Some stripers are still spawning in Chesapeake Bay tributaries, but many post-spawn fish are exiting the bay. Big bass are moving up the Hudson River, while plenty more continue to feast in the Raritan Bay. Migratory schoolies have been reported as far north as Boston, and fishermen in Narragansett and Buzzards bays encountered schools of migratory stripers to 36 inches eating herring.
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Maryland/Chesapeake Bay Striper Fishing Report
Maryland’s trophy striper season opens on May with a 35-inch minimum and a limit of one fish per person per day. The Susquehanna Flats areas will not open to striped bass fishing until May 16, with a slot size of 19 inches to 26 inches, and a one fish per person per day limit. Check the Department of Natural Resources website for a map to locate areas open or closed to striped bass fishing. Post-spawn striped bass should be moving south along channel edges as they make their way out of the Bay over the next couple weeks.
New Jersey Striper Fishing Report
More slot-size stripers are moving into Southern New Jersey’s inlets and backwaters, and beachfront fishing is improving as well, with fish in the 30-inch range and good numbers of 40-inch-plus stripers taking clams, worms, and soft plastics from Cape May to LBI.
Some stripers are dropping out of the Delaware River and Bay, rounding Cape May and feeding along the beaches and inlets.
Good surfside action for stripers can be found from Island Beach on up to Sandy Hook as well, with bait being best. Mainly clams, but some fish are being caught on artificials as well.
The Raritan run remains outstanding, and more fish are showing up on the ocean side as well. Some larger fish are swimming up the Hudson to spawn, but there are plenty of bass staging and feeding on menhaden throughout the bay.
New York Striper Fishing Report
Long Island surf fishing broke wide open this past week. Stripers to 20 pounds have been reported all the way out to the East End of Long Island. Big bass are moving all the way up the Hudson River on the way to spawn, which typically gets underway by the first week of May.
Connecticut/Rhode Island Striper Report
Herring continue to get holdover stripers active in Connecticut’s tidal rivers, with fresh fish arriving daily and mixing in.
Striper fishing in Rhode Island is improving daily, with some fishermen even reporting blitzing fish in the 30-inch class feasting on river herring. There’s been a good batch of schoolies, with many 24-inchers making for fun light-tackle action. Stripers carrying sea lice are being reported off Rhode Island’s beaches, as the presence of migratory stripers has increased dramatically over the past week.
Cape Cod/Massachusetts Striper Report
It’s been an early and impressive arrival of migratory bass in Buzzards Bay. Good numbers of schoolies have arrived and many of the fish are in the 20- to 30-inch size class. Larger bass have been found harassing schools of herring. Stripers have also begun to filter in north of the Cape and will continue to push up toward the North Shore.
New Hampshire/Maine Striper Report
Get ready! Migrating stripers are on the way and should trickle in over the next 7-10 days.
This article was originally published by Onthewater.com. Read the original article here.
