Dropback herring are playing the Pied Piper role and leading stripers within casting distance of anglers from the shore of the Piscatagua River. Camp Ellis may have the distinction of being a best bet for you to land a cow striped bass. The goal of catching inshore flatfish is to achieve a limit, however for the ones hooking halibut the goal is far simpler – just get the darn thing into the boat!
New Hampshire
Tim from Suds ‘N Soda recently achieved his personal best striper of 40” and moments later leap-frogged it with a 41”, all from the shore of the Piscatagua River. This along with a subsequent outing with 16 smaller bass in 16 casts proved a good test for his signature series 7’ rod for the Jase Custom Rod Company, which he said handled all comers with ease. The Tidalwave guides on the new series are reportedly very sweet. Effective offerings were the Mac Daddy herring DM Minnow as well as a 6” Storm Wildeye Shad. For the “sweet 16” outing the herring Mac Daddy baby Viper fished jerk-bait style was the trick. There appears to be a promenade of fish throughout the Piscatagua as the fish follow the herring back through the watershed and out to sea. And they are traveling in similar sized schools with the bigger fish in smaller groups. Harbor pollock as well as mackerel are being jigged up from the 2KR Can out toward the Isle of Shoals, some are catching quite well by drifting the live bait throughout the Piscatagua River while another effective method is to creep up to structure such as the jetties and rockpiles throughout Hampton, Rye and Wells beaches and live line the baitfish under a float or balloon.
Jamie from Dover Marine has been hitting Jeffrey’s Ledge hard with the biggest news regarding the biggest fish – in this case a friend’s 57 pound halibut that gulped an entire mackerel. In fact mackerel seems to be also best for big pollock, keeper haddock as well as cod between 8 and 10 pounds. The action is concentrated in irregular bottom between 185 and 200 feet of water. Just beware of the merciless “dog pound” which are swarming all along the bank. Shore guys are finally cashing in on the striper sweepstakes with chunk mackerel working best. The jetties outside of Hampton Harbor are a good option as is the shoreline of Wallis Sands Beach.
Southern Maine
Nick from Saco Bay Tackle recommends that anglers chunk up mackerel or soak seaworms on an outgoing tide off Camp Ellis. The striper size has bumped up to the mid-30” range. The opposite is true at Old Orchard Beach where the incoming tide is fishing best. For some the fishing has been fantastic around Goose Fare Brook with Bill Hurley’s catching as well as Yo-Zuri Crystal Minnows and SP Minnows. For the best possible groundfish action plan on making the 47 mile haul out to Platt’s Ledge! It’s a heck of a trip but the fishing has been tremendous.
Brandy from Webhannet said that spook type lures such as the Bomber Badonk-A-Donk have been the most effective offering at the mouths of the Kennebec and Mousam River. Poppers will often get more noticed when the surf is up at a beach front or if there are bluefish present. Soft plastic alternatives are the Shaker Shad as well as the Fishbelly Hawg Shad. Mackerel have arrived just outside of Wells Beach and can be found not far from York. Try drifting mackerel on an outgoing tide at the mouths of the Mousam and Kennebec Rivers. Or try floating a live mackerel under a balloon near boulders/rocks off Higgins Beach.
Best Bets for the Weekend
If Great Bay is more GPS friendly for you than target the Piscatagua River on an outgoing tide you may find a striper procession as they shadow river herring returning to the sea. The beaches of New Hampshire are perfect for the chunking crowd; hook up a mackerel chunk and toss it into the horizon of Rye Beach as well as Wallis Sand to see what’s out there. If you’re most happy groundfishing, there’s Jeffrey’s ledge where you may have to shake off a few dozen dogfish and friends but the potential of big pollock or better yet a 57 pound halibut should be enough to help you keep your cool. Stripers are swarming southern Maine where you should snap on your favorite spook type lure and give it a go at the mouth of the Mousam and Kennebec River.