Striper Fishing (Striped Bass)

Kennebec River / Midcoast,  Maine

Striper Fishing

Stripers from 24” to 48” long and weighing as much as 30 pounds spend the summer in the waters of the Kennebec River Watershed and surrounding beaches and islands. Striped Bass show up in good numbers usually during late May here in the mid coast area of Maine. The first to arrive are the smaller, younger fish. They show up in vast schools as the water temperature reaches the mid 50’s. These first arrivals are full of spunk and eat everything put in front of them. 12 pound class spinning gear and 6-8 wt. fly rods are the weapons of choice. Lures and flies vary from the smallest juvenile baitfish imitations to full sized offerings that mimic 12” Alewives and Herring.

The Kennebec River Striped Bass Fishery

The excellent striped bass fishing on the Kennebec River is not by happenstance. It comes from decades of stewardship. I recently celebrated this amazing fishery with Maine's Commissioner of Marine Resources Pat Keliher, his wife Deirdre, and daughter Kaitlin.

"A great fishery needs healthy habitat and forage. The Kennebec has both in abundance..."

Capt. Dave Pecci 6-27-22
Continue

June Fly fishing for Kennebec Striped Bass

Despite 15kt northwest wind gusting to 25kts we pushed through and got eleven nice Kennebec river striped bass on fly rod. Bill Farland got the job done with a sinking line and his great casting abilities. First spot, first cast, first fish. It was a fat 30"er weighing over 9 pounds. At that point we knew we were in for a great day. Though the wind kept us from fishing some spots, we were able get on the fish in several places. Absolutely a great day on the water.

Capt. Dave Pecci - Obsession Sportfishing
Continue

Early Season Kennebec River Stripers on Fly

A beautiful morning on the Kennebec River fly fishing 18-30" striped bass With Richard Ievoli.

Capt. Dave Pecci - Obsession Sportfishing
Continue

Email issues please use obsessioncharters@gmail.com

​Hi everyone, if you have been emailing me and I have not responded its because the address Dave@obsessioncharters.com is not working correctly. Please use obsessioncharters@gmail.com until the problem is resolved.Thanks Dave P.
Continue

And So It Begins - Kennebec River Striped Bass 2022

​I returned from the heat of Pine Island Sound and Boca Grande two weeks ago and the Kennebec River striper season is already in high gear! The River is stuffed with stripers ranging from 16" to 32"  

"One of the best starts of the Kennebec River striper season in years."

Capt. Dave Pecci
Continue

Kennebec River Fishing Report July 1, 2021

Fishing Conditions: Water clarity and current levels are good. Salinity is up due to the lack of rain. Bait size varies from 1" sand eels to 9" throughout the lower 15 miles of the river. Boat traffic has increased now that the catch and release season has ended. The boat ramps still have parking spots though, even on the weekends...

If you are fishing a rip or bank with other boat set up a rotation and drift through so everyone can gets an opportunity.

Capt. Dave Pecci
Continue

The 2021 Maine guiding season has started.

​Hi everyone! June is here and so are the striped bass. There are stripers spread throughout the lower 11 miles of the river. There is an incredible amount of bait ranging in size from 1 1/2" sand eels to 8" river herring.  2021 striped bass fishing is off to a good start. Capt. Dave Pecci 2021 stiped bass fishing is off to a good star...
Continue

August Fishing Forecast

The fishing has been very good all summer so far. It been a bright spot in this summer of uncertainty...


We are catching 10-20 striped bass per trip on flies and lures. No complaints about that!

Capt. Dave Aug 2, 2020
Continue

June Fly Fishing for Striped Bass - Kennebec River

Jerry and Ted joined me for a foggy morning of fly fishing for striped bass on the Kennebec River. We caught around 30 fish ranging from 11"-26". It has been excellent fishing this June.

Capt. Dave Pecci - Obsession Sportfishing
Continue

Early Season Striped Bass Fly rod Action on the Kennebec River

I'm seeing the best June striped bass fly rod action in years. Lots of fish spread throughout the lower 15 miles of the Kennebec. We're getting fish from 21-32" each trip. If your looking for quantity, there's loads of 10-15" schoolies feeding on the surface too. I'm pretty much booked through the end of the month, but I do have several openings in July.   Let's go fishing!

