Striper Fishing Success

Salisbury State Park, Salisbury, Massachusetts is perched on the intersection of the Atlantic Ocean and the mouth of the Merrimack River. This placement allows for the perfect mix of camping, beach fun and striper fishing. Huge sand beaches, a giant play park and ample opportunity to cook marshmallows over the campfire are sure to please kids of all ages. Throw on the top of this exciting mix, the possibility to catch a striped bass or blue fish of truly epic proportions and you have all the ingredients necessary for an awesome family weekend.

Where to fish you might ask? No worries, as the beach is typically loaded with excited fishermen, all willing and eager to share the latest information on how and where the fish are biting. My suggestion would be to show-up, toss in a line and listen to the latest gossip. Half the fun with surfcasting is watching the jumping baitfish and diving seagulls, to determine where the fish are schooling and working out a game plan to catch them.

There are some great sites, within the campground, to pitch a tent or park a camper that are within 50 yards of great fishing. We stayed on the beach end of “Y” street and great fishing was less than a minute walk. Just realize that most spots are VERY close together and privacy is VERY limited. Also, if you want shade for a dog or yourself if the weather is sunny, you may want to request a site with trees, otherwise take your chances and you may end up in a barren region of sandy purgatory.

See here for more information on Salisbury State Parkor nearby Hampton Beach State Park.

9th Article Published!

The Maine Sportsman - New England's Largest Outdoor Publication – Will be publishing my 9th story in their July 2010 edition (Pg. 45-46). The article will be part of the magazines “special sections” and highlight Surf Casting for Stripers. The individuals featured in the photo accompanying the article is none other than yours truly and my own little wildman. For more information on the Maine Sportsman Magazine or to order a subscription click this link: http://mainesportsman.com. The article below is the originally submitted unedited version. Enjoy!

Surfcasting Maine’s Coastal Beaches
By Steve Vose

There is something distinctly awakening about standing on a sandy beach, watching the first rays of early morning light dance along the water’s surface. With naked toes buried deep in warm sand, listening to the music of the crashing waves, one could easily forget that they are fishing. Whether casting and retrieving a lure in turbid breakers or fishing bait off bottom anyone who has not tried surfcasting is missing out on a truly unique fishing experience. Even the most skeptical sportsman, will be hooked on this pursuit, from that very first electric zip of line being rapidly spooled off their reel, as a striper or blue threatens to haul their rod and reel to Ireland.

Fishing Locations
Maine provides ample opportunities for sportsman, interested in trying their hand at surfcasting. Our coastline is dotted with sandy beaches, perfect for catching stripers and occasional blue fish. While recent years have seen a marked dip in the number of stripers harvested, savvy surfcasters can increase their chances by staying updated on fish migratory movements. Reports are posted at all of the major bait and tackle dealerships up and down the coast. The trend in the past two years has stripers and blues holding to areas south of Cape Elizabeth. While it is possible to catch fish along the banks of the Kennebec up to Augusta and the Penobscot up to Verona Island your best chances, for the moment, have moved further south. To monopolize, focus efforts on areas such as Hills beach at the mouth of the Saco, Parsons and Cresent Surf beach at the mouth of the Mousam and points along the Piscataqua River. As summer transitions into fall, changing water temperatures drive stripers northward to the central Maine coastline as they follow their food supply. When this change occurs Pemaquid Beach Park, Popham Beach State Park, and Mile Beach at Reid State Park all offer fishing opportunities.

Gear
A basic surfcasting outfit need not break the bank. Sportsmen looking to try their luck chasing stripers or blues may already have a suitable beach fishing outfit. A medium weight rod and a reel, with a line capacity of 15-20 lbs, will work nicely when paired with a Kastmaster or pencil popper.

Beginners planning to fish off bottom, using bait and weights, should use a shock leader. This basically means tying a line (Stren Super braid) of higher breaking strength to your backing. The heavy “shock” leader absorbs the energy of casting. Without it you run the high risk of breaking your lightweight line after just a few casts and watching your rig sail into the sunset. The general rule is to use a 1 to 10 ratio or a 4 oz sinker to a 40 lb shock leader. Cut you leader long enough to wrap around your reel 5 times and run to the rod tip and back to your reel, this should provide ample leader for casting. With this in place, you will be able to cast with confidence.

