Need how to info/ Hudson River stripers

[Pocono Joe]

I have fished the Hudson with my bassboat in bass tournaments. I would like to fish the spring striper run. I have also fished the jetty's in south jersey an I have some poles with 30# braid that are pretty heavy.

I heard you fish with live bait, but that is all I know. Can some of you experienced guru's tell me how to prepare, what to use, type hooks, rigs, size of sinkers, line etc. Thanks, JOE.

[procastinator]

Your best bet would be to charter a local striper expert and ask lots of questions and pay attention to the details. Your learning curve would be a lot smaller, and less expensive in the long run. :)

[Treebeard]

Joe, live bait is a good choice for Stripers anywhere.. but it is by no means the only way to go.. I've caught thousands of Hudson River stripers over the years trolling diving plugs, casting bucktails/plastics, on worms, and cutbait.. They are the same fish as we catch in the salt, so most of the same techniques will work. Anywhere north of the TZ bridge, when you talk of live bait you refer to either Herring or Eels. If you are going to use Herring, the first steps will be catching them (not many places to buy'em) , and then keeping them alive. For this you will need a large, preferably round, circulating tank. They can be caught on sabiki's or with a dip net. They can also be scapnetted (for this NY requires a license). In any case, bait collection will be time consuming.. For these reasons I often opt for Eels.. They can be purchased, and will keep for a long time with minimal care (Unlike herring, which drop dead if you give them a dirty look). For tackle, your 30# braid outfits will do fine.. For rigging eels I use either a 3-way rig using 30-40# leader (30-40" to lead--24-30" to hook) ( weight depending on current.. 1-6 oz) , or fish them below a slip float. In either case I hook them thru the snoot with a 4/0 Octopus, or comparable circle hook. With Herring, I go braid to a barrel swivel, either no weight, or a small egg sinker, 30-40# leader, and either a 5/0-6/0 treble. or 6/0 octopus or circle. I'll hook the bait either under the dorsal, or thru the nostrils depending on where I want it to swim. Don't be afraid to anchor up and chunk either.. a hunk of FRESH herring on a fishfinder rig, will account for plenty of nice Stripers;) I live near and fish around Kingston, NY so let me know if you need any further info on the area. Good luck :thumbsup:
http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa267/Treebeard63/striper2c.jpg

[Pocono Joe]

That is EXACTLY the type of info I was "fishing" for. I appreciate it. Thanks. Joe.

[HipMOtized]

I live north of the Tappanzee and a little south of West Point.

the guys here mostly fish for them with swimming plugs, blood worms, and eels.

Favorite spots are around the Tappanzee (usually on the southwest side of the bridge ) near Croton Point (which is on the east side of the hudson), near the Bear Mountain Bridge and places north of West Point.

If you spend some time on the river, you'll see boats fishing in the "main spots". Since the middle of the river is deep (over 100' in many places) you'll see boats fishing closer to shore, near points of land/structure that form rips (afterall, they are Stripers!). The fish usually start showing up in mid March to April. as they move up river. I talked to a guy last week who had one on fishing from shore in Haverstraw.

I have fished saltwater successfully for years and have to admit that I have had mixed results on the Hudson- it seems the river fishing is more of a timing issue as they come up river to spawn.


There are boat ramps around the Stony Point/Haverstraw area that will give you access to the above places.

If you have not boated on the River, it's a great time- beautiful trip- but watch out for floating logs, etc after any rainfalls.

Good luck.

[cityfisherman]

look for depth changes rocky bottom and when the weather is right look for bunker the bass will be around :thumbsup:

[tonymaja]

Hey Joe,try anchoring on the flats by the #31 can opposite Ellis Island with fresh bunker,use a fish finder rig with at least a 6oz sinker with power braid on the out going tide from early May till July.That was my back yard for years,or you can swing around the East River and drift Diamond Reef or the rips by the U.N.building with bunker chunks or artificials.

Tony Maja

[striper2278]

Hey Joe,try anchoring on the flats by the #31 can opposite Ellis Island with fresh bunker,use a fish finder rig with at least a 6oz sinker with power braid on the out going tide from early May till July.That was my back yard for years,or you can swing around the East River and drift Diamond Reef or the rips by the U.N.building with bunker chunks or artificials.

