About Us

The following is an over view of my fishing experience and the concept behind the Striped Bass Academy.

My Profile and Credentials

My Name is Jon Tolley. I am a 47 year old commercial fisherman.  I live on Cape Cod. I am considered to be the top fisherman for my age on the Cape. Fishing is the only job I have ever had, and I have dedicated my whole life to fishing.

I have been catching striped bass, black sea bass, bluefish, scup, tautog, fluke, tuna, cod, lobster, crab, ect. for 40 years. I started going fishing with my father when I was 5 years old.

My family and I have kept detailed records of our fishing history. We have caught over 6 million pounds of stripers. I have caught and sold 69,844 striper that weighed 1,039,042 lbs. and a total of 17,252 undersized bass caught and released. That's over a million pounds caught. For a fisherman my age, I don't think anyone can match these numbers. I have caught five 50lbs plus fish and forty-nine 40lbs plus fish.

My father and mother have caught and sold 300,698 stripers that weight 3,067,119 lbs. and a total of 36,236 undersized bass caught and released. That's over 3 million pounds caught. The rest of the tally comes from my grandparents.

History

Three generations of fishermen with over 6 million pounds of stripers caught. These amounts of fish were caught amongst three men and two women, Walter, Dora, Fred, Ros, and Jon Tolley. Walter and Dora are my grandparents. Fred and Ros are my parents.

We're one of the most famous fishing families on Cape Cod. Believe it or not when my grandfather started catching stripers in the legendary Bass Hole in 1928, they had not even invented the outboard motor yet. Yes, you guessed it he rowed. Actually, my father and grandfather rowed into the early 1940's.

The Tolley Family

Presently there are 11 Tolleys commercial fishing and 24 recreational fisherman.

The spieces of fish and shellfish that we have landed from Cape Cod waters are as follows: striped bass, bluefish, cod, mackerel, halibut, salmon, haddock, pollock, monkfish, sea bass, scup, sea trout, fluke, dabs, swordfish, sturgeon, bluefin tuna, yellowfin tuna, tautog, sea perch, dogfish, mako sharks, blue sharks, thresher sharks, tile fish, blowfish, sea robin, trigger fish, whitting, herring, ling, ocean catfish, blackback flounder, bonito, false albacore, flying fish, spanish mackerel, white marlin, hake, skate, grey sole, lemon sole, yellow tail flounder, wolffish, dolphin, clown fish, eels, white perch, sculpin, lobster, crabs scallop, sea clams, steamers, quahogs, mussels, conch, ect. That's over 60 different types of fish and shellfish.

Sometimes I wonder about how many tens of millions of pounds of fish and shellfish my family has caught. There is a good chance that fishermen buying my DVD have eaten some sort of fish or shellfish caught by my family. 

Types of Fish Caught on the Tube and Worm

The different types of fish I have caught are striped bass, bluefish, cod, sea trout, bonita, atlantic salmon, tautog, fluke, scup, sea bass, sturgeon, eel, white perch, dog fish, monkfish, sea perch, pollock, and blackback flounder.

The Striped Bass Academy was founded in 2004. I woke up one mourning and started writing text on how to catch striped bass. I told my idea to some friends, relatives, fishing buddys, and charter boat captains. I told them I was going to make a dvd and text video on how to catch striped bass. They said, "This is a great idea." It took me 3.5 years to write the text for 10 methods on how to catch striped bass and make my first dvd, (The Tube and Worm).