New to fishing

[HarleyFXDL]

Hello all. I used to catch bluefish when I was a kid and lived on LI. I have not fished in over 30 yrs and would love to get back into it. I am retiring soon and plan to devote a lot of time to fishing. I presently live near the Tappen Zee bridge and bought an 18' boat to take me out. My question is where to go and how to get started? I'm not sure what gear I will need or where to go. I have heard of striper's running up the Hudson, but I was told NOT to eat any. I would like to make trips out off of sandy hook and eat what I catch. Any help as to how to start and what to do would be appreciated.

[ChrisL]

I can't help ya much with the advise, but I will say welcome to the site.
There's plenty of knowledgeable guys here that will help ya get started.

[Hotrod]

I'm Sure there will be a lot of help coming your way in this topic.

For starters. 

What type of gear do you have now.  Rods, Reels Tackle etc...

and for the boat.  Gps.. etc..

[gymrat987654321]

welcome i don't really think the striped bass in the hudson are dangerous to eat. if they are, then the ones around sandy hook should be too. these fish migrate thousands on miles and the fish you catch around sandy hook probably spent sometime in the hudson. i'm not an expert but i would eat striped bass from the hudson as if they were from somewhere else. check this site out for what fish to eat and not eat and how much to eat. again welcome and good luck.

http://www.state.nj.us/dep/dsr/njmainfish.htm

[HarleyFXDL]

I'm Sure there will be a lot of help coming your way in this topic.

For starters. 

What type of gear do you have now.  Rods, Reels Tackle etc...

and for the boat.  Gps.. etc..

I have not bought any gear yet as I am not sure what to buy. I have a $45 rod and reel that I used for large mouth bass in a local lake. The boat is an 18' Boston Whaler Outrage. I got the boat from the original owner and have started the restoration. The boat has an Eagle Strata 128 FF and I had planned to buy a Std Horizon VHF/GPS combo. Other than what I've mentioned, I have no other gear.

[Hotrod]

Well Yes..  the first thing is a good GPS

Then I would invest in a "set" of Shimano 350 bait runners..  Not sure on the best rods for these..  But these reels will do a lot for you.. from Clunking, Live lining Bait and throwing metal. For blue , Stripers. etc.  Price is a factor I'm sure. These are mid range..  You can probably pick up each set.. Pole and reel for about 200$

For bottom Fishing Fluke and smaller Species.. I'll leave that for others..

[blynch]

Firstly, Welcome to the Madness...!

As hotrod said picking a solid 12-15 lb class spinning rods will serve you well.  Also, i would advise you to get a penn 320gt2 levelwind conventional reel and a matchicng rod, maybe a tsunami or tica Striper series (20 lb line). It has some different uses than the spinning gear and is one of the best setups for the money you can get.  With rods like these you can do just about anyt inshore fishing you want. once you start fishing more and begin to decide which fish you would like to target and where you can start to customize your future purchases.  Il leave the terminal gear to the others...
gd luck,
blynch

[HarleyFXDL]

Firstly, Welcome to the Madness...!

As hotrod said picking a solid 12-15 lb class spinning rods will serve you well.  Also, i would advise you to get a penn 320gt2 levelwind conventional reel and a matchicng rod, maybe a tsunami or tica Striper series (20 lb line). It has some different uses than the spinning gear and is one of the best setups for the money you can get.  With rods like these you can do just about anyt inshore fishing you want. once you start fishing more and begin to decide which fish you would like to target and where you can start to customize your future purchases.  Il leave the terminal gear to the others...
gd luck,
blynch

Blynch, you mention a spinning rod and a conventional, when do you use each? I have a Daiwa 7ft rod with a Daiwa 4000B spinning rod. Not sure how good this set up is, but it was only ~$40, so this can't be a quality piece. Is a conventional reel used for jigging??? What is each reel used for?

[NJ Guy]

Firstly, Welcome to the Madness...!

As hotrod said picking a solid 12-15 lb class spinning rods will serve you well.  Also, i would advise you to get a penn 320gt2 levelwind conventional reel and a matchicng rod, maybe a tsunami or tica Striper series (20 lb line). It has some different uses than the spinning gear and is one of the best setups for the money you can get.  With rods like these you can do just about anyt inshore fishing you want. once you start fishing more and begin to decide which fish you would like to target and where you can start to customize your future purchases.  Il leave the terminal gear to the others...
gd luck,
blynch

Blynch, you mention a spinning rod and a conventional, when do you use each? I have a Daiwa 7ft rod with a Daiwa 4000B spinning rod. Not sure how good this set up is, but it was only ~$40, so this can't be a quality piece. Is a conventional reel used for jigging??? What is each reel used for?

