Ralph Dallas with a magnum skipjack.

McClintock: I seldom use deadbait, but it works after a cold front or during winter. You can anchor up or even fish it from shore.

Wirth: Do you have better luck when there's a lot of bait in an area, or not much bait?

Dallas: I like to see lots of active bait when I'm fishing. Stripers go where the bait is. They don't feed all the time, but they want to stay near it in case they get hungry.

McClintock: Ralph, I gotta disagree with you on this one. I've found that more bait in the river means a slower bite. I've caught some of my biggest stripers on days when I've had to really struggle to catch a few baits. When there's a ton of bait, stripers tend to fool with your hooked bait more. They chase it around or bump it but won't eat it, like a cat playing with a mouse.

Wirth: Last summer, while trout fishing below the Cumberland Dam in Kentucky, I was reeling in a 12-inch brown when a 50-pound striper swam out of a submerged tree and ate it. Ever use trout for bait?

Dallas: I'd rather fish a stocker-sized trout than any other livebait besides a big skipjack. Big stripers eat 'em like candy.

McClintock: Yeah, trout work great for stripers. Just ask the fly fishermen in our area -- they're always complaining about stripers eating their trout!

Wirth: My son, who lives in Boston, uses live eels for stripers in the surf off Cape Cod. They've been known to eat lobsters in salt water, too. Ever use any off-the-wall baits in the Cumberland?

Dallas: Some guys around here bottom-fish with shad guts and chicken livers for stripers. They'll also hit crayfish. These methods generally produce smaller fish, though.

McClintock: There are eels in the Cumberland, so I guess our stripers must feed on 'em. But sorry, I ain't about to bait one on a hook! One livebait I can't seem to make work is bluegills. I often hear about guys fishing 'em on down lines in slackwater reservoirs, but I've never been able to catch anything on 'em in the river.

Wirth: Any final thoughts on baitfishing?

Dallas: The methods we've revealed are extremely effective, so you need to use them responsibly. Fish hogs are about the main threat to a big striper. With the fine replica mounts available, there's no need to kill a big one.

McClintock: One thing about river fishing -- you can release these fish and be confident they'll survive in this cool, oxygenated environment. Let 'em go and watch 'em grow.

Wirth: Good advice, boys. Now, which one of you is gonna pick up my dinner tab?

*Don Wirth, Nashville, Tennessee, is a longtime In-Fisherman contributor. He and guides Ralph Dallas (615-824-5792) and Fred McClintock (931-243-2142) are members of the Cumberland River Boys, a cult of hard-core striper junkies.