Stripers on the flats

Striper Techniques Part I

By Tom Richardson

Copyright ©1996 Reel-Time

Finding the fish

What kind of boat?

Steve Swain of Centerville, Mass., with a fly-caught striper taken on the Monomoy flats on a Clouser Minnow. Other top flies include crabs, squids, Whistlers and and sand eel patterns.

Steve Swain holds Stev Moore’s schoolie striper taken off Monomoy in mid June. Mid June is prime time for the Monomoy fishery, while spots North of the Cape pick up in July.

On a bright bluebird day, the flats of New England look just like those found in the Keys or the Bahamas.

When I first heard that striped bass could be caught on the flats of New England, I was skeptical. What was this? Stripers cruising over white-sand bottom in one to three feet of water like so many bonefish? Sight-fishing in New England? Hogwash! But the rumors just kept coming, so a couple of friends and I decided to check it out and see for ourselves. We really didn’t have much of a clue about where to start. We knew the flats off Monomoy Island on Cape Cod were supposed to be productive, but the island’s a pretty big place surrounded by miles of flats. Also, we weren’t sure of the right tides or the kind of flies we should use. Despite these handicaps we trailered my friend’s 17-foot Boston Whaler to Chatham on a crisp sunny day in September to see what we could find.

After poling around fruitlessly without seeing a single fish and almost getting stranded a few times in the labyrinth of channels and bars, we found ourselves on the northeast tip of the island. The tide was falling quickly and much of the flat was quickly becoming exposed. It looked like we had failed in our quest. Suddenly we noticed some surface commotion in a small pocket in the flat near the shore. As we moved closer, we noticed several shadows darting across the sandy bottom. We had found the elusive flats bass!

I was amazed. They really did look and act just like bonefish, and were every bit as spooky, as I discovered when I slapped my Clouser Minnow down on top of a fish on my first cast and it went scooting off in terror. After settling down a bit and getting over our initial excitement, we poled farther onto the flat and saw more and more fish. It was clear they were vacating the flat as the tide fell. Some were traveling in singles or in pairs, while others came at us in schools of ten or more. Finally, I managed to get off a decent cast to a small school of cruising fish. As they neared my fly I began to strip it in. Meanwhile, my friend in the stern was hissing excitedly. "He’s following, he’s following! He’s gonna take it! He ate it!"

I set the hook and the fish raced off across the flat. With no place to go in the shallow water but out, the fish actually got into my backing, something no bass had ever done. It wasn’t a big fish, but on the flats it behaved like an entirely different creature -- it behaved like a bonefish.. After releasing it, we all contemplated what a 30-plus-inch fish could do.

So it was true after all: striped bass could really be taken on clear, white flats in water as shallow as one or two feet. And here it was, right in our own back yard the whole time. Now there was need to travel hundreds of miles in order to experience the thrills and challenges of sight-fishing.

Most of the better known striper flats are located in Massachusetts, mainly around Cape Cod and Nantucket, since these areas feature a lot of shallow sandy bottom. Unfortunately, many of these spots, such as Monomoy, the Joppa Flats in Newburyport, and western Nantucket, are becoming quite crowded with flats fishermen, especially during the summer. The increased fishing pressure can hurt the fishing as the stripers become increasingly used to human presence and see a lot of flies thrown at them. Fortunately, the famous spots aren’t the only game in town. There are lots of "undiscovered" flats around New England that have the potential to hold stripers. It just takes a little exploration and experimentation.

Obviously, the first thing a good striper flat needs to have is an expanse of shallow, sandy bottom. It is important that the bottom consist mostly of light sand so you can see the fish cruising along. The most productive flats will also be in the proximity of a deep channel, which the stripers use as a sanctuary when danger threatens or as a place to hold during low tide. As the tide rises and covers the flats, the stripers emerge from the channel and begin moving across the shallows in search of food. Another feature of some flats are potholes, or deep depressions in the otherwise flat bottom. Stripers will often school up in these deep pockets before venturing out on the flats.

