Archive for 2009
Cod trip a bust again
Thursday, October 1st, 2009This is the second time this year our annual cod trip to Mass was canceled due to weather. I am really bummed out since it was already canceled once this year due to hurricane remnants. But on the other hand, I am a little glad. It is one thing to get beat up on your own boat while fishing sporty or snotty conditions but another thing to have to pay for the trip as well.
We will make the most of the weekend though. Friday night i have a Manasquan Fishing Club meeting. Saturday I will probably run some errands. I got a call from Joe at Sun Harbor Bay Club that my new Do-It Molds are in. I ordered some more flutter jig molds, the 2, 3 and 5 ounce molds which should be perfect for jigging up fall bass. And hopefully Sunday we will get out and find some more blowfish.
First blowfish trip
Saturday, September 26th, 2009With the wind blowing pretty good out of the East and snotty seas Tommy and I decided to run down Barnegat Bay to the BB buoy and go blowfishing. For both of us it ws our first blowfishing trip. We left the dock about 7:30 and made good time South and were setup by 8:15.
It wasn’t 15 minutes after getting the chum pots and lines in before we had a pretty good school of northern puffers around the boat and bent rods. The action continued for a few hours till the tide went slack.
We also had countless short sea bass and half a dozen nice sized porgies and a few snappers to round out the mixed bag.
Water was 63.9 to 65.8 depending on time of day and location in the bay. Fish took both clam and squid and we ended up keeping 35 good sized blowfish and half dozen porgies.
Mixed bag
Sunday, September 20th, 2009Had high hopes of running out to the Glory Hole but my crew bailed. Left the dock at 6 am solo, broke the inlet and was greeted to birds working and only two other boats in the on the action. Had non-stop action with spike weaks for two hours until leaving fish to find fish.
Moved out onto the Axel Carlson Reef and with very little wind or current and the few boats that were anchored and doing circles decided to drift the deck barges and rock piles. Again had non-stop action with mostly short sea bass and monster porgies. Had triggers coming up with the porgies but couldn’t hookup with any. Also released several would be keeper fluke. After boxing a few porgies I said screw it and headed further off.
Put lines in at the 15 line and the inshore slough and headed toward Little Italy. Shortly after I had a falsie on a green/yellow mini feather daisy chain. Reset the lines and 10 minutes later had another one. Circled back around and had big splash on the mini spreader bar. Then a smaller splash and I thought I finally had something good, but it came unbuttoned after about three minutes. Reset the lines again and trolled back toward Manasquan Ridge without a touch. Had great marks deep, never stopped to jig, didn’t feel they were concentrated enough warrant it, in hindsight, probably a bad idea.
Picked up and ran back to the reef and boxed a few more porgies and at 2 pm called it a day.
I also started using the Lucanus jigs that have been in the boat all season, they work pretty well. Had weakfish and sea bass on them Sunday and sea bass on last Tuesday. Only reason I tried them for weaks was I had broken off the leader on my spinning rig and didn’t want to take the time to re-rig so I tied in a dropper look to put on the chartreuse/yellow clouser that I was doing so well with the weaks and I started getting double headers. The jig that worked for the weaks was the green/gold. It was the 3oz size which was overkill for the drift we had in 30′ but I had only planned on using it get the teaser down but the weaks were all over it.
I normally don’t stay out that late and now I remember why…the inlet, train bridge and canal were a zoo. The hard charging outgoing from the moon and the SE breeze didn’t help the inlet with all the joy riders that haven’t been out in a month but it was still a great day on the water and glad I went. Water inshore was 66-68 degrees and pretty clean and green/brown, offshore was clean, blue/gray and 64-66.
Played hooky
Tuesday, September 15th, 2009I bugged out of work early and headed down to the marina. Tommy and I left the dock at 1 pm and were on a rock pile by 2:15 pm.
We moved around to a couple different rock piles before we found one holding some keeper sea bass. Most were returned as they were right on the line of being legal at 12.5″ but we did manage three that were over 14″. I also had one fluke at 19″ that was measured and returned to fight another day.
The water has cooled a bit to 69.8 degrees but was very clean, including the water in the inlet and the Squan River. Bait of choice was bits of squid.
We were back at the dock and had the boat cleaned by 6 pm.
Bring on the inshore tuna!
