Anybody can have the gear but that doesn't mean they know what they're doing.

I hate to admit the truth, but the number of nights you spend is the key once you learn the game. There is definitely no shortage of 30 plus fish at all. Even enough 40's if you catch things right. I probably caught more jumbo fish in the 1990-2000 era than I will the rest of my life combined.That's 40 more years if I live long enough(75) and stay interested.Why? Time, time, time, or lack of it.

So enlighten us .what have u learned from this thread.What tweakings will u make to land the better fish.

There one of those fancy sayings I can remember excatly.
10 percent of the fisherman catch 90 percent of the fish.
something like that.Sometimes I feel its right.Sometimes I feel like I'm a 11 percenter.

I think there are alot more 30 lbers around right now.5-6 yrs ago I don't think there where as many.A good season would be 1 or 2 -30's.Still today I would consider 5 or more 30's as a very good surf yr.There are guys who do that easily.Why they are on the pulse of things.They live near big fish productive waters an fish proven techniques.I live in NJ my windows for a good fish are small with the spring run being the best.Fall is much harder to score a big bass.If I lived further north an could fish all summer in a t shirt an thro eels into 25 ft water from the surf.Thats what I would be doin.No question.I would expect 10-30's from that.
Time on the water is the Key.U don't have to be a 30 yr pro.
put in a good few yrs harcore keep a log pay attention to whats going on it's common sense.Really.I tell ya what the learning curve is alot sharper now.I wish the internet was around when I started.

Krispy...do you fall into the 95%? Or the 5% of those who know what they are doing? What are your average over 30 pound catches per season? Just a curious question....maybe I missed that part somewhere. I for one seem to get close but never over that threshold.....but as I have said I am happy to just catch though bigger fish are always on the mind.:drool:

goosefish taught me the coolest trick a few years ago and i have been good for about 2 fish over 30 lbs a season.. many many many fish in the mid to high 20's but not lots of 30's... will i share that trick??

no way :tooth:

#1 reason is time on the water. more time gives you a greater chance to catch. #2 location, location, location. Some produce lots of small fish others produce cows consistently in comparison to others. The best spots are the ones kept closest to the vest. #3 Live bait It will always outproduce artificials. Dont care who says differently. #4 The night is where it is at. A LOT of people dont like to be out at night or are not willing to be hurting the next day. #5 having CONFIDENCE in your abilities. Success breeds SUCCESS!!

Boat fishing is a totally different animal than shore.Spot,tides and technique are paramount to success when boat fishing.All of my boat fishing is done in the daytime and the captain knows how and where to fish.We catch many cows in the middle of the day.

I dunno :huh: I was hoping you guys could tell me what Im missing :pop:
Most likely, I will focus in on 4-5 spots and narrow down what Im using
I did a lot of running around the last 2 years learning places and stuff. Im lucky in that I have been taught so much by the crew I fish with and a few guys who have shared info w/ me

Time.....can't catch if your not fishing......don't check the internet for fishing reports...dont go out and buy every new hot lure that people are getting all giddy over that year...and be confident in what you are doing......I only say this because....that was me for the last 2 years...I would read about how great some guys are doing here or there and say..." that's where I need to fish, and that's the lure I need to use"...then when I get there...I say....." now what do I do?"

There is nothing wrong with trying new things......just be ready to work at it....and get out there and FISH!!

I bet i know what it is.:D

Doesn't matter u don't need no tricks.Ur problem is time.A few nights a week from 8-11 is kinda like fishing tourtue to me.Some nights I'm just warming up at 11.
I know havin a little one is cooll an u wouldn't give it up for anything.But just imagine u where the NIB.
Or better yet before u know it the little man will be right by ur side.
probably outfishin ya also.Then maybe momma will let ya's stay out late.Heck she'll probably encourage it.:D

you know mw all to well T.. its tough having a bed time. :(

we shall not speak of the trick :hihi:

I have to say that having someone teach you what to do and, tides, wind, and different spots and how to fish them shortens your learning curve, when you start on your own and have to lear everything from scratch it takes years longer and although a big fish will come just by chance it will happen. fish the same five spots keep a log and keep track of everything.
I am going to be stalking Nebe this year

U may watch him like a peepin tom
but u will never go where i have with him...

:eek: :eek:

I think there are 2 parts to the questions. I think more people do catch 30's now, due to advanced technology like braid. fish before that, were broken off. However, I think those ar ethe guys that get 1 every couple of years or that will be their largest ever.

I think in the most important thing you need to do in order to catch fish over 30, you need to fish alot of hours in the middle of th night where you can't rely on seeing stucture, current etc, but you learn to feel it. And in those hours, understand spots pretty intimately to understand the patterns in how the fish relate to that spot. As with anything, the guys with the most hours spent fishing, usually have the most large fish. This is a pretty generic answer, but i think it holds true. There will always be things like NJ's june bunker fishing where you can pencil popper 30's with little knowledge, but those aren't always the guys that can get a 30 in th middle of the summer or when fishing is slow in the fall when no one else can get fish. And sometimes, its just luck.

