How often are you skunked?

[Dinsdale]

I know it's called fishing, not catching, and I love just spending time on the water. I've been tooling around Narragansett Bay for 2 seasons now, and the ratio of hours spent to number of fish caught is beginning to be discouraging. I realize that going after stripers may be an insurmountable challenge for me because without live/fresh bait and a willingness to be on the water alone at 3AM or rock hopping in a wetsuit in the surf in the wee hours, I'm pretty much out of luck. But what about the other fish? I study the "hot spot" charts, read about 5 regional fishing forums, and check the local reports. I have the tackle, I have the bait, I watch for bird or boat action. So far this year, I've caught 2 slightly undersize black bass. Last year (with a late start), I managed 2 short fluke. Both the fluke and bass were caught around Newport. I've had no "luck" anywhere else. Usually, I have multiple lines in the water, a fluke rig with squid, some clams off the bottom, and some thawed chunks drifting around. Where are the bluefish? I keep reading that a ton of fluke are being caught, but most are shorts. I'd even be happy with scup. Where are all the fish in the Bay?

[MrHunters]

oofa that is a post of desperation if I've ever seen one.
What are you targeting? Everything or one thing? That would change where I fish.

The great thing about fishing is there are an unlimited amount of ways to accomplish the same task.

I'm not good at finding big fish but I can say that with 1 or 2 trips every weekend since may 15th I've not been skunked. I have been always a fan of quantity over quality because at least that way you are active. (i do miss the feeling of some good head shakes though)

Give tube and worm a try. Slow and Low with the biggest sea worms you can get (even if you have to bribe) You may not get your trophy but you'll get fish if they are around.

Are you marking anything on your Fishfinder?

[JohnnyD]

Sounds like you need to do the exact opposite of what you've been doing. I've had nights where my fishing trip was just like the episode of Seinfeld where George does the exact opposite of what he's always done with women - intuition says black needle with no moon, I fished yellow; good spot to throw plugs, I threw jigs. Many times it has paid off, others I wondered what the heck I was doing.

I'm still in my infancy when compared to the amount of knowledge that many on these forums have, so when things slow down I'm still trying anything and everything.

[RIJIMMY]

"I realize that going after stripers may be an insurmountable challenge for me because without live/fresh bait and a willingness to be on the water alone at 3AM or rock hopping in a wetsuit in the surf in the wee hours, I'm pretty much out of luck."

that about sums it up for stripers. As far as skunkings, I get skunked 1 in 6 trips.

[MakoMike]

If you want to catch scup or sea bass just find a pile of rocks. Beavertail might be a good place to start.

[Fly Rod]

Shore fishermen seem to have a harder time catching then those from a boat, they have less places to fish. My friend that fishes from shore says it has been a little harder this year then last but, he has lost a couple of good spots to fish. I may fish 10- 12 spots in a four hour period.

[fishbones]

Don't be so negative. Get a good chart of the Bay and head to rocky areas like MakoMike said. Also, look for humps and drop offs and drift for fluke when the tide is moving. Even though the water in the water gets warm this time of year, you can find deeper water and find the fish. You don't need to be out at 3am, but it helps. And don't rely on following other boats to look for fish. They're probably doing the same thing as you.

[Dinsdale]

Originally Posted by MrHunters

oofa that is a post of desperation if I've ever seen one.
What are you targeting? Everything or one thing? That would change where I fish.

The great thing about fishing is there are an unlimited amount of ways to accomplish the same task.

I'm not good at finding big fish but I can say that with 1 or 2 trips every weekend since may 15th I've not been skunked. I have been always a fan of quantity over quality because at least that way you are active. (i do miss the feeling of some good head shakes though)

Give tube and worm a try. Slow and Low with the biggest sea worms you can get (even if you have to bribe) You may not get your trophy but you'll get fish if they are around.

Are you marking anything on your Fishfinder?

I'm a quantity guy, too, and I can barely get a bite, let alone a fish. I do mark fish here and there, but apparently they're never anything that will take bait (they are bait). When I have caught fish (including cod in Maine), I usually don't mark anything. I have my doubts about my Garmin 180 Chartplotter/fishfinder.

[JohnnyD]

Originally Posted by Dinsdale

I'm a quantity guy, too, and I can barely get a bite, let alone a fish. I do mark fish here and there, but apparently they're never anything that will take bait (they are bait). When I have caught fish (including cod in Maine), I usually don't mark anything. I have my doubts about my Garmin 180 Chartplotter/fishfinder.

This may be a crazy question, but are you using fresh bait?

Maybe bring a few eels with you for the times when you're marking fish but they have lockjaw. If anything will get them biting, the eels should.

[MrHunters]

i'd also say keep it simple... once you find something that works stick with it till you know every strategy worth it weight. For me, it's t&w, this year I've challenged myself to go to new methods because for the past 5 years the majority has been that method. That's why I say give it a shot. Small fish mostly but lots of em.