Tuesday, September 8th, 2009Decided due to the holiday weekend and less than favorable conditions to stay at the dock and get some work done on the boat and of course some adult beverages and plenty of snacks and food that accompany bad weather on our dock.
I installed three new rod holders. One just off center in the transom, would have liked it to be in the center but could not due to the transom fish-box. The other two were installed foreword up near the pilothouse. These will be great for the rigger rods.
Also installed the outriggers I picked up last fall. They got installed on the aft part of the pilothouse roof. The poles are collapsible so the poles can be installed and the angle of deployment can all be adjusted while standing in the cockpit, despite them being top mounts. I really like the placement, you don’t have to climb up on the gunwales to deploy them which is great on a narrow beam boat.
The only thing left is to get new release clips and re-rig the lines and I will be all set for trolling this fall. Can’t wait! Now all we need is some decent weather for a change.
Homemade wind-on leader and top shot jig
Friday, September 4th, 2009
I fabricated my makeshift, homemade leader stretching jig so I could start making wind-on leaders and top-shots. It didn’t come out too bad, I wasn’t really going for looks but rather functionality. If it fits the bill I can always go back and make a nicer one from oak or other hardwood, stain and finish it nicely.
The first few serves I did came out horrible, but I am quickly getting used to the serving tool and making neater, more compact serves in no time. This is my fourth attempt and assuming after testing that the connections hold up it I think it looks pretty good.
The jig consists of a 3/4″ plywood bas 10″ x 24″ in size, two uprights constructed of 3/4″ plywood as well that I cut slots in with the table saw to create a pocket for the Craftsman bar clamps to sit in.
Thinner diameter leaders (under 200#) seem to slip a bit in the clamp jaws, by adding small pieces of non-slip kitchen cabinet shelf liner in the jaws the line stays guitar string tight.
Adding new techniques to my arsenal
Thursday, September 3rd, 2009I received an order of new toys this week from BHP Tackle. Basil was very helpful in getting me setup with the basics I will need but also with quality tools that will last and that I can grow into. As many of you know I make most of my rigs, jigs and tackle. This is something I take great pride in, especially when myself and others catch fish with my creations.
I am now stepping up my game and going to start making my own stinger hooks and wind-on leaders. I already started rigging some hooks. I still have to glue the knots and cover them with shrink tubing which should be arriving today but here is a sneak peak at a couple. The smaller one is a 7/0 heavy duty live bait hook rigged with 200# Jerry Brown hollow core and the larger is a 10/0 with 300#.
I also rigged two wind-ons last night that all they need is to be served and cut to length. I am sure the serving will take a little getting used to but I should be up to speed on that by next weekend since the weekend weather looks horrible. I am also going to make my own wind-on jig for doing the serving. At least I am going to try. If it doesn’t work out then I will buy a bench jig. I was just trying to get in the game for as little as possible but there is no substitute for the right tool for the job.
The more I thought about how useful wind-ons would be the more uses I came up for them. I previously hardly used them due to cost. One big advantage for them would be trolling wire line for striped bass. You have the end loop, or haywire twist, in the wire, it would be so much more convenient to just use a loop-to-loop connection to attach your leader than tying an Albright knot over the wire. Especially in rough conditions which are usually present in the early spring and late fall.
Another situation I think will be more convenient as is when bottom fishing. While I typically only use 30 or 50 pound leaders most of the time you break off or get chafed off on structure near the jig or rig. After re-tying a few times the leader needs to be replaced. If you have a Bimini twist in your main line (in my case typically braid) you can just un-loop the damaged leader and loop on another. Much quicker and easier than cutting, tying a new Bimini twist and Albright knot to attach a new leader.
You could also have wind-on leaders pre-made with your rig or jig already rigged at the tag end. That way you just un-loop the damaged leader and loop on a new leader and rig all in one shot. Saving valuable time when the bite is hot.
Once I hone my serving skills I will post pictures and videos in the how to section for creating both wind-on leaders and stinger hooks.
NJMFC Sept. 3 Meeting Update
Tuesday, September 1st, 2009I just received an update from Tom Fote about this weeks NJMFC meeting about sea bass, scup and summer flounder.
…Tom McCloy sent out the notice below in maroon telling us that these agenda items have been removed from this Thursday’s NJ Marine Fisheries meeting.
Tom Fote
Greetings,
Just completed the conference call of the ASMFC Summer Flounder, Scup, Black Sea Bass Board to discuss emergency closures in the summer flounder, scup and sea bass recreational fisheries for the remainder this year, 2009.
