So, if you’ve been following the summer flounder issue at all, you know that by law the fluke population has to reach a certain level (a scientifically determined rebuilding goal) by the year 2013.  Reaching this goal was requiring some very significant cuts in landings and the commercial and recreational fishing industries weren’t very happy about that.

So now, with the natural mortality estimate significantly increased, the rebuilding goal is significantly reduced, thus, according to the new model we are closer to the rebuilding goal than we initially thought.  The Jersey fishing press is screaming victory, saying they were right all along, but my interpretation is there isn’t much for those folks to celebrate about, and really they weren’t right at all.  I’ll get to that in a second.

A long time industry supporter told the Asbury Park Press “We’ve been fishing under this system for all this time, and they suddenly sat down and used different numbers, What a hoax!”  Well, let’s be honest here.  It’s likely that the natural mortality number wouldn’t have changed if those industry reps didn’t secure one of their scientists a seat at the stock assessment table.

There are already a good number of folks who believe that the increase in the natural mortality variable was political.  I spoke to one scientist today who said that natural mortality estimate is pretty darn high on the scale, and went on to describe it as “absurd”.   I’m not sure I agree with such strong words, but there has been a ton of political pressure on managers to increase harvest  so I can understand this view.  According to insiders, NOAA wasn’t happy about the natural mortality tweak nor was it wholeheartedly endorsed by the review committee, but they didn’t think it was inappropriate, and saw no reason to reject the option.  But indeed I have to say that it appears politics is playing a role in a system that is supposed to rely on un-bias science.     With all this being said however, the option did pass a peer review.  If NOAA Fisheries says this is the best available science, then we need to follow it, and I’ll wholeheartedly support it.

What is paramount in all of this is the integrity of the peer-review process.  I spent the last couple of years supporting the prior rebuilding target of 197-million-pounds, and the resultant management measures, because they reflected the best available science, as represented by a peer-reviewed stock assessment.   A faction of the recreational fishing industry and the commercial fishing industry attacked the science as “bad” without offering anything else in its place, and I opposed that approach because I believed it was wrong.  Now, we’re looking at a significantly lowered target and folks are cheering, because they feel that their attack on the prior target of 197 million pounds was vindicated.  Some folks on the other side of the spectrum are upset, because they feel that the 197 million pound target was improperly undercut.  Both are overlooking the fact that the essential process remains the same, and that both the prior 197 million pound and the present 131 million pound targets reflect the best available science at the time the calculations were made.

We always have to remember that, if researchers are doing their jobs, every year brings additional data and additional knowledge.  In 2011, we’ll have even more information, and can probably expect additional tuning of the reference points.  Undoubtedly that’s a good thing, and it shows that indeed the system does work and that it is already sufficiently “flexible.”  Thus, there is absolutely no need for a “Flexibility” Amendment to fisheries management law currently being pushed by some.   Such an amendment is shortsighted and would essentially bring us back to the pre-1996 days of perpetual overfishing.

Now, back to the victory celebration columns.  As mentioned, if natural mortality has been underestimated and the fishery is less productive than previously thought, that will lower the rebuilding goal. The bottom line is that, while the rebuilding target is lower, harvest is ultimately also lower than it would be under the old rules.

For example, if the fishery is eventually declared fully rebuilt with the lower goal, we won’t see much looser regulations than what we have now, where as if the stock had been rebuilt to what scientists had said it could be rebuilt to under the old system, angers could have enjoyed far more liberal size and bag limits had the initial rebuilding goal been met.   Of course this begs the question, could that prior goal have been achieved if we had followed the plan and didn’t overfish every year.  Guess we’ll never know.

Fishing Reports
Indeed, in most regions folks are lamenting the summer doldrums.  The bass fishing across the board has become a night/early morning event with the exception of those well known cold-water rips.  Still, regional bodies of bait have turned on some locals.  The good news is bonito are beginning to fill in at their usual haunts.  And…  I’ve been fishing some monster bluefish offshore.  Big f’ers!  The kind you really don’t want to be in the water with.  Say what you want about the yellow-eyed-devils, but I think they are a ton of fun, especially the jumpers!  Folks are still catching bass at dawn and at night under the bunker along the Jersey Coast.  Getting them eat anything other than live bait can be tough though.  Inshore, there have been some surprisingly good sight-fishing opportunities.   In the New York Bite, some schoolies are hanging around under birds on some tides but they are small and skittish.  The flats fishing?  Forgetaboutit.  The water is tannic and unfishable this year.  In Jamaica Bay the water is really off-color as well and while some schoolies can be caught throwing poppers along the sod-banks at dawn, it’s not really worth it.  Because of Bertha, things have been tough in Eastern Long Island.  Eastern Connecticut is still fishing relatively well, with some impressive bass being taken at hot-spots such as The Race.  Not much in the way official reports from Rhode Island, but word is the bunker are up there and the fishing is good, for the bait guys anyway.   Some scattered reports of bonito at Block Island, but nothing official yet.  In Mass, lots of bait filtered in to Boston Harbor and really got the schoolies going again.  The Cape has been uncharacteristically slow and not much going on with the bluefin right now.  That should change with August though.   Maine still seems to be slow on the bass front, but the bluefin are getting thicker and easier to catch.

