Clousers and Contradictions: Striped Bass in the Urban Swamps with Captain Zach Flake
Published: 27th February 2026 | Author: Michael Carr
All they wanted to know was where. Where did this fish of a lifetime come from? Was I out among the fleet in Raritan Bay dredging the bottom with heavy sinking lines? Was I down south in the Chesapeake and just backdated the photo? Did the striper come from one of those pristine rips off the Vineyard where they porpoise after squid flies when thrown into the whitewater? I had to answer no. My personal best striped bass, which if we had to guesstimate was close to thirty pounds came from the Meadowlands estuary near a storm-drain outflow where the traffic from the New Jersey Turnpike was in earshot. For those of us born and bred in Jersey, we wouldn’t have it any other way.
A Natural
Captain Zach Flake of Flyway Charters is as unique as that thirty-pound striped bass. He is about as knowledgeable and intelligent as any saltwater fly-fishing guide twice his age with all of the humility of a man still in awe every time he hits the water. He’s a natural, and like Malamud’s Roy Hobbs, he knows that “experience makes good people better.” So, he seeks out new water and new channels. He logs hours exploring and experimenting, so that when a client steps on his Beavertail Vengeance 18 skiff, they know that they are in the hands of an expert.
Most northern trips (he also runs southern trips to Barnegat Bay in the summer) begin with a sunrise start and a run through marshlands considered by most motorists to be wastelands. Thanks to years of conservation efforts, the Meadowlands estuary has a pristine habitat for aquatic life, both underwater and in the sky. Zach’s youth spent duck-hunting this area has given him first-hand experience of the revival here over the last decade. Zach spends much of his time respecting and studying the natural world. Because of this, Zach is a unique ambassador for an overlooked area.
The Charter
When booking with Flyway Charters, the client should understand that this striped bass fishery is unlike anything they would encounter elsewhere in New Jersey. While much of the fleet is fighting for position in Raritan Bay, Zach’s boat is alone. You can be sure to find Zach somewhere amongst the miles of untouched waterways. A place where most would never think to motor, let alone fish.
Much like southern redfish, Zach’s stripers love to find structure in the deeper waters and thrive with their noses in the muck in the shallows. It is not uncommon to have rods rigged with large Deceiver patterns, then have others with tiny Surf Candies at the ready. The fish in this waterway are usually quite tuned to the flow of the bait, so matching the proverbial hatch is essential. For striped bass anglers, this seems rather silly. Most are used to throwing into blitzes or dredging huge flies through rips. On Zach’s boat, precision is everything.
Bring Your Cast
The most precise tool any angler fishing with Zach needs to have in their box is an accurate and lengthy cast. Fifty-foot casts are common. Eighty-foot casts are not uncommon. Much of the time on Zach’s boat is devoted to finding fish and then maximizing the shot while the window presents itself. My thirty-pounder came after we motored up to the outflow and could see fish rolling in the shallow whitewater where they had corralled baitfish. I had only a short window to present my fly and needed to give everything I had to the cast. With Zach’s expert coaching and perfect distance calls, I made the shot and caught my fish of a lifetime.
Confidence Flies for Striped Bass
While many patterns are often necessary, Zach always has many variations of Clouser Minnows. This pattern is perfect for fish that just won’t touch anything else. Clouser’s fly, simple and effective, has been the surefire for deep and shallow fish. Through Zach, anglers will learn from his days on the tournament bass circuit that the Clouser is the fly anglers best bet to coax a striper away from structure much the same a jerkbait works for largemouth. When cast properly and sunk efficiently, Zach coaches his anglers through jiggy strips making the Clouser dip and dive effectively the way it was intended. Often, I’ve watched the wake of a striper appear from behind a rusted pilon when moments before I thought that no fish was there. Thanks to Zach’s coaching through the sink, strip, and pause methodology, this classic pattern gets it done time and time again.
Throughout the fall, New Jersey, like many states along the eastern seaboard have an uptick in sand eels or sand lances. These tiny baitfish are incredible forage for migrating striped bass and are found in all waters along the coast. Often, stripers can be seen gorging themselves on sand eels. Anglers must choose carefully from a variety of color schemes to match the bait.
Flatwing Flies
This year, I had the great pleasure of introducing Zach to a fly popularized in Massachusetts by famed tyer Joe Cordiero. Joe is a frequent collaborator with Fulling Mill Signature Tyer Tim Flagler. Cordiero’s flatwings are some of the most effective and beautiful flies that one can tie for striped bass. For such a beautiful profile, these flies are easier to tie than one might think.
I brought a stack of Cordiero’s Martha’s Vineyard Sand Eels onto the skiff one day, and we had some luck on the flies during the afternoon hours. I left the flies with Zach, and he used them to great effect for the remainder of the fall season. Often, I would receive texts from Zach with pictures of the flies hanging from striper mouths. The fly is traditionally tied in claret, olive, and white, but I amended the colors to deal with the often silty and muddied waters of the Meadowlands. The white, white/chartreuse, and all-black varieties seemed to have the best effect on Zach’s skiff.
The simple recipe for the fly involves a solid saltwater hook like the Fulling Mill Universal Salt, flatwing hackles, bucktail, body braid, and a throat/wing made of premium selected marabou. When tied sparse, the long flatwing hackle dances in the water mimicking the action of a wounded sand eel, proving quite effective when all else fails in the fall.
Contradictions
New Jersey is a state of contradictions. We have some of the most pristine natural spaces in the northeast, along with 115 Superfund sites throughout the state. We love to criticize our traffic and pollution, yet we will be the first to defend the sanctity of the Garden State against all outsiders. Zach is a native son of New Jersey and hence can tell you where to find the best slice of pizza around and what time to avoid the Turnpike traffic. He can also see the intense beauty of an estuary that most people think is only full of garbage and lost industry.
Fishing with Zach quickly becomes a complete change in perspective as much as it is a change in scenery. You learn, with his capable guidance, what is possible in a place where surface impossibilities cloud the view like a stormy tide change. As long as the stripers can thrive in a place where few things can, Zach’s skiff will continue to meander through the marsh in search of perfection just within earshot of the Turnpike.
Images were provided by Jack Ponzoni. Consider checking out Jack’s website here to learn more about his work!
Contact Captain Zach of Flyway Charters and get a striper trip on the calendar!
Interested in saltwater fly fishing? Check out the Fulling Mill saltwater fly collection! Featuring trusted saltwater patterns from Signature Tyers Ben Whalley, Andy Mill, Mike Mitchell, Nick Vlahos, and more!
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