Summer Striper Blitzes

 August- the tiny bait season -presses on. The bait is growing in number as well as size by the week. Before we know it tiny bait season will be over. But while it lasts, August and September can be some of the most interesting saltwater fly fishing of the year here in southern New England. It's a great setup for lighter gear and for out fishing everyone else using tiny baitfish patterns. 

For thw last four years there have been fantastic mid and late summer striper blitzes throughout the Northeast. They've been so consistent I've had plenty of time to really hone my tactics one them. The fish are the perfect sized stripers for 5 and 6wt rods, but only if you actually no how to properly fight a good sized fish. I've seen many a 16 inch trout get played much too lightly on a 5wt, so I don't trust just anyone to do the best job on a 25 inch bass on the same tackle. I can beat these fish in less than 3 minutes every time with my 5wt and 10 or 12lb tippet, so that's what I use mostly now. 

Far and away the best fly for the rafting fish feeding on bay anchovies; as well as the loosely dispersed blitzes on tiny 1 inch peanuts; is the EP Micro Minnow. Ian Devlin introduced me to that fly when I was really trying to make tiny epoxy patterns for these purposes. He hypothesized that a lot of the time those little surf candies and epoxy minnows would bounce off the mouths of feeding fish. This proved particularly true of froth feeding scombrids, but also true of rafting bass. The EP Micro Minnow is easily sucked in and the fibers compress. I get far more hookups.

Of course these summer blitzes have also become so common that I spend more time doing photography than I do actually fishing. They are a spectacle to behold on many levels. The melee hits more than one sense. Of course it is visually impressive seeing hundreds of predator fish churning the surface, eyes above the water and mouths open, with baitfish frantically running for their lives. But the sound is also notable. One foggy morning Ian and I had good luck finding bass using their auditory signal rather than visually seeing birds or breaking fish. There's also a smell. Those who've spent enough time striper fishing now that blitzes have a smell to them. It's a sweet, vaguely fishy smell... meaning it's fishy but not what laymen think of when they think of a fishy smell. You have to experience it to get it.

As micro bait season continues into September we'll see more and more species feeding on the young of the year fish.  Frigate and chub mackerel are already here. Bonito have shown sporadically. Tunny have already made their season debut in Fallmouth, which is similar to thr last 3 years. The last three years have been absolutely shitty tunny years in CT so please don't hold your breath or believe the hype. We might get them, we might not. Regardless, it will be a good fall as Long Island and Block Island Sound as well as Narragansett Bay are all full of bait right now. Enjoy responsibly. 

Until next time, 

Fish for the love of fish.

Fish for the love of places fish live.

Fish for you.

And stay safe and healthy.

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