FINANCIAL MARKETS AND FISHERIES…
Indeed, there was much turmoil on Wall Street this week.   I won’t even begin to act like I know all or even some of the details on how we came dangerously close to a total collapse of our financial system, but what I find odd is how one of the oldest financial institutions on Wall Street went under.  The fact that a company with that much money and with so many smart people working there didn’t have a plan for this sort of thing is beyond me.

Enter the Fishery Management Council system.  For decades these councils made up primarily of commercial fishermen and recreational industry representatives have managed on or over the margins, putting their own economic well being before the overall health of stocks they were appointed to protect.

I’m a firm believer that Council and stakeholder input is critically important to the fisheries management process (I’m such a believer that I recently was appointed to the Mid Atlantic Council),  but when such input is self-serving, and ignores both the best scientific evidence and the mandate of law, NOAA Fisheries must step up and act in the greater public interest.

Fishing Reports
There’s still a bluefin bight off the Jersey Coast but it consists of mostly troll caught fish.  Lots of Mahi out there as well and they are eager to take flies and jigs.  Inshore the action really picked up this week on the bass and bluefish front.  And….  Some good albie fishing just a bit off the coast.  In the New York Bite area, we had very good false albacore concentrations.  Guys were hooking up left and right before all that east wind set in on Friday.  Still a ton of bay anchovies around, so I expect them to reappear once things settle.   The mullet are around in force.  There has been some exceptional fishing on the breaking sandbars as bass and bluefish chase the mullet in the white water.   Jamaica and Raritan Bay are uncharacteristically slow.  Still, lots of peanut bunker in both these areas, so as soon as we get some cooler weather it should go off.  Across Long Island, expect to find concentrations of both albies and bass in and around the inlets.  Out in Montauk, there were major bass blitzes last week and the albies were on fire as well.  Now is definitely the time to be hitting Montauk.  Things are picking up on the North Shore also, but mainly just schoolies.  Both Connecticut and Rhode Island have good concentrations of albies in the traditional spots.  Up in Mass it’s been hit or miss as the fall run still doesn’t seem to have taken hold yet.  Some scattered pods of albies in and around the Cape but I hear they’ve been tough.

New Jersey Fishing Reports
Capt. Bryan DiLeo from Iowa Fortune Guide service checks in with this Southern New Jersey Report.  Check it out:
“Man O Man” does it feel good to be back on the water once again. The past two weeks dished up action, both with Bass in the SJ back country as well as a good Dolphin bite offshore. I can see that the stars are aligning in the back country for what looks to be an explosive upcoming fall. On the right tides brief glimpses into the future months ahead can be seen with large schools of peanut bunker, rain bait, and mullet balling up for survival triggering mini blitzes through out the shallows. These feeding frenzies of Bluefish with Bass mixed in will soon be turning into blitzes of Bass with Bluefish mixed in, and can be found popping up unannounced at any time throughout the months ahead. September is always an interesting transitional time in the shallows when an all out Bass blitz can blow up right in front of your eyes at any time. This action, combined with the lack of summer boat traffic, often allows us the ability to stay on top of Bass for unlimited amounts of time, offering up some fast paced action. As far as the offshore scene, I will be splitting my time between the backcountry and out front for Albies and Dolphin as was the case Saturday taking advantage of the picture perfect weather window giving us great ocean conditions. With the light offshore winds it offered a good opportunity for a smooth run offshore for some quality run and gun Dolphin action with fish up to 10lbs, and better yet, we never saw another boat all day. This type of action should stick with us though the next two months. If you are looking to get in on the fall action email me for available dates. My September is pretty much full, so it is now all about October and November and it would be my suggestion to get in while the gettin’s good. Now that I am back on the water full time my weekly reports will resume flowing on a weekly basis once again.”

New York Fishing Reports
Capt. David Azar from One More Cast Charters checks in with this Lower New York Harbor report:
“THE FALL RUN HAS BEGUN!!! Fishing in the New York Bight has been amazing!  A huge crop of stripers has moved in and they are feeding heavily on the abundant buildup of bait in the area.  The stripers, which have been averaging 25″, are mixed in with bluefish to 9 pounds.  But Dr. Ron Mizrahi was out at the Shrewsbury Rocks on Sunday and reported bigger blues and bigger bass in that area.  Lehman Bros., AIG, and Merrill Lynch were not the only big news this weekend, the really big news was the arrival of the albies on Sunday.  While this captain has yet to get one in the boat (though John Maples came awfully close, see below) Captains John McMurray and Chris Hessert both had banner sessions Sunday and today.  Right now catching a slam is almost a sure thing so if you have been waiting for the albies to show now is the time!
Last Thursday I spent the morning searching far and wide for albies with no luck.  On the way home, at 2:30 p.m., I found the stripers and blues in a favorite spot.  Every drift produced several fish on both flies and artificials.  Fishing alone for about 2 hours I landed close to 20 fish.”

From the North Shore, Bob Giordano has this to say about the week’s action:
“Hey John, still bluefish in and around the harbors. Not showing in any visual way. Most hook ups have been blind casting larger crease flies and gurglers. No news on the Albie/ Bonito front. Our club is having an outing this Sunday with five or six boats running about so hopefully one of our members will find them.
The calender last year had them in around our local points to the sound.  Concerning is the lack of large bunker and even the peanut pods seem to be much thinner then usual. We’ll see how things get rolling as we officially move into Autumn.”

From Montauk, Capt. David Blinken from North Flats Guiding checks in with this report. 
“The blitz continues! That is the title of this weeks fishing report. The falling tide and early mornings rule.
As long as the weather holds up the fishing is off the chart and the fishing seems to recover quickly after a weather event. Bay anchovies are the primary bait. Get out there and revel awesome angling before its too late!” 