The hobbyist surf fishermen, using fresh water fishing outfits, should be aware of the destructive power of sand and salt water. PVC pipes offer a cheap way of holding your rod and reel out of the gritty sand. Cut a 2 inch diameter PVC pipe to a length of 32 inchs with one end square and the other at a 45 degree angle. Insert the sharp end in the sand the other end holds the rod. Fresh water rods and reels are not designed for continued use in saltwater and will quickly corrode. Care should be taken to rinse off rod and reel with fresh water upon returning home. Use a light spray of water so as to not force sand or water into the inner workings of your reel.

With a small investment, sportsmen wanting to become more serious about surfcasting can invest in rods and reels that are specifically designed to take the punishment of fishing in this rough environment. Reels come equipped with an almost infinite number of features and combinations. For someone new to the sport simpler is often better. Owning a Penn Spinfisher 750SSM or Penn 525 Magnum reel matched with a quality 10-12 foot surfcasting pole like Cabela’s Salt Caster series or Tica’s TC2 with graphite shaft is truly a moment of Zen. As your knowledge of the sport grows, you may eventually want to explore some of the other reel options including models equipped with a bait switch that permits line to be spooled out freely, with the bail closed, allowing finicky stripers to take bait without tension.

Casting
The easiest surfcasting technique for the beginner is to continue casting exactly as you currently do now. Your familiar basic cast will let you get your lure or bait out to an acceptable distance and run a significantly lower risk of hooking yourself or an innocent bystander. Always watch the beach populace on your back swings.

Becoming more advanced, there are two additional casts you will want to add to your repertoire. These should be practiced in a safe location free of people, as a busy beach during the height of the tourist season is no time to be practicing new-fangled casting skills. The first is relatively easy and is called the off the ground cast. Once this initial casting technique is mastered, the second more complicated pendulum can be attempted. The off the ground cast will help you develop the muscle memory and coordination needed to learn the significantly more difficult pendulum. Mastering the pendulum, will require you to invest considerable time practicing, however, when done correctly will allow you to chuck a lure or bait out to 100 yards. For further information and videos on how to successfully conduct both of these casts, perform a Google search for “off the ground surfcasting or “pendulum surfcasting”.

Lure & Baiting Considerations
Surfcasting lures come in a dizzying variety of colors, sizes, materials and forms. From soft plastic shads to hard plastic pencil poppers to metal Kastmasters and high quality homemade lures like those made at www.aoktackle.com, the choices are almost endless. If you are looking for a solid lure, at a price pleasing to the wallet, purchase a package of Storm 4” pearl shads. These relatively inexpensive and versatile lures are incredibly effective and hold up well to all but the most aggressive blue fish.

Slide rigs for fishing bait off bottom, are available at many fishing shops. If you select one of these premade set-ups, help and protect the fishery, by choosing one using circle hooks. It has been shown, that fish hooked with J hooks die 27 percent of the time, as opposed to 2 percent with circle hooks. If you are looking for a cutting edge sliding rig, guaranteed to maximize your casting distance, check out www.breakawayusa.com. They offer high end products that will elevate your surfcasting to the next level.

Frozen bait including mackerel, herring, shad and bunker are available from bait shops up and down the Maine coast. Places to purchase bait and an assortment of fishing supplies, on your way to the surf, include Percy’s Market in Popham, Wiscasset Trading Post in Wiscasset and the White Anchor Inn in Boothbay.

Safety and Other Considerations
Fishing Maine’s popular saltwater beaches, during the height of tourist season, certainly have challenges. To combat crowds, focus fishing to the prime early morning and evening hours when fish are most active and beach goers most inactive. Also, keep a close eye on your line to insure you don’t accidentally snag dogs or small children. Tidal changes can cause relatively calm areas to quickly become unsafe as sea level increases create rip tides and erratic currents.

Another danger of beach fishing is in the unsheltered exposure to the sun’s rays. To protect yourself from heat exhaustion/stroke, bring a portable seat for keeping off the hot sand, sunscreen, a wide brimmed hat and plenty of water for staying hydrated.
Ending Thoughts

Sportsmen all have their favorite species of fish and specialized methods for catching them. This may mean using worms and bobbers to catching brook trout, fly-casting for salmon, trolling downriggers for togue, jigging saltwater smelts or using tip-ups to catch perch and pickerel. Whatever your fishing passion, I challenge you to give surfcasting a try this summer, you may just ignite another outdoor obsession!

Go fly a kite AND fish for stripers!