Spinning is a easier set up for casting and jigging or fishing from the surf but if you plan on bottom fishing from boat or trolling or just want a challenging and rewarding way of baitcasting.

If you are going out on a boat set yourself up with some conventional setups

If you are going to be hopping jettys or fishing from the surf set yourself up with spinning rigs


GENERALLY you can get a nice spinning outfit for a lower price than conventional but this doesnt always beir true


The easiest way to start off in my opion is to stick to bait fishing until you get into the rythom of things then start jigging plugging trolling ect ect ect

Need any help just post or message

MIKE

[blynch]

yeah theres no question that spinning gear is the way to go for casting lures and fishing from land.  However, I (and i think, most anglers) find conventional gear to be far superior for trolling and bait fishing. conventional reels hold more line for their weight, and the revovling spool system allows you to control the speed at which you let line out.  the only concern with conventional gear is that it is more tangle prone than spinning gear.  When you flip the lever on the side of the reel oposite the handle to let line out, you must keep your thumb lightly on the revolving spoool to prevent it from overriding and creating a "brid's nest"  This isnt hard to do when you are bottom fishing or trolling, but until you are quite good with the tackle you probably shouldnt try to cast with it.  Baitcasting setups, which Penn. Guy brought up, are basically a form of conventional gear that is more conducive to casting, but again, leave these alone until later. 

My advice is to go to a good tackle shop in your area, ask someone there what they reccomend, and just try different stuff out.

btw, daiwas really arent bad but you will probably like a graphite rod better...

[HarleyFXDL]

So, for now the best bet is to stay with bait? If so, what is the proper bait and technique for each type of fish locally? Would I use bloodworms and troll for stripers?
This may sound stupid, but are there pictures on how to set up a rod? I'm sure I don't just tie a hook on the end of the line............

[Hotrod]

   This is gunna be a good Topic..
I think our best bet for you... will be starting with the Fish and Seasons..  and that would be the Spring Striper Run.  Maybe the guys can cover.

Snagging Bunker.

Livelining Bunker.

Chunking Clams / Bunker

Ava Jigging

This is where the Bait Runners will come in handy.

[blynch]

check this site out

StriperSpacehttp://www.striperspace.com/

its the biggest most comprehensive striped bass fishing site ive seen.

Also,


FishNJ

A small site I made several years ago when i knew how to do such things.  It not glamorous but it has alot of basic information to help you get started.

[Hotrod]

There are some very Good topics here also.

Here are a Couple.

http://njsaltwaterfisherman.com/forums/index.php?topic=5196.0

http://njsaltwaterfisherman.com/forums/index.php?topic=176.0

http://njsaltwaterfisherman.com/forums/index.php?topic=3556.0

[Treebeard]