And lastly, we’ve got a day by day this week from Capt. Ken Rafferty:
“SEPT 8th…Afternoon…Gene Sills…Fly-fishing.
The water was still a little cloudy from Hanna’s winds but as I headed east from Eastern Plains Point I found clear water and lots of big Bluefish on the surface. There were some Albies slashing through the water but everytime we tied on an Albie flie the Blues would bite it off. Gene was very happy landing a dozen or so of those 12 lb. Bluefish.
SEPT 9th…Morning…Frank and Donald Oconner, brothers…Spin Tackle.
I headed back to Eastern Plains Pt and found cleaner water and some Stripers among the rocks. Both Frank and Don hooked up with 8 to 10 lb. fish for a total of four Stripers. We then spotted a few Albies that were once again mixed in with lots of big Bluefish. Don hooked up first with an Albie…the line screamed out but it was cut off by a Bluefish. We were not able to hook-up with anymore Albies but both anglers landed lots of large Bluefish using surface poppers.
SEPT 10th…Afternoon…Larry Goldman…Fly-fishing.
This would be larry’s first time saltwater fly-fishing.
Today I headed out to the land of giants and to my surprise I had big Bluefish finning on the surface. On Larry’s third cast his flie landed right ahead of a fish, he stripped once and it was devoured immediately and the fight was on. This Blue took off and cleared the water five times just like a Tarpon, blowing out it’s gills while tail walking and shaking it’s head trying to lose the hook. About 10 to 15 minutes later we had it aboard, it weighed in at 14 lbs.
Larry landed four more Blues the same way but most of them were in the 10 lb class. Before heading back I made one stop at the tip of Bostwick Pt. and Larry was able to land a small Striper of about 6 lbs.
SEPT 11th…Morning…John DeMeritt…Spin Tackle.
We had a nasty morning with 15 mph east winds and so I headed into Cherry Harbor to stay sheltered and I also knew there had been large schools of full sized Bunker there for about five weeks and when we were about a half mile from the island I spotted the first school that measured about a hundred feet long by 50 feet across. We could see large fish feeding on them from below but couldn’t make out what they were. I gave John a rod with a lead-head jig, the kind you use with a rubber slugo except we didn’t put on a slugo.
John cast out and retrieved as fast as he could and would snag a Bunker. As soon as he had a Bunker hooked it would attract the attention of the predators below and sure enough, Slam! …fish on. These were those large 12 lb. Bluefish eating off the ball of Bunker down deep. John kept repeating this and kept getting hooked up with Blue after Blue. I had tried this same thing a few weeks ago seeing large Stripers below the Bunker on a calm day with full sun overhead and calm water but they would take my Bunker, they wanted the fish that were in the ball.
SEPT 11th…Afternoon…Jerry Lodge…Fly-fishing.
The wind had died down to about three mph and so I headed out to Montauk Point and in forty minutes we were surrounded by False Albacore and schools of Stripers all on the surface under the light house.
It was just to much for words as fish after fish was landed by Jerry. The Stripers were all in the 10 lb. class and the Albies were 6 to 7 lb. class. By five thirty pm. we were back in East Hampton. Jerry said he was exhausted and stated he landed 8 Albies and 14 Stripers plus 2 Bluefish.
SEPT 12th…Full-day…Michael Salzhauer…Fly-fishing.
As we headed to Montauk in Michael’s 28 ft Edgewater I told him that if the conditions were right, be prepared to fish until you drop.
It was a little sloppy with a south wind of about 15 to 20 mph but it was worth it. I think it was the best day of fishing either one of us had ever seen. It started out with schools of Striped Bass everywhere you looked. They were right along side the boat….you could reach down with a gaff and lift them into the boat if you wanted to. Michael had landed at least twenty of these Stripers in a row and had to take a few breaks in between so I would grab a rod and land a few. By 11:00 am the Stripers had gathered into small schools and were scattered but not gone. Then the Albies came slashing through the water eating everything you offered them. One after another Michael was hooked up with these speedsters as the line screamed out of the reel. Every once in a while he would hook-up and know it wasn’t an Albie as the rod tip would shake, Bluefish. Michael had six grand slams that we know of….but who’s counting…lolol.
We were back in East Hampton by five pm. Hosing down the boat.
SEPT 13th…Morning…Stan Warshawsky…Fly-fishing.
Since I don’t have the boat at Montauk I have been leaving from East Hampton in the Pathfinder. The 27 ft Rambo is having work done on the engine.
Stan and I were under the light house at 9:00 am as he was landing his first 10 Lb. Striper. The conditions on the water were a little better then the previous day but you had to be careful in the 22 Pathfinder with it’s low gunnels. Stan managed to land 7 Stripers in the 8 to 10 lb. class…. three Bluefish and 2 Albies by 11:30.
SEPT 14th….took the day off…no fishing.
SEPT 15th…30 mph winds from Hurricane Ike…no fishing.”

Connecticut and Rhode Island Fishing Reports
From the Eastern Connecticut area, Capt. Sandy Noyes from Rumrunner Charters checks in with this report:
“It’s been a busy week on the Sound for us. There hasn’t been any consistent action around Watch Hill and other local areas so we’ve been going over to Montauk. Every day has brought something different. One day The albies are in thick and hungry. Another day there are massive schools of Stripers.Everyday brings large schools of Bluefish. Some days its a little bit of everything. The water temps and bait are holding pretty steady. Not much news from the Rhode Island beaches although there is some bait starting to show.”

Massachusetts Fishing Reports
Capt. David Rimmer checks in with a Newburyport report:
“The fall is when anglers should expect to see schools of surface feeding striped bass in the estuaries, as well as along the beaches and rocky shorelines, and finally it is starting to happen up here north of Beantown. My own trips combined with reports from other guides and friends are all suggesting that the fall run is underway. The bait – silversides mostly, not much of any peanut bunker yet – has been around for weeks but you did well to find a few bass and bluefish until the last week or so. Bluefish do not seem as abundant now but there has been a good push of new fish recently, mostly in the 18-24 inch range, although several days ago I got on a school of fish in the 30-40 inch range that were feeding up top. Now that is good stuff! Up this way we hope to keep fishing until mid-October, so with any luck and decent weather, all signs are pointing to some good bass fishing for the rest of the season.”

Wow!  On that note, I’m gonna sign off.  See ya on the water…

Capt. John McMurray

Virginia Fishing Report: Covering the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel, Inshore and Virginia Offshore Fishing
Wind, wind and more wind is keeping most anglers inshore. The fishing action will wane a bit until after the blow. But not all action comes to a halt with turbulent and dirty water. The red drum species thrives in this environment. And with that said, the long awaited big red drum run off the Little Island fishing pier is here. True to form, this run usually kicks off with the first stiff North Easterly blow in September. Pier anglers are hoisting up bull reds from the end of the pier, with the best action still to come. Red drum are also providing action off the Hungar’s Creek and Cape Charles areas. Mike Neely of Richmond released a nice 48-inch bull he caught near buoy 36A on cut bait this week.

Puppy drum are on the loose within the shallows, inlets and creeks, as well as the surf off Sandbridge, and the Eastern Shore Barrier islands. Anywhere within Lynnhaven River is a great place for pups right now. Long Bay Pointe Bait and Tackle reports that juvenile reds of all sizes are hitting most lures, live bait, and cut bait.

Fall speckled trout catches are inching up the charts with good numbers of fish in Hungar’s Creek, and Rudee and Lynnhaven Inlets. John Outten of Machipongo weighed in an eight and a half-pound beauty while casting in Nassawadox Creek.

Decent spot are pouring into the lower bay area, with catches scattered in all the usual haunts. The local piers are excellent places to get in on the spot action. Look for the biggest spot on the Hampton Bar, off the Little Creek Jetties, and all the lower bay inlets. Horse croaker in the 2-pound range are lurking in deeper areas around the lower bay channels, inlets, and the Bay Bridge Tunnel, preparing for their southern migration.

Big cobia are lingering on buoys along the ocean front and near the mouth of the bay, with fish in excess of 50-pounds falling to jigs and live bait.
King mackerel have been scarce recently with the dirty water, but this action should improve into October. Spanish mackerel are still an excellent choice along Sanbridge and Dam Neck in about 25 feet of water. Schools of false albacore have been spotted in close to the beach, which can prove very sporting on light tackle. A hook-up with a large shark is also a possibility in these same areas.

The Flounder action took a break this week, but will heat back up as anglers find cleaner water. With the wind coming from the North East this week, anglers can drift the protected bayside Eastern Shore area with little exertion. Chris at Chris’ Bait and Tackle reports that folks are finding some keepers, with some fish pushing 8.5-pounds drifting off the Kiptopeke area. Once boats can get out, the offshore wreck flatfish action is a good alternative for an easy catch with strip baits bounced over the structure.
Expect nice sea bass as a by-catch, along with a few triggers. Amberjack are still available on local wrecks, and will remain on the southern towers through October.

