NEW ENGLAND SPRING STRIPERS

Ed Mitchell 1995

     Cool is the word. Even in mid afternoon you had to keep your jacket zipped up especially with the dry marsh grass rustling in a building southwest wind. Occasionally a sprinkle of April rain added to the mix as one gray clouds chased another endlessly overhead. But after a long cold New England winter, believe me, beggars can’t be choosers. It felt great to be out and on the water with fly rod in hand.

     We beached the canoe on an uninhabited island near the mouth of the Connecticut River, and walked along the shoreline, prospecting the water as we went. Leap frogging past one another, we quickly covered ground ever hopefully for signs of striped bass. The tide was rising and hopefully the bass would be leaving the river channel, moving up on to the flats along the western edge of the island to feed.

       We found them about fifty yards down, where the shore made a turn, forming a small bowl. First I felt a bump and then a second later, a solid take. It wasn’t a big fish, probably five pounds at best, yet it pulled like a startled demon. And as the line jumped from the stripping basket, I couldn’t help but crack a smile. Yeah, the schoolies of spring are spirited fighters alright. But more importantly there is always something beautiful about hooking your bass of the year.

     Each year the coastlines of Connecticut, Rhode Island and Massachusetts give New England fly rodders their first striper of the new year. Connecticut anglers stand at the head of the line with the action getting underway in early to mid April. Rhode Island anglers are hot on their heels following only a week or two behind and fly rodders in Massachusetts are bending rods by early May. This schedule is reasonably reliable, but you cannot expect to set your watch by it. The exact timing is noticeably influenced by the length and severity of the preceding winter. Never has that fact been more clearly driven home than in the last several years. In 1991 Connecticut, for example, experienced the warmest winter on record and striped bass were on the bite during the last week of March. Two year later in 1993 Mother Nature turned the tables giving us a bitterly cold winter which forced the Connecticut season back until the opening days of May.

       For that reason New England anglers keep a close eye on the water temperature as well as the calendar. Striped bass survive down close to the freezing point, yet they are rarely active enough to punch a fly until the water temperature touches 45 degrees. Unfortunately the water along the open coast warms very slowly, but estuaries are another story. Coastal rivers, salt ponds, and shallow bays heat up much faster then the ocean and consequently are home to the finest spring action.

       Besides the temperature differential, there is another reason why estuaries are host the first bass of the season. While most spring stripes bass must spend time to migrating into New England from the Hudson River or Chesapeake Bay, a good numbers of fish are already here. These bass decided the prior fall to winter over in New England, taking up residence particularly in the larger coastal rivers. Here they often find safe haven in the deeper holes or near the warm water outflow of a power plant. Consequently, these bass loss no time in going on the feed as soon as conditions allow.

         In Connecticut the striper season officially opens on April 1st, although hook and release fishing is allowed before prior to that date. Anglers find action in any number of spots, but overall the best fishing occurs in the state’s three largest rivers, which are from west to east: The Housatonic, the Connecticut, and the Thames. In all cases shoreline access is at a premium and a boat, while not absolutely mandatory, is highly recommended.  

       Of the three rivers, the Thames usually gives up the first fish and the reason for that is simple. A great many bass winter over here. In the spring, most anglers focus on the upper limits of the river especially from the Monteville Power Plant north to Norwich. Pay close attention to the edges of the channel and the various coves on both sides of the river. In the Connecticut River, it is the lower reaches from Essex down to the mouth that are home to the best bite. And almost invariably it is east side of the river that produces. The Housatonic is a good bet too. Anglers like Smith Point on the Milford side of the mouth, and Short Beach on the Stratford side.  

         Rhode Island fishing gets into gear around the third week of April, in most years. While there are numerous places to fish, most fly rodders concentrate on the southwestern corner of the state from the town of Westerly over to Point Judith. For one thing, along these shorelines there are three breachways that connect a series of salt ponds to the sea. There are from east to west: Weekapaug, Quonochontaug and Charlestown breachways. All three have early season potential. Another popular spot is the west jetty wall in Jerusalem just to the east of Point Judith. Matunuck Beach, which lies a few miles to the west in Matunuck, is also a good bet too, although it can be hard to fly rod here if the surf is up.

         Farther east in the Massachusetts waters, the first bass generally appear on the island of Martha’s Vineyard beginning around the last week of April. By the first of May, schoolies have hit the southern mainland of the Bay state, particularly from Mattapoisett round the shores of Buzzards Bay on out the southern arm of Cape Cod from Falmouth to as far as Dennis. Here you find numerous rivers, bays and salt ponds with good action. Some the most well know are the Weweantic River in Warren, the Westport River, in and the Bass River in Dennis.

         In all cases, expect the vast majority of these spring fish to be schoolies, weighing under ten pounds and often closer to five. Nevertheless one shouldn’t be fooled into thinking big bass are never hooked in the early season. Some of the stripers that winter in Southern New England are larger females that have opted to take a year off from the rigors of spawning. Therefore you have an honest shot of hitting a jumbo even in the first weeks of action. Even if you don’t get one, the schoolies of spring are spirited fighters and will give you a real run for your money. And what is more they frequently congregate in large numbers, making non-stop action and 20 or 30 fish days a real possibility.

         Your favorite 9 weight rod does the job, still, when the wind allows, this is a great opportunity to use a lighter stick. A 7 or 8-weight makes a fine schoolie rod and if you are the daring type you might want to consider dropping down to a 5 or 6-weight, but keep your fingers crossed that you don’t latch on to a real tank. Regardless which rod you pick, in most location you’ll want to arm it with a moderate to fast sinking line, especially during the opening week of action. The earliest stripers of the year tend to sit deep, sometimes right on the bottom. Couple your line to a short leader, six feet or less, and a weighted fly. Popular choices in that department include Clouser Deep Minnows, Pic-A-Bombers or Lefty’s Deceiver's tied with dumb bell eyes. As the water temperature rises, however, so will the fish. Expect to be able to switch to an intermediate or even a floating line with an unweighted fly as time goes by.  

