Fall Run 2023

I'm hoping to get out this weekend for the first time ever. Planning on fishing from land. Any tips on flies, other than Clousers, and locations along the Jersey shore welcomed here or in a PM.
 
EP Peanut Bunker fly.
 
fly_flinger said:
I'm hoping to get out this weekend for the first time ever. Planning on fishing from land. Any tips on flies, other than Clousers, and locations along the Jersey shore welcomed here or in a PM.
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Wait a week or two until some of the smaller fish show up. Those big fish dont eat the peanuts
 
teedee said:
?? I don’t understand your reasoning. I’ve caught many big stripers on peanut bunker.
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Talking to the captain and mate on the trip they said the stripes dont begin to eat the peanuts until a little bit later in the run. Friday we were pulling up on bunker schools and snagging a couple to see if they were adults or peanuts. If they were peanuts the captain would just keep moving.
 
Striperbobby said:
Don’t know which bays you are fishing but if you know where the fish are you can catch 25 to 75 stripers in the 20 to 28 inch size class every trip! Been doing it for decades! Lots of fun from late September until mid March. Lots of fun on a six weight!
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teedee said:
I’m with you, been doing it for over 20 years.
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Exactly the point I was making. 20 to 28” fish are babies and I suspect most are closer to the 20” mark, and to Mikes point, are nothing more the resident hang arounds that can be caught all year long. 20 years ago I was catching little guys for over 20 years. To Fred’s point, there’s nothing wrong with catching small stripers and I spend a lot of time doing just that but during the fall run when monsters can be caught, I’m not spending a minute of my time in a back bay catching little ones on a 6 weight. I’ve caught my share of little ones so I’ll take a couple 40” plus over any number of small fish even if it means taking a skunk. again, nothing wrong with catching that many little guys and I do manage to catch a lot of them in the spring and summer but that’s not fishing the fall run to me. That’s just fishing in the fall.
 
I'd love to go catch a pile of 20-25" fish on my 6 weight, what do i need to do that?
 
bringthepain said:
I'd love to go catch a pile of 20-25" fish on my 6 weight, what do i need to do that?
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A pedal kayak, int. or sinking line and some size 4 to 2/o clousers to match the bait. Then find a bridge with good lights and fish at night. They are there in the day but stack up at night with the bait! At least that’s how I do it.
 
poopdeck said:
Exactly the point I was making. 20 to 28” fish are babies and I suspect most are closer to the 20” mark, and to Mikes point, are nothing more the resident hang arounds that can be caught all year long. 20 years ago I was catching little guys for over 20 years. To Fred’s point, there’s nothing wrong with catching small stripers and I spend a lot of time doing just that but during the fall run when monsters can be caught, I’m not spending a minute of my time in a back bay catching little ones on a 6 weight. I’ve caught my share of little ones so I’ll take a couple 40” plus over any number of small fish even if it means taking a skunk. again, nothing wrong with catching that many little guys and I do manage to catch a lot of them in the spring and summer but that’s not fishing the fall run to me. That’s just fishing in the fall.
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If you look at the original post it’s about catching fish in the bay in the 20 to 28 inch range. Yes they are residents but they don’t school up like this until fall and again in spring when the cows are migrating along the coast. I like catching the big ones also and have great spots for them in spring when they move up rivers but it’s not every cast and sight casting like it is for the schoolies which are far from babies. I just like catching more than fishing so I wanted to back up the original post by confirming similar results. Maybe it would be less confusing if instead of saying fall run the post was called the fall bite.
 
Taking a few days off mid-week next week to fish LBI around the Barnegat Lighthouse area. Mostly plugging but will bring the flyrod.
 
Striperbobby said:
A pedal kayak, int. or sinking line and some size 4 to 2/o clousers to match the bait. Then find a bridge with good lights and fish at night. They are there in the day but stack up at night with the bait! At least that’s how I do it.
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What type of pedal kayak would you recommend, what size, etc. Thank you!!
 
bringthepain said:
What type of pedal kayak would you recommend, what size, etc. Thank you!!
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I have a hobie compass, it’s 12 feet long and 34 inches wide. I’m 6’0 tall and weigh 200 pounds. It’s easy to load and unload by myself. I have the 180 drive so I have reverse if needed but it’s not a must have. It handles chop well and is very stable. There are cheaper pedal kayaks out there but hobies are worth every penny and allow you to fish the whole time you are on the water and never have to pick up a paddle. I would recommend hitting a kayak shop and renting one before you buy it. Don’t know where you fish but Delaware paddle sports will rent you one and show you the difference between brands and prop vs fin propulsion. 95% of all kayaks in kayak tournaments are hobies and there is a reason for that! Unless you are fishing ponds I would not go under 12 feet long and 33”wide. I also have a scanoe and a jon boat and use the kayak 99% of the time!
 
Wow, that is a pricey kayak! I'll have to keep my eye out for a used model
 
bringthepain said:
Wow, that is a pricey kayak! I'll have to keep my eye out for a used model
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Yes, but like I said it’s worth every penny and is a one time investment as kayaks are indestructible if you take care of them. That’s why I suggested renting one to see if it is your thing or not. Mine cost more than my jon boat, motor and trailer combined but I get on so many more fish because it is so easy to find fish and stay on them compared to being in a boat or paddle kayak. You will be lucky to find a used hobie for under $ 1,800. And you won’t have a warranty as a second hand owner. I still have my 2004 hobie outback that works just fine but I had to upgrade to a newer model for the improved seat they started using after 2015 due to low back issues.
 
Some nice fish Showing up at the beach. Nice report, I wish I had more time off. Decent sea bass thrown in there as well.
 
Fished the back bay last night and the entire bay was a sheet of glass and crystal clear. A friend and I waded our favorite flat and sight casted to cruising stripers in the 22 to 26 inch range, healthy and fat. We hooked up on every cast for over an hour! Epic time and so much fun on my fiberglass 6wt! All fish were caught on chartreuse over white clousers size 4 and 2. The 4 produced a little better but we both caught a lot of fish. We fished slack low until slack high. Also we were using fast sinking line and stripping across the bottom. There was no signs of bait and they weren’t “popping”at all. The water felt like it was around 60 degrees and they are really starting to stack up. If any of you guys have never fly fished for stripers before I would say it is highly addictive! Haha!
 
poopdeck said:
Some nice fish Showing up at the beach. Nice report, I wish I had more time off. Decent sea bass thrown in there as well.
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Same, the reports from the boat we went out with have been just insane since. 80-100 big quality fish in one trip. That is just nuts, you should see the screen shots of the marks the captain has been sending my buddy. You would think they were photoshopped. The bait is just stacked up so thick and the fish are going NUTS
 
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