The proximity of cold ocean water is also important. Flats in relatively shallow ponds, coves, or bays may get too warm during the summer to support a large concentration of fish, which will stick to deeper water. These flats may be productive early and late in the season, but can turn off as summer progresses.

Shallow flats (one to five feet at high tide), like the ones at Monomoy, tend to be most productive during the last three hours of the rising tide and the first three hours of the falling, when the water is high enough for them to move around the shallows comfortably. Deeper flats (8-12 feet at high tide), like the Joppa Flats in Newburyport, are better for sight-fishing on the early stages of the rising tide and latter stages of the ebb. Like bonefish, bass may move up onto a flat in one place and vacate it in another, so you may have to move around to find the most productive spot depending on the stage of the tide. Striped bass also tend to swim into the current as they cruise the flat. This is so they can pick up the scent of any prey that is being carried with the current, or ambush any baitfish that’s carrried with the flow. Therefore, it’s important to learn which way the current flows during each tide and to pole or drift in that same direction. This way you’ll improve your chances of intercepting fish.

Another vital ingredient in flats fishing is sunlight. Without bright sunshine, you’re not likely to see the fish until they’re right on top of you, and by that time they’ve usually seen you first. The best days are those with clear skies and a light wind. During the summer, the sun is usally high enough overhead by 8:30 to afford optimum viewing conditions. Given this, the ideal flats fishing day will have the high tide occurring sometime between 11:00 and 3:00, so you can take advantage of the peak hours of sunlight and the best tide stages.

Wind can also be a factor, but mainly as far as casting is concerned. On a typical summer day in New England, the morning will start out calm, then around noon the winds will pick up from the southwest. By 1:00 or 2:00 it may be blowing 20 knots. Given this situation, it’s easy to see why flats on the Bay side of Cape Cod are favored during the afternoon. However, experienced casters can still do well in a stiff wind, since the fish don’t seem to mind. In fact, a little wind is always desirable in flats fishing, since it’s hard to see through the surface glare on a slick calm day. A slight chop that raises little waves provides a kind of window through which to see through the water. Another reason why a slight chop is preferred is because it masks the noise of the fly and fly line landing on the surface, which might otherwise spook the fish on a calm day. The chop may also make it harder for the bass to discern the boat and the angler waving his arm frantically back and forth. On a really calm day when the fish are acting skittish, you may have to use clear fly lines, small flies, and extra-long leaders. Long casts may be required too, because the fish will be able to see you easily from alonger distance. More on this later.

A final consideration in choosing a flat is boat traffic. Areas with lots of boats, wind surfers, or jet skies buzzing around are not going to be productive places to fish, for obvious reasons. Flats that do see alot of recreational activity will fish better during early morning and again at dusk, when there is less disturbance. This is another reason why some flats are more productive during June and again in the fall, since fewer people are on the water at those times.

Jeff Mancini poles Matt Koenig across the Monomoy flats in his tricked out Boston Whaler Montauk 17. Boats equipped with poling platforms afford the angler a better view of the flats and make it easier to spot fish from a distance.

Jeff Mancini with a school striper taken on the Monomoy flats in early September. The fish hit a Clouser Minnow.

Jeff Mancini and Matt Koenig work the Monomoy flats. Note the electric trolling motor, which can be used to move quietly through deeper water.

Finding the Fish

Once you’ve chosen your flat, the next thing you need to do is try and find the fish. There are several ways to do this, starting with trial and error. Simply pick one end of the flat and pole or drift down its length until you run into some fish. Make a note of where you found them and at what stage of the tide. Chances are you’ll find them there again the next time you fish.

When the water is cold early in the season, bass will usually be hugging the bottom where sunlight reflected from the sandy bottom creates warmth. However, as waters warm, they may begin to chase bait near the surface, and may give themselves away through swirls and splashes. Always keep your ears open while fishing the flats. Scattering baitfish or merely the presence of baitfish are indicators that stripers may be in the neighborhood.

When cruising in very shallow water or near the surface, stripers will sometimes form V-wakes. Or they may actually stick their tails above the water as they feed on the bottom for crabs, worms and sand eels. While not a common sight, "tailing" and "waking" stripers are easiest to spot on flat-calm days, and can even be fished on overcast days.

