New Year's Eve striper trip results in 42lb fish

With the continuing "relatively nice for the time" weather we've had here in
NC, me and a fishing buddy linked up and went out to the OBX to get in on
some of this winter Striped Bass fishing we've been hearing so much of the
past few years. We went out this past Saturday (Dec 31) off Hatteras Island
(NC) out of Oregon Inlet and managed to catch a few really nice stripers.
There were a ton of folks on the water, I was even surprised at the amount
of charter boats we saw out there chasing these winter bass. The "3 mile
line" kept us all clumped up along the various stretches of shore from Kitty
Hawk/Duck NC past Oregon Inlet and the Bodie Island Lighthouse all the way
South to Hatteras Village and the lighthouse itself. So we just jumped into
the trolling line that was more like a fleet by mid morning, and all
"followed the birds" looking for schools of bait fish.

We caught this particular striper about 10 miles North of the Hatteras
Lighthouse, about 2 miles off the beach:
(this is my buddy in the photos, he reeled her in, so we gave him the glory)

http://home.earthlink.net/~simracer5...b_striper5.jpg

http://home.earthlink.net/~simracer5...b_striper1.jpg

We had her certified for a state citation when we got back in, which is
35lbs here in NC. Weighed 42 lbs on the dot according to the
"official/certified" scales at the tackle shop. Our best rough measurements
were 45" long, 28" girth. Nowhere near the *rumored* new record set this
past week during a tournament of over 60 lbs, which was the record from 1971
until this past week if said rumor is true. (We heard several weights
through the rumor mill; 62, 63 and 65 pounds, so apparentlly a large one
above 60 lbs was caught)

Hope everyone here at rofb had enjoyable holidays.

beautiful striper

--
www.wermieerniebaits.com
Making fish regret their decision on a daily basis
"SimRacer" wrote in message
nk.net...
With the continuing "relatively nice for the time" weather we've had here
in NC, me and a fishing buddy linked up and went out to the OBX to get in
on some of this winter Striped Bass fishing we've been hearing so much of
the past few years. We went out this past Saturday (Dec 31) off Hatteras
Island (NC) out of Oregon Inlet and managed to catch a few really nice
stripers. There were a ton of folks on the water, I was even surprised at
the amount of charter boats we saw out there chasing these winter bass.
The "3 mile line" kept us all clumped up along the various stretches of
shore from Kitty Hawk/Duck NC past Oregon Inlet and the Bodie Island
Lighthouse all the way South to Hatteras Village and the lighthouse
itself. So we just jumped into the trolling line that was more like a
fleet by mid morning, and all "followed the birds" looking for schools of
bait fish.

We caught this particular striper about 10 miles North of the Hatteras
Lighthouse, about 2 miles off the beach:
(this is my buddy in the photos, he reeled her in, so we gave him the
glory)

http://home.earthlink.net/~simracer5...b_striper5.jpg

http://home.earthlink.net/~simracer5...b_striper1.jpg

We had her certified for a state citation when we got back in, which is
35lbs here in NC. Weighed 42 lbs on the dot according to the
"official/certified" scales at the tackle shop. Our best rough
measurements were 45" long, 28" girth. Nowhere near the *rumored* new
record set this past week during a tournament of over 60 lbs, which was
the record from 1971 until this past week if said rumor is true. (We heard
several weights through the rumor mill; 62, 63 and 65 pounds, so
apparentlly a large one above 60 lbs was caught)

Hope everyone here at rofb had enjoyable holidays.

"alwaysfishking" wrote in message
...
beautiful striper

Thanks. She took a while to drag up from 44 ft. And our rigs were
triple-home-made types that had 32oz, 24, oz and 16 oz baits on it all at
once. This fish was on the bottom, 32oz "jig head" (our pseudo-guide called
them "mojos" with swimming soft bait bodies that went from about 6" in
length, to about a foot long on the 24 and 32 oz heads). It didn't take long
to see why we were using such heavy line (50lb line, 100lb shock leader) and
heavy ocean trolling rods and reels...our rigs weighed 4.5 lbs without a
fish on them, lol!

We caught 7 striped bass (from 18lbs to this monstor) before the blues
turned on. We boated about 25 of those, and didn't keep a single one. Good
fighters, but apparently not that good to eat, so we let 'em live. We only
kept 2 of the bass, this big'un and another that went about 22lbs, just to
split up among us Sunday before we came home.


--
www.wermieerniebaits.com
Making fish regret their decision on a daily basis
"SimRacer" wrote in message
nk.net...
With the continuing "relatively nice for the time" weather we've had
here
in NC, me and a fishing buddy linked up and went out to the OBX to get
in
on some of this winter Striped Bass fishing we've been hearing so much
of
the past few years. We went out this past Saturday (Dec 31) off Hatteras
Island (NC) out of Oregon Inlet and managed to catch a few really nice
stripers. There were a ton of folks on the water, I was even surprised
at
the amount of charter boats we saw out there chasing these winter bass.
The "3 mile line" kept us all clumped up along the various stretches of
shore from Kitty Hawk/Duck NC past Oregon Inlet and the Bodie Island
Lighthouse all the way South to Hatteras Village and the lighthouse
itself. So we just jumped into the trolling line that was more like a
fleet by mid morning, and all "followed the birds" looking for schools
of
bait fish.