Schoolie rockfish are hitting offerings all over the lower bay, and will only become more active as the water temperature drops.

The unpredictable weather is keeping many blue water anglers closer to shore, but improving tuna action is waiting once they can negotiate a decent day. A few larger class yellowfin are available near the Norfolk Canyon.
Wahoo will continue to slam spreads for several more weeks, while bailer and gaffer dolphin are still a good backup. The marlin bite is still on when boats can reach them.
Until next week, good luck fishing!

Julie
Dr. Julie Ball
IGFA Representative,

Luckily we have some reports from the Virginia Saltwater Review covering this region.
Chincoteague -  According to Donna at Captain Bob’s, flounder have started biting again. Several keepers were caught in the Chincoteague Channel between markers 23 and 25. The bridges were hot with striped bass at night (probably because of the full moon). A red drum was reportedly caught off of Assateague Island in the surf, and a 6- pound flounder was caught there last week, as well. Several striped bass have been reported from under the drawbridge as well. Snapper bluefish were around, and a few kingfish were landed from in the ocean. Northeast winds will probably keep most anglers home during the weekend. Captain Bob’s will switch to its fall hours this week.

Wachapreague – According to staff at the Wachapreague Marina, numerous dolphin were found at the Norfolk Canyon along with a whopping 272-pound blue marlin. The dolphin ranged from 5 to 20 pounds. Most offshore fishing has been better past 40 fathoms. Inshore, staff reports that flounder fishing is fair.

At Captain Zed’s, anglers continued to catch flounder and croaker near Paramour and Cedar islands, which were hot spots for the season. A few spot and grey trout were landed, and there were reports of small red drum sightings. Offshore action in the canyons has been productive with dolphin and wahoo, and wreck fishing was doing really well with black sea bass.

Virginia’s Middle Bay Fishing Report
by Jerry Thrash From Patriot Charters and Queens Creek Outfitters
Jerry writes: “Not much to report this week due to the lack of fishing effort.  Spot are said to be still way up the Rappahannock so we should still have a good run coming this way as the water begins to cool. Speckled trout are becoming more active as the fall run appears near. The creeks are holding medium to large croaker, small spot and specks, as well as small stripers.”

“FLEXIBILITY” AND BLUEFIN
Western Atlantic bluefin tuna are in big trouble.  No doubt about it.  Scientists agree that the stock hovers around 10% of its historical abundance and extinction is a very real possibility.  We are already approaching commercial extinction.  Commercial fishermen who historically overshot their annual quotas are now only able to catch around 10% of it.  Indeed, the situation with bluefin is pretty bad.

From the Vineyard, we hear from Capt. Tom Rapone from Highly Migratory Guide Service.  Check it out:
“Murky water is dissipating after the storm, and the green fish are jumping again. Last couple of days have seen a healthy mix of bones and albacore along Vineyard beaches. It certainly doesn’t match up to fishing at this time last year, but there have been moving targets to throw at for most daylight hours. That being said, I can’t complain.  Now I’m looking forward to getting back into the rocks and picking up striper fishing again for the fall. With the nights getting colder and the days getting shorter, the big girls should be getting frisky pretty soon. Bass fishing in the deep water has been fairly consistent for the past few weeks; the fly/light tackle bite should be right on its heels. We’ll keep you posted.”

On that note, I’m gonna sign off.  See ya on the water…

Capt. John McMurray
Northeast Fishing Correspondent and Lateral Line Ambassador

DESPITE ALL THE WARNING SIGNS ON BASS…
Delaware and Pennsylvania have submitted a joint proposal for “alternative management” in the Delaware Bay, River and tributaries.  Delaware proposes to adopt striped bass regulations for recreational anglers incorporating a slot limit for smaller fish so that they may target mature male striped bass for a two-month period in summer or early fall within Delaware’s portion of the Delaware River, Bay and its tributaries.  In concert with Delaware, Pennsylvania proposes to adopt the same regulations for anglers targeting mature male striped bass for the two month period of the spring (April and May).

So, what will such a slot limit do?  It will allow them to kill lots of small fish which of course is not good.  Undoubtedly, small fish are easier to catch than the larger keeper sized fish so it’s likely that it will push fishing mortality numbers up.  And if you read last week’s column, you know that we’re already fishing a hair above the target and that the threshold was lowered, thus we’re already pretty close to the overfishing trigger.  While it is possible that the proposal may not have that much of and affect on overall harvest, any increase should be avoided.

Furthermore, if Delaware gets to take 20″ fish on its side of Delaware Bay, New Jersey will probably want the right to take a 20” fish as well.  Folks over there have been trying to get  “producer” status for years, which would essentially give them the power to kill such small bass.

Also, we have to keep in mind that there will undoubtedly be substantial “discard mortality” (fish that die but cannot be kept) on those larger females that don’t fall within the slot.  Keep in mind that right now the recreational discard mortality is twice what the total commercial catch is.  Delaware already has a circle hook regulation and Pennsylvania is suggesting one, however even with circlehooks there will be some increase in such mortality.  I think we also need to ask the question here about the optimum male/female ratio during the spawn.  Common sense tells us that if we stop killing off all the small males it would affect the spawn.

This proposal is essentially  a “fish grab”.  The DE and PA folks want to shift effort from summer flounder (which is highly regulated these days) and weakfish (which don’t really represent much of a viable fishery in that area anymore) to small male striped bass.  Not good in my book.  So in short, I’m not in favor of this proposal and I will certainly say so at the next Striped Bass Advisory Panel meeting.  Stay tuned.  Will let you know how it works out.

Fishing Reports
Just a short distance off the Jersey coast, the bluefin fishing has been off the hook.  They are mostly trolled up fish, but the aces like Gene Quigley are getting a few here and there on the fly and that’s pretty darn cool.  These aren’t the school bluefin either.  These are the fish north of 100 pounds.  Inshore it’s been pretty much all bluefish with some roving schools of bonito.  Still, the bonito season down there isn’t near what it was last year.  But really, who cares if you’ve got 100 pound bluefin within small-boat range.  In the New York bite area, I’m sorry to say that there are still no bonito around.  And unfortunately, no albies yet either.  There have been some reported sightings, but I haven’t heard of anyone connecting.  The bait concentration remains extraordinary with bay anchovies so thick that they turn the water a different color.  And the peanut bunker are abundant as well.  Yet still, there is nothing on them but small to medium bluefish.  Fortunately, I’m still picking away at some big chopper bluefish on poppers up against the structure.  Not a bad gig, but it’s time we see those speedsters.  And speaking of speedsters, farther east on the South Shore there were some reports of good bonito and albie blitzes, coming mostly from Fire Island Inlet east.  Unfortunately, that’s a bit out of range for me.  But the big news this week was way east.  Montauk pretty much exploded this week with major bass blitz action.  It was going off Montauk-Style for a good part of the week and anglers were on it.  These weren’t just schoolies either.  Some really nice fish were taken.  Up on the North Shore the short bonito bite they had there seems to be done for.  Anglers are keeping busy with schoolies and bluefish though.  Same deal with western Connecticut.  Eastern Connecticut has some larger bass, but no hard tails.  At least none that I’ve heard of.   Folks in Rhode Island are still picking away at the bonito.  The bass fishing is slow out there but it should pick up any day now.  Same deal with most of Mass.  Haven’t heard anything out of Maine this week, except for some rumblings of shots at bluefin.

