Stripe Bass

[Dryrod]

[cool][font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]I just learned that South Carolina is the state where the freshwater striped bass fishery was born. Any body have any successful outings for this great game fish? [/size][/green][/font]
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[davetclown]

welcome to the club, I have known that for 40 years, Thanks to feild and stream mag.

I have yet had the pleasure of fishing for those woppers my self, but you bet once I get relocated I will be looking forward to my first... and I hope its a little one so the fish stories will only get bigger..[sly]
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[Tarpon4me]

You guys are right on with your accessment of striper fishing, I just with I knew how to target them. LOL Shame on me this time Dave. [] I know Wateree has striper, and of course Santee Cooper. Not only have I not caught a striper, i've never eatten one either. I hear they are pretty good eatin'. Maybe one of our locals will jump in on this one and shed some light on the subject. [cool]
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[davetclown]

there are three bass there actualy.

white bass
striped bass
and wipers or also called stripers.
(hybred between the white bass and striped bass)

I have caught white bass in the great lakes, but we dont get much of a chance to get the big ones because of the comercial fishing for them. so the ones I catch run about a pound or two tops.

they are good, in the local stores up hear they call them "white fish" because most people hear bass and say yuck.

I usualy catch the white bass while fishing for walleye. so running a trolling line with a soft plastic, dead minow or worm works in my area.

as a matter of fact, those leaders I sent you is what I use for them. only mine are a bit longer in lenth, about 24 inches depending one drift speed. slower the drift the shorter the leader I use.
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[Tarpon4me]

I wondered what you used those rigs for up there. Of course, i've never been walleye fishing, so I have no clue as to how it's done. I intend on testing those rigs out for flounder. I think they will work awesome with a mud minnow hooked through the lips during a slow drift.

The true prized stripers are the ones targeted in the ocean off the coast of NC. There are some monster stripers on the salty side. 50, 60, 70 pounds is common. I couldn't imagine that a fish that size would be worth anything on the table, but what a fight that would be.

I've also heard that white bass are the better eatting of the three, even though it's the smaller species. I wouldn't even know how to clean a striper. Do you scale, head, and gut them? Or do you fillet them? Of course, that would be more a matter of opinion. I say that because I know people that fillet crappie, and to me that wastes alot of the meat. The only fish I fillet is mostly salt water species, like mackerel or flounder.
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[davetclown]

I do all my fish the same except the small river trout.

I fillet every thing, in michigan waters the fish advisory says to fillet and skin them.

with a sharp knife, a clean flat cutting board the only meat you will lose is in between the bones. I dont pick that clean with the bone on them,

Lets face it, I Inhale them when I eat them [] cant get them down fast enough, so I have to have a lot of them....LOL and I do, crappies perch and especialy the gills, (gills brim) nothing taist better than those pulled up though a hole in the ice...

any who, if you want to know about eating ocean stripers ask on the NY board and the conetticut board. Those mods target salt water stripers and eat them... the ones I will be looking at will be fresh water.
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[gdn443]

Believe it when I say a 50lb striper tastes as sweet as a 8lber. I fillet them and cut the slabs to meal portion size. I only go after them 3-4 times a year, but it's the taste that keeps me going back to try again. Topwater plugs and trolling tube&worm has been lucky for me.
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[Tarpon4me]

I would say the taste factor is a trait unique to Stripers. I've never tasted a fish in a larger size that was as good as the smaller ones; ocean or freshwater. That's impressive.

Would you compare the taste to Flounder, or something more along the lines of Bluefish? How do you cook it? I'm asking all these questions because I might just make my way to Santee to give it a try. I've said that in the past, and wasn't able to make it there for what ever reason. It seems like everytime I want to try'em, something happens. LOL, go figure.

I worry about putting my boat in Santee as well. There's alot of stumps and tree tops submerged in Santee, not a safe place to fish if you don't know the water atleast decently. I honestly can't say that the benefits out weigh the risks.
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[gdn443]

I think their sweeter than flounder. Any simple receipe so as not to over power the taste. Blues are crab and fluke bait.LOL
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[Tarpon4me]

Finally someone that agrees with me. LOL I'm not a big fan of eatting blues. If you bleed them and prepare them with in a day, they're OK. But like I've said before, why would you keep something like a blue when there are so many other species of fish out there that are such better eatting?

I actually use bluefish for cut bait. It works really well, almost as good as menhaden; in some cases better. A 6 to 8 incher is also killer live bait. I actually troll blues if I get my hands on enough of them. King Mackerel love blues, along with any other fish that hangs around a reef; including cobia and AJ's.
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[gdn443]

Their killer for me for fluke bait. Just cut a strip off and add to the rig and hang on. Tomc told me that secret. Works great.
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