I need some Striper How To help.......

[ghosthunter]

I've never fished strictly for striper and I've been wanting to for years. I'm interested in fishing below Fort Loudon dam due to its proximity to chattanooga but I'll take suggestions to anywhere. I plan on using a 7' med heavy action with a shimano calcutta spooled with probably 30# test braided power pro line. Is this enough to handle striper? For bait I would like to catch shad with a cast net, but if I can't accomplish this what would be a good artificial rig? If I do catch bait, how should I rig it? Also I have a real small cast net, probably 4', but plan on buying an 8' or 10' with 3/8 or 1/2 holes. Suggestions on cast nets would be appreciated too. I do know how to use a net from growing up in Florida fishing the Gulf. Thank you.

 

[shorefisherman]

below watts bar got big rockfish, i use 50 lb power pro w 20 lb eagle claw mono leader using albright knot. throw some big saltwater plugs, i dont hardly use live bait cuz its boring. just remember to keep the rod tip high up in the sky when u hook one

 

[Crow Terminator]

I'll try to share what little I know about stripers.

We thought the braid thing would be the way to go as well and it took some trial and error for us. Well for some reason the stripers seem to favor regular mono line. I don't know if its the braid makes the baitfish swim kind of odd, or if they just feel the resistance from no stretch and don't take the bait. But go get you some Berkley Big Game in about 25-30 pound test. That's plenty big. Most people that use braid for stripers, are using it for specific applications; via running a planar board or doing the umbrella rigs. Live bait guys still prefer mono to braid. I'm personally getting ready to play with fluorocarbon as a leader and see if it makes as much difference to stripers as it does for largemouth/smallmouth.

Your rod is just fine too. I'm using a 7' MH Ugly Stik rod with a Abu Garcia round style reel. As long as the reel has good gears in it, you should be OK. I found this out the hard way...had a Quantum baitcaster that lasted 4 fish before it had all the gears stripped out of it. Gander Mts sells the Ugly Stik Striper rods. You can get them for about $29 for just the rod, or $49 for a combo with a Abu Garcia knockoff reel. My next rod will be the Ugly Stick Striper rod and a Plueger Trion 66 baitcaster.

Around here, Gizzard shad are going to be easiest to catch with the cast nets. It's been hard to find them in numbers though. Keeping them alive is the other thing; you'll need a decent bait tank and take the proper measures to keep them alive in this summer heat. Stripers like things very alive and when the shad start dying or get the "red nose" they don't hit them as well. Use them in about the 3-6 inch range. Cast net size; a 4' is all that we have, and it'll do if you can find the bait. Hook type depends on the person. Some folks like circle hooks like what you'd use for catfish. I personally prefer the Kahle hooks in about 3/0 to 4/0. If you use too small of a hook, you will gullet hook too many fish and they are hard enough to keep alive as it is, let alone having them gut hooked.

Hooking the shad also varies per person. Some like to hook them through the eyes, some through the mouth, some in the tail. As for me, I like hooking them just under the spine behind the dorsal fin.

This time of year, they are mostly going to be deep and in the river channel. The upper end of Watts Bar or Melton Hill are good places to go after stripers. We fish for them this time of year like a lot of folks do for catfish. Just find the river channel bends, and drift in the current. If they ain't pulling much water, you aren't going to catch much and if there is a lot of boat traffic on the water, you aren't going to catch much. Stripers are very spooky fish and it don't take but a few ski boats and waverunners to put a damper on things. Anyway what we do is find the river channel bends near a bluff or something.

The rig is going to consist of a 3/4 to 1 1/2 ounce egg sinker pegged about 12-14 inches above your hook. You can use a barrel swivel and then tie a leader to it like a carolina rig for bass. We just use tooth picks and peg the sinker there. Put your shad on, and then drop it straight down to the bottom. When it hits bottom, crank it up about 4-6 handle turns and either hold the rod still or put it in a rod holder. Then let the current do the rest. IF you can keep the catfish beat off, you'll get into some stripers. Stripers will hit way different than anything in the water. A lot of times they will slam the bait REAL HARD and then come back a few seconds later and just be gone with the bait. And some times they just take it and run with it from the first time they hit it. A lot of times you'll get bit on the initial drop and they'll just slack line you.