I also think there are alot of fish caught, that nobody ever hears about.

NIB; that is a scary, scary thought... Brokeback NJ anyone...???

Some people have 'it' some don't

My father and I go bassin, the scales might tip towards me a bit just based on number of trips/year right now... but we go blackfishing and I usually get smoked like I'm tunafishin in a trout stream...

WoW Charlie U got jokes.:D
Face It Deep Inside
U wanna be like THE NIB
:hihi:

I use my real name to Make My Point Clear.
Tony G Don't play that game.:poke:
Tog can be Mutha's.
Sometimes ur the hero sometimes ur the goat.
IMO a way more difficult gamefish to catch than Bass.

Havnt been around much lately but have a couple thoughts about this. To get 30# and 40# fish you have to play the game probability.

-Putting in the time is important, but it has to be in the right place as well. Finding the right water will increase your odds as well as what you use for lures/bait.
-Yes, people do catch big fish on plugs, but big fish will come much more frequent on bait.
-Large bass spend 99% of their time on the bottom- forget about dannys, bombers and surface lures.
-Theres always someone to argue, "in the past we caught large fish on a particular lure" This is true but I guarantee that the guy who is not posting on this board that fished back in the day caught 100 times the amount of big fish on eels or other bait. Eels ruled back then from the surf, same as they do now.
-Forget teasers- yea I know, guys do catch large on them, but your probability is pretty low. If a 60 pounder is eating sea robins and flounder, why would it chase after a 2" piece of bucktail?
-Large fish do come in close to shore in numbers, but the probability is very low... if they come in large numbers we all would be catching them all the time.
-Most fisherman exagerate them amount of large fish they catch.
-Most fisherman exagerate the number of true trophy fish that break them off.
-There are very small windows of oppurtunity, but numbers of large fish move through during these windows. When you find a window at any time of the season its better to fish that window for as long as its open rather than fish every weekend no matter what the conditions are.
-The best fisherman hunt alone. Another good fisherman fishing near you can cut down your odds.
-Try to limit yourself to to amount of water you cover in a year, and think logically about.
-Trophy hunting is a misearble experience as far as catching goes because 99% of the time you're not going to catch a 40#er. Most go many, many years before they get a 40. The smart ones/sharpies learn how to make this happen more frequent.
-Once you have things working toward your advantage, there is no reason to change. There are many ways to get the job done, whether its with a lamiglass, allstar, vanstall or mitchell 300. Pluses and minuses to each.

Yeah, I've had a few beers so you're going to get an even longer then normal post tonight...

Last year was one of my best seasons in the surf, and it was probably no coincidence that it occured in a year I moved closer to the water. I used to have to drive 45 minutes to get to good striper water. I moved both to get closer to work and have a shorter commute and of course, to fish.

I have fished Newport for a while now and have found more then a few spots that have a fairly brief window of productivity. Being nearby allows me to fish that productive hour or two and then go to bed or shift to another spot as it approaches its window of productivity.

I think efficiency is very important on the water. Fishing non-stop or just simply all the time is pointless if you're not fishing when the fish are there. Sounds obvious but I think we are all guilty of it too often. I also think we spread ourselves too thin and maybe we should work harder at mastering fewer places rather then just learning a little bit about a lot of places so that we can learn those producitvity windows. I spent a lot of time in the past covering the RI coast trying new spots hoping to intercept some good action. I never really learned anything important other then how to get to all the spots until I slowed down and fished fewer spots more often.

Stats which were revealing for me this past year for 30#+ fish I caught from shore:

*3 out of 5 30#+ fish were on surface swimmers. Dannys and AJ's. Good sized plugs. The 2 others were on needles. I'm sure this is mostly because those are the plug I like to fish. I didn't fish eels much last year, not sure why though.

*3 out of 5 came from the same place, same tide, and they were probably sitting on the same rock, in different months. This might be the most important stat, I'm not sure. Same 20x20 area, 3 fish over 30, different months. We'll see if there's a repeat this year.

*3 of the fish came on nights I only fished for about 2 hours and then went to bed.


Eben mentioned Goosefish. Goosefish is one of my favorite people to talk about stripers with because when you hear him talk about fishing and spots you can tell he's a real student of striper fishing. He knows the cuts, depths, and rocks intimately at his spots. I've never asked, but I bet he knows particular rocks that he catches quality bass off of.

Going further back as a kid I was a freshwater bass fisherman since I grew up on a bass pond and I fished almost ebvery day there wasn't ice on the pond. Largemouth are very spot sensitive. 3 of my biggest largemouths all came from the same spot in one pond, at one time of the year. When I fished that pond I ALWAYS watched the depthfinder as I drove around in a small boat. It's been almost 15 years since I fished that pond but I can still picture EVERY square foot of the bottom of that pond in my mind and recall where and when for all my big fish.