Even though the projections are that ALL fisheries will be over the harvest target (significantly for scup & sea bass) the Board failed to approve any action for an emergency closure this year.
Therefore, there will be NO action required by the Council at the Sept 3 meeting on these species.
Be advised that management measures for these species could be extremely restrictive in 2010.
Please note that NJ’s recreational summer flounder fishery is projected to exceed our target harvest by 29%.
Tom McCloy
No closures for 2009!
Tuesday, September 1st, 2009I just got off the call for the ASMFC meeting today. It took over 1.5 hours for me to even get into the call. So I missed the presentation on black sea bass and the public comment as well. Apparently they only had available seats for 50 callers in the conference call. After Tom Fote, the Governor’s Appointee to the ASMFC, was also kicked out of the call they suspended the call and increased the available seats.
They then re-opened the floor to public comment in favor for a motion to close black sea bass. The motion to close the remainder of the 2009 black sea bass season was overruled 7 votes against and 4 for.
There was no motion on the floor for scup or summer flounder.
There were several states that asked questions as to how the projected landings were calculated and there were some very concerning answers given. The projections were calculated on the 2008 seasons, bag limits and minimum sizes. If any of the states had put in place shorter or longer seasons, changed bag limits or minimum sizes those regulations were not used in the projections. Most states have changed seasons, bag limits and minimum sizes on summer flounder in particular, sea bass has pretty much remained unchanged over the past few years.
The ASMFC had acknowledged they had problems and this was one of their first webinar and conference calls but they were pleased with the amount of callers and attendees to the webinars and that they had more people on the conference call than have ever attended a board meeting. They hope to continue with this forum and look to work out the kinks to be able to provide more opportunity for the public to be involved with the process.
What happened to Danny?
Sunday, August 30th, 2009I went down to the boat Saturday morning to ride out the storm and rearrange the tackle lockers Saturday and hopefully install rod holders and maybe the outriggers on Sunday. Tropical Storm Danny was a big disappointment. There was no wind to speak of and not much more than your average downpour as far as rain.
Got the lockers straightened out and hopefully in a more user friendly arrangement. Billy came back in with a limit of fluke from a rough inlet. He lost a couple of big fish in the 6 to 8 pound range trying to net them. I then had a hard decision to make, go fishing or work on the boat.
I did what any self respecting fisherman would do…I went fishing. I made a quick stop in the river before heading to the inlet. Got a couple hits in the river but quickly moved on. The inlet produced all the shorts you wanted, had a few hits on a jig that felt like weakfish but never came tight, which made think more that they were weaks being finicky and just mouthing the bait.
Was back at the dock by 1 pm, got cleaned up and just hung out with friends and enjoyed the beautiful day. Hopefully I will get to the installations this weekend since fluke will be closed and wreck fishing may be as well. I will post info on the pending closure of scup and sea bass as soon as I find anything out. I should have an idea Tuesday night.
Visits from friends…
Friday, August 28th, 2009First we had a visit from Bill last week (the storm and not my buddy from SI) and now Danny (again a storm and not Capt. Red Cup from the marine). Although Danny seems to be loosing steam, thank god. Our annual cod trip up in Mass was canceled due to weather this year and is now pending reschedule based on everyone’s schedules.
Hopefully there will be enough breaks in the rain this weekend, I would like to install three new rod holders and my new to me outriggers. I don’t think the weather will cooperate enough for the latter but I should at least be able to get the new rod holders in.
I created a jig out of a 2 x 6 to help in the drilling of the new holes in the transom and gunwale caps. I made one hole 15 degrees and the other 30. So you can use the one jig two different angle rod holders. I was a little leery about trying to drill straight through the gunwale without a guide and get the angle correct. But I was very surprised at how easily, and on the first shot, that I got the holes in the jig correct. I would assume that if I were drilling directly into the boat and not a disposable piece of 2 x 6 that the holes would not have come out as good.
Now all I need to do is determine placement of the rod holder, clamp down the jig and drill the new holes. Hopefully it goes as smooth as it sounds on Sunday.
For those venturing out this weekend be safe and tight lines.
Took a lay day…
Tuesday, August 25th, 2009…and it was probably a good move with Hurricane Bill racing up the coast creating quite a stir in the last stretch of summer flounder season in NJ. I had originally planned a BBQ on Saturday for the Admiral’s birthday but postponed it till Sunday due to the potential of bad weather.
