NIANTIC RIVER AND BAY Niantic is one of the most productive fishing regions on Long Island Sound. A good shore place to try for stripers is the mouth of the Niantic River, which separates the towns of Niantic and Waterford. “That’s a great spot,” Capt. Merkt said.
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Where are the stripers running in Connecticut?
In Connecticut, striped bass are seasonally found along the entire coastline and in all large tidal rivers, where they are typically common to abundant. Most fish migrate south during winter, but some overwinter in Connecticut, most notably in the Thames River.
What month is best for striper fishing?
Striped Bass will start to move into the Red and Washita Rivers to spawn. April can be the best live-bait fishing month, but swimbaits and underspins will catch Striper too. Striper will school up around these river channels to feed, then run upstream to spawn.
How far up the CT river do stripers go?
Stripers can be found throughout the 50 mile stretch of river from Hartford to the river’s mouth in Old Saybrook.
How do you catch stripers in CT River?

Where is the best striper fishing?
If you want to catch large striped bass, go to Cape Cod. More 70 pound-plus stripers have been caught on and around Cape Cod than any other place. Cape Cod’s beaches are considered the best in the world, and include the Cape Cod National Seashore.
What time of day do stripers bite?
You will almost always do better during these low-light periods. I prefer dusk. I like to arrive at my spot one or two hours before sunset. Stripers get very active around this time of day and this is your best chance to hook a bigger bass.
What is the best bait for striped bass?
Bloodworms and Sandworms as Striped Bass Baits Bloodworms and sandworms are highly effective striper baits just about everywhere these fish are found, virtually any time of the year. Stripers love eating them, period.
What depth do striped bass eat?
On many of these fisheriesโespecially in the Southโstripers remain in the creeks throughout the winter and hold at depths of 15 to 20 feet. Catching striped bass doesn’t automatically slow down when the winter hits, these suspended fish will actively eat.
Where was the world record striped bass caught?
The current world-record striped bass of 81 pounds, 14 ounces, was caught in August of 2011 in Long Island Sound by angler Gregory Myerson.
How do you fish the Connecticut River?
Some good choices for the Connecticut River include a nightcrawler and bobber rig, inline spinners, small soft plastic tube baits or spider jigs that imitate crayfish, lipped crankbaits, paddle tail swimbaits and stickbaits, among others.
How do you catch striped bass from shore?

Are there white bass in Connecticut?
Common Catches in Connecticut The striped bass closest freshwater relatives are the white bass, the yellow bass, and the white perch.
What is a non offset circle hook?
What is a non-offset circle hook? Non-offset circle hooks are generally defined as a hook with the point turned perpendicularly back to the shank.
How do you fish in a race?
The Race is commonly fished with diamond or bucktail jigs. To use diamond jigs, run uptide of the rip line while watching your depthfinder. At the point where the steep decline reaches about 180 feet, throw the engine into neutral and quickly free-spool your 8- to 12-ounce jig to the bottom.
Are striper fish good eating?
Stripers are widely considered one of the best-eating fish in the northeast Atlantic region, but it depends who you’re speaking with. Many people prefer black sea bass, fluke, or tautog over stripers.
What tide is best to fish for stripers?
They look to consume as many calories as possible while burning as few calories as possible, therefore they do their most aggressive feeding when their advantage over the baitfish is greatestโat peak tide.
Where do striped bass go in the winter?
Large individuals then winter in ocean waters, but many of their smaller counterparts, known as schoolies, travel to major estuaries that support striped bass spawning, namely the Hudson and Delaware Rivers and the Chesapeake Bay.
Do striped bass like high or low tide?
The typical recommendation is to fish about 2-3 hours before high tide to about 2-3 hours outgoing tide. Some anglers also recommend around dusk or dawn, on a cool day, during peak or slack tide. to catch striped bass. This is when they are more likely to be nearer to the surface and more likely to bite.
What temperature do striped bass like?
If you want to catch stripers, all you need to know is the water temperature. It’s that simple. Stripers prefer water temperature around 55- to 68-degrees. If the water is too hot, they may feed shallow occasionally, but quickly return to the oxygenated rich, cooler water.
Do striped bass bite in the rain?
The rain can actually help the fishing as long as you can put up with it. With a light rain, the fishing is similar to cloudy conditions. Striped bass may feed in the shallows or up at the surface for longer than they normally would.
What color lures do striped bass like?
A study performed at the Virginia Institute of Marine Sciences showed that striped bass see yellow and chartreuse better than other colors as they are smack dab in the middle of the striped bass’s visual range.
What pound test should I use for striped bass?
The Solution. Line matters and Captain Mike recommends sticking with 10-pound or 12-pound test. Plus, it makes catching striped bass a lot more fun.
What size hooks for striped bass?
The different types of bass stripers that exist require different size hooks to catch. The best size hook for catching small stripers is a size 2/0 hook, while the best size hook for catching big stripers is a size 7/0 hook.
What is striped bass favorite food?
Striped bass eat a variety of foods, including fish such as alewives, flounder, sea herring, menhaden, mummichogs, sand lance, silver hake, tomcod, smelt, silversides, and eels, as well as lobsters, crabs, soft clams, small mussels, sea worms, and squid.