WATER TEMPS April 9, 2010 - With water temperatures progressing nicely toward the magical 50-degree mark fly anglers are busy preparing tackle, tying flies and making plans to stage their initial trips of the season. As of this writing check out the water temperature being recorded by NOAA stations along the north Atlantic…
We are more likely to witness water temperatures like these sometime during the 3rd or 4th week of April rather than the beginning of the month. With battalions of herring now occupying virtually every run and water temperatures approaching optimum this is certain to be an "early year." An optimistic view of the situation would lead us to believe that we will receive word of our first fly-caught migrant sometime next week. Our initial push of striped bass will traditionally fall somewhere in the 15-22 inch range and stay true to their moniker of "schoolie." During recent years larger fish (28-35") have begun to show-up 10-14 days later. South facing estuaries, salt ponds and rivers should be the venues of your initial attack. These fish generally do not posses the selectivity that seasoned vets do so it becomes more a question of proper presentation within the water column rather than fly selection. NEW FLIES Good fishing and safe
wading, |