Welcome Harley    You have gotten a lot of good advise so far.. I may be able to help in regards to the Hudson.. first of all.. you are in luck.. you won't need to travel far at first as  most of of  Striped Bass in the northeast  will be swimming by your back door at some point between mid April and June,  as they make their spawning run up the river , and the Tappan Zee/ Haverstraw bay area is one of their first rest stops..    Your 18 footer is plenty of boat for the river on most days, and I used one for almost 20 years up here  before finally upsizing  to something more suited to the salt.. As far as exactly where in the area to fish, You will need to learn a bit about your quarry.. striped bass like to relate to structure like channel edges, dropoffs, rockpiles, flats, bridge abutments, etc.. and will hold in different areas at various stages of the tide..  I highly suggest picking up a good chart like the ones put out by "Fishing Hotspots", which will have the better known holding structures highlighted..  and oh yea.. you will also see a lot of boats on the better spots    
As for tackle, you have gotten a good idea from the others here .. I would concur that some Baitrunner Spinning outfits may be your best choice first, as I believe they offer the ease of use of Spinning , with the line control ability of a conventional.. You would be well served to stop by a real tackle store (not a box store) , and talk to the staff and let them show you the differences the guys here are talking about.. The best ones near you that i can think of are Davis Sports in Sloatsburg, NY or just across the NJ border is Ramsey Outdoors.. Guys in either place will set ya straight.      As for baits/ lures here on the river,  much of what works in the salt applies, with some exceptions...but please make sure to learn the regs, as they are very different north of the GW bridge.. (for example, while acceptable in the salt, snag hooks and gaffs will get you a ticket quick on the river..)   You wont see many bunker up as far as the Tap , rather,  the natural bait is predominately Herring..Chunks anytime, or live when the big girls show up.. The biggest problem with them will be consistently acquiring a fresh supply..If you are going to chunk, freshness is critical, as it is everywhere for Bass.. With all the crazy regs concerning baitfish it hard for tackle shops to carry fresh/ livies.. Frozen bait will get you lots of Catfish and big Eels, but few Bass.. so you'll usually need to catch them yourself.. Eels are also a great live  bait, but again the bait regs are making them harder to come by at the stores.. As for rigs, about  the same as you'd use in the salt.. A Fishinder or carolina rig for chunks.. 3-way and slip float rigs for drifting eels .. Early in the run ( mid-late april ) I'll worm fish with bloods/ sands.. Usually on a 3-way rig.. and action with schoolies can be fast.. Gets expensive though.. between the Schoolies and the white perch, I have gone through whole flats in a few hours    Once the water temps get into the Mid 50's trolling becomes very effective. You wont see or have need for wire/ lead outfits up on the river.. Almost all of my trolling here is with diving plugs on braided line, and I can get to where the fish are holding very effectively.. You'll also see alot of guys pulling plugs/ spoons behind downriggers, but I prefer to flatline so as I can really bump the structure.. Some of my favorite plugs are Bomber 25 and 26a's, Rebel DJ30's, and Manns stretch 20/25/30s.. Chartreuse or fire tiger, and black/silver, blue/silver will cover ya most days..
The only bad advise you gotten so far is from whomever told you not to eat the Stripers out of the Hudson..    They are the same fish as you will catch in the Salt, and are not in the river long enough to collect  extra toxins.. The state recommendation  for eating any fish out of any freshwater is 1 meal per month, but the Stripers are as safe to eat as any, if not more so due to their limited time in the river.. There are some areas near albany that have advisories due to elevated PCB levels, but don't be afraid to enjoy a Striper you catch near home.. 
Holy smokes.. can ya tell it's slow at work today?  oh, well.. I hope this helps, and again welcome!
C'mon April!!!

[HarleyFXDL]

Thanks guys for all the advice. It is good reading, just having a tough time figuring out all the lingo.

Almost all of my trolling here is with diving plugs on braided line, and I can get to where the fish are holding very effectively.. You'll also see alot of guys pulling plugs/ spoons behind downriggers, but I prefer to flatline so as I can really bump the structure.. Some of my favorite plugs are Bomber 25 and 26a's, Rebel DJ30's, and Manns stretch 20/25/30s.. Chartreuse or fire tiger, and black/silver, blue/silver will cover ya most days

This sounds like great stuff, not sure what it all is though....

[L.T.]

I know your head is probably spinning by now but, the one thing I would like to add is: You might want to go to one of the knot tying sites such as fishingknots.com and learn some basic knots such as improved clinch, dropper loop, snell etc. You can practice using string.  Good winter project.  Once you hook your prey you don't want to lose it because of a weak knot. _:"   Most important, HAVE FUN

[Hotrod]

Yes.  this knot will work in all application.. that you'll be using.

Improved Clinch Knot

The Lures talked about above are trolling lures.  the Number represents the depth they will swim at.

In this image you will also see a top water Popper.



You should look into jumping on someones boat here for a trip out for stripers.  I'd invite you. but you want to go with someone that catches fish 

[Jeffish]

I know your head is probably spinning by now but, the one thing I would like to add is: You might want to go to one of the knot tying sites such as fishingknots.com and learn some basic knots such as improved clinch, dropper loop, snell etc. You can practice using string.  Good winter project.  Once you hook your prey you don't want to lose it because of a weak knot. _:"   Most important, HAVE FUN

With that said, next time you're around Dick's, pick up a cheap spool of 40-50# test Mono leader. It will cost about 5 bucks or so, sit down, and practice tying knots. Some knots may come off as hard or impossible, but keep in mind that someone tied it before, so it's not impossible. I sat down and tied knots on the same hook for hours every night until my thumb had so many holes in it. Practice makes perfect!

http://njsaltwaterfisherman.com/forums/index.php?topic=14886.0
^ If you feel like looking at some pretty pictures! I wouldn't pay attention to the rig itself, but only the pictures showing how to snell.

I'm sure there is plenty more left to cover in this thread!

[rugman]

Welcome .Did you say the Tappen Zee