 

[JimFromTN]

What do you look for when cast netting for bait? Are ther areas where they school better than others?

 

[Crow Terminator]

Jim -- I wish I knew the answer to that. I'm all ears on this one myself. We've just been going into the backs of coves and small feeder creeks. We've not tried below the dams as of yet; but thus far what we have been catching has been in shallow flats or sandbars.

 

[stik]

Jim -- I wish I knew the answer to that. I'm all ears on this one myself. We've just been going into the backs of coves and small feeder creeks. We've not tried below the dams as of yet; but thus far what we have been catching has been in shallow flats or sandbars.

there have been very few to no shad below ft. loudon and melton hill for the last 2 years. have been twice in the last month looking for bait and found none at all.

the lighter line you use, the more bites you will get. i rarely use over 12 lb. stren. stripers are open water fish so obstacles are usually not a problem.

personally i would choose to fish melton hill over ft. loudon.

live bait boring? you've never had one blow up on a shad it has run to the surface? far from boring.

oh, and i hook my shad through the nostrils. stripers take the shad head first.

 

[7mm08]

If your really crazy...they take a fly well if it's the right color and presented correctly.

 

[Gone Phishin]

Jim -- I wish I knew the answer to that. I'm all ears on this one myself. We've just been going into the backs of coves and small feeder creeks. We've not tried below the dams as of yet; but thus far what we have been catching has been in shallow flats or sandbars.

I usually start looking in pockets off of the main river channel.
I look for muddy bottom areas in 2-6 ft of water. When shad are actively feeding you will see them flip at the surface of the water,not just one or two,there will be constant flips from several fish. If you see them flipping, ease up and cast close to where they flipped and you will catch some. It is not rocket surgery nor is it easy. There are areas that they will frequent more than others. Catch bait one time in an area and come back to that area on the next trip, before you know it you will have several spots that you know that hold bait. Experience is the best teacher, I know that you want results now, but there is no way anyone could teach experience. Get on the water and start chunking the net and you will get some bait.Good luck.

Remember.....Big bait catches Big fish. If you think your bait is too big, it is just right.

 

[ghosthunter]

Thanks gentelemen. I appreciate all the advice. What should should I use if i have to resort to artificial? Swim baits, jerk baits, topwater, hair jigs?

 

[Gone Phishin]

Thanks gentelemen. I appreciate all the advice. What should should I use if i have to resort to artificial? Swim baits, jerk baits, topwater, hair jigs?

It all depends on the situation like, time of year,river or lake,etc etc. Certain techniques will only work during one time of year.

 

[GRAMPS]

Big bucktail jigs with a curly tail grub work well.

 

[shorefisherman]

hey ghost.....if ur coming from chattanooga choo choo.... and if i were u, i would fish the upper end of the hiwassee river its closer from where ur at, the tailwater of appalacia dam. go when the gen is on. look for structure and fish it w big jerkbaits that resemble a shad , but just like gone phishin said, time on water is key and searching for em is half the fun. would recommend a jon boat though.

heres one i got few days ago.... 36 pounder 40 inches. ive seen ones that will easily stretch across my 48 inch wide jon boat.

hope this gets u motivated to go after em, good luck

 

[Setterman]

Here is my .02, if you want to catch more stripers then anyone else then do this: Cast plugs into the gates behind the generators. In other words bounce them off the dam and into the notches along the face of the dam. Jigs work as well, and so do giant zara spooks. The shad get pinned in there when they are generating, and it takes two people to pull it off, plus tackle which can cast a long way, i.e. spinning rods. Only one person casts while the other holds the boat just below the boils.

