Back at it today with good friend and client from NYC, Richard Comstock, for fly rod stripers.

At first light, we found a tiny pod of small schoolies right outside the harbor. We got a couple of decent drifts over the oyster grants and hooked up and landed three fish. The morning was looking good with the winds turned NW – no east winds!!! We ran the bay from spot to spot for the next four hours without a bump… The bay looked dead and void of bait and bass. Also, the eel grass beds are not growing yet, and weed beds were non-existent. Much mumbling from the Captain about fish stocks continuing to slide down hill, etc. etc. Plenty of fish south of us in Buzzards bay, etc. etc. Fish in Boston but not here… many theories discussed.

Around 11:30am, on the incoming tide, we found a pod of about fifty fish working bait on top-water, with birds working overheard. The North winds kicked up making fly line management difficult, not to mention trying to set perfect drifts over the fish. Richard, however, is a fly fishing machine. He and I have seen it all and fished it all on our bay over the years. Today was no different. He continued to cast in gusty north winds, chop, and bad drifts. And he boated another nine fish, bringing the morning’s total catch and release to 13 stipers – the first fish of the season for Baymen.

All fish were landed on intermediate and sinking fly lines and a Baymen Universal fly pattern stripped fast, slow and stopped.

The ice has been broken and a few fish are starting to show in our bay, about a week later than “normal.” Let’s hope it continues and we have the mega spring blitz like we are use to seeing. Are fish stocks in trouble? Stay posted:

Capt. Dave
www.baymenlife.com