The word “blitz” gets just about every saltwater angler excited. They begin with zero notice and can disappear as quickly as they boil to the surface. One thing is for certain, if you get the chance to watch one, let alone cast a fly into the chaos, it’s a scene that will stick in your mind forever.
What are blitzes?
Blitzes occur when predatory fish (in this case Striped Bass) push a ball of baitfish up against the surface of the water and begin to feed aggressively. From above, it looks like the water is boiling, and from below, well, it just looks like a massacre. After the carnage subsides, the water looks like a snowglobe filled with leftover fish scales. This footage was captured during one of the famous fall blitzes that occur along the shoreline of the Cape Cod Canal during the Striped Bass’ run south to their wintering grounds off the mid-Atlantic.
How do you fish a blitz?
Before you commence, make sure to observe the behavior of the birds and the action on the waters surface. If you are wade fishing for stripers, you might get fortunate with blind casting. However, if you’re fishing from a boat and spot a cluster of birds, you could stumble upon some epic fishing.
Once you have identified a blitz, it’s crucial to cast your line accurately and strip quickly to entice fish to follow your fly. Strive to avoid startling the fish by casting farther to maintain a stealthy position for your fly, increasing the likelihood of getting strikes. A strategic approach to a blitz involves monitoring your surroundings, determining the direction of the fish movement, and gradually casting ahead of the feeding fish. When you’re ready to initiate the retrieval of your fly, hits may occur immediately, but experiment with varying retrieval speeds.
Proper gear for striper fishing:
- 9 wt fly rod – Sage R8 Salt
- Fly Reel – Ross Evolution R Salt 9/10 Reel
- Full Intermediate Sinking Fly Line – Airflo Cold Saltwater Intermediate 9 wt
- Stripping basket – Sondergaard’s ECOastal Stripping Basket
- Pliers – Van Staal Titanium Pliers with Lanyard & Sheath
- Polarized Sunglasses – Costa King Tide 6 or 8 Polarized Sunglasses
- Flies – Clouser Minnow, Deceiver, EP Peanut Butter Fly, EP Mud Minnow
Encountering a blitz in saltwater fishing can be an incredibly exhilarating experience. Witnessing the sheer speed and agility of stripers as they aggressively target bait balls is both thrilling and intimidating, making it a rare and memorable occurrence. Mastering the art of approaching a blitz and employing the appropriate gear has the potential to transform an otherwise uneventful day of fishing into a highly successful and rewarding one!
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