New Jersey Fishing Reports
Capt. Paul Eidman from Reel Therapy Guide Service checks in with this report:
“This past Monday, got out and fished all of outgoing tide in clean waters off of NY bayshore, found large schools of rain fish but they were largely happy and unbothered…
Caught many hard fighting, fly eating bluefish from 4-6 pounds in adjacent schools of peanuts.”

Capt. Gene Quigley from Shore Catch Guide Service checks in with an offshore report:
“Sorry just got in. The Bluefin and Mahi Fishing right now is as good as it gets. Fish have been within 13 miles of our shores and busting on top for acres on some days. other days we scout them out on the troll, find em, chum em with live peanuts and crush em on the fly. This week we say fish over 100 lbs come over our rails on light tackle and fish to 40 lbs on fly tackle. We have not seen this action in years here along our coast and our BFT season really has not even started. Normally it does not get underway until late September. We ran trips pretty much all week offshore and had nice fish on each trip. Inshore the bluefish are blitzing on rain bait and we are seeing the occasional school of bonito – still no sign on Albies – Hard to even focus on the inshore stuff right now when the BFT action is so good. Rain bait is everywhere and the stage is set for a great fall.”

Capt. David Azar from Live to Fish Charters checks in with another offshore report:
“Hi John, Headed offshore again last Friday with Dr. Ron Mizrahi and Nathan Azizo to troll up some more bluefin tuna, as always we were hoping to find them working on the surface to get a shot with the fly or jigs.  While we did troll up another 30 pound bluefin we had no luck finding them in any concentration.  While roaming around we did come upon a bonus in the form of large, dead leather-back turtle.  The unfortunate turtle may have been the victim of an errant boater, but the floating carcass created a natural chum slick and was a haven for dozens of mahi!  The mahi were keyed up and hit any lures we threw at them, and it proved an opportune time to throw a fly.  A simple white clouser did the trick and I managed to land 2 acrobatic youngsters, my first of that species on the fly.  They were by no means large specimens, but a first of species is always exciting.  I heard reports of some bigger mahi out there a few days ago so unless Hurricane Hannah keeps us off the water Dr. Ron and I will be heading out there again this Friday to look for tuna and/or mahi.  Hope I have something special to tell you next week…maybe bluefin on the fly, who knows?  On the local front there have been lots of large bluefish in the New York Bight eating flies.  Hopefully this will keep us busy until the albies show up…PLEASE!”

New York Fishing Reports
From the North Shore, Bob Giordano checks in with this report:
“Hey John, Labor day weekend was insane up here in Huntington Bay.  Besides the normal holiday craziness, Huntington Lighthouse had a festival complete with a band on top of the light and an Air Force show up above. On top of that throw in a few hundred sailboats taking advantage of the north wind. Looked like a lot of fun from my beach chair but glad I didn’t go out Sunday. Did make it out on Labor Day and found schoolie bass in the harbor willing to slam crease flies until the sun broke the tree line. Fast and furious but over as quick as it started. Went out to Lloyd and took a few blues with one decent one on a gurgler in shallow water. From what I here Bonito had disappeared last week but hopefully only briefly.”

From Montauk, Capt. David Blinken from North Flats Guiding says that Montauk is on!
“THE BLITZ IS HERE!!!! Clouds of bay anchovies have descended on Montauk. Bass and blues have been quick to take advantage of the forage with massive blitzes in mid season swing. Some blitzes extend from one end of the point to the other lasting not just minutes but hours. Alas, there are no albies but I’m sure after the tropical storm passes and the seas calm they will be waiting to abide. So come out and enjoy the resource and remember use it don’t abuse it. Note!: PLEASE PRACTICE SAFE BOATING. When fishing in a blitz its polite to back out when hooked up to avoid any unintentional contact. Blitzes are kayotic and the excitement can be distracting, also try not to run and gun into a blitz when there are many boats about, there are plenty of opportunities throughout the fishing day to get into a blitz. Please be mindful of the shore anglers if you are in a boat they are not as mobile.”

Also checking in from out east is Capt. Robin Calitri from Long Island Fly Fishing.  Check it out:
“Ya Shudda Been there TODAY! More on that later.  Dr. Seth Eichner and Captain Robin Calitri, of LongIslandFlyFishing.com had a beautiful evening on Thursday.  Seth is a renowned psychotherapist but novice fisherman.  He shows great promise at this new sport.  On 8/29 Stu Hochron and Jim DelGrosso boarded C Sic Again for a Montauk exploratory.  It was the beginning of the action for the fall.  Blues and Bass began their yearly boils and we took many of both.  Stu did a great job on the spinning while Jim and I used the fly.  It was almost ‘epic’. Labor Day found my wife Caren and me enjoying a beautiful morning on Northport Bay.  Small bass and blues cooperated for me while a good book entertained Caren.  I had another giant bass come up and attempt to eat a smaller bass that I had on the fly. Joel Weiss and Dana Thompson joined be for a quick after work trip on Tuesday evening.  I went out early and scouted but found the Sound like the Dead Sea.  Captain Ken Kuhner gave me a tip and we found wonderful, surface feeding blues off Stamford.  Great job and thanks to you Captain Ken, Joel and Dan ripped it up. Today.  Wednesday September 3, 2008 might have been the finest of all fishing days for Captain Robin Calitri, Captain Vinny Catelano and Jim DelGrosso.  We took C Sic Again out of Montauk and immediately hit bass and blues on the fly on the north side.  We played in these blitzes for an hour or so and then saw even more action to the east.  We caught bass to 32 inches and tons of 4-10 pounds blues until we got itchy.  So we went searching the South side for Albies.  We saw a few likely Albie type busts and then we hit  the mother load.  We took bass after bass with a few blues in between for the next 4 or 5 hours.  It was non-stop. Dixon, Ted Williams, Blinken and Reagan were up to their smiling ears in bass and blues.  Jim DelGrosso took a bass of about 13 pounds.  Skinny Vinny hit the 18 pound mark and  Capain Robin Calitri had a personal, fly best of 40 inches and 29 pounds.  Eventually we were so worn out that we just sat and watched the blitzes and boils which were so thick that the bass and blues were bouncing off the boat.  And Captain Paul Dixon in his new, trim 23 Sea Craft yelled to us. ‘Wait until Montauk gets really good!’” 

Connecticut Fishing Reports
From eastern Connecticut Capt. Sandy Noyes from Rumrunner charters checks in with this report:
“We got out a few times this week and were not disappointed. There are good numbers of bass around and still all the bluefish that you can stand. The butterfish are starting to thin out and are being replaced by silversides and some baby bunker. I ‘ve had good reports of bay anchovies starting to arrive also. We did see a few bonito this week but not enough to spend more than a short time looking for them.”