Parson's beach, at the mouth of the Mousam River, is an awesome place to take the family. The kids are sure to enjoy building sand castles, beach combing and even flying kites in the ever present sea breeze. While you are there, be sure to visit the mouth of the Mousam River and wet a line. This is one of the state's HOT SPOTS for stripers and blues. If you need to know more about tides, equipment, local bait options and how to get there check out the following website: www.flyfishinginmaine.com.

Popham Beach State Park

Popham Beach State Park is a beautiful destination located on Map 6 (E5) in the Maine Gazetteer. In the heat of the summer, be prepared to get here early, as a long line quickly forms as crowds flock to the cool ocean breezes to escape the heat.

Few people realize that if you are traveling with man's best friend that you will be not allowed access on the state beach. A great alternative is found just down the road at the section of beach by the old Popham Fort. Parking at Percy's Store for 7 dollars will put you within a few hundred yards of the beach.

As summer progresses into July and August Popham is a great location to try surfcasting. While the beach is often crowded fishermen can secure space for themselves northward toward the old fort and to the south in the less crowded areas further from the parking area. To really beat the crowds try early mornings and later evenings pursuing stripers and mackerel.

Need bait, lures or other supplies? Percy's has both as well as many other nurishing edibles for hungry and thirsty sportsmen and beach goers.

Handmade Fishing Lures

On a recent fishing odyssey that started in Maine at Pemaquid Beach and ended at Kings Beach in NewPort, RI I was fortunate enough to meet a number of fishermen who were friendly and open to sharing details on the best fishing spots all along the rocky coast.

One of these individuals was a super nice guy from PA who owns and operates AOK Tackle (www.aoktackle.com). He provided me with several free samples of his hand made fishing lures. Including the pictured "Nut Bunker Spoon" made out of solid Brass and decorated with genuine buck tail.

He and I swapped fishing tales all the while casting into high winds and angry seas at Kings beach in Newport, RI. If anyone is interested in checking out some high quality original handmade fishing lures (they just don't make them like this anymore!) I strongly encourage you to stop by his website and take a look!

Stripers Hit the Maine Coast

Well, my fishing buddies tell me they are here but they don't want to take anything I am throwing at them. Fished for four hours Sunday on the western end of Pemaquid Beach without even a nibble to show for my exhaustive efforts. Used a blue fish rig with the orange and yellow foam balls and a striper slip rig both loaded with Mackerel and Herring (available frozen at the Wiscasset Trading Post, BTW). Oh well, that is why they call it fishing and not catching. After a miserably long week, it was refreshing to spend an incredible day breathing the crisp salt air and enjoying one of the few days this Summer when it wasn't raining!

Caution . . . when fishing on a busy beach keep your line high and pole positioned right at the water line and keep your eyes on it at all times. I had 10-12 "tourists" almost walk right into my fishing line and one swimmer who almost got snagged.

Penobscot River Striper Report by Rabid

Penobscot River Striper Report

Woke up at 3:30 on Monday to a damp and foggy morning and fairly hesitated before getting out of bed and stumbling downstairs. I was impressed that in about 10 minutes I managed to brew a cup of coffee, get out the door and be barreling down route 3 toward Belfast. About an hour later my cell phone rang, it was my brother “Were the hell are ya?” “About 15 minutes out”, I said “just passing Hamlin Marine”. “Ok, well I'll be fishing”, was the only reply. A quarter of an hour later, I pulled up next to my brother’s truck at Sandy Point. He had already untied his Predator kayak and it was sitting in the parking lot next to his fishing gear. Barely had I turned off the key in the ignition switch and noted the time (5:00) when an anxious figure appeared over the fogy dunes. “Lets go” it stated.

In a few minutes time, we loaded his kayak next to mine and were again on our way down route 3 toward Bucksport. We had a simple plan to put in the kayaks at the public launch on Verona Island and fish the stretch of the Penobscot down to Sandy Point. By leaving a vehicle at each point, we could play the outgoing tide and accomplish the 4 mile trip with minimal effort.

Paddling up and past the Bucksport mill almost to the power lines we then turned and crossed the river and fished the location where we had such good luck last season. Unfortunately, no fish. Picking our way through the fog we passed by Fort Knox and I snapped a few dreary photos and noted the time was 5:45. The old and new bridges soon stretched high over our heads and we continued down the river. We tried trolling, casting and a variety of lures (surface poppers, sinking pearl shads, floating pearl shads and assorted streamer flies) but no fish. As we made out way down the western shore I noted 3-4 Blue Herons busily feeding on bait fish but no schooling stripers were seen chasing this food source.