Capt. Dave Pecci - Obsession Sportfishing
Continue

July Shallow Water Kennebec Striped Bass on Fly

Some great shots of Paul Skydell and Mike Wolfson fly fishing the shallows of the Kennebec for striped bass. The video ends with Paul getting a very nice one on a 7wt. using 10# tippet.

Capt. Dave Pecci - Obsession Sportfishing
Continue

Kennebec River Estuary / Eastern Casco Bay Fishing Report 07/29/2019

Fishing Conditions: The striped bass have somewhat settled into their mid-summer habits. Water flow and clarity in the Kennebec River are both good. Water temps are 62*in the lower river and 78* near Merrymeeting Bay. This week will have morning rising tides.

Type of bait fish are feeding on...cont.

Now is the time to start paying attention to your fish finder.

Capt. Da e Pecci 07-29-19
Continue

Mid-July Striped Bass Fly Fishing on Kennebec River

Bill Farland joined me his past week for a few hours of striped bass fly fishing. We ended up catching 14 schoolies between 16" and 24". I love my summer office. Not sure if there's a prettier place this side of heaven. Its so easy to get focused on the fish and what it takes to catch them that I find myself missing the beauty all around me. This video captures some of that beauty. I hope you enjoy watching it.

Capt. Dave Pecci - Obsession Sportfishing
Continue

Kennebec River Estuary / Eastern Casco Bay Fishing Report 07/08/2019

Fishing Conditions: Big tides this week has diminished the water clarity and increased the flow. Surface feeds have been less frequent. Type of bait fish are feeding on:... (continued)

We are settling into typical July fishing. Most of
the striped bass have now are staged along structure waiting for bait to come
to them.

Capt. Dave Pecci 07-08-19
Continue

Fly Fishing for Kennebec Striped Bass with Woody and Ben

A combination of breaking fish and casting to structure provided a great morning on the Kennebec. The river was full of small herring which we were able to match very effectively with flies.

Capt. Dave Pecci - Obsession Sportfishing
Continue

June Kennebec Striped Bass on Fly Rod

Paul and Mike fly fishing for striped bass. We love foggy mornings!

Capt. Dave Pecci - Obsession Sportfishing
Continue

Kennebec River – Casco Bay Fishing Report June 26, 2018

Conditions: There is a large abundance of bait in the Kennebec. Water temps range from 57* to 68*. Water clarity and water flow are average for late June. We are finding stripers feeding on the surface daily but the action is less predictable than in past weeks. The fish are ranging in size from 14"-30" with a few bigger ones here and there. We are averaging 20 fish per trip right now on fly and spinning gear.
Bait the fish are feeding on: Juvenile Atlantic Herring, Sand eel, Alewife, River Herring, American Eel, Mackerel
Target species right now: Striped Bass

The striped bass are becoming more selective due to the huge abundance of bit in the River.

Capt. Dave Pecci
Continue

Striped Bass fishing June 17, 2918

John Kern and his niece Caroline fishing for striped bass on the lower Kennebec in June

Capt. Dave Pecci - Obsession Sportfishing
Continue

Striped Bass Videos - Week of July 23, 2017

Another incredible week on the Kennebec River! Pretty much nonstop action every morning on flies and lures. No bate needed. Catching striped bass up to 32" in many spots on the River. Here's three videos from this week:

Bill Farland joined me again on July 25th for a fantastic morning of striped bass fly fishing. We caught over 25 fish and several over 24" the biggest one weighed in at 7 pounds and was 28" long. 

Continue

Fly Fishing for Kennebec River Striped Bass 07-18-17

Great fly fishing action on the Kennebec River is continuing into mid July. Carroll and Adam caught over 30 striped bass during their 6 hour morning charter. We're catching them on both floating and sinking lines. There's more striped bass in the River than we have seen in years. One of the clips in this video shows Carroll Ware from Fins and Furs Adventures catching a 20" schoolie striped bass on a colossal 13" bunker fly! 

Capt. Dave Pecci - Obsession Sportfishing
Continue

Subscribe To Captain Dave's Blog