Butterfish, peanut bunker, mackerel, adult menhaden, silversides, juvenile bay anchovies and butterfish. All this great bait in the water as we approach the end of summer, it almost makes you wish you were a striped bass. You would sure be eating well. And that's the idea behind the Fall Run.
As summer comes to a close, striped bass feel the urge to migrate southward for the winter. To beef up for the long journey, they fill up on baitfish. And late summer is the time to do it, because baitfish—the tiny fish near the bottom of the food chain—are at their peak right now.
For fishermen, that means lots of good fishing, and not just for striped bass. There's bonito, false albacore, and bluefish, too, gorging on the buffet.
Steve Junker and Kevin Blinkoff, of On The Water magazine, discuss the state of our baitfish (anecdotally, looking very good) and the setup for the Fall Run. We also roundup the week's fishing action, including reports of false albacore. Give it a listen.