S6, Ep 123: On the Salt with David Blinken: Striper Strategies and Fly Tactics
In this episode of The Articulate Fly, host Marvin Cash catches up with Captain David Blinken for an update on the Northeast fishing scene. As the weather cools down, David shares insights on the arrival of striped bass, while the elusive false albacore remain scarce around Eastern Long Island. Despite their absence, David offers promising reports of stripers in Rhode Island and Fisher's Island, with Montauk and the inner bays seeing an uptick as the season heads into November.
David dives into a listener's question about fly color preferences when fishing for stripers on the flats. He emphasizes the importance of matching fly colors to the environment, explaining how baitfish and crabs adapt their colors to blend in with their surroundings. David shares his technique of adjusting fly patterns to match the bottom, offering tips on when to add or remove flash based on fish behavior and conditions.
Marvin encourages listeners to submit their questions for a chance to win some Articulate Fly swag and enter a drawing for a Royal Wulff fly line. David also hints at exciting plans for the 2025 season of Masters of the Fly, promising updates as details are finalized. For those eager to book a last-minute trip with David, he invites them to reach out via his website or email.
As always, Marvin reminds everyone to get out there and enjoy the water. Tight lines, everyone!
To learn more about David, check out our full length interview.
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Marvin: Hey, folks, it's Marvin Cash, the host of the Articulate Fly,
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Marvin: and we're back with another On the Salt with Captain David Blinken. David, how are you?
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David: I'm good, Marvin. How are you doing today?
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Marvin: As always, I'm just trying to stay out of trouble. You know,
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Marvin: it's kind of interesting down here in the southeast.
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Marvin: We've, you know, kind of on the other side of all this horrible weather we've
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Marvin: had, it's kind of super cooled off and it's dried out. What are you seeing up in the northeast?
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David: East well finally we've had our actually our second cold front in two weeks
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David: but this one's really robust and uh with it is uh is finally coming some uh
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David: striped bass from you know places far off i would assume very.
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Marvin: Neat and and have the false albacore finally uh decided to show up in your neck of the woods.
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David: No unfortunately not i
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David: was in martha's vineyard uh for columbus day visiting friends
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David: and there were some albies up there but but
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David: they don't seem to be uh wanting to come to
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David: at least uh the east end of long island this year
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David: i know we have some in long island sound way west of here and they're up north
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David: but they're everywhere but here and um it's not like this hasn't happened before
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David: in 2012 uh we did we didn't have any false albacore either for that fishing season Interesting.
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Marvin: So tell me a little bit more about the stripers you've been able to track down.
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David: Well, we've been catching stripers both in Rhode Island and over at Fishers Island.
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David: And now we have stripers finally filling in around Montauk and in the inner bays.
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David: So that should uh really be exciting for us uh going uh you know down the home
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David: stretch into november yeah.
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Marvin: There you go just in time to get off the water put the boat away for thanksgiving right.
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David: There you go well let's see uh i fish till around the 9th or 10th of november
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David: here and then i take a group tarpon fishing in uh and uh campeche in mexico
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David: for a few days so so that'll and then
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David: there's Thanksgiving. So, yes, that'll be great.
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Marvin: Well, there you go. Well, listen, I've got a striper question for you from Mitchell,
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Marvin: and he wanted to get your thoughts.
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Marvin: When you're fishing for stripers on the flats, do you prefer a fly color that
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Marvin: blends in with the bottom?
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David: Well, it's really interesting. It's kind of a yes question, and I'll tell you why.
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David: When various baits are on different color bottoms, they try to hide themselves
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David: by changing color and matching the environment they're in.
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David: So, for example, when I'm fishing crab patterns over sandy bottoms,
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David: I tend to fish a lighter colored crab.
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David: But when I'm fishing crab patterns, and it could be just 10 feet to the left
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David: over a grassy bottom, I will try to change that crab to something that's got
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David: a little bit of olive or green in it.
