- Sep 30, 2022
Walk the Dog Topwater Tactics for East Coast Stripers
This is the best time of the year for exciting top-water action from the surf, inlet or boat while casting walking topwater lures!
This is the best time of the year for exciting top-water action from the surf, inlet or boat while casting walking topwater lures!
Large bays hold major concentrations of feeding striped bass during late spring. Learn about the best lures and tactics for spring striper fishing.
No other fish in the Northeast sparks a saltwater angler’s interest during springtime like the striped bass. Every year, from late March through June, striped bass schools migrate northward along the Eastern Seaboard to follow their innate call for the ritual of spawning. Three main spawning grounds are defined: the Chesapeake Bay, Delaware River and Hudson River. All three areas have one factor in common: The stripers must move through large expanses of big estuarial bays.
In New Jersey, Raritan Bay is the gateway to the Hudson River, and the expanse presents world-class opportunities for spring striper fishing. Here’s a look at the top striped bass fishing lures and tactics for successful spring striper fishing.
Landlocked stripers can be a pretty difficult puzzle to figure out in the heart of winter, but if you play your cards right you can stumble on some of the most fun bites of the year! By play your cards right I mean chucking the YUM Flash Mob Jr as much as possible, it seems to put the best cards in your favor during the coldest times of year. It is certainly the large part of the how in how to catch the most stripers.
Most anglers luck into a striper every few trips while bass fishing in the winter, but you can increase those odds with a few helpful tips. These tips all have to do with location, proper equipment, and style of fishing.
Striped bass are schooling fish by nature, but when anglers talk about schooling stripers they’re usually talking about the melee that ensues when these predators push a school of bait to the surface. It’s a lot like a fireworks show, with explosions occurring in every direction. Fishing doesn’t get more exciting.
Stripers prefer water temperature around 55- to 68-degrees. If the water is too hot, they may feed shallow occasionally, but quickly return to the oxygenated rich, cooler water. Same goes for extremely cold water. But between the two extremes comes your best bet for some of the most exciting fishing freshwater has to offer.
Below is a press release the Arizona Game & Fish Department on a new state record striper caught Monday on one of the best topwater baits of all time, the Heddon Super Spook. I received no answer when I phoned angler John Davis this morning but left a message asking him to return my call so I can provide more details on this great day on the water. And yes, that's John and his fish in the photo.
Only one lure sounds like the chugging, spitting, dog-walking Cotton Cordell Pencil Popper. That action and sound attracts stripers and big bass from long distances resulting in heart pounding vicious strikes; however, there is more to fishing a pencil popper than just casting it out and walking it. You have to know when to fish it and where. After you know when and where, you should fine-tune your presentation with size and color pattern to maximize your catch-rate.