The party was a good success, we had hot dogs, burgers, chicken and ribs with all the trimmings. Ribs were slow cooked for three hours in a special marinate and then finished off on the grill for a nice charring with homemade BBQ sauce. Oh did I mention all sorts of imported beer, margarita’s and mojito’s? MMMMM!
This weekend we are supposed to head up to the Boston area and head out to Stellwagon Bank for giant cod, pollock and haddock. Right now the weather doesn’t look good and the weather at home this weekend is no peach either.
COASTAL WATERS FORECAST
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAUNTON MA
857 AM EDT TUE AUG 25 2009
COASTAL WATERS FROM THE MERRIMACK RIVER MA TO WATCH HILL RI OUT TO
25 NM
ANZ250-260015-
COASTAL WATERS EAST OF IPSWICH BAY AND THE STELLWAGEN BANK
NATIONAL MARINE SANCTUARY-
857 AM EDT TUE AUG 25 2009
FRI
NE WINDS AROUND 10 KT…BECOMING E WITH GUSTS UP TO 20 KT
IN THE LATE AFTERNOON AND OVERNIGHT. SEAS 2 TO 3 FT…BUILDING TO
3 TO 5 FT AFTER MIDNIGHT. A CHANCE OF SHOWERS.
SAT
E WINDS 5 TO 10 KT. GUSTS UP TO 25 KT THROUGH EARLY
EVENING. SEAS 5 TO 8 FT. A CHANCE OF SHOWERS.
Back-to-back BFT
Sunday, August 16th, 2009Saturday we headed out on my boat to the mud hole. Hit several spots, Humpty Dumpty, 20 fathom slough, Little Italy, Monster Ledge, Slough and some other lumps. Water was not as charted, it was cold, dirty and gray. Had some bait balls, porpoise and had a hard time picking through the monster bluefish to find an under fish. We finally came tight on a small 33 inch, 27.1 pound dressed under fish. After a while of no other knockdowns we ran down to Barnegat Ridge after talking to Bri-Time to try and get into the bonito bite and got there at the end of it and only came up with a falsie. Decided to go in Barnegat and run up the inside…should have gone all the way back up to Squan…outside was like a lake and bay was a washing machine.
Sunday shoved off on the 35′ Bertram at 2:30 headed to the Atlantic Princess area. Stopped 1.2 miles short of our numbers just before first light due to breaking skippies, BFT and spraying bait. Immediately dropped one of my ‘Dragon Fly’ colored jigs down on a 50, clipped it the outrigger, before I could grab my jigging rod with another jig that rod went off. Grabbed the rod, fought the fish for about 10 minutes and the hook pulled. Moved back on that spot, had good marks again got the rods set and chunks going. But for the next two hours it was just catch and release skippies. Once there was enough light to see down in the water we did see BFT cruising below the skippies but they had lock jaw. We tried all different kinds of jigs, sardines, peanuts, squid, different plastic baits…nothing. Two hours after the first fish we get another hookup, same rod, same jig. Ryan (the owner of the boat) had come down off the bridge to go to the bathroom and get a sandwich said hey, this line release from the rigger clip. Funny thing was, fish didn’t take line right away. He went to reset it and as he was putting it back into the clip, fish took off. This little guy was feisty and we had to move the boat a few times as he kept running under it. Fish came to gaff rather quickly though and it turned out to be a 34 inch, 33 pound fish and Ryan’s first BFT and first tuna on his boat. We moved back on our spot but again continued with the skippies and that was it. We did see some bigger fish under them throughout the rest of the trip and a few boats around us hooked up but that was it for us. Trolled a little around the fleet without a touch and then headed in at noon. Back at the dock at 2:30.
River slaughter
Sunday, August 9th, 2009Since I was doing a solo trip I decided to stay inside instead of running off to some lumps for bonito after hearing from a buddy that it was a little sloppy out.
Had lines in at 6 and the slaughter continued until I ran out of bait. Fished from the mouth of the canal on the North side to the sea wall. Didn’t really matter where you were but what bait you were using. Out of all the boats I saw out there I think I only saw about two dozen fish caught. I fished fresh peanuts netted the night before and that morning. Took a whole 2.5 gallon bucket full to the top and used it all! Lost count on how many shorts I caught after thirty something but would venture a guess of well over a hundred due to the amount of bait and leader material I went through.