         Getting the fly to the fish’s level is one thing, but in the spring there are other considerations too. The water is often cloudy at this time of year, particularly in the bigger river systems, where heavy rain or runoff can have a sudden and dramatic effect. Brightly colored flies pay off for that reason. Personally I like chartreuse over any other color, but orange flies, pink flies or all yellow work well too. And don’t be afraid to dress them with plenty of flash material. The idea is to make the fly as easy to find as possible.

         The right retrieve speed can made all the difference in the world. Bass at this time of year do not like to chase a fast moving fly. So you want to get the fly as close to their position as you can and then move it slowly. The idea is to give the fish plenty of time to see the fly and plenty of time to catch up with it. For example when fishing in a current, let the fly hang for a minute at the end of the swing. Then jig it a few times, before creeping it back. Note, however, that even though spring stripers are reluctant to chase a fast fly, they will follow a slow moving fly right to your feet, striking when you least expect it.

         Springtime stripers are like a bus load of tourist, they just love to stick together. That means that no matter how good a bay or river reputation is, the fish may be concentrated into only a small percentage of the total area. Consequentially, pin pointing them is always priority number one. Unlike the fall, in the spring you can not depend as much on flocks of birds to help you find feeding bass. A flock of boats, on the other hand, may signal a bite, but watch them carefully, at this time of year it may only be a folks fishing for flounder.

       If you are fishing from a boat in one of the larger rivers, a spinning outfit may prove very helpful. As you move around looking for fish, troll a spoon or a swimming plug. When you get a strike, cut the motor and drift back through the area casting flies. This simply technique works well and can save you a ton of time. From shore I sometimes carry a light plug casting outfit for the same reason. Here again, once I locate the fish, I switch to the fly rod. If you prefer not to hook any fish on spinning tackle, snip off the hook points, but do not entire remove the hook as that may ruin the lure's action, defeating the whole idea.    

     When in doubt, start with the rips. Regardless of season, rips are the most consistently productive places in which you can wet a line. In the spring, however, you should fish them differently then you do later in the season. With low water temperatures stripers at this time of year tend to sit in slower portions of the flow than you would expect to find them in summer and fall. Look for these early spring bass farther back in the rip, to the sides or deeper that you would normally expect to find them in the summer and fall.

         If you have your heart set on finding the bigger bass concentrate your efforts wherever herring runs are strongest. Alewives and Blueback herring enter the coast to spawn in the spring and even a small creek or a tiny tributary of larger river may be home to large numbers of these spawning fish. Generally the best bet is near the mouth where herring stage before entering to spawn. a Generally alewives are the first to arrive in the spring, entering our coastal rivers and streams  Striped bass will sit off the mouth of the where herring stage before entering to spawn. Even a small tributary may have a significant run of alewives or bluebacks. Many times they stage near the mouth of an estuary before entering. Regardless how you find the bass, remember the area where you found them. These fish may stay in the same general vicinity for days or even weeks. And they very well may return here again next year.

         Tide and time of day should also be figured into your plans. A running tide during the warmest part of the day is an excellent choice during the opening weeks of action. Generally speaking, most anglers prefer the ebb, but where bass are following herring into small tributaries a flooding tide many be better. Dawn and dusk fishing can be good, however, they usually do not come into their own until we move pass the middle of May. Night fishing in the early spring is rarely necessary and may even be counter productive in many places. By June that will change drastically.

         As the water warms over 45 degrees, the bass tend to suspend more, even feeding on or near the surface. Now you can change spools, switching from a medium or fast sinking line to an intermediate or even a floating line. Naturally, the retrieve speed can be increased too and weighted flies are no longer mandatory. Poppers, which up until this point have been poor performers, gradually come into their own as the water steps over 50 degrees. Still a slow stop and go retrieve is best and even then some bass may prove fussy, splashing and rolling over the fly with really taking it. When that happens try tying a foot long piece of mono to the hook bend and attaching a small streamer. The popper will attract the fish and the dangling streamer gives the fish a choice, but remember when you reach down to land a fish that there are two hooks to dodge.

       It also pays to keep your eye on the weather. A cold front is real trouble, causing fish to abandon their favorite haunts and rapidly drop back to deeper water. I have personally seen spots that were red hot go completely dead for several days until the weather stabilized. Warm, stable weather, on the other hand, keeps the migration on track and the fish on the bite. Cloudy days are better than sunny ones and usually allow for better surface activity. But keep your fingers crossed that the clouds don't signal heavy rain. Downpours can rapidly change the salinity, turbidity and temperature of an estuary. As the water level rises, expect the stripers in a river or salt pond to drop back down towards the mouth, waiting for the situation to settle. It may be a few days to a week before they enter again.

SIDE BAR

     Springtime weather vary tremendous in New England ranging from short sleeve days to the odd snow squall. On average, however, you can expect early April daytime highs to be in the upper fifties, while at night the mercury will dip to the mid thirties. Expect to see day time highs from short sleeve days to the saltwater fly fishing season begins in April and May. While occasionally action is found on open beach, by in large the best action is located in the protected waters of coastal rivers, inlets, shallow harbors and salt ponds. None of these states require a saltwater license, but inside a river you may need a freshwater license. Check local regulations before going afield. Furthermore, as I write this, Amendment 5 to the Striped Bass Management Act is being settled. This may establish new minimum size and bag limits and as well as the length of the legal season for both Southern New England and the remaining coast including Chesapeake Bay. Please keep your ear to the ground in order to learn the latest developments.

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