Also reporting from the same general area is Captain Mike Warecke from Southeastern Connecticut Fishing Charters:
“Connecticut has been pretty steady over the past couple of weeks. The blues are everywhere and this is a great time for kids and beginners to hit the water for some great fishing trips. The bass are starting to  show again. We have taken bass over the past week to 18 lbs and a few fish lost, even bigger. The hard tails as of now, are nowhere to be found. Some reports are coming in that farther east is starting to pick-up, so things should be improving. This up coming storm should kick things into high gear.” 

Wow!  On that note, I’m gonna sign off.  See ya on the water…

Capt. John McMurray
Northeast Fishing Correspondent

AMBROSE TOWER, RIP
There are those special places that are responsible for burning permanent memories in an angler’s brain.   Spots where extraordinary things have happened.  Spots where there exists so many possibilities…  So much opportunity.   Ambrose Tower, located approximately 7 miles SSE of Breezy Point, NY was just such a place.   “The Tower” marks the convergence of several main shipping lanes in Lower New York Bay.

Unfortunately, because of idiots standing poor navigation watches on the birdge, the Tower had been hit by wayward tankers 3 times in the last decade, one of which required a total rebuild.  On July 25, 2008, with nary a public hearing, the Coast Guard announced that Ambrose Light would be taken down once and for all.   That’s a bummer.

The thing about The Tower is that no matter what was going on inshore, I could always count on, at the very least, to be able to shoot out there and tangle with some exceptionally big bluefish, and man there were some bruisers out there.  A couple of years ago we weighted a fish on the boga that was 19.5 pounds!  But bluefish weren’t all that was out there.  The water at The Tower is a good 100’ deep.  Any good angler knows that once you get into that kind of depth, all sorts of species can show, and all sorts did indeed show at The Tower.

Indeed, I’ve had my best bluefin tuna days there ever.  I can remember being out there on a slick calm day and throwing crease flies into boiling pods of 20 to 40-pound footballs.  Bluefin would leap out of the water to grab those things.  I can also remember seeing 200 pound fish leap clear out of the water at Ambrose although I can’t say I every hooked any of them.  I can, however, remember hooking “things” that would just swim straight to the bottom and which we couldn’t budge, much less have any hope of landing.  We’ve caught big jacks out there…  Many a Mahi.  Once we even hooked and lost a big cobia at the boat.  Now that was cool!  The Tower was a stopping ground for various whale species as well.

Perhaps the most memorable moment at the tower came in 2005 during the best (and might I add one of the few) bluefin years we ever saw, and perhaps ever will see.  While chasing sparse pods of busting bluefin, out of the corner of my eye I saw a big animal breach and come crashing down.  It was quite far away, but being that I had two marine biologists on board from Environmental Defense I thought I’d ask what type of whale was gunmetal gray and had a white belly.  The response I got was that there was no such whale.   Twenty minutes passed and maybe 20 yards directly off the bow of my 20’ skiff an adult Great White, maybe 20’ in length came flying out of the water, shook it’s body in mid air, then came crashing down with a massive splash.  Everyone’s jaw dropped.  100% true!  There was chatter all over the radio from other folks who had seen the shark as well.  Cool sht.

On my last outing to The Tower, at approximately 9:00AM a big barge with a crane and other equipment pulled up and went to work, as if we weren’t even there.  That was it for Ambrose.  The demolition comes almost 41 years after Ambrose Tower replaced the Ambrose Lightship.  She is no more, yet she will always be remembered.  May she rest in peace…

Fishing Reports
Summer doldrums continue in most areas.  Inshore in Jersey, there isn’t much but the occasional bottom fish.  Roving schools of big and/or small bluefish can be found here and there, but even they aren’t very consistent.    Way, way off of the Jersey Coast, there has been some action with bluefin that are north of 100-pounds, but the midshore spots are relatively barren.  In New York Harbor, the topwater bluefish action has been pretty good.  Find structure with a swift moving current around it and you’re likely to score.  There have also been plenty of medium bluefish under the birds throughout the day.  It’s worthy of noting here that the amount of bait skyrocked over the weekend.  There are a ton of bay anchovies on the outside and a ton of peanut bunker on the inside.  So far it’s just been the bluefish on them as well as a few random bass.  It’s only a matter of time before bonito and/or false albacore get on these abundant baits.  Across the Island it’s been very similar.  Lots of bait, but only bluefish.  Expect that to change soon.  On the North Shore the first reports of bonito have been coming in.  Not a whole lot of them, but indeed, folks are scoring.  Connecticut, Rhode Island and Mass were into bonito this week as well, but most folks believe that the big push is yet to come.  The bass fishing in those states remains in the typical summer patterns.  Early morning and nights are producing for the sharpies, but it certainly isn’t gangbusters.

New York Saltwater Fishing Reports
From Lower New York Harbor, Capt. Chris Hessert from Manhattan Fly checks in with this report:
Well, to continue with reporting more of the same…poor conditions along the shore line with this continued southerly thats bring the brackish water and weeds, I have been running out to the Mud Hole and Monster Ledge. Along the inshore, it has been…at best, cocktail blues. Pretty crummy. Getting passed the 20 fathom line its a different world and yes, the hard tail search continues…yet so worthwhile when you get to  cobalt. Ran to Monster Ledge yesterday and had sights of things you would only see on Blue Planet or Nat Geo if not getting out there. Gas?, well thats just part of the game, dropped a bit too. Not a bad run with a blow less than 10, about 50 minutes. We hung with in a few yards of a mother Fin Back with her calf for a good half hour, giving her a little distance…so cool! then along come around 120 (last count) ocean going dolphin and these guys are not shy, hanging around the boat and riding the bow. You could reach over and touch the dorsal fin. They sound like the are breathing through a plastic cone…Big ‘ole Mola-Mola and a bunch of Leather Back turtles…speaking of turtles, Capt. David Azar was out the prior day and witnessed a Mako making brunch of a turtle…wow!  Yes, the toons are in our thoughts but this is one hell of a cool diversion while on our search, there was the usual chatter a bit south and there are hook ups. Sights like these can give you a larger perspective of the blue stuff, puts you in awe. The weird part, is being on the Subway 4 hours later!

From the Western Long Island/Breezy Point area, David Berman checks in with this report:
Hi John, David Berman here.    On sunday Bob W., Ken J. and I ventured forth fly rods in hand, in the relatively early am, in the search for the ellusive bonito fish that we’ve heard so much about lately , most sightings having been made in the local fishmarkets! Ken was first out towards the tip of jetty while Bob and I hung back to fish a bit from the beach., nothin doing. Look up to see Ken casting and terns working the tip, could it be the green fish? A scramble to find out ensues. Which brings to mind a play on one of the old Chinese Philosophers words to the wise and not so wise. “Old flyfisher who hurry on jetty bound to have crackup” , and it was so! All kidding aside , a hurried misstep on the rocks can result in pain and suffering. I was lucky , some pain and still some suffering, but nothing broken, body or tackle. And all that in persuit of cocktail blues, yellow eyed devils, as it turned out. Nothing doing except a take, a brief fight and then a bite off over the next hour or so, at which point a walk back into the inlet for me to see if I can see stripes instead of green. Sun,sky and tide were perfect for looking, the water could have been clearer  but was manageable if fish would  make themselves viewable. A few  did but showed no interst in my first offering, changed over to a small crab pattern , looked up saw another striped one, flipped the fly, he came up and took as if I had offered a cookie, and we were off. I’ll wait a bit longer for the green fish!   