Did manage two nice keepers both 21″. Water wasn’t too dirty from the rain and the rain was either light or stopped but came and went throughout the morning. I tried various gulp baits, spearing, squid…all they wanted was peanuts. They hit both the trailing hook and the bucktail and I had several double headers and several times when the drift was light where the fish had both hooks in its mouth.
They are feeding heavily and voraciously most likely fattening up to start moving on. Plus if this tropical depression off the Cape Verde Islands forms and comes up the coast you can bet that will chase them out in a hurry. I would definitely concentrate outside though, the last few trips we made outside produced some really nice fish…get them while they are still here.
On the DL
Saturday, August 8th, 2009I had to go to the dentist for emergency work the day we were supposed to leave for our first canyon trip. That was not the worst though…I woke up with a major crick in my neck, so bad that I could not look over my shoulder to drive. Got my chompers worked on and headed home to pack. Tried to get some gear in the car but was unsuccessful and with no improvement in my neck decided it was probably a bad idea to go offshore in such a state. Mark and Tommy understood as they have been in similar situations before with aches, pains, broken bones etc. Capt. Yappy on the other hand was his usual grumpy, ornery self and I just let that be as it may.
I am hoping to feel better later today and head down for Sunday to see what the boys caught and maybe get in a little fluking and drag some lures for bonito before they get in.
Fluking picks up
Sunday, August 2nd, 2009Went out Sunday with Mark, Wayne and Mike. Had a blast, first time I have ever been out with Mike…he his hilarious. Always a good time at the marina with Mike around and now he is certainly welcome as a crew member anytime.
Decided to stick close to home in case the storms rolled through early so we headed to the Axel Carlson. Tried a few wrecks I haven’t fished in a while and had a slow pick at short fluke and sea bass until a couple of dive boats showed up, at which point I decided to move to other structure.
On our first drift on some rubble I boated my personal best summer flounder, it measured out at 24″ and 5 lbs 6 3/4 ounces.
We continued to take the same drift and put a few more fish in the boat, fish were either shorts or over 20″. We also continued to pick away at short and keeper sea bass.
Conditions were great, flat seas, light breeze and warm water for a change. Temps ranged from 71.4 to 74.3. Throughout the day we had bunker flipping and occasionally being harassed by something. A couple times there were slicks around the flipping bunker so we suspect that blues are starting to make a showing. We mainly fished water 80′ in depth and I used a 2 ounce bucktail all day while others used 3 or 4 ounce ball jigs and bucktails. All the bigger fish hit bucktails or ball jigs and spearing seemed to be the preferred bait. Didn’t get even a tap on peanut bunker or squid heads. Also tried the Hogy Squid and caught a few skates but nothing else. This was in one of our first spots so I will definitely try it again for fluking with the 7″ bait. I think it will be a good addition to our lure selection for other species as well including, striped bass, offshore wreck fishing, tile fish, tuna and maybe even as a trolling lure.
Headed in around 11 and got the boat and gear cleaned with time for a beer before the storms stated rolling through. Got some pretty high winds up to 46 knots and near horizontal rain for a while. And some pretty big lightening strikes as well.
Dead humpback washes up on NJ shore
Tuesday, July 28th, 2009A dead humpback washed up on Monmouth Beach yesterday. They believe it was hit by a ship due to several broken ribs. Below are links to the APP article and some video on You Tube by Woodman56.
First river fluking trip of ‘09
Sunday, July 26th, 2009Decided to make a quick trip to the river and then work on the boat. The storm at 4:30 delayed my departure by about an hour. Figures…there were weakies crashing peanuts in the creek during the lightening show. Finally left the dock at 6 and had the river to myself. Tried gulp, spearing, and finally peanuts. Had a fish on as soon as the peanuts would hit the bottom. Problem was no matter where I tried they were shorts…from about 8″ up to 17.5. Moved toward the Inlet and had a steady pick of almost keeper fish and some of the smallest sea bass I have ever caught or seen. Soon after stemming the tide a bit to slow my drift down I started overheating. Threw the hook, hooked up the raw water wash down to flush the motor while waiting for it to cool a bit, cleaned the strainer (not much in it) and then headed back to the dock.
