Over the years I have caught some very big bass on the Hudson. I can also say that there have been years when I have caught a lot of bass on the Hudson. However, this past spring I can say without a doubt, I caught lots of big bass on the Hudson and moreover I did it consistently.

What factors may have contributed to this "banner season" for Osprey? Most likely it was a somewhat drastic change in my fishing habits. I was a steadfast "drift the eels" fisherman. It worked and a lot of bass were caught that way. Don't get me wrong, I still think it is a good method (perhaps more so in salt water at night). I also paid a lot of attention to what my fish finder was showing; perhaps too much attention. And, I would vary my techniques - a good thing to do. So what changed?

The beginning of the season (mid April) was slow. I had a few days when we had to fly the skunk flag. I would talk to some of the other charter boats on the VHF with responses like "come on up river, there is a bunch North of the bridge", or, "fish are stacked up on the East shore near the tracks". Moving around chasing fish was a time when no hooks were in the water. So, much time was spent not fishing! Was it productive? Sometimes. But, I did not think it was worth the time and effort to spend 30 minutes moving. What changed my way of fishing was very simple. Two guys in a 14' rowboat anchored in one of my favorite spots not far from me struck up a conversation. "How ya doin' Cap?" "Good, how about you?" "O.K. so far, only three fish" and they held up one keeper about 36". "I see you move around a lot, why not just stay here? They are always here. This is where we fish all the time."

No fish finder! Two guys, a simple boat, an anchor, bait and PATIENCE! It got me thinking about how I fished when I was younger. Go to you favorite spot (of course we can now analyze that spot using basic biological knowledge about fish) and fish. So that is what I started doing. I would anchor on the mud flats in an area proven to be productive over the years. Never paying much attention to what the fish finder was showing and actually turning it off at times. Spreading four lines out across the stern, each about 50' apart giving about a 150' to 200' area. Using "fish finder" rigs for the weights it allows the bait to float freely in the current and when a fish picks it up it can run with it without feeling the drag of the weight.

I also began using frozen bunker this past season. Herring is fine as well, but I have an abundant source of bunker from fishing the sound during the fall stacked in my freezer. When I tried using it I found it released a lot more oil than herring and lasted longer on the hook - and it is the bait of choice for bass in salt water (some may argue that). Did I give up on eels? No, but for every bass caught on an eel I was catching three or four on bunker chunks. I would also suggest a range in weights from three to five ounces, depending upon the current, and using pyramids rather than banks. They hold better in the mud and will keep the bait where you want it.

From the time I started using this technique we started catching fish - lots of fish and big ones. I did move around on occasion but no more than once or twice during a six hour charter and rather than drifting I anchored. It does take patience, and I had to convince some of my customers that as we would sometimes wait up to and hour or more to start catching. Think about it for a moment; in the region we fish the Hudson it is rather narrow, maybe a quarter mile? The numbers of striped bass moving in the river during the spring has been estimated in the hundreds of thousands. Stay put and wait and they will come! It is like deer hunting. When did I start shooting big bucks consistently? When I found a good spot and stayed put and waited - it works. Take a look at "recent catches" for 2002, we never had a better year.