Strpers on the Sand: Part 3: Time and Tides

It takes time to learn access points and the driving patterns that let you see the maximum amount of beach with minimum driving, but, once mastered, you can improve results by visiting during peak conditions. .Some claim you do better on days with maximum differences between high and low water. Others favor the top of incoming or bottom of outgoing tides. I hit the beach whenever I can and stay as long as possible.

Repeated trips to the beach let you recognize the cars of the pros. When you see these cars with empty rod racks you know action is near.

Finding stripers on your own isn't impossible. When bass savage bait you can easily spot swirls and the silver flash of fish from outlooks. Diving gulls and, to some extent, pelicans tip off action. Terns, which can dart down and snatch bait from the surface without "splashdowns" are less reliable indicators because they snatch fish without the help of feeding stripers.

During the late summer months you'll spot immense flocks of small black birds migrating down the coast. These, to the pilgrim, sometimes look like stripers working bait. Watch for big swirls and silver flashes and you're assured action.

Once you locate working stripers, check to see which way they are headed. For example, from Thornton Beach outlook, working fish to the north under the bluffs where the hang gliders soared can be cut off by driving to the Great Highway and parking near the zoo. This can be much quicker than trying to slog through deep sand after fast moving fish. Watch the pros; they know where to find shortcuts!

When you finally arrive at the water's edge and are ready to join the line of wildly casting fishermen at THE END WHERE THE STRIPERS ARE HEADING watch it! Pros look towards the beach to make sure their backcasts are clear. Pilgrims don't. Getting stuck with a 4-ounce jig or big plug armed with treble hooks is no joke!

When you ease into place an arm's length from other fishermen, watch the water and try to cast to spots just beyond swirls. Spool or thumb your reel so the slack is out of your line when your terminal gear hits the water so you can hook quick strikes. Then, if you use a plug, reel immediately and hang on. If you use a popper, "stop and go" reeling gets strikes. With jigs or spoons, pause a moment, for larger stripers seem to wait a bit for wounded bait to fall below the surface. A drop may also produce a salmon or halibut.

Go To Page: 1 2

Articles in this Topic    Discussions in this Topic