Big Bass from the Beach
Ed Mitchell © 2000
Have you ever hooked a big bass from the beach -- one of 20 pounds or more? If the answers yes, you already know it’s a quite a rush. The power, the sheer weight, the sight of that shovel shaped tail slapping the surf. It's unforgettable. If the answer is no, well sit back and read on; I'll going to help you change that.
Plenty has already been written about the fundamentals of "how to" catch a big bass on a fly rod. So I am fairly certain you have already heard about the benefit of larger flies, the need for sharp hooks and strong knots, and so on. Consequently I' m going to assume you either know those things or can find that information elsewhere. That is going to free us up to focus completely on one critical aspect of the hunt for big bass -- where and when to find them. But before we tackle that let's get one thing straight. No theory is ever going to pin point exactly where and when big bass show up. Still I am convinced that what I am about to tell you can go a long way to swinging the odds in your favors.
You'll need two things to follow along in this discussion. First, get a comprehensive tide book (or software), one that has not only the time of high and low, but the various moons, and the height of the tide as well. If you're looking for a suggestion, I recommend the Eldridge Tide Book. Second you should have detailed charts of your favorite coastline. Got them? OK, lets go.
When to Hunt for Big Bass
Given the pressures of the workaday world, most anglers fish a limited number of times per year. As a result, the single biggest obstacle they face is deciding how to plan their time on the water wisely. Now if you're satisfied with schoolie bass that is not very hard to do. But when yearning for a bass longer than a yardstick, you best put your thinking cap on. And the place to begin is by identifying which months hold the best fishing for big bass in your part of the coast.
Season
A big bass could latch onto your fly at just about anytime of year, but far and way the most productive moments for a jumbo striper from shore occur during the annual the spring and fall migration. Each of these periods is roughly six weeks long, yet in both cases it is toward the end of that migratory surge that your big bass chances are best of all. Why? Big bass are the last to leave the spawning rounds and therefore the last members of their tribe to hit the coastal highway. As a result these fish are not mixed in with the first surge of stripers that shoots up the coast in the spring. And because of their tolerance of cold water, big bass are also the last ones to head home in the fall.
So in reality what we have is roughly a month-long window of opportunity in the spring, and another month-long window in the fall. In southern New England that translates into from late May to late June, and again from late October to late November. If you fish further north or south, obviously you have to adjust. For example on the fall end of things, in New Jersey it is early November into early December. While up in Maine, it’s the early part of September into early October.
The Moons of Migration
At this point we have our hunt for big bass narrowed down to a 60-day season. Manageable. Now let's try to take it a step further. Inside of those two month-long windows there are peak periods, times when the odds tip further into your favor. When are they? Striped bass seem most active around the stronger tides of the new and full moons. Therefore fishing during these moon tides increases your odds of meeting up with a big hungry bass.
Open your tide book to the months in question and mark the day of each of these migration moons. (In the Eldridge you'll find the days of the moon listed in the back often on page 233) For example, in Southern New England you would check off the last moon of May and the two moons of June, followed by the last moon of October and the two moons of November. Remember, as I mentioned before you have to adjust this region by region. For instance if you are fishing in Maine I suggest the two moons of September and maybe the first moon of October. On the outer beaches of Cape Cod during the fall, I would pick the last moon of September and both moons of October. While on the south shore of Long Island I would opt for the moons of November. Further south at Sandy Hook New Jersey the migration is later and hence it would be the moons of November, and the first moon of December.
The next step is to note that each moon hosts upwards of six days during which the tides are above normal in height. Circle these days in your tide book. You now have defined approximately 36 prime days to meet up with a trophy bass. By the way, if any moon does not host above normal tides, that moon is in apogee. Apogee moons are those that occur when the moon is at its maximum distance from the earth. Unfortunately an apogee moon tide is really no stronger than a quarter moon tide. And therefore I suggest you cross than moon off the list. My guess is that you will lose at least one of the six moons you checked off, thereby reducing your prime day total to 30.
Weather
Besides adjusting by regions, you need to adjust your fishing around the weather. As a rule warmer than normal weather makes for a longer season by kick starting fishing earlier in the year and delaying the return to the south. A slightly cooler than normal spring, delays good beach fishing by a week. An even colder spring, however, may set beach action back two weeks or more -- as many anglers discovered this year. On the other end, a cold fall means the fishing starts and ends earlier than usual. A warm fall is the reverse.