We caught this particular striper about 10 miles North of the Hatteras
Lighthouse, about 2 miles off the beach:
(this is my buddy in the photos, he reeled her in, so we gave him the
glory)

http://home.earthlink.net/~simracer5...b_striper5.jpg

http://home.earthlink.net/~simracer5...b_striper1.jpg

We had her certified for a state citation when we got back in, which is
35lbs here in NC. Weighed 42 lbs on the dot according to the
"official/certified" scales at the tackle shop. Our best rough
measurements were 45" long, 28" girth. Nowhere near the *rumored* new
record set this past week during a tournament of over 60 lbs, which was
the record from 1971 until this past week if said rumor is true. (We
heard
several weights through the rumor mill; 62, 63 and 65 pounds, so
apparentlly a large one above 60 lbs was caught)

Hope everyone here at rofb had enjoyable holidays.

....chopper blues steaked out and beer marinated are wonderfull on the
grill....said Huck

"Huck Palmatier" wrote in message
news:Y56vf.4243$CV.1466@dukeread03...
...chopper blues steaked out and beer marinated are wonderfull on the
grill....said Huck



Hmmm....Now I know and love "fish steaks", so blues work on the grill huh?
Thanks for that advice, I will keep it in mind when we go out and hit them
again soon.

Actually, one of the gawkers on the ramp that evening said something to the
same affect when we told them that we caught more blues than stripers, that
they'd make good "grillin' steaks" had we kept some of them. I'll say one
thing for blues, they are absolute hell on soft baits. Whether you catch
them or they just snipe at the baits, they can tear up a lot of plastic in
short order with them teeth...

Hmmm....Now I know and love "fish steaks", so blues work on the grill huh?
Thanks for that advice, I will keep it in mind when we go out and hit them
again soon.

Actually, one of the gawkers on the ramp that evening said something to
the
same affect when we told them that we caught more blues than stripers,
that
they'd make good "grillin' steaks" had we kept some of them. I'll say one
thing for blues, they are absolute hell on soft baits. Whether you catch
them or they just snipe at the baits, they can tear up a lot of plastic in
short order with them teeth...

.....yessir up here in "the bay" you have to get the bait down past the blues
to get to the rocks....the grill helps drain the oil while they
cook.....next time you run into a school of blues, try a big zara
spook.....it's a blast.

"SimRacer" wrote in message
nk.net...
With the continuing "relatively nice for the time" weather we've had here
in NC, me and a fishing buddy linked up and went out to the OBX to get in
on some of this winter Striped Bass fishing we've been hearing so much of
the past few years. We went out this past Saturday (Dec 31) off Hatteras
Island (NC) out of Oregon Inlet and managed to catch a few really nice
stripers. There were a ton of folks on the water, I was even surprised at
the amount of charter boats we saw out there chasing these winter bass.
The "3 mile line" kept us all clumped up along the various stretches of
shore from Kitty Hawk/Duck NC past Oregon Inlet and the Bodie Island
Lighthouse all the way South to Hatteras Village and the lighthouse
itself. So we just jumped into the trolling line that was more like a
fleet by mid morning, and all "followed the birds" looking for schools of
bait fish.

We caught this particular striper about 10 miles North of the Hatteras
Lighthouse, about 2 miles off the beach:
(this is my buddy in the photos, he reeled her in, so we gave him the
glory)

http://home.earthlink.net/~simracer5...b_striper5.jpg

http://home.earthlink.net/~simracer5...b_striper1.jpg

We had her certified for a state citation when we got back in, which is
35lbs here in NC. Weighed 42 lbs on the dot according to the
"official/certified" scales at the tackle shop. Our best rough
measurements were 45" long, 28" girth. Nowhere near the *rumored* new
record set this past week during a tournament of over 60 lbs, which was
the record from 1971 until this past week if said rumor is true. (We heard
several weights through the rumor mill; 62, 63 and 65 pounds, so
apparentlly a large one above 60 lbs was caught)

Hope everyone here at rofb had enjoyable holidays.