Tony Maja
Tony,

Check out my signature!;)

[tonymaja]

Looks great Skip,did you recieve your goody bag?:)

[hammerheadman]

I have fished the Hudson with my bassboat in bass tournaments. I would like to fish the spring striper run. I have also fished the jetty's in south jersey an I have some poles with 30# braid that are pretty heavy.

I heard you fish with live bait, but that is all I know. Can some of you experienced guru's tell me how to prepare, what to use, type hooks, rigs, size of sinkers, line etc. Thanks, JOE.
If you are talking about the fresh water section.this may help.We used to launch in Newburg NY. WE trolled with down riggers . White /red Bombers.worked well. We also would drift blood worms.Rigged like a carolina worm rig in the flats,the area we fished was between the Beacon bridge and down past .west point .The bass are only there a short time always around Memorial Day.

[Pocono Joe]

Looks like I better get the Bassboat fired up! I used to Love fishing the Redman bass tournaments on the hudson. Since I don't fish the tournaments anymore, I want to try for the big stripers. I was thinking of launching out of newburg, is there a place to get a NY License and bait there? I know there is a launch there but never used it. I did launch out of Kingston however.

[striper2278]

Looks great Skip,did you recieve your goody bag?:)
Tony,

Should be here today! I'll let you know!

[Hersh]

Are there many places you can reach them from shore? Don't have a boat but would like to give it a shot before I start heading to the beach.

[tonymaja]

Hersh,try the Weehawken and Hoboken piers.

Tony Maja

[Treebeard]

... I was thinking of launching out of newburg, is there a place to get a NY License and bait there? I know there is a launch there but never used it. I did launch out of Kingston however.

Joe, try Ceely's for bait.. very close to the launch..
436 Shore Rd
New Windsor, NY 12553

[JFinny]

Joe thats good info from treebeard except the scap net license under 36 sq feet or 6x6 you don't need one.I fish father north we use live herring
90% of the time the other 10% fresh chunk herring.You can only get live herring on the river it's the LAW. last week in Apr and the month of May is your best shot at some thing big.We fish the herring like TB said I use a bigger j hook 8&9/0s 50lb leader barrel swivel and egg sinker up to four ozs. Got plenty of good stripers in 4' of water good luck

[ParkerBoys]

Local Reports from the Hudson river are that many schoolies to around 28 inches are being caught on bloodworms in the Piermont area.


Are there many places you can reach them from shore? Don't have a boat but would like to give it a shot before I start heading to the beach.

[Pocono Joe]

Thanks for the info. I have a casting net, can I use that to catch herring? Do they run in schools that you can see? Can you snag them like we snag bunker down the shore? So much to learn, so little time.....
If I fish the Suckholes near the RXR bridges, do these hold stripers like they hold bass? I always had good luck on outgoing tide in tournaments. A deep diving crankbait always served me well, or a jig bounced off the bottom.

[MARK215]

Hersh,try the Weehawken and Hoboken piers.

Tony Maja

And also exchange place down in Jersey City

[Treebeard]

Joe, you'll rarely see Herring on the surface like you do bunker.. Snagging is illegal above the GW bridge as far as as I know.. Castnets are legal up to 10', but in areas I fish the herring are usually spotted in the lower 1/3 of the water column, so they are not very effective.. In my neck of the woods, Herring are caught by either scapnetting (like an umbrella net) usually in the tribs, or dipnetting.. To dip net, most guys will lure them in with a "stoolie" (which emulates another sexy Herring), and then scoop them up. You can use a big spinnerbait, or swimbait as a stoolie, or hook a live one (once you catch one). Legal max size for a dip net is 14" in dia... I have also had limited success jigging them up on a Sabiki rigs (5 hooks max) , although the muddy water of the Hudson can make this tough..

[Pocono Joe]

Thanks for all the info. I'll have to give you a shout when I come over the the river. I plan on getting there as soon as the stripers reach the peekskill / bear mt. bridge area.