Furthermore, in either spring or fall, the approach of a strong storm can trigger a brief, but memorable blitz. In the spring these are likely thunderstorms, in the fall they're apt to be Nor'easters. Naturally in both cases your personal safety is item one, so use common sense.
Time of Day
Its common knowledge that beach bound anglers do better on big bass during low light conditions. Therefore during those 30 prime days any outing you attempt should concentrate on dusk, dawn or night fishing. Naturally you'll base your decision on the tide of the tide. Nevertheless when all things are equal, in my experience dusk is bit better than dawn in the spring. Yet in the fall, dawn is without a doubt the better of the two. On the night fishing end, during the spring migration, late night tides -- those that occur between 11 PM and 1 AM -- are, in my opinion, superior. In the late fall, that has never seemed to be the case. At that time of year tides in early evening or just prior to first light seem to have the edge.
Which is more productive at night, a new or the full moon? I have expressed my opinion many times on this question, but it bears repeating here. I think the answer depends on the depth of the water you intend to fish. Shore based anglers typically work relatively shallow locations. Here a new moon is best. Why? In these locations the light from a full moon penetrates a fair percentage of the water column, and seems to discourage big bass from aggressively feeding. Over deeper water, however, the light from the moon does not reach the fish, and hence is not a problem.
Where to Look
How you have a good idea when to fish; all that remains to decide where. So break out the charts. It is a cruel fact of life that quality and quantity rarely go hand in hand. And striper fishing is no exception. A place where you regularly bail schoolies is usually not a place to catch bruiser bass. So focusing on big bass usually means forgoing the steady action supply by smaller bass. This is a bitter pill to swallow; in fact many anglers can't bring themselves to do it. Understandable. But if big bass are your game you must take the medicine.
The Hunting Grounds
Overall this means avoiding extremely shallow shorelines, or very warm water. Instead lean toward windy exposed locations with some depth or at least deep water nearby. These are more likely locations. Moreover very often the migration of big striped bass is closely coordinated with the migration of key forage fish. Therefore large bass are frequently found where schools of migratory forage fish tend to congregate. Two types of shoreline areas fit this to a "T". Inlets and river mouths, along with their adjoining beaches are one of them. The other one is points of land.
With your charts open, circle the various inlets and points within driving range. Now look back to your tide book, and look up the time of tide for these spots during the prime days we discussed, and particularly how these tides relate to dusk, dawn or night. With the inlets and river mouths you probably want an ebbing flow, but remember that the current may actually start one, two or even three hours after the time of high tide. The right tide for a point of land is hard to generalize. Some fish better on the flood, some of the ebb. But whatever you pick once again note how the time of tide compares to the light level.
During the spring, inlets and river mouths usually out produce the points. So focus your energies there. In the fall, however, things are different. Typically these forage schools first show in the inlets and river mouths. After a time they move to the adjacent beaches, and then they stage off the points before finally migrating away from shore. Try to follow along.
Mass for Big Bass?
Sad but true, big bass are not equally dispersed along the Atlantic coast. So like it or not, the state you plan to fish in may determine to a degree your chances of hooking up a truly big bass.
Several years ago the ASMFC began using estimating the size of the striper stock using a mathematical model called a Virtual Population Analysis or simply VPA. This VPA calculates the number of fish in various age groups. It also estimates the number of fish of various ages that were landed in state by state. If you look at those numbers you immediately see that anglers in some states did far better on older bass then anglers in other states.
The VPA counts bass accordingly to age not length, so lets assume that big bass are 10 years or older. In years when forage is highly abundant this fish might weight thirty pounds, but in other years it might be only a couple of notches over half that. Accordingly to the VPA, in 1998 Mass recreational anglers landed 93,532 bass age ten and older. (Please note that this number also includes fish released) By comparison Connecticut recreational anglers landed 18,408, and Rhode Island's anglers got 11,823. New Hampshire scored 2,545 of them, and Maine anglers got 1,504. Get the picture?
Any other place look good for big bass? Well surprise, surprise its Maryland. Yes, the state that has screamed for years that it caught so few large bass that it has to have a lower creel size than the coast. For the record Maryland recreational anglers in 1998 landed 21,999 bass of age 10 year and older. That more than Rhode Island, New Hampshire and Maine combined!
Any chance the VPA is off? Sure, but even if these numbers are only half right, when it comes to big bass, on the coast Mass is the land of milk and honey.
The End