New Jersey Saltwater Fishing Reports
Capt. Bryan DiLeo from Iowa Fortune Guide Service checks in with this southern New Jersey Report: ”
Atlantic City/Ocean City Report
The past couple of weeks have been by far the best opportunity to sight fish Bass so far this season and this is just a preview of what’s to come in the fall season. The Bass have been blind to water depth as they pushed pods of grass shrimp into the shallows.  The stable weather offered calm winds which had the Bass happy and tracking predictably making each day a carbon copy of the prior day. With the Bass feeding this freely it allowed us to stay in front of Bass offering consistent topwater action even during the high sun summer time conditions. July is really starting to become one of the prime months for shallow water bass allowing clients shots at tailing Bass, rollers and wakers, all of which the past 2 weeks delivered.”

New York Saltwater Fishing Reports
Reporting  from the New York Bite I can stay  “Man, there are some big-ass bluefish around!”  Gotta run a ways offshore to get them but they have been really fun.  Inshore it’s been a bust, the water is off-color and it just ain’t worth it.

Capt. Chris Hessert from Manhattan Fly checks in with this report:
“Bertha moves out…Cristobal moves in, had a window today and jumped on it. The next 2 days will be snotty. Shot for the 20 fathom line early, water turned a cobalt blue, a real change from Saturday. Once at the line, we dropped our spread, working south east, wind 2 to 4…sweet,  like a lake!  40 minutes into the troll… we see a big jumper! start to get stoked!, another hour, 3 decent bait balls, nothing on them, starting to bum a bit…when off my bow, about 200 yards… an awesome sight! a Fin whale around 60 feet or so, just huge!! Tried to get a bit closer for a photo, submarined, waited around for  twenty minutes or so…gone.  Continued on, next, a massive sea turtle, just a ton of awesome life out there!
Slows down a bit, then we see two more jumpers…50/60 range, stoked again! Then all silent. Tough… third run out there and have had visuals each time…dont know if its better to see them and hope for a strike or not see them and pray for a strike? Got reports of Bonito at RI and some Skip Jack headed north along NJ. Just too much life out there not to try again…out Friday.”

From Breezy Point Maven, David Berman reports:
“As you are well aware the July doldrums seem to be upon us and my recent outing this past weekend, confirms that for me anyhow. Did not get out for first light on sunday, but friend Ken Jones did. He was rewarded with two small schoolies on the fly in the wash on the incoming at the jetty, and  later a bit bigger fish on plug. I arrived somewhere around 7:30am on the incoming, the water a bit off color, so no sight fishing opportunities presented . No fish either to blind casting thru the morning.Water was clearing considerably on the outgoing when I left around 10:30am.  Earlier in the week I had the opportunity via a friends kind invite to fish out at THE END on boat. We made the grand tour to the Point , down the south side abit, over to The Race and the Gulls over to the Ruins and Gardiners, a brief pass at the back of Hither Hills, and back to the Harbor.  Some yellow eyed devil action in the am  near the Light. Alovely day on the water!   Bonito fever now has me in its grasp!!!  Am scheming  to get out before weekend.”

Capt. Robin Calitri from Long Island Fly Fishing checks in with this report:
“Dave Berman reported that Breezey Point was holding some nice bass to be taken while sight casting.  He also reported that Montauk fishing has been tough for even such legends as Dixon, Switzer and Reagan.  I fished the East End with Jim Del Grosso on Tuesday. We attempted to go offshore for some of the tunas that have been rumored to be around Block Island but we found the seas too rough. We found nothing at Montauk, the Gut or Gardiner’s.  We did score with big blues and one 27 inch bass at the Race and the Gulls. Caren Calitri joined me on Sunday for a day on C Sic Again.  We  fished a bit around Northport  Bay and found tons of smallish blues in deep water and some schoolie bass closer to shore.” 

Also checking in from Eastern Long Island is Capt. David Blinken from North Flats Guiding:
“The weather is giving us guides fits but in between there is some quality fishing. There are more blues showing up, they range in size from 1- 5 LB’s good 6 and 7 wt action. There are also bass, and they seem to be feeding on the peanut bunker that came in last week. The incoming tide is the way to go during daylight hours. Keep releasing those bass.”

