Micro bait means major adjustments to your presentations in the surf.
Last year in early September I was chasing down big schools of stripers that had invaded the Rhode Island oceanfront. There was nothing tricky about this. On bluebird days, sometimes under a noonday sun, the stripers, many of them slots and over-slots, were hot on the tails of massive schools of micro bait. It was bay anchovies and at times, the massive schools turned acres of seawater brown. It was simply a matter of finding the bait. Big flocks of gulls were also on the prowl and where the birds were diving the stripers were lurking and feeding. Find the birds and you found the fish. It was that simple.
Acres of Bait
On this particular day, I was driving along in front of one of the public beaches when I spotted big clouds of birds diving along this popular tourist spot. It was after Labor Day, but still lots of people were in the water and sitting along the sands on this warm, tranquil day. But, mayhem was also erupting all along this beach with a whole half mile of birds diving and fish breaking, even in places where people were in the water!
I found a parking spot and headed to the water dressed in shorts and wading shoes. All along the beach I found a line of bay anchovies washing up as stripers fed in mere inches of water with fins on the surface and bellies in the sand driving the frenzied baitfish ashore. Beached baitfish were everywhere. All around me birds by the thousands were also in a feeding frenzy dive-bombing the frenzied schools of bait. I snapped on a small NLBN paddletail as I needed a lure that would track below the surface to keep it away from a bird attack. Right away, I landed a striper, a good size slot. I thought I had THE lure, but as I continued to cast into a mass of breaking fish, it was only a fish here and there. Clearly, this was not the high percentage lure I was hoping for. So, I switched to a small bucktail jig. That hooked a fish once in a while too, but again, did not crack the code.
Meanwhile I saw some beachgoers with fishing gear hauling out large poppers into the breaking fish. They were occasionally catching stripers, but they also hooked several seagulls, something I was trying to avoid. Finally, I pulled a Rebel Jumpin’ Minnow from my bag, and I moved down the beach to get away from the main mass of birds. I had to be tricky here as I tried to work the edge of the schools of fish where there were fewer stripers, but also fewer birds. I had some success on this tiny spook, but once again, no silver bullet.
I continued to work a merry-go-round of small lures from my bag. I walked away from that beach at dusk when all activity settled down. In the few hours I was there I landed a dozen stripers, most of them slots. If I really had a magic lure I could have landed ten times that amount of fish. This was simply a case of too much small bait along with fussy stripers. It was a typical outing of bay anchovy madness.
A Little Finesse
When dealing with feeding stripers on micro bait, a finesse approach is often the key to catching. It involves some experimentation with small lures and plugs until you find something that works. Sometimes it will be a variety of lures that deliver moderate success such as what happened to me above.
Bay anchovies were the prevalent bait last fall along the Rhode Island oceanfront. These are small, slender baitfish that can range from fingernail size to a few inches. They have a silvery translucent body. Because of their tiny size, many fishermen refer to these as “micro bait”. They can show up in schools that can be measured in acres. In the example above, massive schools of them blanketed a half mile section of beach. Seabirds, stripers, blues and even albies love these things.
Jigs Get it done
I tend to pack my surf bag in early September with small artificials that could work, knowing full well that I might be changing lures often. The first choice I generally pull from the bag is a small paddletail lure in a white color. Last year I fished NLBN paddletails exclusively. This 3-inch paddletail mounted onto a NLBN jighead was generally my best producer when these anchovy blitzes occurred. In the past I have also used small Cocahoe lures which are similar in look and action.
Jigs, such as small bucktails, can also work. I make my own jigs and like the ‘fish head jig’ made by Do-It Molds. These are called H style jigs with the “H” standing for “Helluva” jig. I especially like the half-ounce jig that I make in all white and spiced with a 3-inch plastic curly tail. The tail really adds action to the jig and is a necessity if you want to fool fussy stripers. Some fishermen will also use fork-tailed flukes when bay anchovies are around. Light colored Zoom Flukes and Lunker City Fin-S Fish in the 3-inch size, mounted on a half-ounce jighead usually does the trick.
Many albie fishermen have also discovered that their small metal and epoxy jigs work well for stripers feeding on small bait. I have used 3-inch Game On Exo Jigs, which closely resemble bay anchovies in size and looks. These also give you the advantage of scoring both albies and stripers, a common possibility when you find schools of bay anchovies.
The big advantage to using the types of jigs described above is that you can get them below the diving birds and schools of bait where the stripers are lurking. For the most part, small jigs have been the most successful lures for me when stripers are on bay anchovies.
Hardbaits
| THE INCREDIBLE EGG |
| When all else fails when fussy stripers are feeding on anchovies I have a secret weapon in my surf bag that usually produces. It’s my homemade wooden egg float. Traditional wisdom says to run a small jig or plastic paddletail on a jighead off the 3 feet of mono in the back of the float. But, I often take a slightly different approach when bay anchovies are around and tie on a fly, especially when the fish are REALLY fussy. Deceiver type flies have the profile, looks and movement of this tiny bait. Sometimes I will go with a small “anchovy Deceiver” that looks like the real thing, but sometimes I might go with an attractor fly such as a pink deceiver. The technique for the float and fly is a slow retrieve and even a stop once in a while. Don’t be surprised if the fish hit on the pause. You want the wave action to impart most of the movement on the fly. That’s one reason this rig is so effective right in the wash. In addition to its fish catching effectiveness, the float and fly can give you a booming cast in places where the stripers might be breaking way out. The single hook also makes for simple and harmless catch-and-release.
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Still, there are times when a topwater plug might work. I only use Rebel Jumpin’ Minnows when micro bait is around. These plugs have that subtle back and forth darting motion that fish often find irresistible. The strategy with a surface lure is to work the edges of the schools of fish away from the masses of diving birds. These hard plugs are also advantageous when blues are mixed in with stripers. Because blues will destroy most of your plastic offerings.
If you want to fish other hard plugs, sometimes a small swimmer tends to work. My son, Jon, favors a Rapala X-Rap in a 4-inch size. Note that the Rebel Jumpin’ Minnow and the X-Rap sport two sets of trebles. Consider replacing the rear treble with a single hook or crush the barbs on the trebles for easier catch and release.
When targeting stripers that are feeding on schools of bay anchovies or micro bait, the key to success is downsizing. Yes, going “smaller” in your lure selection is better. Such artificials as smaller bucktails, jigs with plastic bodies, albie jigs, and even small hard plugs are your best bets. And, realize, too, you might have to change lures often in a search for the most effective lure to fool fussy stripers that are feeding on schools of bay anchovies.