Capt. David Blinken from North Flats Guiding checks in with this Eastern Long Island report:
I missed last week (bummer) sorry, but there was not much to report any way the fishing was tough at best. This week is another story! There seem to be more and larger bass around relative to last week.
There are also big blues prowling around. The bait as you might think is peanut bunker but what is coming out of the fish when they are brought to the boat is (tiny) bay anchovies (micro bait) go figure. this is making things fun and a bit challenging, and matching flies to this bait means small hooks (size 4 and 6) which makes it tough to keep the hook in the mouth of a fish. Look for the occasional Bonito and Spanish mackerel you might just get surprised.  There is a big problem affecting the late summer bass fishing and that is GILL NETS, strung from shore out 300 feet right in the lanes where bass swim. Sport fish status cant come fast enough! With fewer bass from Maine to New York one has to wonder if the 1980′s are no longer a memory but a reality. Lets hope things change soon!!! Remember, release release release so you can enjoy them another day.

Connecticut Saltwater Fishing Reports
Capt. Sandy Noyes from Rumrunner Guide Service checks in with this report from Eastern Connecticut:
This past week showed some promise of things to come. Mathew came up from the big city and spent the day catching a good number of bass and bluefish. It was pretty steady all day . Also I had Marty and Ron come down from the other end of NY. and they spent a pretty steady day using fly and spin gear. We had bluefish early and bass in the afternoon. I took one day to do a little fishing for myself. My wife and I were looking for the elusive bonito. In about four hours we managed to each catch one and lose another. They were pretty spotty and you needed lots of patience. I know of a few that have been taken between Fishers Island and Charlestown, RI. They haven’t showed with any regularity yet but its still early. One treat that I had this week was to have a seven foot dolphin come by to pay a visit near Watch Hill, he stayed awhile and then left for parts unknown. This happened about 100 yards from shore and in 25 feet of water. 

Massachusetts Saltwater Fishing Reports
No reports from the mainland, but Capt. Tom Rapone from Highly Migratory Guide Service reports good action with the bonito:
8.14.08 -  While the summer fishing pattern still persists on the Vineyard, the first few chilly mornings of mid-August definitely have me thinking about fall. It won’t be too long before we’re in full-on bone/albie mode, and it’s certainly one of my favorite times of the year.  For now, it’s been the same lights-out bluefishing and scattering of bones that we’ve had for the last couple weeks. I would expect the inshore bone scene to blow wide open any minute, as every single creek mouth and harbor entrance on the island is crawling with silversides and juvi herring. As of now, the fly/light tackle bass fishing for anything over 30″ remains a pretty tough gig. The key this time of year is a combination of EARLY morning, fast moving water, and rocks. The rocks will hold at least a few resident fish regardless of water temps…That’s all I got for now. Catch ‘em.

That’s all for this week.  A little light on the reports, but that’s because we’re in the depths of the summer doldrums.  Expect that to change in the coming weeks. 

Wow!  On that note, I’m gonna sign off.  See ya on the water…

Capt. John McMurray

A SEA-CHANGE ON THE MID ATLANTIC FISHERY MANAGEMENT COUNCIL?
Attended my first Mid Atlantic Fishery Management council meeting this week.  Not as a member yet, but as an observer.  Given the council’s historic proclivity to manage some species under their care right on the margins, which has resulted in overfishing in just about every year they have done so, and given their penchant for disregarding of the advice of NOAA scientists, and given the fact that they have made some very risky and sometimes downright irresponsible decisions, I was prepared to witness more of the same.

If you’ve been reading this column or any of my conservation pieces on summer flounder during the last 3 years, you know the deal.  Every year, despite prior years of overfishing, the council would pick the riskiest option and each year anglers would overfish.  The result being that there was very little chance we were going to make the rebuilding goal by the required time period.  A complete shutdown of the fishery was indeed a possibility, because managers never did make those difficult decisions that they should have.

Of course it’s quite a bit more complicated than this, and if you are really interested, you can get some background here .   And yes, there has been some new data since I wrote that article, but you already knew that if you’re a regular visitor to this site.  The bottom line is that the rebuilding goal looks very obtainable at this point due to a lowering of the rebuilding goal based on the newest and best available science.   The fact that the spawning stock biomass is going up while recruitment remains level is causing some folks to believe the stock is already maxed out, but based on the data, NOAA scientists still do believe that it can and will be rebuilt if we just practice management discipline.  I tend to agree.

But back to the point here.  There were two options on the table for the Council and the ASMFC to vote on.  One was the riskier option (a 19-million pound recreational quota which had a 50% chance of meeting the target by 2013) and one was the more conservation option (17-million pounds which had a 75% chance of meeting the target for 2013).  After some discussion, it looked to me like more conservative motion might actually carry.  Surprisingly, the talk around the table was “precaution”.  Given the Council’s history on the subject, I did not expect this.  Indeed it was encouraging.

Once the public was given the opportunity to speak, there was the usual rhetoric from those representing the party boat industry claiming the data was bad and that folks should be able to kill more fluke.  Unsurprisingly they supported the riskier option, and I don’t necessarily hold it against them for doing so.  After-all, this is how these folks pay the bills, and it needs to be noted here that the Science and Statistical Committee (SSC) supported this option as well, as unlike prior options the council had been given on summer flounder during prior meetings, this one had incorporated management uncertainty as well as a number of other factors.  In other words, it already had some precautionary measures in it.

The long and short of it was that Jim Gilmore, Head of Marine Resources at the NY DEC put up an amended motion to split the difference claiming that 18-million pounds would incorporate the required precaution on top of the inherent precaution already in the 19-million pound option.  It passed overwhelmingly!

Indeed, it appears that the council is coming around.  Really, they will have to as the Magnuson Stevenson Reauthorization very specifically requires precaution.  The whole situation was inspiring really.  Indeed I wasn’t too psyched about what happened the prior day with butterfish, but that’s another story which deals with a data-poor stock and there’s just not enough room here to get into it.

The bottom line is the Council is not near as intimidating as I expected it would me.  They may not actually hate me as much as I thought.  I even got a nice note from one of the NOAA employees saying that they read my articles and some even follow my blog.  A good indication that I’ll have some support.

Fishing Reports
From Jersey to the New York Bite, it’s been summer doldrums.  It was even a poor week offshore as bluefin that were there a week ago split town.  No reports of bonito yet and no reports of skipjack either.  Best I’ve been hearing is bluefish.  And they aren’t even the big ones.  A bit farther east from Fire Island Inlet and out, the water is much bluer much closer in.  Anglers running 8 to 12 miles out are encountering mahi under flotsam and lobster pots.  Again though, no reports of bonito or skippies, which is somewhat discouraging.  Granted, these things are unreliable and we’ve got to consider it a blessing if they do show, the conditions for their arrival are perfect.  They should be here by now!  Out east, the reports of bass fishing are pretty good.  This is due mostly to a large school of bunker that have been hanging around out there.  Find them and you’ll also likely find some really big bass on them.   In Connecticut you can still find bass in their usual eastern haunts, but generally they’ve been deep.  Western Connecticut has mostly bluefish, and small ones at that.  Even Rhode Island is experiencing the doldrums.  But the good news is the bonito have shown there and they are getting thicker and thicker each day.  Better get on them before the make it down my way.  Massachusetts is still producing some bass although not in the numbers it was a week or so ago.  The bluefin bite is inconsistent, but catching bluefin is indeed a possibility during each trip off the Cape.  Main seems to be the only place with a better than average bass bite right now.  Good news for Mainers indeed as they had a terrible spring.

