Summer shots

Few more shots from this summer.  It's been a good one for sure.  Looking forward to the fall.  I've started filling in some holes in the flybox for what I'm hoping is a good fall run.  I put up a few pics to remember what stripers look like.  Just kidding....it has been tough but not that tough.

Sign of fall

School of small baitfish I found stacked up in a corner made by a beach and jetty last night.  No game fish around unfortunately but they can't be far behind.

August slump

Fishing seems to have slowed.  The water inshore has really warmed up and I've been on foot a lot lately which has made it challenging.  I'm still finding fish but not the same numbers and they sure aren't biting as well.  I've tried fishing off the rocks a little and working the higher incoming tides to find some cooler water.  Lots of bait around still especially especially mackerel and sandeels.  I don't mind a little slow fishing this time of year.  I'm still enjoying the sunrises and warm sunny days.  I've taken a lot more pics of sunrises than fish lately.

Picked this one up first thing in the morning.  Should keep me motivated until the fall.

July stripers

Got a late start on the striper season this year due mostly to family commitments but since late June and right through July I've been fishing as much as possible.  I made about a dozen trips out to the salt both from the boat and shore.  This July has been some of the best mid summer fishing I've ever had.  The numbers of fish weren't the same as past years but the consistency of the fishing, quality of the fish and the different fishing opportunities that presented itself have been amazing.  In all those trips I only got shut out once and that was on the shortest trip which consisted of a quick couple of hours before work.

I've had a chance to fish with a few new people.  James from Big Pike Flies visited all the way from Iowa to give striper fishing a try.  We worked hard for them but he ended up catching the big striper of the day 2 days in a row.  I also got to fish with a new friend of mine Travis who is becoming a pretty hard core chaser of stripers on the fly.

Lots of bait around this year especially sandeels.  It seems like they have brought the fish into the shallow flats after them.  Crabs continue to be effective also.  Sight fishing on the flats has been very good.  The size of the fish combined with how shallow they have been going and the bright sun have made for a lot of fun.  I've had many schools of fish and large singles swim right up to me this summer.  Sometimes all I need to do is get a fly out to them and they'll eat and other times they don't seem as interested and need a more precise presentation.

The more I get out the more in touch with what is going on I get and the success and enjoyment increases.  Here are a just a few pics from this season.

 

 Solid striper taken first outing of the year on a foggy morning.

Blackbird fools another one in the dark.

Ridiculous day of 30"+ fish.

Grocery pollock gets chewed on by this 32 incher.

John releasing another one.

Flats release

James hooked up again.

Big striper flies is more like it.

Another one sent back.

Working the rocks.

Travis with an early morning flats fish.

Sand eels on the flats.

Chased these little guys in the surf one beautiful, sunny morning while they chased around scattered schools of sandeels.

Had to work hard for this one which I could see swim up and eat a crab.