Weld's Largemouth Posted June 7, 2015 Posted June 7, 2015 Fished from the kayak today in the harbor, caught 4 stripers and 2 bluefish. First saltwater catches of the season. All were caught on a 6.5" pencil popper. Stripers on topwater is exhilarating Post your reports below!! 6 Quote
Super User the reel ess Posted June 7, 2015 Super User Posted June 7, 2015 That's awesome! I want to catch some stripers from the yak someday. I'm landlocked, butwe have them in a nearby river. I've caught one dink (on a Rebel craw crankbait, no less). 1 Quote
Mike2841 Posted June 7, 2015 Posted June 7, 2015 Awesome fish, got my first of the year from the beach yesterday. 3 Quote
Weld's Largemouth Posted June 7, 2015 Author Posted June 7, 2015 Awesome fish, got my first of the year from the beach yesterday. Nice fish! Quote
Super User the reel ess Posted June 7, 2015 Super User Posted June 7, 2015 I don't believe our stripers in SC actually go from freshwater to salt like they do in the northeast. I think they basically stay in freshwater and make the run from brackish to a tailrace (Wateree R being one) to spawn. I don't see any reports of them being caught offshore. This is one of the very few places with enough flow for successful spawning. In recent years, a strict seasonal size and number limit has been imposed due to low catch rates in the Santee-Cooper lakes.Basically, the season when you can catch them, you can't keep them. But even if you catch one during the keeping season the size limit is restrictive. Still, they're a ton of fun to catch when they're present in good numbers. 1 Quote
Weld's Largemouth Posted June 7, 2015 Author Posted June 7, 2015 I don't believe our stripers in SC actually go from freshwater to salt like they do in the northeast. I think they basically stay in freshwater and make the run from brackish to a tailrace (Wateree R being one) to spawn. I don't see any reports of them being caught offshore. This is one of the very few places with enough flow for successful spawning. In recent years, a strict seasonal size and number limit has been imposed due to low catch rates in the Santee-Cooper lakes.Basically, the season when you can catch them, you can't keep them. But even if you catch one during the keeping season the size limit is restrictive. Still, they're a ton of fun to catch when they're present in good numbers. True. The stripers come here first from the Hudson River and the filter out all around Long Island, then the Blues come down from Nova Scotia a little bit after the stripers do. No stripers are present (not many at least) in the lakes and ponds here but they are in the upper slightly brackish regions of rivers and of course the freshwater regions of the Hudson River and other inland rivers. The distance these fish travel amazes me. Its probably why they are so strong and great fighters... especially the bluefish. Feel free to report back to this thread with your reports. Hopefully this thread will turn into a saltwater pictures/reports thread. I will continue to post here. I'll be heading out on the yak again this evening and I will report back afterwards Tight lines! 1 Quote
Catch 22 Posted June 7, 2015 Posted June 7, 2015 Great report with some really clean looking stripers. Thanks. I wish I had a report for ya but the stripers have not made a normal showing here just yet and it is getting late. Mothers Day usually sees the best spring fishing around here but the slammer blues stayed so long ,that many believe they discouraged the stripers form coming in. 1 Quote
Weld's Largemouth Posted June 8, 2015 Author Posted June 8, 2015 Great report with some really clean looking stripers. Thanks. I wish I had a report for ya but the stripers have not made a normal showing here just yet and it is getting late. Mothers Day usually sees the best spring fishing around here but the slammer blues stayed so long ,that many believe they discouraged the stripers form coming in. Hopefully they come in soon. Got two stripers today, each around 20". Slower than yesterday, and much more wind, which served to be a difficult task fishing from a yak. Quote
MassBass Posted June 8, 2015 Posted June 8, 2015 I have not caught a striper from the bank yet. Im burning myself out going down there and getting skunked. But when I went out in my friend's boat I caught a 28" and a 33". 1 Quote
Weld's Largemouth Posted June 9, 2015 Author Posted June 9, 2015 I have not caught a striper from the bank yet. Im burning myself out going down there and getting skunked. But when I went out in my friend's boat I caught a 28" and a 33". Surfcasting/shore fishing can be very difficult sometimes. I have the same issue, I rarely catch from shore. The fish are usually just out of reach of my farthest cast, and if the fish are up shallow, its high tide and I cant get near them in my waders because its just not shallow enough to stand in. But the yak makes everything better for me Went out again today, the wind was blowing like insane so I had to anchor down. Found a bunch of seagulls hovering around a school and I picked off around 9 bluefish ranging from 16"-20", all on a pencil popper. Very fun. The wind was insane; I could barely work my pencil popper and paddling back to shore across the harbor took forever and was quite the workout. Tons of fun. But I think I will stick to early mornings/late evenings and days where there is no wind. Wind and kayaks dont go well, especially when you are trying to fish Quote
MassBass Posted June 9, 2015 Posted June 9, 2015 How do you fish your pencil popper? walk it fast? I found a mint condition pencil popper floating in the river looks like it was custom painted. Quote
Weld's Largemouth Posted June 9, 2015 Author Posted June 9, 2015 How do you fish your pencil popper? walk it fast? I found a mint condition pencil popper floating in the river looks like it was custom painted. Here is a great video on fishing pencil poppers Quote
Shanes7614 Posted June 12, 2015 Posted June 12, 2015 If any of you guys are surf casting and close to Allenhurst. Try fishing the L jetty when high tide is anywhere in the last 3 hours of light. Stripers show up there on almost a nightly basis and easily caught from the jetty with pencil poppers. Quote
Super User DogBone_384 Posted June 15, 2015 Super User Posted June 15, 2015 Great to hear stripers are here.... a coworker's friend caught a 50+" monster yesterday. On a 27' boat, not a kayak. Since I live 300 yards from the bay, I just asked myself why I'm not out there trying my hand at stripers... though working two jobs has nothing to do with it.... 1 Quote
Weld's Largemouth Posted July 4, 2015 Author Posted July 4, 2015 Did some surfcasting today and managed to get this 20" striper on a pencil popper that was way too big for his mouth Quote
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