A great way to approach a new flat is to study a detailed chart of the area or observe the flat at low tide. Look for sand bars and channels that weave through the flats. You can bet that stripers will follow these contours like a road, and your job is to do the same. As the tide begins to flood the flats on the early stages of the tide, concentrate on the edges of channels or deep pockets where the fish will first appear. Fish these same areas on the last part of the ebb tide as the fish retreat to deeper water.

Of course, the best way to learn the nuances of flats fishing is to hire a guide. This is especially valuable if you’ve never sight-fished before, and will cut many hours, if not days, off your learning curve. A good guide can teach you the basics of flats fishing, from spotting fish to strip-setting. As long as you ask questions, pay attention, and observe, you'll learn a lot of important tips that will help you when you venture out on your own.

What Kind of Boat?

Nowadays you see a lot of top-of-the-line flats boats in New England, the kind that would be right at home in the Florida Keys or the Bahamas. I'm talking about the ultralight, shallow-draft skiffs tricked out with poling platforms, electric trolling motors, and snag-free casting decks. Granted, these are excellent boats for flats fishing, but you don't need to get too fancy. For instance, a friend of mine has rigged his 16-foot aluminum skiff for the flats. He covered the bow area with marine-grade plywood to create a snag-free casting deck, and did the same in the stern. Another friend added a casting deck and a poling platform to his 17-foot Boston Whaler. It's a bit heavy to pole, but an electric trolling motor pushes it along just fine in two feet of water. As for myself, well let's just say that if you see a guy poling around in a 14-foot aluminum boat with the boom from a Sunfish sailboat, please contain your laughter.

Poling takes some getting used to, but it's definitely the preferred method of locomotion in this fishery. It allows you to get into very shallow water, it's quiet, and it allows you pivot the boat quickly for a cast. Besides, it makes you look pretty professional. In small skifffs under 14 feet, you may find it easier to pole from the bow, especially if you're fishing by yourself.

As mentioned, an electric trolling motor can work well on the flats, although you'll have to be careful of getting in too shallow. They really come in handy when fishing deeper flats or edges where a pushpole can’t be used. If you do decide on a trolling motor, I recommend a stern-mounted version, since bow-mounted motors are guaranteed line-snaggers.

Lacking a pole or electric motor, a third option is to drift. Naturally, this depends on the direction of the wind, and it also means you'll be unable to position yourself for a cast or to stop when a fish is spotted. Finally, if you know the flat well and have learned to predict the fish's routes of travel, you can anchor and wait for them to come to you.

Whether poling, drifting, or anchored, finding something to stand on will let you spot the fish from a greater distance. This is why poling platforms are so useful. Remember, however, that the fish can also see you from a greater distance, so as they get closer the poler might want to squat down or climb down from the platform.

Finally, there is the wading option. For this you'll need some sort of waders, since New England waters can be pretty chilly right through the summer. Wading can be effective when the fish are acting very shy and are spooking at the sight of the boat. Since you have a lower profile when standing in the water, wading allows you to sneak closer to your quarry. Also, many anglers find it more exciting to catch their fish on foot.

If your boat lacks a protected, snag-free casting deck, it's a good idea to use a stripping basket. Many times you need to fire off a quick cast, and you don't want to blow it by standing on your line or having it wrap around something. If you don't like stripping baskets, consider stripping your line into a five-gallon bucket or pail placed at your feet.

Before you start out, one vital piece of equipment you’ll need to obtain is a pair of polarizing sunglasses, which allow you to see through the surface glare of the water. I prefer amber or brown, which provide the greatest contrast.

Fish Behavior

As described at the beginning of the article, flats stripers can be seen cruising the flats alone, in pairs, in small groups, or in large schools. The bigger schools generally contain one or more king-sized fish, although the problem is getting a fly past the more agressive smaller ones. Sometimes the fish will simply be cruising along, looking for baitfish, while at other times they can be seeem actively rooting on the bottom for crabs and other food. When you encounter the latter situation, you can sometimes get quite close to the fish without them noticing, since they'll be so intent on grubbing a meal off the bottom. Also, two or more fish that are competing for a single morsel of food will be more agressive, and a fly that's cast in the middle of them may be viciously attacked.

