Looking for Cumberland Striper info.

[spindoc]

Went with a Striper charter on Cumberland last Thursday. Got our limit (and 8 keeper cats) but the fourth striper took a while to find.

 

Fished with planer boards at depths of between 30-48'. Fished with 1-1.5 oz egg sinkers that stopped at a swivel. Had a 5' leader (20lb flourocarbon mono) with a circle hook with alewifes as bait. Each hook had a little black plastic disc on it that apparently kept the bait from moving too far up the hook. Not sure what hook size we used. Rest of the line was 20lb monofilament. Trolled at very slow motor speeds. Lost lots of bait due to gar (half the bait would be missing).

 

Rained most of the morning but caught more in the rain (between 6AM and 8:30AM) than when it stopped.

What marina did you fish out of?

[Jumper_Dad]

What marina did you fish out of?

I know two of the guides are going out of Cumberland Point (across from Conley Bottom) this time of year.

[spindoc]

I know two of the guides are going out of Cumberland Point (across from Conley Bottom) this time of year.

I know several guides out of Grider Hill. My bro-in-law is one. He's actually leaving as we speak to NoCarolina to buy a 22ft skiff to fish out of from now on.

[Sonny Crockett]

State Dock. The guide will pick you up from anywhere on the lake though.

[Sonny Crockett]

Cumberland Striper Charters - Cumberland Striper Charters | Welcome to Lake Cumberland

 

I recommend this company highly.

[dd734]

I know several guides out of Grider Hill. My bro-in-law is one. He's actually leaving as we speak to NoCarolina to buy a 22ft skiff to fish out of from now on.

Who's your brother in law? I haven't ruled out going the guide route.

[dd734]

xxx

[spindoc]

Who's your brother in law? I haven't ruled out going the guide route.

Jay Virgin. You let me know and I'll invade him with you.

[Mustang]

DD sorry to hear that you are having trouble getting around.

 

If I were in your situation and only going for one day, I would definitely go the guide route. It is pretty much a sure thing that they will put you on fish. The only caveat with using a guide is that they will take you out, catch your two man limit of two stripers each, probably smaller fish, zip you back to the dock, clean your fish, collect your $250 plus tip and send you on your way, whether it is one hour or six hours. They will not fish catch-and-release because of the mortality rates and will not fish for other species. (I.e., my last experience with Nancy Guide Service.)

 

I really prefer Norris Lake for stripers because the average quality of the fish is soooo much better than at Cumberland . Rarely do you catch 22 inch fish at Norris, unless its spring and you are flat-lining them. My guess is that on average the Norris fish range in the 12-15 pound range.

 

I honestly feel that striper fishing difficulty is waaaayyy over-rated. Believe me Spindoc and the locals don't use guides. I own a pair of Ambasadour 6000 reels loaded with lead-core line. I rig these with 2 to 3 ounce white hair jigs (just like everyone else) and add a clear chartreuse twister tail trailer. I start in about 60 feet of water, watching my $98 Hummingbird unit for suspended fish (or any fish at all) and work into deeper water or off of points. I t r o l l at 2mph, because that is as slow as my motor will allow short of back-t r o l l. If I need the jigs to run deeper I add keel sinkers ahead of the leader. I run off from 6 to 8 colors (10 yards to a color) and then sit back, try to keep the boat on line and wait for a strike. You will see one or two fish show up on the fish-finder with no results. When you see a bunch of fish show up, hang on! That is when you will get a strike.

 

I don't use planer boards nor down-riggers. We don't always catch fish, but more often than not, fishing in the fall, we do. Attached are a few samplings of our catches.

 

Edited July 16, 2015 by Mustang
Word filter ddin't like the word "t r o l l"

[spindoc]

^sage advice indeed