Bass and carp are still on the main river this time of year. Yellow perch are the first to move into the Esplanade to spawn. They are usually there this time of the year, but it has been awfully cold this year. Tiny swimbaits work great at the pools closer to the main river. If you really want to try for bass I would go right past the esplanade in either direction and look at the bridges or find some water (sewer) discharge.
That section has some great smallies and largies in it !!
And they are there year round...Ive seen some large schools of stripers(schoolies) on opposite side around the marinas
Almost 20 years back I was on my way to the esplanade by boat with my dog..I noticed 100's of bait jumping onshore along the shoreline just after the BU bridge...I was throwing a rattle trap and hooked into something BIG...couldnt budge it,this thing started to tow my 18' Cajun Bass rig out into the middle of the river..as my boat started to turn I looked up from my line to see this asian woman staring with her mouth open in disbelief !!
I probabaly had the same look on mine!!! As I started pulling away from shore.. I knew I had to turn this fish if I was going to see and/or catch it because the fish had already stripped a 100 or so yards from my reel....as I started to pull back I could feel it was something massive, I went to reel in some slack, very little at that but it suddenly was gone.....I continued to reel thinking my line snapped but as the end of the line came back it was veering to the right and left in the water which was unusual...well, stuck to my hook was a 1.5-2" silverish scale !!!??
I figured it must have been a bunch of stripers as Im sure other predator fish chasing all those bait fish ...thats my fish story of the day
But in regards to carp and stripers etc..cant give you any good advice on them right now...if your in a boat go fish the bridges with a dropshot..there is fish year round
Good luck!
And they are there year round...Ive seen some large schools of stripers(schoolies) on opposite side around the marinas
Almost 20 years back I was on my way to the esplanade by boat with my dog..I noticed 100's of bait jumping onshore along the shoreline just after the BU bridge...I was throwing a rattle trap and hooked into something BIG...couldnt budge it,this thing started to tow my 18' Cajun Bass rig out into the middle of the river..as my boat started to turn I looked up from my line to see this asian woman staring with her mouth open in disbelief !!
I probabaly had the same look on mine!!! As I started pulling away from shore.. I knew I had to turn this fish if I was going to see and/or catch it because the fish had already stripped a 100 or so yards from my reel....as I started to pull back I could feel it was something massive, I went to reel in some slack, very little at that but it suddenly was gone.....I continued to reel thinking my line snapped but as the end of the line came back it was veering to the right and left in the water which was unusual...well, stuck to my hook was a 1.5-2" silverish scale !!!??
I figured it must have been a bunch of stripers as Im sure other predator fish chasing all those bait fish ...thats my fish story of the day
But in regards to carp and stripers etc..cant give you any good advice on them right now...if your in a boat go fish the bridges with a dropshot..there is fish year round
Good luck!