Lastly, Capt. Ken Rafferty checks in with a comprehensive day by day report from the Hamptons:
“JULY 11th…Full-day…Michael Salzhauer…Fly-fishing.
We did a lot of hunting this day with Michael landing lots of Bluefish and one nice 30 inch Striper.
JULY 12th…Morning…Arik and Gabby…Spin Tackle.
Slow day….SKUNKED! after putting on forty four (44) miles.
JULY 13th…Morning…Pitts Robinson and his friend Jason. It starts to get better but not good enough for me.
Pitts has some nice follows by Blues and manages to land one. Jason hooked up and landed a nice 11 lb. Striper. We hit the flats where we sighted five or six nice Stripers but it was so windy, they spotted us and took off before we could get a cast at them.
Bertha, the hurricane continues to slowly move away from Bermuda and stir up the Atlantic sending swells well up into out area.  They bounce off Connectcut and head toward the north side of Long Island. As they crash on our shore lines it stirs up the bottom and clouds the water with silt and large patches of bottom grasses. At one point it took me forty minutes to go from Bostwick Point to Eastern Plains Point due to grass and weeds cloging the intake on my engine.
JULY 15th…Full-day…Andrew Wright…Fly-fishing.
We couldn’t fish on any of the flats due to the sweels coming in so I headed out into 25 feet of clear water between Eastern Plains Point and Fort Pond Bay where we found nice large Bluefish breaking the surface while feeding on Sandeels. Andrew must have had about a dozen in the boat by noon. I then headed to another spot where he managed to hook-up and land one nice Striper of 22 lbs. The remainder of the day was once again filled by Bluefish…large and small.
JULY 16th…Morning…Mike Scott and Todd…Spin Tackle. At 6:00 am I once again had to head out to find clear water and those large Bluefish. Both Mike and Todd hooked up on the first cast with fish that weighed over 10 lbs. Several more cast and several more fish were landed of the same size. This went on for about an hour and suddenly all we had were follows and a single shot at the lure……not like Bluefish. I set up a rod without wire leader, just 50 lb. test flurocarbon and had Todd cast out. I told him if you get a strike and it misses the lure….stop for a split second and start retrieving again………..BANG! hook-up, Striped Bass 12 lbs.
While Todd cast again I set Mike up with the same leader and lure. I could hear the water splashing as I’m tying mike’s leader……..Todd is hooked up again.
Mike cast out and misses two fish, he cast again and is hooked up. All these fish are now Stripers from 8 to 14 lbs. finning on the surface…I need a fly rod but don’t have one on board. These fish stayed there for over an hour of non stop action, it was the best day so far this season.
JULY 16th…Afternoon…Sean Patrick…Fly-fishing
When I got back in at 11:00 am I called Sean and told him about the Stripers…..he was in the boat at twelve noon and we were on some Stripers at 12:30 pm….just two miles further east.
These Stripers were smaller, between 5 and 8 lbs. but their were hundreds of them finning and breaking water while not paying any mind to us sitting in the middle of them. With a small white fly, Sean hooked up time and time again as we lost count. Sometimes they all would go down for about five minutes or so and then suddenly reappear a few hundred feet away.
By 3:00 pm or so they were gone and were replaced by Large Bluefish. Sean landed two of about 12 lbs. and was to tired to continue…so we headed back in.
JULY 17th…Afternoon…Mills Ogden and his son Matthew…Spin Tackle. I headed out to that same spot hoping to find those schools of Stripers but no such luck. Mills did land one nice 10.5 lb. Striper and one Bluefish while Matthew landed three nice Bluefish…where did they go?
JULY 18th…I didn’t fish this Friday but was told by Michael Salzhauer that these Stripers were right back where I left them and he had his best day this season.
JULY 19th…Afternoon…John Phillips and his son Thomas…Fly and Spin.
At the same spot this day only produced Big Bluefish. Thomas managed to land about a half dozen while John could only find big fish that wanted to follow but not eat his flie no matter how many different flies we tried.
JULY 22nd…Morning…Chris and Cindy Petitti…Fly and Spin. With Chris on the bow Fly-fishing and Cindy at the stern with light spin tackle it was a no trouble landing lots of large Bluefish in the 10 to 12 lb. class. We lost count by noon but both anglers were happy with their first day of saltwater fishing.”

Connecticut Saltwater Fishing Reports
From Eastern Connecticut, Capt. Sandy Noyes from Rumrunner charters reports:
“It appears that the summer doldrums have arrived, in this area anyway. I fished two Kens the other day and it was tough. We found some small bass and blues but we had to work to get them. In my travels this week, I came across acre of good sized sand eels that were unmolested except for a few terns. On Tuesday I saw the first swarm of small bass on the surface. That’s when they bunch up real tight and surface feed. Last year  I had a discussion with a sportsman that after trying every lure in his tacklebox, he tied on a sinker and treble hook and was casting into the middle of the school. My suggestion would be to go real small and work the edges of the school.”