Joppa Sunday morning

[Steve H.]

Gonna hit Joppa on Sunday morning with my brother. 5:46 AM low. Planning on wading out at first light and trying to find some activity. Anyone fished there lately? Join us if you can.

[lowwall]

Have only fished it once this year, Current reports are saying loads of sand ells to 6", lots of smaller fish around though. With the bait around and the Fall the way things should bust open soon. Maybe you will hit it right!
Mike

[Solid]

Might have to try to meet up with you Steve!

[Steve H.]

Solid....you definitely should meet up. We should be at the lot at around 4:30 am.

[bridgeman]

My brother and I plan to fish this area for the first time Sunday. Where's the lot and what's the deal?

[Steve H.]

Bridgeman, the parking lot and access to the flats is right off the main road as your heading out of Nbpt towards PI. Just as you're coming out of town there's a small parking lot and a cartop/kayak/canoe access. It's pretty well marked, can't miss it.

As far as the fishing goes, who knows? Just itchin' to wet a line and figured this spot iss as good as any.

[Steamtrain]

if we(family) are not doing dim sum on sunday, i will try to make it

[Steamtrain]

no go for me :( :( :(
anyone go out during the week?

[Steve H.]

My brother and I walked out on Joppa at first light on Sunday....last of the outgoing. Very slow. He and I each had a few bumps and one hookup which was lost after a couple head shakes. Couldn't tell if they were stripers or small blues. Not much activity out there at all didn't see any baitfish or birds working. Met up with Bridgeman and his brother (they had no real action either) and we all went up to the river and fished off the sandbar for a while. A strong incoming tide and heavy boat traffic made fishing tough, so we only gave it a half hour or so with nothing to show. Saw a guy trolling plugs take a pair of 5 lb blues.

[bridgeman]

After Plum island, my brother and I went up to Hampton harbor and fished the Seabrook side near the bridge. Hot sun, hot babes,not so hot fishing. The big skunk for us both. The fishing may be better at night.

[OTTER]

HEY GUYS, I DON'T WANT TO BE AN OLD SMART ---, BUT.......

I have the benefit of retirement, fishing about every other day for the last dozen years. I only fish from shore but I have another septagenarian friend who only fishes from a boat who is equally successful. I don't know how an angler can get out a few times a year and be confident of finding fish. I could not.

The way this fellow and I do it ( and we never fish together) is that we start by hitting a particular spot that is rumored to hold fish at a certain time of year. ( Like Newmarket and the Lamprey in late May.) To find a new hot spot for our use, we hit that spot briefly, any chance we get. ( and I am talking about places that lot's of people fish. We take notes. Did we catch fish? And did we not catch fish is just as important. What was the date? What was the weather? What was the tide? Was it a big tide with a minus 1.5 low or little current with a plus 1.0 low. What fly, lure, etc. worked?

Every place is different. The action is usually limited to one hour per day. Someplaces it is only between two to 3 hours on the outgoing tide. Start fishing when this particular rock shows above water. Stop when the base of the rock is exposed and go home. It is all over.

Other places depend more on time of day combined with time of tide. As in 2 hours before low with a big tide surge at first light. Then that spot is only good a few day a month for one hour.

The view of many concerning the Rye Rocks from Odiorne to Wallis Sands for the rest of the season is before 7:00 AM or after 7:00 PM except at dead low.

Last week I went out to a favorite spot at first light and a fellow was there already. I asked, " How's it going?" He said, "Been here all night. Heading home now. Nothing. The place is dead. Not a nibble." He was a hundred yards away when I made my first cast and had a double. ( Trout or Stripers, I always fish 2 flies.) He was at the right place but missed the magic hour. and he wasn't using the right stuff for the time of year at that place.

I keep reading on various forums, that fishing is slow. Since that 40 inch fish on a little white streamer fly ( size 4) a few weeks ago, I've been catching a dozen in just one hour of fishing every other day, including this morning a 27 inch guy. ( 8 wt rod).

