Time to follow the St Croix Gulls

I noticed several large flocks of gulls working the St Croix down near the Hudson Swing Bridge yesterday. Normally they are chasing the large shad schools and they can be used to locate feeding fish also chasing the shad. As the fall weather approaches following the gulls can help you find active fish especially white bass. This has worked for me in the past in the Stillwater to Hudson stretch. If you are having a slow day on the St Croix sometimes it pays to follow the gulls.

so true! If the birds are on the water eating bait, so too are our piscine friends doing the same below the water!

Last fall, I’d troll right into the middle of a group of gulls on the water and check the sonar – sure enough, I’d always see a huge bait cloud and a few large ‘arches’ just below the cloud. The tough part is to get the fish to pay attention to your bait when there’s such a bounty of food right there. Add “flash” and color (and some scent never hurt)!