Summertime patterns

[ronaultmtd]

Teddy and I hit the slower lower yesterday morning...yeah, it is true-I was fishing on a Saturday...anyway, it was less than ideal conditions- low tide at daylight, hot, humid, bright sunny day, lots of grass, swarms of cow nose rays, lots of powerboat traffic, and crowds...tough conditions to say the least...not a nibble for the first hour, nada...looking like a complete bust...outboard motor noise runs fish off the flats. So, you either adjust or you go home. I fell back on my summertime patterns..down size lures, slowed down the presentation...7 C&R Speckled Trout- 4 over 20 inches- biggest landed was 24 inches...15 or so Stripers...when the fishing get tough, think slow and smaller...we left the fish biting...

[J. Rentch]

Nice going Ron, haven’t seen many Specks in our area-yet. Going to visit a couple places on the eastern shore this week- got my fingers crossed!

[ronaultmtd]

John- they are full of roe...so they are feeding up to spawn...I released all my fish yesterday...I'll concentrate on white perch for eating, although sea trout are reputed to be prolific breeders...hard for me to kill these egg laying beauties...90% of all my hits came on the "drop" if that helps...

[J. Rentch]

Thanks for the tip- hopefully we can find some post spawn fish, definitely don’t want pre!

[Big Mike]

To add to Ron’s point, try different lures in spots you really think should have fish. I fish Breton Bay a lot and it’s got some very specific pieces of structure that tend to hold fish. If trolling paddle tails (something many of us do a whole bunch) doesn’t get hit or only gets me schoolies in those spots I don’t give up on them. I pull out a metal jig and drop it to the bottom (where I’m at this is only 5-7’). More often than not it will get hit within one or two jigs and usually by a quality fish. If all I did was troll I’d have some really bad days if I didn’t stop and jig.

I don’t have a fish finder so when I start jigging I have no idea if there are fish there or not. If I’m not hit quickly I’ll give it 5 minutes or so before I move on. Fish gravitate towards spots and pass through them like us driving to the grocery store, they’re landmarks that guide them to food. I want my lure in that spot waiting for a drive by. You’ll also be surprised how many different species hit a jig. I can’t tell you how many white perch I’ve caught on a metal jig.

So yes, I troll paddle tails a lot, but I’ve learned to try and be a couple of trick pony when that isn’t working as well as I’d like.

[J. Rentch]

Thanks for the tip Mike

[UnkleRob2020]

What is a metal jig? Is this the same thing as a blade bait? I have a work colleague that has taken me out to Rocky Gorge in search of stripers. We vertically jig something he calls a blade bait. To me, it looks like someone flattened a rattletrap with a hammer. He swears by vertical jigging although all I have gotten from it so far is an arm workout. The Rocky Gorge striper has eluded me since the early 70's :--)

[Big Mike]

Sounds like your friend uses a silver buddy. I’m using simple Gotcha metal jigs in 1oz and 1 1/2 oz sizes. They’re around 3” long and I generally like silver or silver and blue colors. Yes, you drop to the bottom, and jerk it up and let free fall back to the bottom. Wether you choose to keep the treble or go with a single hook, please replace the piece of crap hook that Gotcha uses.

[UnkleRob2020]

Thank you Mike. I am going to try some vertical jigging my next trip out. Btw...I do not always thank everyone for their input or responses to my questions, but that is because I am not really sure what is the preferred etiquette on the board. I am truly grateful for all the knowledge and help that is shared on this forum. Thank you everyone.

Last year: first pick
Last year: first Severn Slam
Last year: first puppy drum (at least I think)
Last year: first fish on a Beetlespin
This year: first fish on senko
This year: first fish trolling from kayak

I realize that these are not exactly milestones for most of you, but they are for me as someone who mostly fished with live bait for 50 years :--)

[Mark]

UnkleRob,

It's actually quite amazing -- all the different kinds of lures and flies that fish bite.

My first fish on an artificial bait was a white perch on a Mepps Spinner a long time ago. I stopped buying worms after that.

May you add many more fishing firsts to your list this year.