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John's Journal... Entry 150, Day 3

FISHING FOR SALTWATER STRIPER AT WEISS LAKE WITH STEVE POPE

How to Reel In the King

EDITOR'S NOTE: Steve Pope from Centre, Alabama, guides for crappie from February through the middle of May. During May through the hot time of the summer, Pope guides for stripers or bluegills. I discovered on this striper trip with Pope at Weiss Lake that you'll have exciting fun fishing for stripers. On Friday of this week, Pope will give you the secret to cleaning, storing and cooking stripers that will make you leave your crappie poles at home and go out and buy striper tackle for these delicious stripers.

QUESTION: Steve, how are you finding these striper out on Weiss Lake?
ANSWER: We fish in a place all the locals call the Cotton-Gin at the corner of Pruitt's Island. This old underwater structure has scattered debris. The striper are just holding over it, so you can catch them there most of the time. The water around there is 22 to 25 feet deep, and we are fishing between 10 and 13 feet. I usually can find out how deep the fish are at by using a Humminbird depth finder because it draws a line and tells me how deep the striper are.

QUESTION: If you see that the fish are at 10-feet deep over a 20-foot bottom, how do you know how much line to let out?
ANSWER: I have 2 feet of leader below the weight from the barrel swivel to the hook. Therefore, if you put the slip lead on your line at the top of the water, you already have 2 feet of leader under the water. The 2-foot leader is at about the same depth as the transducer that's mounted on the foot of my trolling motor. The distance from the level wind on my reel to the first guide (eye) on my rod is almost exactly 2 feet. So, if I put the lead at the surface of the water and pull the line from the level wind on the reel to the first eye of the rod, you can let your line down in 2-foot increments. With this system of measuring line and calculating depth, you can put your bait in almost the exact depth where the depth finder says the striper are holding.

QUESTION: What kind of rod are you using?
ANSWER: I like to use a 7-foot Ugly Stik. They aren't cute, but they sure are tough. I want a little backbone in my rod, but not a lot because these striper are so powerful, they will physically pull the hooks right out of their mouths. So I want a medium-action rod, and we are fishing with 100-pound-test SpiderWire.

QUESTION: What kind of reels are you using?
ANSWER: I use the Shakespeare Clicker type of bait-casting reel which is important because I like to daydream. Then, when the clicker goes off, I know a striper is there. The Shakespeare clicker is a great device that I strongly recommend. It's not expensive -- $30-50.

QUESTION: What kind of line are you using?
ANSWER: The main line is SpiderWire, 100-pound-test. Then, I go to a barrel swivel. Coming off the barrel swivel, I use 30 inches of fluorocarbon leader. To the end of the leader, I tie a number 5-0-5-LO44FS. I want a lot of shank on the hook so that I can try and get the shank out of the fish's mouth on the leader so that its teeth don't wear on the leader.

QUESTION: With what size live shad do you like to fish?
ANSWER: I prefer a 3- to 4-inch shad. Most striper fishermen choose a 6- or an 8-inch shad that will weigh about 1/2-pound. But I've found that I get more bites and catch more fish on the smaller shad. I think the smaller shad are easier for the stripers to catch and eat, and I believe you get more bites on the smaller shad than the larger shad. If you fish larger shad, you may get more runs where the striper takes the bait, but you won't hook as many stripers as you will if you use the smaller shad.

For more information about striper fishing, call Steve Pope at (256) 927-6617, e-mail him at
clp-pope@tds.net, or visit his Web site, lakeweissguideservice.com. His Web site has up-to-date weather for the lake as well as a photo gallery of what Pope is catching at Weiss each day.

TOMORROW: WHY A FISHING BUDDY IS IMPERATIVE

 

 

Check back each day this week for more FISHING FOR SALTWATER STRIPER AT WEISS LAKE WITH STEVE POPE ...

Day 1 - What to Expect From a Day at Weiss
Day 2 - The Key to a Perfect Day at Weiss Lake
Day 3 - How to Reel In the King
Day 4 - Why a Fishing Buddy is Imperative
Day 5 - The Steps to an Unforgettable Recipe


John's Journal