Pulled the water pump apart…had some grooving in the housing so I am ordering a new one today. Runs fine at higher RPM but at idle I guess the slight grooving causes it not to pump enough water. Not sure how long they usually last but she has almost 700 hours so it is probably time. Also checked the heat exchanger and that is clean as a whistle.
Drift was a little fast for my liking, water temps were 72.4 to 74.5 depending on location, peanuts were the best producer and the water wasn’t nearly as dirty as I thought it would be after the rain on an ebbing tide. There were also tons of small spearing all over. While throwing a small diving plug they would spray when the plug hit the water and while coming to the surface near the boat.
Day off
Monday, July 20th, 2009Played hooky today and went fishing before the week of rain got here. Took the Admiral to Atlantic City on Saturday and she was kind enough to give me Today off to go fishing with the boys.
Turned out Mark had to work so it was just me and Tommy. Left the dock at 5:30 and was fishing by 6:40 off Monmouth Beach. Flat calm conditions with very little drift. Water was in the 69-70 degree range.
Right away we had a few short fluke, skates, robins and spider crabs. With mostly garbage fish we made a move and shortly put a 23″, 3.75 pound fish in the box. Repeated the drift several times and nothing but short sea bass.
Made another move and we started bailing sea bass shorts and keepers. After trying a few more spots we put another fluke in the box, it was about 20″.
On the ride in we tried to locate a wreck I have fished on other boats in the past with great success but failed to find it. I have a book that has notes on where it is by landmarks…have to spend some time this season and find it. it was always a good producer on the way in.
We ended the day with 16 sea bass to 17″, 1.97 pounds and two fluke. Water was very dirty, 69.x degrees and fish hit peanuts, spearing, whole squid and squid heads. Back at the dock by 12:30 and back up North by 5 pm to take the Admiral to the spa.
Weekend off
Friday, July 17th, 2009With crappy weather originally forecasted and the marina owners having a big party (150-300 guests) I decided on some down time with the Admiral. A weekend of having to fight to get in and out of the parking lot and fighting potentially angry seas and rain storms is not relaxing so I figured why waste a weekend being frustrated with poor conditions and have some fun. Not sure as of yet what the weekend will entail but you can be on a good read of the recap of our weekend. Tight lines and screaming drags for those who get out this weekend.
Got wrecked again!
Sunday, July 12th, 2009Headed out a little later (6:30) than normal knowing we probably were staying close to home and not doing much fluking. I wanted to run back up to Monmouth Beach to fluke but had a feeling the ride back when the SE kicked up would not be fun. Ran out to the Axel Carlson in a ground swell with very little drift. Was able to keep the jigs vertical with 1 to 1.5 ounces in 72′ of water and immediately put some nice sea bass in the box. We continued with a steady pick of sea bass and ling with some shorts mixed in unlike prior weeks.
Moved in on the beach after the bite died and played catch and release with short fluke on the Mantoloking pipe. When the wind started picking up around 11 we headed in, and glad we didn’t make the run North as we would have had to run into the ground swell with 2′ of chop on top and a head wind. We both had things we wanted to do anyway so it was good short trip with fish in the box.
Didn’t really pay attention to water temps but with ling hanging around still the bottom is still pretty chilly. The sea bass ranged from 14″ to almost 21″…almost my largest to date. They were hitting spearing and peanut bunker, the didn’t seem to like quid strips at all but also hit on squid heads, bucktails and gulp shrimp, with the best producing bait being spearing.
Too bad the garbagefish.com tourney wasn’t this week…we had a few small robins and two small skates but had a huge male smooth doggie, his tail hung off the motor box which is 44″ wide…so he was probably just over 4′! He was released and the numbers of the wreck he was patrolling were written down in hopes he will be there next week!
4th of July Weekend
Sunday, July 5th, 2009
Saturday we went fluking up off Monmouth Beach. Ran up at 28 knots and was fishing by 7. Tons of fish up there, many 17 to just over 18″ fish. We didn’t keep anything under 18.5 so there was no question if stopped on the way in. Heard a number of boats were boarded. Fish were taking spearing, squid heads and peanut bunker. With peanuts getting the most attention and stronger strikes. I had a couple of double headers of both fluke and sea bass. Also had tons of sea bass with many shorts. Probably had 60 plus fluke and about the same sea bass keeping 12 fluke and 11 sea bass for the table. We also had birds workign around us most of the day, not sure what was under them didn’t really cast to them at all nor did we mark anything really when we drifted through them.
