I'm getting the Salt Water bug

Fredrick

Fredrick

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Well I just got a Rio Outbound intermediate line for my Beulah switch rod:hammer: and its getting that time of year again when the surf starts to boil with Strippers blues and bait. I was wondering how many are going to try to fish the salt this fall ?

I have only tried once so far and its was 4th of July weekend and I got the skunk, but I did see two swirls at my fly. :-D
I plan on hitting the salt alot this fall in hopes of geting some massive fish on the end of my line .

This is the closest I ever came to catching a striper on my fly rod
Alli001.jpg
 
I did it tail end of summer, had a couple of blues, herring, and striper.. The largest was 20", and put a serious bend in a 10wt.

I don't think I'll be out there again this year (family obligations), but definatly caught the sickness this summer and can't wait to get out and do it again someday.

Plus, it seems like the shore is closer than Pulaski or the Erie tribs. :)
 
Fred,
I'd say you've got your striper - like trout, even the little ones count. :)

I'm a big salt junkie. One bit of advice I'd suggest is avoid the beach during the summer season. Of course lots of us wind up there in summer due to family and travel realities but the summer bite, esp from the surf and jetties which I usually frequent, is usually very poor (night fishing can help). Traffic is awful, hotel/ campground rates are high, there are fees for beach access etc. Peak season for the NJ shore is about from mid Sept till X-mas with Oct/Nov prime time. Late April till Memorial Day is good too esp in the bay. The reports from the Barnegat area this week are pretty good with the mullet run in full throttle. Much of the action has been bluefish but bass are mixed in. Usually by mid Nov the blues are thinning out but I have caught them from the surf at IBSP as late as mid Dec. If you time it right (I mean really lucky with timing) you can hook false abacore from the NJ jetties, and the North Jetty at IBSP in particular, from about late August till early Oct - but albies are really hit and miss and this is more a game for the locals who can get out on short notice. Unless you have a boat and/or guide, albies at the NJ shore usually aren't worth planning a trip since they're usually too far from the beach. Even during peak periods, surf fishing, esp with the long rod, is hit and miss but when it's good, it's usually really good. Seeing a blitz of bass and blues in the wash turning the water to a froth with screaming birds and flying bait is unforgettable. Maybe this year we'll get lucky and see it.
 
Fred,

I would be interested in a day trip. I had a free striper charter on the Merrimack in NH over labor day, but it got canceled. I need to make up for that.
 
If there's a movement afoot for this, I'd love to have a chance to see if I can make it...
 
Love the Fall salt! For the last 3 years I have been going once or twice each fall to fish blitzing stripers and blues from Raritan Bay, NY to the Chesapeake Bay. The trip this year is scheduled for 10/14. I fish from a boat with a guide. Though it does increase the cost, it also increases the hook-ups(IMO). Since I only get 1 or 2 trips a year, it is worth the cost to me.

Those fish pull HARD, really put a bend in the 9 weight!
 
Fredrick wrote:
This is the closest I ever came to catching a striper on my fly rod
Alli001.jpg

If someone told you it was a native" fish would it be Ok for it to be that small and still count? ;-)
 
I guess I should count it because its the same day that I did this
0530081335.jpg
 
Sweet christ, is that the point sticking back OUT of your arm?

Barbless hooks, always and forever. That image just re-affirms it.
 
I think it's a blessing that the point came back out. I have been hooked a half dozen times, and pushing the point back out to cut it was always the worst part.
 
jayL wrote:
I think it's a blessing that the point came back out. I have been hooked a half dozen times, and pushing the point back out to cut it was always the worst part.


I agree with Jay.....very convenient. Fred was a “lucky” man on that day.
 
What are some of the typical flies you Jersey guys throw?

I mostly stick with clousers in varying sizes and colors down in DE. I mostly get out in the Indian River inlet, so small blues and stripers are on the menu.

I'd love to up to IBSP, but don't think its in the cards for this year. Don't think I have the proper equipment or flies tied for that trip.
 
IBSP is what I was thinking.

I have the jeep... Then again it would only hold a few of us. Fred has seen its fishing machine skills.
 
Element has on-demand AWD, but I'm afraid the rear diff fluid would overheat with serious sand crawling, plus the ground clearance sucks.

As for flies, when I took a charter this summer I was told the concentrate on decievers, clousers, half-and-halfs, and gartside gurglers for the top.
 
I got it this year and can't wait to get back. A good guide / friend made this possible
 

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If you don't already have one - I believe that to drive one's 4WD on the beaches along the NJ shore requires a beach buggy permit. Having always walked rather than driven the beaches I'm not familiar with this permit but I seem to recall it isn't cheap.

I'm game to do a mini JAM on the NJ shore. Keep in mind the Steelhead JAM at the end of Oct. For a trip to the salt perhaps we should consider mid Oct or mid Nov putting at least a couple weeks before or after the steelhead JAM.
 
FWIW:
http://www.stripersurf.com/access.html
IBSP is $195 year, $50 for 72 hour.
 
mkoloch wrote:
What are some of the typical flies you Jersey guys throw?

I mostly stick with clousers in varying sizes and colors down in DE. I mostly get out in the Indian River inlet, so small blues and stripers are on the menu.

I'd love to up to IBSP, but don't think its in the cards for this year. Don't think I have the proper equipment or flies tied for that trip.

So what do you think is better its about the same distance for me to each one ?
 
Gotta love it!
 
Fred,
I'm pretty familiar with both Indian River Inlet (DE) and Barnegat Inlet (NJ). Both can fish very well and are actually very similar locations but I much prefer NJ. The fishing has just been better for me along the NJ shore. Even though it's about the same drive time for me, I don't visit MD/DE much anymore. The only exception has been for springtime weakfish - in this case I'd pick DE but for autumn stripers and blues I'd recommend Barnegat Inlet. Either side of the inlet is good. I usually stay on the north side which includes Island Beach State Park but the south side on Long Beach Island is pretty good too and has more and closer jetty fishing opportunities for a fisherman without a 4WD permit. IBSP and nearby Seaside Park are a bit more rustic and fisherman friendly (and a bit cheaper) than down at LBI. If you visit LBI, you can go up the lighthouse for the scenic view of the inlet.
 
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