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David: And similarly, when I'm fishing baitfish patterns, you know,
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David: baitfish can change color on a dime.
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David: They'll be darker over a darker bottom and lighter over a lighter bottom.
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David: So very often I might have rods rigged with a couple of different patterns as far as color goes.
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David: But I do definitely try to match the color of the bottom or the color of the
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David: environment they're in.
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David: So if you were to look in my fly box, I may have a hundred of the same flies,
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David: but they're tied in different sizes, different sizes and different hues.
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David: So if you look at my fly box, it looks almost like a Pantone color chart.
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Marvin: Very, very neat. And so, you know, I know that's the general rule,
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Marvin: but if, you know, if the fish are being stingy, you know, do you then maybe
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Marvin: add a little flash or do you go for contrast? Is there anything that you may
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Marvin: want to change up there if the fish have lockjaw?
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David: Well, interestingly enough, very often what happens is I'll tie my flies with
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David: flash, but if I find the fish are not responding or not eating,
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David: I'll sometimes pick all the flash out, especially on brighter days,
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David: and have the fly be kind of as flat as possible without any sparkle to it.
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David: And very often that's the ticket.
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David: Um if if you were to look in my box you'll see a
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David: lot of flies where where the flash has been plucked out and
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David: you can just sort of see the ends of it where where it was tied in uh and and
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David: that's really and that's really it um and then there are other times especially
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David: in the fall where the flashier the fly the better but certainly in the spring
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David: and summer uh i find less flash uh means more fish got.
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Marvin: It yeah it's kind of interesting to tie them all with flash and then just pick
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Marvin: out what you don't need and that way you don't have to carry multiple versions of the same fly right.
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David: That's it that's it um and and i don't mind having flies without flash and and
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David: uh you know they'll work all the time but certainly when the fish are being
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David: a little bit picky a little tough uh getting getting rid of that flash can can
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David: mean the difference between fish and no fish got.
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Marvin: It and you know folks we love questions on the articulate fly you can email
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Marvin: me or dm me on social media. As I always say, let's make David's life as easy as possible.
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Marvin: And if we use your question, I will send you some articulate fly swag.
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Marvin: And then we enter a drawing for a Royal Wolf line of your choice.
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Marvin: And you know, funny, David, I guess two things before we started recording.
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Marvin: One, you're going to go set your camera up and try to photograph the comet.
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Marvin: But then we also started talking about Masters of the Fly. And you and Lu Yen
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Marvin: are busy kind of planning what 2025 is going to look like.
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David: Yeah, we are. And we're kind of looking at beginning of the season,
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David: probably sometime around the middle end of January.
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David: And we don't have dates yet, but as soon as we do, you'll be the first to know
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David: and everybody else who's listening here.
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Marvin: Very neat. And so if folks want to try to maybe find a day and,
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Marvin: gosh, I mean, we're talking about you've got, what, three weeks left of guiding
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Marvin: to get on your boat, what should they do?
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David: They can go to my website, davidblinken.com, and they can just grab my phone
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David: number and give me call or hit me up with an email at davidblankin at gmail.
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Marvin: Well, there you go. Well, folks, as I always say, yo it yourself to get out
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Marvin: there and catch a few. Tight lines, everybody. Tight lines, David.
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David: Tight lines, all.
David Blinken
Guide
David Blinken owner and guide has taken the time to observe the environment in which he guides, and he sees things that others might not, this ability is what separates him from the pack. His clients benefit from this, which allows David to provide them with an experience that they can take home and remember until their next trip.
North flats began as an idea in David’s discussions with friends, “why get trapped in an office” they used to tell him, you need to explore and make your passion your business.
Davids’s passion and desire are what allows him to give people a lasting and fun experience that not only connects them with fish but to the environment in which they live. This not only gives his clients a better understanding of where to find the fish but also a better appreciation of their environment and how to preserve the very thing they love, flyfishing
There is not just great fishing to experience but a passion that brings people together, which is why people keep coming back year after year.
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