Sunday I mainly mated for a buddy who had to take a friend and his two kids fishing. This trip we headed out to some numbers I did well the week before with sea bass. Shortly after arriving in 75′ of water we had the first fish in the boat. I was hooking fish and handing the rods off to the kids. Once both were bringing in fish I decided to catch my own…big mistake. The rods I was handing off all had keeper fluke and big sea bass (16-20″ fish) but all I would come up with were skates, sea ravens and sculpins. Only fished about two hours but we put a couple nice fluke (19-21″) in the box as well as another 11 sea bass but none of the keepers were under 16″. Had a dozen or so short fluke and probably two or three dozen short sea bass to keep the kids on constant action. We also added a few ling to the box for a little variety. The ling weren’t as thick so bottom temps must be coming up a little. Again bait of choice was squid, killies, spearing and peanuts.
The peanuts were not big, only about 1.5″ to 2″ but very thick in the marina this weekend. After a fall, winter and spring of not throwing the net I was pretty rusty and only yielded a dozen or so a throw I was still able to put a good amount together for this weekends trips. Definitely need to get a smaller net to through in the launch ramp where they appear most of the time. The 8 footer is just too big for the small space.
Water temps were down a little but sinkers and fish were coming up warmer. Surface temps ranged from 66 to 69 degrees both days deepening on location and time of day. There was a small pod of dolphin just outside the inlet making the inlet a little more interesting with it being a holiday weekend, with all the armatures out with them site seeing at the same time.
Highlight of the weekend was Saturday night just after the fireworks displays up and down the creek there was a supposed jumper off the Beaverdam Bridge. The emergency vehicles and state police cleared out pretty quick though, not sure what the outcome was but they were cruising up and down around the bridge and walking all the docks in the marina.
I also heard rumors from sources I wouldn’t waste gas on but heard from a few people that a couple guys got YFT in the eastern parts of the mud hole yesterday. I do know there was another thresher pulled off the Sea Girt Reef over the weekend and heard a bunch of BFT caught south in the Fingers and also up toward the Mako Hotel.
Mako Mania & Mako Fever
Sunday, June 28th, 2009Headed out Saturday morning late (7 am) in order to avoid Saturday’s checkout for the tourneys to get some fresh bait. We headed out to the Manasquan Ridge and the Southeast Lump. All sorts of live out there, we had porpoise, turtles, sunfish, bunker and sand eels but no bluefish. Just an occasional cocktail blue. After a few hours of getting frustrated we moved in on the Axel Carlson for sea bass and ling. It was non stop action with almost no short sea bass and the keepers were all over 17″ and the ling varied in size from 1.5 to 4 pounds.
Sunday morning we checked out and headed offshore with the front of the pack. Made it to our spot in just under 2.5 hours. Upon arrival the water was blue, clear and 68.5 degrees. Had good life on the wrecks but nothing came to investigate the slick.
Had a really slow drift despite the wind and swell. We went to make a move to get setup back at the beginning of the slick and halfway we had a free jumping mako about 200-225 pounds. Stopped immediatle and got baits out right away but was unable to raise the fish.
Ran in to the fingers to give that a shot for an hour or two and had nothing there. The drift was even slower, at first we just doing circles and couldn’t get the lines away from the boat. We did see tuna busting a couple times while running and lot of really big debris out there so if you are running off keep a close watch. Lots of pilings just at or below the surface.
Bass moving on?
Saturday, June 20th, 2009Decided with the weather being a crap shoot to leave the dock late and sleep in. Shoved off at 5:30 with the sun rising, light to no wind and few clouds. Broke the inlet and was greeted with flipping bunker.
Pod hopped for a couple hours moving North as we moved on. Bunker was from MI pretty much all the way up to Red Church. Unfortunately they were small pods, scattered easily and had nothing on them. Most pods would sound as the line hit the water over them or the snag hit water.
Switched over to fluking and picked away at them and sea bass. frustrated with fish that were right on the 18″ line or just under we moved further North to where we had fish last week.
Right away we found a pod of fish making short 50-75 yard drifts over them. But again the fish were just borderline keepers. We kept a few that were just over and a couple of sea bass.
Also had a few small robins, a sculpin and a skate. Larger robins were kept for crab bait. Almost forgot…I guess we had some sort of inshore Garbage Fish Slam…sea robin, sculpin, skate, star fish and Jersey snow crab (spider crab). At least we had variety. We tried but could not find a doggie to complete the Grand Slam!
