CTFishTalk.com: Stripers, stripers stripers...Moodus Reservoir? - Connecticut Lake Reports ( CT Lake Reports ) - A Community Built for Connecticut Fisherman.

imsafanct · Joined: 05 Aug 2013 Posts: 118

So I've been anxiously awaiting this Spring's CT River striper run, to almost obsessive levels. I've been so pumped to get out there. I've got all the right gear, I'm reading all the reports and I'm putting in the time. I spent half an hour Friday morning before work chucking big swimbaits in the Wethersfield Cove in inlet. I was back for an hour Friday evening. And as the heavy rain was ending before dawn Saturday morning, I was there for another 2 hours.

I didn't get into any fish no matter what I threw, but I wasn't deterred. I had a plan. Saturday was my stepdaughter's 6th birthday so Saturday was out. But I planned to spend all day Sunday with Bill on the river in his boat and I was confident it was to be our day.

We got after it nice and early yesterday morning, launching from Rocky Hill and working the Dividend Bar on the South Glastonbury side from the ferry down past Seaboard Marina.

We got our first taste of the CT River after a monsoon rain: no fish, zero water visibility and STRONG currents. Once we got past the marina, we made the decision to head back to the launch, load the boat and re-launch into Wethersfield Cove where we hoped the water would be clearer and we wouldn't have to battle the current. Plus I knew the herring were stacked in the Cove, having seen SO many on Friday night. I could have grabbed them with my hands!

It was probably around 9:00AM at this point and this is where having only a trolling motor for power REALLY sucks. The current was quite strong and it took us at least an hour to get back to the truck. There were times where the motor was on full high and we just weren't moving. Very nerve-racking, but we made it.

We got loaded up and I made he call to hit Starbucks on the Silas Deane on our way to Wethersfield Cove. It was while Bill and I were standing in line waiting to order, mentally exhausted, that he said something half-jokingly like "hey, we can always head back to the house, charge the batteries for a bit and then hit Upper Moodus."

He had caught me at a weak moment. I've been obsessed with stripers, stripers, stripers for weeks. How could I possibly even consider his suggestion? In any event, I said yes. I figured after the drama we just endured of a stressful, agonizingly slow ride back to the Rocky Hill ferry launch, to hell with the stripers. All I want is a nice relaxing afternoon out of the wind and current at a place I know I can catch fish at.

We headed back to Bill's, stuck the batteries on charge and re-rigged for largemouth. Considering the success I had two weeks earlier with the tubes at Bashan, I was really looking forward to more soft plastic learning anyway.

We got to Upper Moodus around noon and the skies were beautiful and the temp was too. Just a gorgeous day. The worst kind for fishing! But after the morning we had, I didn't care. I was just happy to be there.

I started my three setups with a weighted Texas-rigged 10" Rage Anaconda, an X-Rap jerk in perch color and a weightless green pumpkin w/ red flake 5" Senko on a weedless Mustad wacky hook. We worked clockwise around the lake, starting to the left of the launch.

Eventually, I removed the Rage Anaconda, and put my green pumpkin tube back on but I didn't like the way it was working through the water, plus it wasn't weedless and the weeds were really growing in. So I took the tube off the Yamamoto Insider tube jig head, cut the jig off and tied on a Strike King Hack Attack heavy cover skirted jig and stuck the tube on as a trailer.

Now this was my first time using a jig, mind you, so I have no real idea how to work it. I just figured I'd cast in anywhere I wanted, finesse it through the weeds, and give it a little slow jerking and falling action. It REALLY worked well through the weeds. Rarely did it get back to the boat covered in weeds and I never got it permanently hung up.

As we entered the first of the back coves, working in the clockwise direction, I casted the jig into more early pad growth with some new grass poking up through the surface. I felt what I thought was another hang up, until the hang-up started to pull back and I saw my line moving to my right. I just started to reel and knew I had a fish. The first glimpse came as he made a roll as he was still heading to my right. He was a big bass!

I started getting excited and nervous and as I reeled, he was pulling hard against the drag. He came back left in front of Bill and gave us a nice jump out of the water, showing us his true size. WOW! Bill jumped into action and grabbed the net. He fought well, but not OMG-well. We got him into the net and I was able to get the hook out f him after struggling with it for a bit as he was hooked up through the roof of his mouth, dead center. I was anxious to get him back in the water and once I did, he took off like a rocket. Excellent!

He was 5.5lbs on my Berkley digital scale. A new personal best for me by a longshot! Absolutely awesome.

We fished for another 2-3 hours. Bill caught a handful of small bass and pickerel and I caught a pickerel of my own. I also hooked up my first fish on the wacky-rigged Senko (thanks Phil!), a pickerel, who spit it at the boat.

All and all not that the day I was looking forward to at all, but one of the best day's I've ever had. Funny how that works! Absolutely killer largemouth!

What a weekend! Now what?

-Eric

RobO · Joined: 24 May 2010 Posts: 285 Location: South Windsor

Great report. I am also currently in the striper obsessed mode.
It's all I think about!
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DirtyDawg10 · Joined: 27 May 2009 Posts: 2238 Location: Granby, CT

Nice LMB!

PECo · Joined: 06 Oct 2009 Posts: 5203 Location: Avon, CT

It's 5:20 am here in Kona and I'm getting ready to head out for my billfish charter. I'm glad the wacky-rigged Senko got you a bite, Eric, but your post tells me I need to give the jig more of a chance, especially when the weeds grow in more.
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Scorpio · Joined: 24 Jul 2013 Posts: 73

Great catch!! Congrats on the PB. I love the jig! My bait of choice when I'm throwing in weedy areas is a 1/4oz or maybe 3/8oz jig with a Zoom super salty twisty tail grub. I can fish it slow letting it drop to the bottom or this year I've been trying all different retrieves and have caught some good ones doing a slow but steady retrieve with an occasional pop-pop. Like you said, it pulls through most of the time without much snagging and so far, the bass seem to like it. Nice job, keep it up!!