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Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Report for Week ending 6/16 - still 5 minutes from the ramp!

We were still able to find fish this week in the upper bay of Bristol. Larger bait like Menhaden were located in various spots which enabled each group to get some private fishing in each morning. Saturday, we had some nice schools of menhaden up north of the Mt. Hope Bridge where we were able to land some nice 35 inch bass on large fly patterns. I am editing the video this week so I hope to have it up soon (my new GOPro project). It was just picture perfect that morning and no winds which made fly fishing a dream come true.
Sunday: While we found some baits in the usual spots, it was completely opposite of Saturday. We found the bait, we found the fish, but we really did have a difficult time getting them to eat. We fished 5 different locations, each holding fish (I even showed the customers what I was looking at) to just have them turn their nose to it.  Sometimes that is fishing. We did land one nice 20 lb striper on the very first drop but that was all we could get to the boat on Sunday.  My crew worked hard all day and kept doing everything right.   The good news: There is still a ton of fish around and in the 32-40 inch range. Water temps were creeping up to the 67 degree range as you move up the rivers but stayed at the 64 range in the mid bay area.  EP Puglisi bunker patterns in green were the fly of choice that fooled two big bass on Saturday!  Hopefully this week keeps up with the pace of Saturday... and lets keep these cool temps coming!!

Sunday, June 9, 2013

6/9 Weekly Update - Lots of Bass on the Fly and light tackle

First of all, don't let anyone fool you. If you love to fly fish for big fish, now is the time to get out here.  Some guides will tell you that because the bass are keying in on larger baits this time of the year, fly fishing is not the best option and you should go to the salt ponds or the shallow waters if you want to fly fish. I beg to differ. This week we were catching 35 inch bass on the fly right around the large schools of bunker.  We were able to blast through the slop and get to protected areas to do this. You won't like being on a flats boat with 3 foot chop and be forced to fish salt ponds and shallow water this weekend. These fish are feeding on large baits in the upper bay and with patience, they can be fooled to take a fly. Brian and Leo, out for there third year from CA showed how its done.  Large EP Bunker flies were the hot fly this week! If you chose to go with a guide on a flats boat, you would have been cancelled due to the weather, not us. My boat is custom built for offshore fly fishing right here in Bristol RI.  Think of it as a flats boat on steroids! By fly fishing with me, you have a larger opportunity to get yourself to where the fish are.



Today, we experienced some great fishing in the upper bay with light tackle as well. Most of the fish were 34-38 inches and there were some MONSTER blues as well.. The 12-15 lbers that create a lovely shade of red in the water when they feed.   
  Water temps were 64 on the surface and with just enough cloud cover to keep the fish active through the morning. My boat is great because we were able to back drift onto the schools and hold position where everyone else was drifting at 2 knots the wrong way.  Dave and Joe both broke their own striper record today on their third and final trip with me.  Thank you both for 3 great charters!

When you look for a charter guide, weather its for fly fishing or light tackle, there is no greater time to be on the water than now!  I built my business around my passion.  By fishing both techniques, I know where the big fish are,what they are feeding on and how to fool them. 

Monday, June 3, 2013

First Weekend in June was Spectacular

There are not too many times that I get several straight days of fishable weather. This weekend was one of them. We not only had the tides and weather on our side, but also the fish. The rivers produced consistent fish and the bait was readily available. While my mornings started at 3 am, being the first on the water has its rewards. I find the bait first and I find the fish first. My customers reaped the rewards. Bait was pretty consistent in upper rivers and the incoming tide was by far the most productive. All of the fish were from 16- 19 lbs and the longest was 37 inches.  Both live and cut bait produced fish.  We went from using various length of leaders to various pound test to keep with the rising sun and it made a big difference. Thank you to my clients this weekend as we only kept 9 fish out of 18 that made it to the boat.  The ones kept were actually the better table size compared to some larger ones that were released by their choice.  Awesome job gang!

By Sunday, a fair amount if the fish moved out of the upper regions of the river (compared to mid week where it was a 14 fish outing in less than 50 yards of water). Fine by me as it weeds out the stalkers of charter boats.  Either way, that is what log books are for and we found them on Sunday and we were all by ourselves.  The water temp was around 68 in the upper rivers and 64 in the upper bay (surface temps).  Like I said in other posts, don't be afraid to try waters where there are no boats. This is the time when the fish start to move. Be the first and enjoy the rewards. There are also some very hungry blues working now so be ready to change chafed gear if you want to land a big striper!