It works better then anything you can imagine, but does come with some risk. Learn your boat, and by all means do not juice the engine which will cause you to go over the boils and get slammed into the dam, and possibly sink.

I promise, you will catch 5:1 to the folks drifting shad and catching drum/catfish instead of stripers. I have yet to understand why folks never figured this out, it took us 2 trips to realize what was exploding behind the boils, I haven't touched a cast net or live shad since.

 

[ghosthunter]

Here is my .02, if you want to catch more stripers then anyone else then do this: Cast plugs into the gates behind the generators. In other words bounce them off the dam and into the notches along the face of the dam. Jigs work as well, and so do giant zara spooks. The shad get pinned in there when they are generating, and it takes two people to pull it off, plus tackle which can cast a long way, i.e. spinning rods. Only one person casts while the other holds the boat just below the boils.

It works better then anything you can imagine, but does come with some risk. Learn your boat, and by all means do not juice the engine which will cause you to go over the boils and get slammed into the dam, and possibly sink.

I promise, you will catch 5:1 to the folks drifting shad and catching drum/catfish instead of stripers. I have yet to understand why folks never figured this out, it took us 2 trips to realize what was exploding behind the boils, I haven't touched a cast net or live shad since.

I assume you're talking about Fort Loudon?

 

[ghosthunter]

hey ghost.....if ur coming from chattanooga choo choo.... and if i were u, i would fish the upper end of the hiwassee river its closer from where ur at, the tailwater of appalacia dam. go when the gen is on. look for structure and fish it w big jerkbaits that resemble a shad , but just like gone phishin said, time on water is key and searching for em is half the fun. would recommend a jon boat though.

heres one i got few days ago.... 36 pounder 40 inches. ive seen ones that will easily stretch across my 48 inch wide jon boat.

hope this gets u motivated to go after em, good luck

I've done a lot of trout fishing on the hiwassee but I assume you're talking about going down much lower. Where would I put in? I use to fish around the 411 bridge and heard that there were big striper in there but haven't fished it in years. Or would I have to put in somewhere around 58 and head up?

 

[ghosthunter]

I am using a 16' jon boat with an 18 hp nissan.

 

[Setterman]

Yes Loudon or Melton Hill, loudon is the most productive.

 

[deer f]

As far as looking for baitfish. Very shallow flats and then look for them flipping on top of the water. This time of year there are a ton of small gizzards schooling. By small I mean 1 to 2 inches. A lot of times there will be larger gizzards under them. I try throwing my net in these small schools as well as blind throwing in the flats. I also agree with the mono verses braid. Braided line is great for some things but in the clearer water like below Melton hill 30# mono (berkly big game) and flourocarbon leaders are great.
good luck

 

[Crow Terminator]

I did my test with fluorocarbon Friday. I was using 20 pound fluorocarbon and my buddy was using 30 lb big game mono. He had one strike to my 6. That don't sound like much but consider I only had 6 shad to use.

Thanks for the baitfish help. That's exactly what we've been doing but just haven't been catching many in numbers. We've been catching 4 or 5 and then running and fishing with those until they are gone. We have started to catch a bunch of smaller shad (1-2 inches) that are flipping on the surface, but these have been thredfin shad. The gizzards have been more isolated for some reason; I'm talking about catching just one or two in your net instead of 10 or more like last year.

I've personally never done any good on artificial baits for stripers. The topwater thing would be fun but like they have said, its seasonal and you have to hit it just right. But I have actually caught quite a few smaller ones on big spoons. I've not caught any over 8 pounds, but even the smaller ones are fun and sometimes they run with the white bass when they are busting shad.

I've not done the Hiwassee yet for stripers. By saying the Appalachia on the Hiwassee, I'm assuming you are talking about the powerhouse instead of the dam? I don't know of a dam in TN on the Hiwassee but there is the powerhouse. They say they migrated up there to feed on trout up there; I bought a 6" trout swim bait just for trying it up there.