by Steve McKenna

The summer surf is different than any other time of the striper season. The first thing to remember about this time of year is that bass become nocturnal. If you want to be successful at catching big bass in the surf from mid-June until mid-September, at least around Rhode Island waters where I fish, you must fish after dark. In daylight, bass hightail it to deeper offshore structure. They become strictly nocturnal inshore feeders during the warmer months. I think it is important to note though that stripers will come in to the shoreline during the daytime in the summer months if there is a storm.

Target the New Moon

I focus on fishing around the new moon periods in July, August and September. The dark of the moon is decidedly better for striper fishing. Concentrating your efforts five days before and after will usually provide you with some nice fish. Do not fret, the bass will be there.

It’s worth fishing with artificial lures at dusk and dawn, when stripers will be moving into or out of their inshore territories. At times, dusk and dawn can be extremely productive, especially around full moon periods. I am not a fan of surf fishing on bright, moonlit nights. I make it my business to be at my spot during these bright periods before the moon gets high enough in the sky to ruin fishing. At dawn, I’ll time my arrival for when the moon is close to the western horizon and there is still some darkness. That can be the magic hour. A metal-lip plug, a “light” Red Fin or a Yo-Zuri Surface Cruiser cast into a whitewater-filled rocky cove might just produce that one decent bass of the night. Furthermore, I’ll try to get out when it’s cloudy or there is some stormy weather around the full moon. Clouds negate the brightness and those nights can produce fish as well as new moon eves. I can count on one hand the good nights in the surf I’ve had when it was bright from the moon. I can remember that of those productive nights, fewer still occurred in the summer. Save your efforts for the darker times and watch TV on the full moon nights. Believe me, you are not missing anything!

Fish the Stormy Surf

Another strategy I use during the summer is to fish the beach during stormy weather. One of my oldest mentors, Matt Squillante, gave me a lot of useful advice, but one of the most important things he taught me was to fish all northeast storms. Boy, was he right. During the summer, we occasionally get storms that produce winds from the northeast. The wind stirs up the ocean, rejuvenating stripers and sending them on feeding binges. Nighttime and even daytime action can be very good during these blows, but extreme caution must be exercised. If you are afraid to fish the big waves and wild white water generated by powerful summertime low pressure systems, then wait until the storm winds down and fish your spot(s) the night after the first clearing wind blows through. That usually means a clearing northwest or southwest wind. Seas will be calmer and the danger reduced. Stripers usually remain in the area and come looking for disoriented baitfish that have been pushed into east-facing shorelines as a result of the storm. Of the last four 40-pound bass I have landed, three have come right after nor’easters and in coves that face east. Those three came on artificials.

Seek out White Water and Deep Water

During the summer I like to fish after dark, I like to fish around the new moon period, and I like to fish with lures. I would add to that list by indicating that I really like to fish shoreline spots that have some white water. Artificial lures work so much better when the water is white! You’ll have to do your homework if you don’t have the experience of surf fishing many areas. I have been fishing the surf for a while and have a repertoire of surf locations where I like to fish. I know which ones have white water around the rocks or shoreline or at the mouth of an inlet on certain wind conditions. White water and stripers are synonymous. Locate it and there will be stripers in it more often than not.

Another thing you should look for in the summertime surf is deep water close to shore. Summer bass will lie in wait in this deeper water for some baitfish to stray over the edge. A surfcaster who can find these locales will almost always find stripers. This is one reason “wet-suiting” has become popular; it enables summertime surfcasters to get out to the deeper water that may only be a cast and a half from shore but will be crawling with bass. The wading surf fisherman can find these deeper holes too, just a little closer to shore. Heck, one of the best striper fishermen I know wears splash pants and hip boots. He has three 50-pounders and a 60 to his credit.

Knowing where to go surf fishing is another important part of catching summertime bass. It might serve you well to get on a ferry and go to an island. Block Island, Cuttyhunk and Martha’s Vineyard all have large populations of summering striped bass. I have fished those three islands in the summer and have done well using artificials. I know several guys who routinely board a ferry for shore-fishing excursions. Some just go for the night, fishing hard from dusk to dawn and sleeping on the return trip. Believe me, it’s well worth the effort.

Finally, there is really no substitute for time on the water. The more time you spend surf fishing, the more you learn, and the more you learn, the more you will catch. So take what you learned in this story and put it to use this summer. Go to your favorite spots or find some new ones, fish at the appropriate times and in the appropriate conditions, use the aforementioned artificials as well as some of your favorites, and you will no doubt fake out some summertime stripers.