Striped bass tips scale at 61-plus pounds

via Newsday

Tangling with another big striped bass was Mike Milano's sole intent late Tuesday night as he pulled on a wet suit and eased out to one of his favorite rocks along Montauk's south side.

"Two weeks ago," said the Selden resident, "I released a cow that bottomed out a 55-pound scale because I already had a 37-pounder on the beach."

Hooking that whopper, which inhaled a live eel, turned out to be a practice run for the monster Milano claimed, "hit like a freight train" at the top of outgoing water around 2 a.m. Wednesday morning.

"I was casting a big yellow darter and had already released a few bass to 18 pounds when I set the hooks into something huge," revealed Milano. "The fish was simply unstoppable on its first run. She wrapped my line around a boulder and then held on before moving off with powerful burst. That fish was so strong, I could barely budge her."

The big bass fought hard for 25 minutes but when the battle ended, Milano's 30-pound test Berkley Fire Line had withstood the challenge and he had wrestled a 61.44-pound heifer from the sea. The trophy striper was officially weighed at Paulie's Tackle of Montauk.

Tight-lipped about his success, as are many Montauk regulars when it comes to surf fishing, the 29-year-old Milano did relinquish one tip for surf fishermen hoping to score with world-class bass:

"Be persistent," he advised. "Fish as much as possible." According to Milano, time spent in the suds helps anglers learn the variables and nuances of every place they probe. "Eventually," he explained, "you'll recognize which tidal and moon phases are best for each potential hot spot."

Milano fishes 15 to 20 hours a week and favors late night trips "coming off the full moon." With three bass more than 50 pounds already to his credit, his simple advice seems like a good starting point for anyone serious about advancing through the ranks along the striper surf.

While surf anglers continue to wait for the fall run to hit full stride, another bass battle has been brewing on the political front. This one concerns the selling of stripers and red drum, (aka, channel bass or redfish, and prevalent in southern waters) caught within the federally regulated Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). The EEZ covers coastal waters from three to 200 miles offshore and has been off-limits to both recreational and commercial fishing for stripers since 1990. With striper populations in good shape these days, some user groups have queried about lifting the sanction.

Last Saturday, President George Bush signed an executive order prohibiting the sale of stripers and redfish caught in the EEZ. The redundant clause will protect both species from increased commercial exploitation if the offshore moratorium is lifted. The order also encourages states to consider granting game fish status to stripers and redfish in inshore waters.

Fishing pressure on stripers has risen significantly in recent years, exacerbated by shortened seasons and tighter restrictions on fluke and other popular inshore targets. Thus, careful monitoring and continued protection of the noble linesider in federal waters seems justified at this point. Anything less, to paraphrase the current president's father, George Herbert Walker Bush - a former president who occasionally finds stripers difficult to catch - wouldn't be prudent.