Posts tagged: Striped Bass Crab Fly

Top 5 Early Season Striper Flies for Maine

Top 5 Early Season Striper Flies for Maine
Written By: Joe Webster

The time is certainly near and one of our favorite local fish, the striped bass, will soon be returning to the Maine coast in search of abundant bait and preferable water temperatures. Here are 5 flies that we would never leave home without when targeting striped bass in May and early June in our local waters!

For our FULL collection of striped bass flies click HERE

1. Crouser Fly

Crouser Fly Pattern

Designed here in house by our own Joe Webster, and now produced by the fine folks at RIO Products, the Crouser (half crab, half clouser) has become one of the most used flies for targeting early season striped bass here in Maine. This fly excels in rivers, marshes and estuaries where abundance of small bait such as crabs, shrimp and small baitfish are present. And the best part about this fly is it could really imitate any of them being a vague, creature bait style fly. Olive/light olive and brown/olive are Joe's favorite color combinations as they represent green crabs and shrimp well, however tan/white and olive/white have become local favorites, especially those fishing in Casco Bay just north of us. This fly was designed to be dragged directly on sand or mud bottom with a sink tip fly line. However they also work well with an intermediate or floating line when sight fishing or when the bottom has too many obstructions to drag a fly on (mussel beds, rocks, sea weed etc.) Check them out HERE!

2. Bucktail Deciever

Bucktail Deceiver Striped Bass Fly Pattern

A Bob Popovics classic, the Bucktail Deciever is likely the most versatile bait fish patterns out there. These can be tied as small as 3"-4" and in excess of 12" long when utilizing the use of extensions. Simply match the hatch with size and profile with this fly and don't worry about matching exact colors of baitfish. If anything worry about tone vs color, meaning a darker (or black) fly for low light conditions and stained water, and white or pastel colors for clear water and high sun. This fly can be fished on a floating, intermediate, or sink tip fly line. We have a great assortment of these flies HERE!

3. Half and Half

Half and Half Striped Bass Fly

For when you need to get your baitfish pattern a little deeper, or through heavy current and swells, the half and half is a must have when classic unweighted deceivers aren't getting the job done. We are particularly excited about our new Jiggy Half and Half and encourage you to scoop some up before they're gone! Click HERE for link!

4. Hollow Flat Wing Deciever

Hollow Flat Wing Deceiver Striped Bass Fly

Especially for those who are looking to target larger fish, a wide profiled larger baitfish pattern is certainly a requirement, particularly if fishing around outflows and river herring runs. The 6/0 version of this fly hits the mark perfectly and is a great size and profile for this occasion. These flies will also  work very well off of rock/ledges where a wider variety of baitfish such as pollock or mackerel are also present. All sizes and colors of Hollow Flat Wing Deceivers are available here!

5. Little Black Clouser

Black Clouser Striped Bass Fly Pattern

Couldn't make the list with out including this little guy.  A small size 2 matte black 3" long clouser is a not so secret local favorite that has been catching up bass for years. Before the crabs and crousers, there was the little black clouser. Drag directly on sand or mud bottom with a sink tip line for best results. Little Black Clousers found HERE!

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Video: Fly Tying - Crouser for Bonefish & Permit

Video: Fly Tying - Crouser for Bonefish & Permit

By now you have likely seen or heard about the Original Crouser fly that Joe Webster ties here at All Points. As this is a pattern that is most commonly fished along the bottom to imitate crab, shrimp, flounder, etc. here in Maine for striped bass, it quickly was morphed into a (smaller) version for bonefish & permit. Its productivity in tropical flats world was quick and we started to receive messages and photos from customers who had brought some great bonefish & permit to hand with the Crouser. Although the original color of olive/light olive worked well, variations of tan/sand, pink, or rootbeer (for redfish!) seemed to really gain popularity. 

Crouser Fly Pattern for Bonefish Permit

In the following video, Joe demonstrates his Crouser pattern in a smaller bonefish & permit variation. You can also watch the video of the Original Crouser HERE

CHECK OUT THE VIDEO BELOW!

Material List: (click on item for full product info)

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Fly Focus Friday: Maine Merkin Jig Crab

Fly Focus Friday: Maine Merkin Jig Crab

I started tying a version of this crab fly about 10 years ago. It started as a permit crab that I was tying for customers. Soon after, I made slight adjustments to make it more appropriate for striped bass. Now, over the years it has been slightly tweaked, such as the addition of a jig hook, but remains essentially the same. The basic foundation of this fly is a combination of the EP Crab and (Del Brown's) Merkin.

Maine Merkin Jig Crab Fly - Striped Bass

Materials List: (click for product page)

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Fly Focus Friday: The Original Crouser

Fly Focus Friday: The Original Crouser

The crouser has fast become one of the most popular flies for targeting striped bass here on the New England coast. This pattern was developed by local fly angler and current shop employee Joe Webster. The crouser is a crab + clouser hybrid and produces great results in a variety of scenarios.

Striped Bass Fly Fishing - Crouser Fly Pattern

What makes this such a great fly is its versatility in that it will work in scenarios where fish are selective towards crab, shrimp or small baitfish. In any of these situations the crouser will produce results. Originally this fly was designed to fish directly on the bottom with a sink tip fly line but also works well on a floating or intermediate line, especially when the bass are more interested in shrimp and baitfish vs. crabs. The olive/light olive color was the original and to this day still the most popular and all around productive color scheme, however darker colors have been found to work especially well in stained water or low light hours and the lighter tones have become extremely popular on some of the bigger flats south of us here in Maine. On top of being an extremely productive fly pattern for striped bass, tropical flats fisherman have taken a liking to this pattern in smaller sizes for bonefish and permit. This is a must have for any fly angler targeting striped bass on the New England coast.

Materials List: (click for product page)

Check out one of our Crouser fly tying videos:

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Video: Fly Tying - The Crouser

Video: Fly Tying - The Crouser

We've gotten a lot of requests for a tying video for this pattern, so here ya go! The "Crouser" is a half crab, half clouser. It was developed to target striped bass here in Maine on the flats, but we are seeing customers and clients using it for bonefish and permit (as a crab fly) and smallmouth bass (as a crayfish) with success. 

Check out the video below!

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