This morning I launched from Riviera Marina at 5:45 AM with one mission—scouting new water by trolling to cover ground efficiently. Conditions were typical for this time of year: water temps between 81–83°F, air temps ranging from 90–101°F, and sunrise at 5:50 AM. Winds started out light at 6–8 mph but steadily built to 15 mph with gusts out of the south by late morning. I headed south to Pilot Rock and began trolling in 40–50 feet of water using a custom-painted lipless crankbait (shoutout to @spellmancustoms on Instagram) and an Alabama rig. Just two minutes in, I hooked into a solid striper weighing just over 2 pounds—a nice change from the recent run of dinks. Continuing south toward Steamboat Cove, I marked bait balls across from Black Meadow Landing and some scattered schools of smaller striper, but the bite slowed and only produced more small fish. I swapped the A-rig for a smaller deep-diving Rapala and managed one more hook-up while trolling. South of Steamboat, I found heavy bait activity and busting schoolies. I tied on a jig and had fun picking off a handful before wrapping up the morning. Overall, it was a productive trip with several new spots logged for future trips. I won’t be on the water tomorrow unless a charter books, but I’ll be heading back out Thursday to continue exploring regardless.

We hit the water at 6:00 AM this morning with air temps already creeping into the low 90s and water temps holding steady between 81 and 83 degrees. Sunrise came at 5:50 AM, and we had a light breeze to start—about 6–8 mph—but by the end of the trip the wind had picked up to a steady 15 mph out of the south, with gusts up to 10 mph. We were fishing in about 33 feet of water and were out there until 9:00 AM. This morning I picked up my client Albert and his 10-year-old son bright and early at Rotary Park. We headed straight out to the buoy line and anchored on some numbers that had been producing well last week. I dropped both bow and stern anchors to stay locked in and got the chum working—cut bait and the chum bucket combo. We marked a few fish under the boat and watched them rise in the water column, but they just weren’t feeding. Most of the stripers we saw seemed more interested in chasing shad than taking our offerings. We’d get occasional small pods of bait coming through with a few quick hits, but nothing consistent enough to stick with. At about 7:00 AM, I decided to make a move. The young angler was getting eager to “catch dinner,” so we slid about 125 yards northwest of the first spot and found a large school of striper boiling on bait. We anchored just off the boil, got our scent trail going again, and this time the stripers stacked up under the boat and got active. The bite turned on fast. We caught a few on cut bait, then switched to jigging spoons, which the 10-year-old quickly got the hang of—he was reeling them in nonstop. Fish were flying on deck, smiles were everywhere, and it turned into one of those mornings you just don’t forget. They ended up keeping 18 fish, and I got a text later saying the family was enjoying a good ol’ fish fry that evening. Now, for those of you giving me a hard time about all the dinks lately—you’re going to love this: the biggest fish today weighed a whopping 1.5 pounds! Not much size to brag about, but hey, we’re staying on the fish and keeping the lines tight and the energy high. I don’t have a trip on the books tomorrow morning, so I’m planning a solo scouting mission to try and locate some bigger schools. If you’re waiting to hook into something that pulls back a little harder, now’s a great time to book one of our Flathead Catfish evening charters. With the full moon approaching, we’ve got some prime dates coming up—don’t miss your shot at a true river monster.

We hit the water early from 6 AM to 9 AM with air temps already climbing into the low 100s, water temps holding at 84°F, and a light 5 mph breeze. Sunrise was at 5:49 AM, and the stripers were sitting slightly deeper than last week as the hotter weather and weekend boat traffic pushed the shad lower in the water column. We anchored in about 33 feet of water, roughly 75 yards off the no-wake buoy on the right side closer to Body Beach than the Nautical. Early in the morning, we tossed some topwater after spotting small, isolated schools of stripers pushing shad to the surface, but it didn’t produce. I regrouped, chopped up some chum, and mixed in loose pieces along with the chum bucket to see if I could hold any roaming schools under the boat. About 30 minutes in, the plan worked and a good school stacked up beneath us. This trip was extra special as I brought my 4-year-old son out for some one-on-one fishing time. He kept me busy baiting hooks as he reeled in stripers one after another, with the biggest hitting 2 lbs. Between helping him, I picked up a few fish on 3" white grubs with an 1/8 oz jig head and a couple more on a 1 oz silver jig with a red head. We finished the morning with our limits and will be frying them up in the next couple of days. Tomorrow, August 4th, we have a 3-hour morning striped bass charter special for two anglers. The bite is dialed in, so if you want to join the action book today.