striper bucktails « currentseams.com

First things first: the Edison Fly Fishing Show starts tomorrow, Friday, January 24. I’m there two days, Friday and Saturday, doing a class and a seminar each day. The seminars are included in the price of your admission, and we have Finding Small Stream Nirvana in the Catch Room on Friday at 10:15am, and Wet Flies 101 in the Strike Room Saturday at 9:45am. I’m teaching classes both days in the afternoon. There’s still room if you want to sign up for Tying and Fishing Wet Flies on Friday and Beyond Cast & Strip: Presentation Flies for Stripers on Saturday. You must register for those classes here.

Here’s a pdf of my show schedule:

Last but not least, I went to the Farmington River yesterday to shoot photos. Due to the Arctic blast we’re experiencing, Church Pool is completely covered with ice, from the bridge down the length of the pool. If you must go fishing, you best bet is from the dam to Riverton. However, once you get just above Riveton, there is shelf ice, so beware. Also, none of the lots or pullouts are plowed, so I wouldn’t attempt to navigate snow drifts unless I had a very reliable 4WD vehicle. Just go to Edison and have a fly fishing blast (and stay warm while you’re doing it).

I fished three marks in SoCo last night, and while the striper action was slow, the bait story was consistent: smallish to tiny, and lots of it. Confirmed sightings: silversides, anchovies, peanut bunker, and I may have seen a stray finger mullet.

My night began in the surf, but the meatball factor (bright headlamps used early and often) and a lack of action had me moving to Spot B, an estuary with a moving tide. Lots of bait, too few marauders.

I finished the evening at Spot C, some skinny water on flat, just as the tide began to flow out. Lots of worried bait in this location, and it’s a perfect place to fish a team of three. I had 2″ long Ray’s fly on top dropper, a Magog Smelt bucktail in the middle, and a micro Gurgler on point to do double duty as a suspender and waking fly. I was disappointed with the number of assembled diners, but it is what it is and you do your best. Two fish to hand in 45 minutes and I was satisfied, abetted in no small amount by a Rocky Patel Vintage 1990 corona and a come-from-behind Mets victory.

In case you haven’t seen it, here’s a quick refresher.