About the Captain:
It is safe to say that I’ve spent my entire life chasing fish. So, the natural evolution was for me to finally do the work and get my captain’s license. I’ve been fishing for striped bass in the Hudson River since the mid-eighties.
Mostly trolling then, that was the thing to do, especially in Kingston. We would
catch some fish, usually smaller ones. I was very proud of those fish,
though. See, I had an uncle who was one of those hard-core fanatics that lived
to fish the beaches of the Cape and Long Island. Growing up, those fish were
an enigma to me.
I paid some dues fishing the beaches at night as a kid. I was happy with a dogfish!
So as a young man, catching my own bass was good. Then I adopted the philosophy
of the fly fisherman, “Match the hatch” - the hatch being herring!
My fishing here in the river revolved around the herring.
If the ospreys were here, then the herring were here, and that meant the stripers were
here... and I was going fishing! Provided I could catch, buy, or beg some fresh
herring. If you fish with me we’re gonna get 'em. I can almost guarantee
it!
I fish out of smaller striper boats compared to some charter captains I know.
Reason being, I need to get up to the falls of the Esopus to get the freshest
bait I can. There are times I’m fishing shallow. Real shallow. I’m
talking fish in just two feet of water! The big boats just can’t get in that
shallow water.
My kind of fishin' is big fish [30lb Striped Bass!] in very shallow water. Now
that’s
exciting! You see the strike as it happens, right in front of your eyes!
Then they make a b-line to deep water. We’re talking a 50-100 yard run! My
trips are for the greedy fisherman; with 1-2 guests on board the chances
are good that you’ll be busy.
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You will get an education on local techniques
that I’ve fine-tuned
from catching herring to catching cows. Let’s talk conservation
and respect for our resource, the river. I’ve seen this fishery
change from season to season. It has its ebbs and flows over the years
because it’s a wild thing.
These are not hatchery fish. They come here to spawn and then go back
to the Atlantic to run up and down the coast. The Hudson River is their
nursery.
A 30lb striper [40inch] fish has about 500,000 eggs in her and most are females.
My Commitment to Conservation:
If you catch a 30lb [40inch] bass or better
and we release her unharmed, I‘ll gladly take 10% off the trip. 30lb
striped bass are not that uncommon, but each one is definitely a trophy!
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