At 7:30 I beached the kayak and got out to stretch my legs and attempted some casting from shore. Minutes later I was back in the kayak and again heading again down the shoreline. We took our time casting to shore as well as away into the deeper waters and hitting all of the eddy pools and stream entry points with multiple casts. No fish.

At around 9:00 the thought of hot coffee (I was wearing my winter hat, long pants and two insulated tops!) and a couple Irving red hot dogs proved to much of a temptation and we paddled the remaining time to the beach with renewed vigor. Arriving at the beach 30 minutes later, I was impressed with the sight of the old 1970s fertilizer factory just off shore. Even in the heavy fog, the immensity of the ancient structure was hard to ignore.

We pulled the kayaks across the beach and loaded them in my brother’s vehicle and headed toward Irving in Searsport. After stocking up with supplies my brother said “Hey, I heard the mackerel are running off the pier in Searsport want to give it a couple hours?” At 10:00 we arrived at the town pier in Searsport and joined a group of about 10 other fishing individuals. Happily eating my red hot dog and sipping back on a hot coffee, I questioned if anything else could have compared to that moment. Fishless but relaxed and happy we both decided to call it quits around noontime.

Well, this is why the sport is called FISHING and not FINDING so stay tuned . . . maybe soon the stripers will be running and hopefully we will see you on the water next weekend! Take Care!

Kennebec Striper Report by Fish Dog

Fish Dog's Striper Report

*Fish Dog is a beautiful 65 lb black lab who has been an integral part of our pack for the past three years. She is passionate about all water related sports and is never far from my side whenever we find the time in our busy schedules to go fishing, duck hunting or swimming.

Woof . . . the early morning rains managed to hold off and Big Boss and I decided to head out under lead gray skies down to a new fishing spot on the Kennebec River. Big boss rigged up a couple poles, organized an assortment of lures, poured me a bowl of “K9 Krunchies” (Did I mention that I LOVE to eat?) and we were off to try our luck with the striped bass. I was so excited that I paced back and forth in the truck the entire drive and finally had to stick my head out the window to keep from hyperventilating! Did I mention that I LOVE fishing? From the moment we arrived at the deserted pier, I knew it was going to be a great morning. Big Boss opened the door and immediately the smell of brackish water, strange dog poop and gopher drifted lazily across the parking lot . . . in an completely unladylike manner perhaps I drooled a little.

Big Boss put on my leash in case we encountered anyone and we walked down the steep incline toward the river. Did I mention I LOVE to excitedly greet people by sometimes jumping on them? I pulled perhaps a little bit hard on my leash and Big Boss tripped and spilled nuclear hot coffee on his leg . . . he is so funny when he screams like a little girl!

Looking up on Big Boss's wrist, I noted the time was 6:30 AM. Already several other dedicated fishermen were trolling and casting along the shoreline but as we watched nobody seemed to be catching anything. Around 6:45 AM the first sturgeon cleared the water and splashed down with a force that sounded like a stick of cord wood being dropped from an airplane. Big Boss didn't see it but I estimated the length at between 4-5 feet. Did I mention I LOVE sturgeon? One sturgeon broke the surface so close to me that I had to give case!

The leap off the high dock granite dock was exhilarating and the cool waters of the Kennebec refreshing! Swimming across the strong current unfortunately was harder than I anticipated and the fish escaped. Did I mention I LOVE fish? Big Boss was so funny, he worried that I might drown. Doesn't he know labs are born with webbed feet? Big Boss had to crawl down the 8 foot high granite dock to lift me out of the water. Did I mention I LOVE swimming? Why Big Boss didn't just jump in with me and swim around I will never know. He looked pretty “heated” from the whole incident, so to cool him down I shook drenching him . . . he seemed very appreciative . . . or maybe relieved?!?!?

Big boss looked up in the sky and told me that a front was moving in and a dropping barometer combined with the current tidal conditions could possibly entice the fish to bite at anytime. I whined a little bit just thinking about possibly catching a slot sized fish! We stayed a couple hours and threw every lure we had in the arsenal at them but by the time it was ready to go home we were fishless.

On the ride back home Big Boss told me that one of the state marine resource employees had said the water temperature was still to cold and that the really big fish had not yet migrated this far up the river. Perhaps Big Boss and I will try again next weekend! (Did I mention that I LOVE Big Boss and that he LOVES me?)

BONUS: Here is a close-up picture of the granite dock where we were fishing. Big Boss and I thought some of you might like to use it as a desktop background. Take Care!