Best of Buddies Enjoying the Chesapeake Bay

The father and son fly fishing team, Bruce and Curt Johnson, joined me on 07/14 and 07/15, to fly fish the Chesapeake Bay.

Curt and Bruce Johnson

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The weather was nice at 7:00am as we pulled away from the dock at Sandy Point State Park heading east to search for striped bass that wanted to be caught on a fly. Catching was non-existent in the Upper Bay until 9:30am, so we decided to head south of the Bay Bridge.

The only feedback from the 2 sonar units aboard, after checking ledges, underwater mounds, rock piles, deep holes, etc., were small and large baitfish, and a few scattered gamefish, probable stripers. We ate lunch early so we could be back at the Bay Bridge well before the maximum ebb tide of 1.33 mph.

Curt Enjoying the Fight

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After only catching 10 stripers on the first day and at the beginning of the second day everyone had a positive attitude.  This, along with the ability to change location, flies, techniques, and other variables, is a must if you plan to catch fish. Everything came together on the second day when a lot of stripers were caught making fly fishing the Chesapeake Bay a real pleasure for all.

A Sight for Sore Eyes (especially the captains)

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Most Productive Technique: Short Striping Sinking Line (with sinking line)-Cast the fly out and count it down to the desired depth. If the line gets tight during the countdown, get additional line in the water. To accomplish this put the rod tip just above the water and figure 8 the tip to let more line out. This allows the fly to sink where it hits the water. Start stripping the line in 1-foot increments, swiftly, back toward the boat.

Most Productive Fly: Sinking Clouser, 3", #2 ss Hook, Tan & White, Gold Eyes

Fly Fishing Equipment: Orvis, 9', 9w, 4 pc. Helios Rod - Mirage Reel Size V, Hydros, 350 Grain, Depth Charge Sinking Line (using a 9w allow you to use large flies and the flies get down faster).

Fishing Tip: This is an excellent time to set up your sonar units for maximum use. Then you don't have to waste time fishing over fishless waters anymore. There should be some guidance in your owners manual to make this possible. If you need help having your GPS/Sonar/Plotter unit set up for maximum use please contact me.