fish in them. The rips can be subtle or erratic but worth checking out, especially if birds are working.
3) Speaking of birds working, the third situation is finding a flock of birds circling or dive-bombing an area. You know, that moment of a topwater blitz that we all cherish? When fishing from a boat, your approach to the school is critical. You want to work the upwind/up current side of the school, starting with the outside edges of the birds. It would be best if you motored around the action and not through it so you don't break up the bait ball. By moving to the upwind side, your boat will drift back into the school, and the wind will aid your casting distance. Also, baitfish tend to travel into the wind, which means the action is headed your way! Lure choice here varies. If the fish are ravaging on top, then a spook or a popper is a great choice. If you are marking fish down deep, a 2 oz Hogy Pro Tail or a Sluggo on a jighead get down and possibly land some bigger fish out of the school. The last situation is when there are birds, you mark fish and see some swirls but you are not coming tight. A slightly subsurface presentation works dynamite here. One of the best lures for this situation is an unweighted Albie Snax fished like a spook but slowly let it sink and work it underwater, not on top. I prefer the Albie Snax over an unweighted Sluggo because they cast farther (remember, springtime is generally windy) and have a better neutral buoyancy for the presentation I want. Other lures that shine here are metals, like a Shimano Coltsniper or Crippled Herring, and minnow lures like the Nomad Shikari and SP Minnow. One new lure I think will shine in this situation is the new Nomad Vibe, which I can't wait to try out in the next few days.
Other quick tips and tricks for schoolie fishing:
Crush your barbs to help protect the fish!
I re-rig many of my plugs with a single belly treble with barbs crushed down and a single inline on the back to further improve catch and release practices. I tried going double single inlines, but the hookup ratio on some plugs was just unacceptable.
Move with the tide. Say you find a good school upriver on the outgoing tide for 30 minutes and then lose them. Move downriver with the tide until you find another successful choke point. One day last year, Dan and I drifted from Deer Island to the Toothpick in 3 hours, hammering fish the whole way down by sticking with them.
If it's too windy to cast lures effectively, anchor up on some structure, chum frozen mackerel or clams, and set out lines with chunks. (I'll have an entire video on this once the season starts)
Vary your cadence on your retrieves to see what the fish want. You are the puppetmaster; make it dance!
If fishing topwater and a fish misses it, I crank reel fast for a second, then stop and pause for a quick two count. Nine times out of ten, that lure gets smashed again on the pause.
I hope this was helpful to get you started on the 2022 season. I'm hoping my boat is in the slip by the end of the week which means we will be fishing nearly everyday the rest of the summer! Can't wait for a great season and to share our experiences throughout the summer!