New Jersey Saltwater Fishing Reports
Checking in from Jersey this time is Capt. David Azar from One More Cast Charters.  Check it out:
Friday August 1, Went out on Dr. Ron Mizrahi’s 28 Grady from Shark River Inlet to search the middle grounds for tuna, which have been reported sporadically in the area.  The water from about 10 miles off the south Jersey coast is a beautiful cobalt blue, with temps in the mid to high 70′s.  Working our way along the 20 fathom line we did not have any tuna sightings but we did get to take advantage of the numerous mahi-mahi that have invaded the area.  Found our first one, a 3 pounder, while trolling around some lobster pots in about 100 feet of water.  After that we began chumming the lobster pots and found abundant small specimens, and caught several on bait and jigs.  After catching a bunch of these “chicken” mahi we lucked upon a nicer specimen hanging right under a lobster pot float and Dr. Ron hooked this 14#’r on light tackle!  The fish jumped about 8 times, giving me ample opportunity to catch it with the camera!  There have also been reports of bonito caught in our local area.  It’s pelagic time again.

New York Saltwater Fishing Reports
Capt. Ken Rafferty checks in with an extended report from out East:
JULY 25th…Full-day…Michael Salzhauer, Ron Solars and Todd Bassen…Fly-fishing and Light Spin Tackle from Michael’s boat. With beautiful weather we headed over to Little Gull where we caught the last two hours of the out-going tide. Michael was at the stern of the boat with a fly rod while Ron and Todd were sharing the bow. Bluefish and Stripers were the target for today’s charter. At the northeast corner of Little Gull I set the boat up for a drift and as soon as I turned off the engine, Todd hooked up with a nice Striper and on the next cast Ron also hooked up. As they fought their fish Michael laid a nice long cast in amongst the rocks and he too hooked up. I now had three lines running around the boat trying not to get them tangled. Ron’s fish was lifted first, it weighed 12 lbs. I put a net around Todd’s Striper, lifted and it weighed in at 14 + lbs. finally Michael’s Striper was in the boat….it weighed 9.5 lbs.
The next drift produced three more Stripers, Michaels fish landed first, 8 lbs. then Todd’s fish, 17 + lbs. and Ron’s in at 24 lbs. They all landed a few more smaller Stripers in the 8 to 10 lb. class and with about 30 minutes of tide left Ron had a great hit………..this fish took out a lot of line. I thought it might spool him as I started the engine’s. The big fish turned back toward us and I cut turned the engine’s off. Todd and Michael had continued casting and Todd also hooked up with a large fish. As I was lifting Ron’s Striper into the boat I heard Michael say he was on! Ron’s Striper weighed in at 32+ lbs…..nice fish! Todd’s Stripers was next into the boat and it weighed in at 38+ lbs. Finally I had Michael’s Striper lifted in and it weighed 29 lbs.
All three anglers kept casting, trying different lures and flies but the fish were gone from here. I headed to another spot where I seem to always find big Bluefish finning on the surface and sure enough here they were.
Everyone hooked up on their first cast with Blues that weighed 10 lbs. and above. Lot’s of lures and flies were lost but lots of Blues were landed. I Think Todd was high hook for the day with 18 big Bluefish the largest being 14 + lbs.
JULY 26th …Morning…Arik and Gabby…Spin Tackle.
Big Bluefish, Big Bluefish another Big Bluefish and another and so on and so on.
JULY 26th…Afternoon…Todd Richter and hos father Harry…Fly and Spin.
Once again I headed out to my favorite Bluefish spot and after about 10 minutes Todd was hooked up then Harry. It wasn’t like the morning but they landed nice big Blues. At one point Todd hooked up and landed a 28 inch Striper. We ended the afternoon outside of Napeague Harbor landing small Blues on the fly.
JULY 27th…Heavy Rain…no fishing.
JULY 28th…Morning…Brian Culp, Beth and Jenny…Fly and Spin Tackle.
I headed out and found a large fog bank had droped on us leaving only about 500 feet visibilty in any direction.
We did have a lot of strikes but no hook-up so I headed to another spot where everyone landed a bunch of smaller Blues.
JULY 29th…Morning…Richard Watson…Fly-fishing.
This was Richard’s first time saltwater fly-fishing. Till now the largest fish he caught was 11 inches….so I couldn’t wait for him to hook-up.
I headed out to a rocky spot I know and set him up with a sink line and a pink and white flie. By the sixth cast I had Richard shooting out 50 feet and four cast later he was hooked-up and landed a nice 7 lb. Striped Bass. A few cast later he landed another at 6 lbs. this was a happy fisherman. Richard landed his third striper shortly after, this one also weighing 7 lbs. His next hook-up cut the leader and was gone…..Bluefish. I put on another flie and we also lost it so I decided if we were going to hook-up with Bluefish, I might as well take him to my favorite spot and so off we went.
When we got there the water was like glass and we can see finning taking place all around us. I gave Richard a rod with float line and a small crease flie and some instruction on retriveing. His second cast produced one of the greatest takes I have ever seen on the surface. This fish came up from about 15 feet of water, took the flie and cleared the water by three feet before landing on it’ back creating a splash that looked like a Volkswagon Bug was dropped from the sky. Richard couldn’t believe how strong this fish was….he thought that 7 lb. Striper whipped him but he said “that was like catching a potatoe” compared to this freight train he had on. He bruised his knuckles, bloodied one, burnt his palm but kept smiling………lol. We boated a whopping 12 lb. Bluefish, his first so I gave him the flie.
Richard landed three more big Bluefish that weighed in at 10, 10 and 12 lbs. Now he’s hooked for life….lol.
JULY 30th…Morning…Brad Dixon…Spin Tackle.
Brad was up from Georgia visiting family and said he wanted to give these Bluefish a try….and he did.
Brad had never seen large finning fish before, he was mesmerized for a second and then cast right in the middle of a school of about six fish. At first they were startled but soon turned back and went after the surface popping lure…………Slam! hook-up. Line played out as the reel sang zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.
This Bluefish jumped seven times, two of those times he tail walked like a Tarpon as Brad lifted, then reeled down. This fish weighed in at 10+ lbs.
He landed almost twenty of these giant ocean going Bluefish, the largest weighed in at nearly 15 lbs. with teeth like a house cat……..lol.
Brad stated he didn’t know how he was going to go home to 5 lb. Large Mouth Bass.
JULY 30th…Late-day…Paul Scharfer and his son Jake.
We headed out for some Stripers but found no one home so it was Bluefish, Bluefish, Bluefish everywhere.
JULY 31st…Morning…Ted Lindy and his friend Bob…Light Spin Tackle. We headed out in hopes of catching some Stripers but could only manage one 6 lb. that Bob landed. Both anglers stated that they really didn’t like Bluefish but would fish them if nothing else was biting. Nether angler had ever hooked up with Blues like these. By time we were back at the dock they booked another date for more of this action in late August.
AUG 1st…Morning…Ed Shipiro, Mitch and his son Josh…Light Spin Tackle.
Once again we were into those rod breaking, reel burning, line snapping, lure loosing Bluefish that we all love to hate….lol.
We lost track of how many were landed but every one said they were sore from bringing them in. I consider that a complament.
AUG 1st…Afternoon…Arik, Gabby, Robbie and Rich..Light Spin Tackle..guess what they wanted…lol.
It only takes me forty minutes to bring in the morning charter and get back out there with the afternoon charter but in that forty minutes thing change. The weather stayed the same, calm but my those Blues had left for about an hour…I guess they went to lunch.
The last three hours we had one fish after another and they were all in the 10 lb. class.
AUG 2nd…Early Morning…John Mannix and his business partner Jeff…Light Spin Tackle.
Both John and Jeff fish all over the country and they both stated that these large Blues were second to none when it came to fighting. Both anglers landed over 10 large Blues each.
AUG 3rd…Afternoon…Jerry Silver…Fly-Fishing.
It was a little windy and it made casting to these fish tough so Jerry picked up the Spin Tackle and started landing giant after giant Bluefish…most of them near 15 lbs.
AUG 5th…Morning…Alex Edlich…Light Spin Tackle.
We headed out and tried for some Stripers but I think the water is a little to warm here and I would have to get into some 25 or so foot depth to find them so once again I headed for those great big Bluefish. We had one fish chase after another and then a hook-up. Alex said he boated 10.
AUG 5th…Afternoon…Jeffery Cash and his uncle Gary…Light Spin Tackle.
Jeffery knew exactly what he wanted “Big Bluefish”
Heres how they made out after three hours of fishing:
Jeffery…15 Blues hooked up, he landed eight of them and had over 25 follows. At one point he hooked up with a Blue that had to be 18 to 20 lbs. it almost spooled him but got off.
Gary…Hooked up with 10, landed 5 and had 15 follows.

