On board today, I had repeat client, Brian Ware, for fly fishing striped bass. Brian is a regular and has been fishing with me for many years. Today, he crushed it on the fly!

At first light, almost no wind but a light NNW. NOAA said it would turn ENE and it eventually did and it made for a very choppy ride home at the end of the trip. But before it blew up – fishing was just great great.

I had fly and light tackle gear on board, but Brian picked up the TFO BVK 8WT loaded with a Baymen Universal and never looked back. He is a top fly rodder and has a powerful, yet very smooth cast that is a joy to watch. Our first stop was a little rip line that gave up a fish yesterday, but today it was void of bait and bass. Next stop – Bingo! We found topwater fish in VERY skinny water, 12″-16″ inches(!) up on the flats and they never stopped busting all morning!

We did have to figure things out, though. First up, the fish ignored the fly. Not even a bump. Fish breaking all around and nothing. So, I reluctantly changed out my Baymen Universal fly to a Chartreuse/White fly. After a lot of coaxing we got one fish to hit it. That fish, however held the secret to the entire morning: Before we released it, the striper spit up two small peanut bunker. I laid the baitfish on my cooler, placed a Baymen Universal beside them, and started trimming my fly to match the size of the bait. Home run! That’s all it took, and the rest of the morning was non-stop hook-ups!

Total catch and release today was 47 fish, including a rare GRAND SLAM: Bluefish, Striped Bass, and Hickory Shad all on the fly, all on the TFO BVK 8WT, all on my Baymen Universal fly pattern. Yesterday was Brian’s birthday, and today was his last day of the season on the water. He is finishing up his final year of law school and is closing on a new home. Great way to end the season, Brian! Congrats – and Happy Birthday!

Capt. David Bitters, F/V BAYMEN, www.baymenlife.com Follow Me On Twitter @baymencharters

*NOW BOOKING 2020 & 2021. Fly & Light Tackle Striped Bass on the Massachusetts Coast* E-mail me: baymencharters@gmail.com and let’s go get the fish!