In the predawn light, the surface water was dimpled with what appeared to be so many trout taking emerging May flies. Jim's fast-stripped Clouser hadn't traveled two feet before being engulfed by the first fish. Over my shoulder Ed shouted, " I'm on!" from the rear casting platform. Both fly rods dancing from the strain of surging stripers,anglers giggling in delight, no wind, bass slurping bait all around the boat, and the sun just coming over the yard arm-- a fly fishing guide's dream come true. As Jim's twenty-four inch bass neared the net, it gave evidence to what the feeding foray focused on---small, shiny, four-inchbait-fish called silversides.

From the same waters that in years past attracted a plethora of anglers from New York and New Jersey in search of black-back flounders, now come schools of stripers that this scribe has not seen before in his lifetime. Every morning from early May through the early fall, as long as the tide is running, feeding bass push sliversides and herring to the surface, attracting the gulls and terns, in turn leading the fisherman to their quarry. On a given day the action could start at such places as Hull Gut, Wollaston, Quincy Bay, the flats off the Airport , or the Outer Islands. Where ever the bait is in evidence, the stripers come to call and feed either in or out with the tide. 30 to 70 fish trips with most fish between 18 and 24 inches are the rule in the early season. By mid-morning the surface activity is all over. At this point, casting to the many rips, bars, ledges, and rocky out-croppings Boston's harbor islands have to offer is most productive and can produce some of the larger bass just waiting to ambush your presentation. Boston's harbor islands and Cohasset's Minot's ledge are veritable rock gardens for growing rock fish. If you want to fish structure, you won't be disappointed in these waters. As Mike Gilbert, of Mahwah, NJ, who makes the four-hour pilgrimage almost weekly to fish these waters, says, " If striper fisherman in New Jersey had any idea about this resource, they would not fish anywhere else in the summer."

The relatively cold water most of the summer, keeps the bass active and hard-fighting especially in the early season. The first "schoolies" aggressively take the bait and pound for pound seem to fight the hardest when they hit the harbor in May. I believe water temperature has a lot to do with it. Whether you fly-cast, spin-cast, or troll light-tackle, action can be had if you "match the hatch". 7-9 weight fly rods, a quality reel with a smooth drag capable of holding 200 yards of backing spliced to a 300-400 grain Orvis Depth Charge or Teeny fly line, will handle the school sized stripers as well as the keepers that are mixed in. A short 4 to 6 foot shot of 20 pound fluorocarbon is all that is needed for a leader. This material is stiff, which turns the fly over well and sinks faster than mono. A long leader would defeat the purpose of the aforementioned fast sinking lines. Further, these fish aren't leader shy.

For flies, if you had to choose only one, a 3/0-5/0 chartreuse Half&Half will consistently produce and seems match the silversides well. My personal favorite is Dan Blanton's Sar-Mul-Mac. I believe in big flies for big fish. This fly has a large silhouette and the large eyes seem to trigger a better strike response during daylight hours. Small poppers and sliders like Winslow's Afternoon Delight work well on top with a floating line.

Light spinning and bait casters are having a field day with Mackerel Fin-S rubber baits using 3/8 to 1/2 oz. heads. These baits have the advantage of sinking below the more aggressive smaller bass and a flipping tail that the stripers find irresistible. The shad or 9-ER rubber baits also work well. On top, try texas-rigged Slug-gos and Bagley's injured minnow. If light trolling is your bag, use mono or two colors of lead-core tied to a 9-ER rig or the stand-by and consistent producer an 18 in. tube-and-worm rig trolled as slow as you can go.

By mid-June the schools of big bass have settled into the Boston area. Usually, for about two weeks, when these fish first show up in numbers, there is a feeding blitz. At this time, these big stripers are aggressive. Bait fisherman using "pogies" or "Bunkers", either chunked or trolled, fill the fish boxes. For the past two years, this has occurred around the 4th of July and coincided with the start of the commercial season. Last year's Blitz produced one of my most memorable fly fishing charters ever. Leaving the dock in Cohasset with charter Bob Pike of Milton, MA, we experienced pea-soup fog. Thank God for Garmin's G-Map GPS--I highly recommend this device if you intend to fish the rock gardens on your own. On reaching Minot's ledge, we found not a ripple on the water and ourselves totally alone except for the fins and tails everywhere the eye could see--which wasn't far. Bob's first cast produce a jarring strike. Instantly, the fish was into the backing and we were following the line with the boat to keep the bass from wrapping in lobster pots, kelp, rocks or whatever else big bass seem to find to bang their heads on to shake the hook. As the fish settled down and neared the boat, you could see an armada of spiny dogfish following. The fins and tails were evidently hundreds of dogfish on the surface. Bob's 37" striper was brought to net, photographed, and released. The fog started to lift and we found ourselves not quite so alone as we thought. A number of commercial bass fisherman were also fishing this spot, about the size of a football field. However, what ey were catching wasn't what they anticipated. Further, our bait, Sar-Mul-Macs, had no smell. The stage was set for a real coup. Before the dogfish cleared, we hooked 14 bass, broke-off two, pulled the hook on one, and landed 11 between 33" and 41", releasing all unharmed to the chagrin of the onlookers. Usually the roles are reversed. I never thought I would appreciate dogfish!

For the traveling angler there are a number of public launching ramps in and around Boston. Scituate, Weymouth, Winthrop and Lynn are the closest. A great source of information for the visiting angler is the Division of Marine Fisheries "Saltwater Sport Fishing Guide". This guide offers information on bait and tackle shops, charter boats, fishing guides and launching ramps. A free copy can be obtained by writing the Sport Fishing Program, Leverett Saltonstall Bldg., 100 Cambridge St., Boston, MA 02202 or calling (617)-727-3193. Local Fly shops can provide fly patterns, guides, and fishing reports. Orvis Boston's Mike Chambers (617)-742-0288, Henry Weston's Outfitter's Jim McKay (781)-826-7411 on the South Shore, and Rivers Edge Trading Co. (781)-921-8008 on Boston's North Shore should hit all the bases.

To quote Paul Diodati's Sport Fishing Guide, "Massachusetts is long famous for record-size striped bass and currently has the largest and most successful recreational striped bass fishery in the country. This single resource is the backbone of our Marine recreational fishery." Rather than waiting out the doldrums of summer for the fall run go north young man for the bass of summer.

Capt. Mike Bartlett is the 2001 Orvis Northeast Saltwater Fly-Fishing Guide of the Year and operates Fast Charters in Massachusetts.

Capt. Mike Bartlett