There is much more to spots then just the spot. Time, and much more importantly efficient time, on the water is all important. The gear you use and lures you throw take a back seat to knowing where the fish are and when. Sometimes specifically where the fish are.

Good points Rizzo and Pete. Two things that stand out are fishing the spots you know well, and stay near the bottom/strike zone as long as possible. A cape legend once told me "fish the f!#!$%!@N bottom for large." This doesn't mean drowning bait, it simply means fish near the bottom regardless of what you are throwing whether it be plugs or bait. Some large will come on top, but I'll take my chances near the bottom,bottom, bottom 99 out of 100 times.

Pete, Goosefish is more of a student of angling as opposed to striper fishing- right now he is focosing in on smallmouth- he just took a 4.5 sight fishing......
He only fishes 4 or 5 spots tops and knows the structure like the back of his hand. I have taken him to a few of my spots and i can always sense his aprehention if he doesnt know how deep the water is, or where the dropoffs or boulders are.. infact, last season i found myself pointing out places i wanted to take him into in advance so he could go over his charts ahead of time. Hes a damn good teacher though... he has taught me lots and lots of things i never would have dreamed of alone.

I figured I'd bump this up for fall, it is worth reviewing.

I already met my goals for the season, and much of what members posted on this thread was the reason.

Thanks Krisp, this is a very good thread. I bumped it up a notch this year with little to show for it. Much of the challenges noted above are the same for me.
I have been fishing salt and fresh since I was a little kid, very comfortable with all the basics. Became a nightime strper fisherman about 6 years ago. My Dad did very well fishing RI surf up until 1994, then moved to Florida. So he was an excellent source of info and guidance. He was the best fisherman I have ever known, multiple 30s, 40s, and 50s. All that said, I have never caught a bass larger than 26 lbs. I fish hard, 99% of the time alone and always at night. I use eels mostly then plugs, jigs and sluggos/surf hogs.
By fishing alone, I hardly learn anything new. I dont know, what I dont know. I have been exploring new areas and sometimes getting into fsih. My biggest drawback is that I only fish 1-2 nights a week. I wish I was learning more when I was out there. I am sure I am repeating my mistakes.

I think the following:

1) Fish in "big fish" spots.

2) Fish "big fish" bait, lures, whatever. You will not get a 30 on a crippled herring. Yeah, I know someone will say that they knew someone who did. By and large, it's not a "big fish" lure. A Habs Needle or a Danny or a live Bunker or a live Eel, well, those are "big fish" baits.

3) Fish "big fish" hours. You will have a better chance getting a big fish at 3 in the morning than 3 in the afternoon.

4) Fish for "big fish". Throw conventional. Figure out where you will land a 30+ before your first cast. Crawl the rocks where no one else does. Doesn't need to be private, just tough to get to.

5) Finally, fish "big fish" moon and tides. Dark side of the moon, certain tides at certain places and certain weather conditions.

There is a spot in RI that a few of us know about that if the following is in place, there will be 30# fish taken.
Dark side of the moon
Overcast
High tide at midnight or so
NE wind at 15 to 20 or more
Throw live eels.
I have caught over 2 dozen 30+ pound fish at this one spot in these conditions. A guy I use to fish with and I had 10 fish over 30 in 1, 3 hour stretch on a night in these conditions. Nasty spot with bubble weed, black rocks, big water and "BIG FISH".

Does this mean you are quitting for the year? I haven't met my Krispy quota yet, so I am going to keep fishing. :musc:

Krispy, what's your breakdown % as far as bait caught versus artificial caught?

Not quittin, just upping the goal. Looking for a 40 before the season ends :D
over 30#s this year 6 on eels, 1 on a Jr Atom (imho the best big fish metal lip swimmer)
Add 2 more unconfirmed over 30's on eels if ya feelin' generous

There are plenty of 30 pound fish out there... bigger ones too. Krispy.. why do you think no one is catching them?? I think it's just seems that way because the only one who still posts pics is #^&#^&#^&#^&#^&#^& :scream: :wave:. We take pics for articles and memories and once in a while for the board..We learned that the HARD way. :)

What has hurt my numbers this year is being out of work and barely finding enough side work to pay my bills. Had and have plenty of time just can't afford the gas and it adds up quick putting in the time and being mobile and putting in the miles. Gotta be responsible and take care of whats important first. Lucky if I get out once a week, got a couple of decent ones this year but nothing like when I was getting out 5-6 nights a week. That's what it takes to have a pulse of what is going on in the surf. Gotta put in your time to know where they are, are they holding there or moving on if so where, know what bait is around and where it is. That and as mentioned where to go based on conditions and environmental factors that make spots productive at certain times.

It's fall, I need to get out and fish. Anyone in the West Warwick area mind hooking up a brother and getting me out to save my sanity.

I said most ;) Just following what I read online by others