I don't know any other way than hard work and keeping a journal. I have on occasion brought a friend to fish with me and they score. They come back on their own 4 days later and get skunked. Fishing from a boat is somewhat different since you can see bird and water activity; and head for the action. But very likely the same homework would be valuable.

I think shore fishing is more predictable or subject to patterns. Certainly the structure and currents are more precisely known.

[lowwall]

THese guys were fishing tough conditions, The mack at dead low right now is probably pushing 70F, not prime fishing temps for sure.

You can't catch them if you don't put your time in and do your home work for sure. I usually fish 2X week but have not had allot of time in the past 2 months, when I have I have chased TUNA which is just a hunting game with no way to pateren them.


The spots you fish probably always hold fish. I have a few spots that I 99% sure I will catch fish at at certain tides. Takes years to get this down being a weekend warior.

But with that being said I have noticed a decline in numbers, this is probably more noticeable by boat where you can cover allot more water and fish school's of fish on bait. The acres of bass that are usually feeding in Boston Haba just were not there this year. Guides have reported the same things else where. They are still catching fish but working allot harder for them.

Noticed it on MV last year, I usually clean up on the False Albacore and Bonita. Catch fish everyday, even from shore I rarely was skunked. Last year I caught 0, had one legitamate shot in 10days. No Bait no fish, Bait was offshure, fish were to.


I am gearing up to start hitting the Fall runn hard, so hopefully I and others are wrong. Look for lots of reports comming soon.

Mike

[OTTER]

I agree that the fishing the first half of this year was generally off compared with previous years. I had attributed that to the floods of spring but perhaps something worse is happening.

On the other hand, since the last week in July, the fishing has been as good as any year so far. So perhaps things will soon pick up out on the outer shore for guys in boats.

The half dozen "regulars", guys that fished Henry Law Park in downtown Dover and regularly connected with BIG fish on live alewives in previous years, were getting skunked day after day this spring. This particular place ( which has a one month "season" from mid May to mid June ) was terrible compared with previous years. I don't fish here but stop by to chat with guys since I drive by frequently. Down stream in the rapids there is usually good fly fishing for schoolies. This spring I caught none.

But this place was greatly affected by the floods that came just as the fish would have moved far up from Great Bay. So I did not consider this to be unusual or a bad omen for the year.

The good news is that again this morning, got up at 4:00 AM, in the water casting by 5:00 AM. Had a hit on every cast. Landed a fish on every other cast. As usual dead by 6:00 AM, and back home to sleep some more.

[bridgeman]

My brother and I where on a scouting mission to check-out the flats. Steve and Mark where very kind and brought us to a couple of great spots for the first time. We could have gone to a sure thing spot and done better, but sometimes new spots need to be explored. This trip will pay-off this fall and next spring. We work during the week and need to fish when we can,even if the conditions aren't the best. We have only been fly fishing 30 years and haven't found all spots like you have either! Eventhough we don't have your level of expertice, we luck into a few fish on occasion.

[Solid]

Sorry I missed you guys on this trip. Spent all Sat. night trying to find fish with Nate. Made it home around 3:00 AM, just didn't have the energy to start all over again that early. I did drive by the parking area that night and it was packed with Kayaks and whatever else they were floating around in out there. Place was a mad house.
Would like to spend some time wading that area though.

[OTTER]

Bridgeman, I agree. It is important to keep finding new places for variety. Simply going for a "sure" thing can get boring.

Actually I have not been fishing for stripers that many years recently. I stopped fishing for them around 1970 or so ( Can't quite remember the exact year, which is OK ) when the population dropped out of sight. Back then, my buddies at work would go out to Plum Island every week and keep a dozen; some as small as 12 inches. I am ashamed to say that I occasionally joined them and did likewise. Were we responsible for the drop or was it commercial fishermen? Although I don't think there were many "recreational" fishermen back then compared with today.