Single fish and pairs tend to more spooky, so it's important to lead these fish by ten feet or more to avoid spooking them with the fly or line. There are few things more disheartening than watching a magnificent striper jetting away in panic because you plunked a fly down on top of its head. The larger schools tend to be less skittish, but you shouldn't cast right into the middle of them. Cast ahead of the lead fish and begin your retrieve as they near the fly. While these big schools of stripers will often swim five feet from your boat, they can be finicky enough to drive you nuts. Cast after cast may be greeted by refusals while you gnash your teeth in anquish.

Matt Koenig, right, holds Jeff Mancini’s school bass taken in September on the Monomoy flats.

Jeff Mancini leads a tired striper to boatside as Matt Koenig stands ready to assist.

Jeff Mancini scans the Monomoy flats for cruising stripers moving toward deeper water on the dropping tide. Early September.

Top Flats Flies

Which brings us to the subject of what flies to use. Flats stripers are opportunists, feeding on a variety of creatures ranging from squid to crabs to sand eels. The old faithful Clouser Minnow in chartreuse or olive is a flats favorite, since it sinks to the fish’s level quickly and imitates a variety of small baitfish. Squid patterns in white and brown also work, as do sand eel imitations. Poppers work as well, and lately some anglers have been having good luck with weighted crab flies worked very slowly along the bottom. These can be the same sort of crab flies used for permit on the Caribbean flats (i.e., Merkins, Raghead Crabs).

I recommend starting out with some sort of Clouser Minnow. If you get several refusals, start experimenting until you find the pattern that turns them on. You may be able to guess what the fish are eating by observing them. For instance, if they're cruising close to the bottom, try a crab or weighed sand eel. If they're up near the surface, try a popper, a squid, or an unweighted fly. Sometimes varying the retrieve speed can turn the fish on. If the fish follows your fly but won't take, speed up the retrieve. Just make sure that you keep the fly moving, since the fish immediately lose interest if the fly doesn’t imitate standard baitfish behavior. Finally, if all else fails, try a large fly that stands out from the rest of the forage fish on the flat.

Rods, Reels and Lines

The size of the fly rod you use for these fish is up to you; just remember that there are lots of keeper-sized fish on the flats, and fighting one on a five-weight can take some time. At the very least, you will need to have at least 200 yards of backing and a smooth drag on your reel, since bass on the flats can scream off a lot of line, since they will do almost anything to get off the flat and into a channel once they feel the hook and panic.

Fly lines can be important in this fishery. Intermediate sinking lines are an all-round good choice, as are floating sink-tips, especially if the fish are hugging the bottom in four or five feet of water. Clear or clear-tip fly lines (Orvis Clear Tip, Scientific Anglers Monocore, AirFlow Superglass, Flo-Tek) are also finding favor with some anglers because of their reduced visibility. Make sure your lines are well lubricated and strectched before you head out. You haven’t experienced frustration until you’ve had a school of 20-pound stripers pass by you while you're madly fumbling to untangle your line.

Leaders should be at least ten feet long (longer if the fish are acting shy) and include two to three feet of flourocarbon tippet. Tippet strength is up to you, but remember that there are plenty of horshoe crabs, shells, lobster pots, and weeds for a bass to pull your line over and through. Personally, I like to stay above 15-pound test and don't use a shock tippet. Another reason for choosing a heavy tippet is the size of the fish you’re liable to encounter. Remember, there are 30- and 40-pound fish cruising the flats, and you don’t want to loose one tlike that to a broken tippet. In fact, make sure all your tackle and knots are in top shape before you head out.

I hope the above has encouraged you to try Northeast flats fishing. For many anglers, there’s no going back to blind-casting once they’ve visually stalked huge stripers in three feet of water. But most of all, I urge you to scout out a flat of your own, and not just follow the crowd. Get out a chart, look for some areas of flat, sandy bottom of one to five feet, and check it out some day. Who knows? You may just uncover a flats bass el dorado.