That's a beast!
--
Steve @ OutdoorFrontiers
http://www.outdoorfrontiers.com
G & S Guide Service and Custom Rods
http://www.herefishyfishy.com

On Mon, 2 Jan 2006 11:48:25 -0600, "Steve @ OutdoorFrontiers"
wrote:
snip
We caught this particular striper about 10 miles North of the Hatteras
Lighthouse, about 2 miles off the beach:
(this is my buddy in the photos, he reeled her in, so we gave him the
glory)

http://home.earthlink.net/~simracer5...b_striper5.jpg

http://home.earthlink.net/~simracer5...b_striper1.jpg

We had her certified for a state citation when we got back in, which is
35lbs here in NC. Weighed 42 lbs on the dot according to the
"official/certified" scales at the tackle shop. Our best rough
measurements were 45" long, 28" girth. Nowhere near the *rumored* new
record set this past week during a tournament of over 60 lbs, which was
the record from 1971 until this past week if said rumor is true. (We heard
several weights through the rumor mill; 62, 63 and 65 pounds, so
apparentlly a large one above 60 lbs was caught)

Hope everyone here at rofb had enjoyable holidays.

That's a beast!

Every time I see this header, I keep expecting to click the link and
find pictures of the Minnesota Love Boat trip. =)

..
Harry J aka Thundercat
Share the knowledge, compete on execution...
http://www.brooklynbillstackleshop.com
http://secretweaponlures.com

"Thundercat" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 2 Jan 2006 11:48:25 -0600, "Steve @ OutdoorFrontiers"
wrote:
snip
We caught this particular striper about 10 miles North of the Hatteras
Lighthouse, about 2 miles off the beach:
(this is my buddy in the photos, he reeled her in, so we gave him the
glory)

http://home.earthlink.net/~simracer5...b_striper5.jpg

http://home.earthlink.net/~simracer5...b_striper1.jpg

We had her certified for a state citation when we got back in, which is
35lbs here in NC. Weighed 42 lbs on the dot according to the
"official/certified" scales at the tackle shop. Our best rough
measurements were 45" long, 28" girth. Nowhere near the *rumored* new
record set this past week during a tournament of over 60 lbs, which was
the record from 1971 until this past week if said rumor is true. (We
heard
several weights through the rumor mill; 62, 63 and 65 pounds, so
apparentlly a large one above 60 lbs was caught)

Hope everyone here at rofb had enjoyable holidays.

That's a beast!

Every time I see this header, I keep expecting to click the link and
find pictures of the Minnesota Love Boat trip. =)

Yes, and is the reason that I made sure there was only 1 "P" in the
word....lol!

Didn't think that a "42 lb stripper" would've been too cool to
advertise...besides, the locals call them Rockfish....and I didn't know if
that nomenclature was universally accepted "here" for the Striped Bass in
question. This here internet thingie has made the world as small as a
computer screen afterall...and y'all may not call them Rockfish where you
are... ;-)


.
Harry J aka Thundercat
Share the knowledge, compete on execution...
http://www.brooklynbillstackleshop.com
http://secretweaponlures.com

"Steve @ OutdoorFrontiers" wrote in
message ...

"SimRacer" wrote in message
nk.net...
With the continuing "relatively nice for the time" weather we've had
here
in NC, me and a fishing buddy linked up and went out to the OBX to get
in
on some of this winter Striped Bass fishing we've been hearing so much
of
the past few years. We went out this past Saturday (Dec 31) off Hatteras
Island (NC) out of Oregon Inlet and managed to catch a few really nice
stripers. There were a ton of folks on the water, I was even surprised
at
the amount of charter boats we saw out there chasing these winter bass.
The "3 mile line" kept us all clumped up along the various stretches of
shore from Kitty Hawk/Duck NC past Oregon Inlet and the Bodie Island
Lighthouse all the way South to Hatteras Village and the lighthouse
itself. So we just jumped into the trolling line that was more like a
fleet by mid morning, and all "followed the birds" looking for schools
of
bait fish.

We caught this particular striper about 10 miles North of the Hatteras
Lighthouse, about 2 miles off the beach:
(this is my buddy in the photos, he reeled her in, so we gave him the
glory)

http://home.earthlink.net/~simracer5...b_striper5.jpg

http://home.earthlink.net/~simracer5...b_striper1.jpg

We had her certified for a state citation when we got back in, which is
35lbs here in NC. Weighed 42 lbs on the dot according to the
"official/certified" scales at the tackle shop. Our best rough
measurements were 45" long, 28" girth. Nowhere near the *rumored* new
record set this past week during a tournament of over 60 lbs, which was
the record from 1971 until this past week if said rumor is true. (We
heard
several weights through the rumor mill; 62, 63 and 65 pounds, so
apparentlly a large one above 60 lbs was caught)

Hope everyone here at rofb had enjoyable holidays.

That's a beast!

Hehe! Yes it is. The possibility of catching something "like this" was the
very reason we braved the ocean, the weather, etc in the first place, this
time of year.

With fishing pressure seemingly ever increasing around here during the "warm
months" I've made a committment to try to fish more of the off-season, and
it paid off this time. Now, here's hoping when I get on the flat water
nearby chasing the largemouth shortly, that we're as fortunate. Me and the
fella in these photos plan on LM bass fishing every spare day in Feburary
that is above freezing that we can...

--
Steve @ OutdoorFrontiers
http://www.outdoorfrontiers.com
G & S Guide Service and Custom Rods
http://www.herefishyfishy.com