I'm not a good fisherman but I know that works. Also don't treat the skunk days (even if its all days) as a day lost. Try to learn something new while your on the water. Be it some structure you think might produce at another point in the tide or something related to boating that you kind of "figure out" during the trip. For example,
last weekend we were out in Gloucester harbor and my tube caught a buoy, near a million dollar sailboat, If that wasn't bad enough, it was blowing a consistent 25kts gusting 35 at least. Took all the focus I had to keep the boat in one spot while my buddy pulled the buoy to unhooked the tube. Probably the haryiest spot I've been in and that day, only 3 fish, but I feel I know my boat better, can handle her better, and all around a bit more confidant in what I can do because of that situation. AND i would call that day a BUST in the fishing category.

sorry, kind of rambling. been a long day.

[MrHunters]

ps - i often don't mark fish when the lines go off. but it's something to look at while you wait

[Dinsdale]

Originally Posted by JohnnyD

This may be a crazy question, but are you using fresh bait?

Maybe bring a few eels with you for the times when you're marking fish but they have lockjaw. If anything will get them biting, the eels should.

I've been using frozen bait, but yeah, I recently found out about a place in Newport with fresh pogies and live eels. I went out on a charter in late May in the Upper Bay and learned about live lining. Good bet if you have the means to get live bait (we paid the pogie hauler 10 bucks). I figure frozen squid/clams are decent enough for bottom fish.

[RIROCKHOUND]

Look on a chart.
Find an area labeled rk or rky, preferably near a rocky shoreline in the lower bay in 25-50ft of water. Find the rocky bottom on your fish finder, anchor over it.

Bait two scup rigs with frozen, boxed, stop and shop squid (cut into strips). Put a 1-2oz bank sinker on the bottom. if you are not getting bites in 15min, move. The scup and small sea bass whould be all over the place.

On sandy, deeper areas, maybe near the Bridge and a half in the lower west passage, bait a fluke rig (store bought is fine) with a whole stop and shop squid. weight it with 3-4 oz (or more if needed). Drift along.

KIS method.
Keep it Simple, you'll get dinner.

[thefishingfreak]

You could use the best bait in the world in the wrong place and get skunked day after day. while just 50 feet away sit a school of big bass every single tide for hours on end.
Find someone familiar and invite them out with you.

[Raider Ronnie]

Originally Posted by thefishingfreak

You could use the best bait in the world in the wrong place and get skunked day after day. while just 50 feet away sit a school of big bass every single tide for hours on end.
Find someone familiar and invite them out with you.

Working on hoeing another ride I see !!!

[thefishingfreak]

Originally Posted by Raider Ronnie

Working on hoeing another ride I see !!!

Nahh,, he's a little too far away..

[RIROCKHOUND]

Originally Posted by Dinsdale

Good bet if you have the means to get live bait (we paid the pogie hauler 10 bucks).

As an aside, I wonder if that captain signed the anti-pogie fishing ban..

HiJack over.

good luck, and keep at it! you'll get some!

[Dinsdale]

Originally Posted by RIROCKHOUND

As an aside, I wonder if that captain signed the anti-pogie fishing ban..

HiJack over.

good luck, and keep at it! you'll get some!

Well, he seemed to be annoyed that they were out there, but seeing that they were there anyway, saw them as a resource for his business. Tough call, I guess. Like hogs at the trough, there were about 15 boats lined up to get bait.

[RIROCKHOUND]

No worries.
Just curious

good luck!

[Roger]

Originally Posted by Dinsdale

I realize that going after stripers may be an insurmountable challenge for me because without live/fresh bait and a willingness to be on the water alone at 3AM or rock hopping in a wetsuit in the surf in the wee hours, I'm pretty much out of luck.

Out of luck because you can't find fresh bait? Nothing could be further from the truth. OTOH, 2 years of tooling around the bay mid morning through mid afternoon won't do much for gaining experience. Neither will chasing fishing reports. You need to learn to fish.

I don't write this to put you down, I write this to give you hope. A few years ago, while being pretty successful fishing lots of areas from Westerly to Cape Cod, I decided I needed to re-learn Narragansett Bay. I passed up "sure thing" opportunities to focus on the bay. I did relatively poorly for the first couple seasons, but now can usually find some decent bass during daylight using artificials- fly and lures.

There are some good books that discuss fishing tackle and techniques for catching fish in the bay. Jim White's book - Monster Shallow Water Stripers is pretty good. To save gas and really kickstart your learning, I'd hire a light tackle guide to fish the bay. You'll learn where fish hold under certain conditions and methods to get them on your hook without using bait. (not that there's anything wrong with that).

Good luck and don't get discouraged.

[Dinsdale]

Thanks for the input and tips. Went out today and caught 2 nice keeper fluke, and only 1 short.

I've thought about hiring a guide to teach me the ropes. Anyway, all I needed was a little success on my own to get me into it again.

[RIROCKHOUND]

Originally Posted by Dinsdale

Thanks for the input and tips. Went out today and caught 2 nice keeper fluke, and only 1 short.

I've thought about hiring a guide to teach me the ropes. Anyway, all I needed was a little success on my own to get me into it again.

GREAT JOB!!!