Water was flat for the most part, one in a while there would be a big roller. Had a couple sprinkles start about 11-11:30 as we were heading in. water temps ranged from 60.2 to 65.5 depending on time and location. Bait…pretty much anything worked…spearing, squid strip, sun dial strip, squid heads (my favorite) gulp jerk shads and shrimp.
Got back to the dock, gear off and the skies opened up…perfect timing…let nature do the washing!
Are the striped ones moving on or did the coming storms put them off the feed? Hopefully they were just taking some time off of feeding and stick around a few more weeks. Unfortunately next week we will be busy with the shark tournaments and Fourth of July weekend we usually take our first offshore trip. If they stick around hopefully they wait till mid July to move on so we can get one more shot at them.
Long weekend roundup
Monday, June 15th, 2009OK…I get down to the marina, unload the truck…forgot my tackle bag. No biggie we go and buy new hooks, leader, swivels, snags, etc for fluking, sea bass and striper fishing for the weekend and pickup bait and Entenmann’s for breakfast. No we are not Norweigan…the bait is for fishing and the Entenmann’s is breakfast!
Go to fuel the boat up…lose forward on the way to the service slip. Figure let’s get her fueled up since I need it and then look at the shift issue. Go to move her back and not only don’t have forward but get stuck in reverse. Luckily the service slip is only three slips away and we float her back to her slip. It’s already dark out so we figure we will just take a buddy’s boat and look at in on Saturday, plus we figured there would be fog anyway so we would probably end up taking his since I don’t have radar.
So now we are down one boat the first day of the weekend.
Saturday…get off to a great start. In the first 20 minutes and less than a mile from the inlet we get on spraying bunker, put a 38 pound fish in the boat and have two other run offs. Then Wayne on his flounder rod gets spooled by a big fish.
The not being far from the inlet it was not long before the fleet of fluke tourney boats runs through the school of fish, puts them down and they scatter. We tried for another half hour and on a few more pods but then gave up and switched to sea bass. Had tons of shorts and decided to go fluking. Ended up putting 5 nice fluke in the boat with two 16″ sea bass and then while moving we smelled diesel.
Shut her down and look for the leak. Tanks look good, lines, everything. Can’t figure out where it is coming from. Start running again and same thing, now we get it down to the starboard motor so we come in on one and after close inspection find a broken return line right in front of the turbo! Good thing we didn’t keep running…could of been a serious problem if the fuel found its way closer to the turbo.
So now we are down two boats in two days.
We had planned on fishing a different boat on Sunday so at least we know we are still fishing tomorrow. Sunday rolls around leave the dock EARLY to get in on the great bite we had early the day before and wanted to be out even earlier to hopefully get a longer shot at them.
First drift we make bait, hookup and drop two fish. Go to move off the beach and again the starboard motor won’t fire. Get off the beach on one motor and start jogging while we try and diagnose the problem. Ignition circuits keep tripping and paralleling batteries doesn’t do much either.
Check the current charts and it is slack at the inlet and slowing in the canal so we decide to run in on one while the getting is good. It is always a good day when you come in on your own power and safe…even it is on one motor.
Get back to the dock and it turns out to be the starboard battery. Voltage was fine with no load but under load went into a dead short and even smoked a bit.
So now we are down three boats in three days.
I make arrangements to be hauled Monday morning and check with the Admiral that it is OK to stay over one more day…good thing I always pack extra clothes.
So in the mean time I run over to Harbor Freight to get a jack and jack stands to rotate my tires. Cashier is ringing me up and the register dies. So now my buddies conclude the hex is caused by me!
Monday…get hauled out and the problem with the shifting is a loose cable clamp, check the cable, no nicks or wear in it, reset the clamp and all is well…or so we think. Decide while it is out to check the drive fluid. Nice shade of light gray. Dipstick was only hand tight and the o-ring on the drain plug was rolled. Only person to blame for that is me since I changed the gear oil.
Run to the gas station get a can of diesel and flush it three times. Fuel was clear after the second, did the third to be safe and also flushed a half gallon through from the top. Filled her back up and went for a test ride and all is good.
Now we just have to wait and see. Everyone was telling me they have seen worse but with my luck I will need a new drive by season’s end.
Hope everyone had a better weekend than us.