The last week of May saw some good fishing following the full moon, with a huge variety of baitfish tempting stripers, including bunker, mackerel, butterfish, alewives, and bay anchovies. There are still “over-slot” stripers swimming through the surf in Maryland and there are 40-inchers being reported all the way up to Maine. As waters warm, the large stripers will begin concentrating in smaller areas, but for now, the action is spread out through all of the Northeast!
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Over slot stripers are being caught in the Maryland and Delaware surf, most on chunk baits, as they move close to the beach to feed on their swim north. Smaller resident stripers are pretty much all that’s left in the bay.
Some good-sized stripers are still lingering around the Southern New Jersey beaches and inlets, all the way down to the Delaware Bay, but the summer shift to smaller resident fish is fast approaching.
Giant stripers, some in excess of 50 inches, continue to be found off Monmouth County. Raritan Bay is also still producing bass as large as 40 pounds.
Striper fishing on the South Shore has been excellent from surf and boat all the way out to Montauk, with fish to 40 pounds reported since last week’s full moon. Big bunker schools toward the west are holding the biggest numbers of large stripers, with fish to 50 pounds reported.
On the North Shore, the fishing continues to improve with more big bass showing up and feeding as the Hudson River fish drop back and make their move through the sound.
Transient stripers are moving through the reefs in Long Island Sound. Atlantic mackerel have been fueling some good fishing this spring as they’ve been abundant in the Sound for the first time in years.
Another wave of large stripers hit Rhode Island this week, as captains and surfcasters saw an increase in quality. Narragansett Bay continues to be the epicenter of the Ocean State’s big bass action.
The Outer Cape has seen a wave of big stripers, as larger fish continue to spread through Massachusetts.
Large schools of bunker have brought large stripers into Boston, with more large fish holding around the bait schools in deeper water off the South Shore.
The striper fishing is excellent in Maine and New Hampshire, with abundant herring drawing bass of all sizes into the rivers.