Capt. Robin Calitri checks in this week from the North Shore of Long Island:
Night Bite on the North Shore.  Although we are finding fish in the daylight the Bass are much more active and larger at dusk, night or first light.  Just ask Brendan Cuccinello who has been finding keeper sized bass on swim baits in the Port Jeff area.  One of his secrets is to think like a snook light fisherman around the docks. Mitch Bernstein, Peter Chinsky and I had a fine day on Csicagain with blues and bass around Keyspan, Huntington and Northport on clusers, swim baits and tins.  We chased some intel from Captain Jack Roth and Captain Dan Stahl who saw some Bonito off Eatons while running their fun for kids, fishing camp.  I found none, but rumor has it that Captain Vinny Catelano slaughtered the Bonito near Cranes Neck.

Rhode Island Saltwater Fishing Reports
Capt. Greg Snow from Snow Fly Charters checks in with a Block Island update:
Aug 8, 2008 Report
Bones on Block Island are a welcome sight after a chilly easterly that sent the big bass packing.  Don’t get me wrong, there are still stripes here but they are a different group of fish that happen to be significantly smaller.  The past month and a half has been the best  bass fishing I’ve seen on BI in ten years.  The only sour note is all the big stripers I saw being killed purely as ego boosters.  The Bonito are racing through the rips and tide lines chewing on squid and sand eels.  They are showing very little so you have to put your time in and I’m sure you’ll be rewarded.  Albies are next and if it is even a fraction of last seasons run it’s gonna be screamer!         Tight Lines…Capt Greg Snow.

Also checking in from Block is Capt. Ray Stachelek, Cast a Fly Charters:
Busmen’s Holiday: There may be a small silver lining in the troubled economy after all for some of us charter captains. Bookings have been slower than usual. It’s understandable. Many are looking for work or had their hours cut. Everyone is affected with higher fuel cost, utilities, and food.   There are plenty of holes in my schedule now to wet a line. This has never happen before, especially during the regular fishing season. When you see good conditions to fly fish on the ocean, you take it while it’s still summer. The weather has been perfect lately. Besides, you always need the Intel anyway. The ride out to Block Island was fast and smooth as the sun rose over the North Rip. Passing the B1 buoy the current was racing toward a westerly direction. New moon tide today had plenty of water movement, perfect time to fish the south side.  Mike Testa was my guest today. He’s an extremely eager and energetic individual who cherishes any time he gets on the water.  Mike has been with us a number of times fishing with family and friends. He loves the total experience of fishing and being outdoors.  Fishing during the hot humid, months has many more limitations. The windows of success are much smaller. Bright sunshine, warmer waters will move fish to deeper depths. Today was no different. One does not expect the bite to last for any long duration. Strike while the iron is hot! The trick is to find what works in a very limited amount of time that you have. The earlier you find this out, the better your fishing will be obviously.  Here is some information that may help: The waters around Block Island are unbelievably clear compared to the upper bay. Visibility may be up to 25 feet. Before I leave my house I make sure I have clear stealthy fly lines on board. The prep starts there. Make sure you have some type of poppers and crease flies too. There will be more on that later.  Fishing with sink lines is beneficial in the morning with low light conditions. As the sun rises higher in the sky, you’ll notice a change in attitude with the stripers. That’s because these wary flats minded stripers become line shy. The suns angle is now penetrating perpendicular to the ocean floor. Dark fly lines contrast with the environment.  Now is the time to switch to a clear line. You’ll notice that the stripers are still holding close to the bottom. Strip after strip produces no results. Your fly simply will not get down into the strike zone. What gives? There’s not much you can do in this situation other than to put on a heavier fly. Anything else will give your tackle away. The rub! Clear fly lines are only manufactured in the intermediate/ floating ranges.  That’s when you tie on some type of popper. Most of these stripers are enjoying the benefit of the passing current. There hasn’t been much bait supply lately in waters around the 14 feet mark we have been fishing. They will rise to the surface presentation (as unbelievable as that sounds) due to water clarity and noiseless condition. I was amazed too that a fly higher in the water column like a streamer did not produce. The noise is important with poppers to get their attention. Make it look like a struggling baitfish caught in the current.  You’ll be surprised too!  Rap it up! The striper bite is best in early morning naturally. Bluefish will gradually replace the bass. These fish including bluefish are line shy too.  I kid you not! Try alternate fishing methods besides fly fishing. Stealth conditions and casting long distances away from the boat becomes important in the brilliant sunshine. Make plenty of surface noise later on in the mornings. Summertime is not fast easy fishing. It’s angling! There is still enough action to satisfy your appetite during the slower months of summer to get you bye.

Massachusetts Saltwater Fishing Reports
Capt. Dave Rimmer checks in with this report from Newburyport.  Check it out:
Bluefish arrived in force about Aug 1 in the mouth of the Merrimack River and along the outer beaches of Plum Island and Salisbury, and since then these 4-8 chompers have dominated our fishing scene. They are primarily feeding on adult sand eels, and some of the surface action is spectacular. They are very catchable on fly, jig, swimming lure or top water plug. Stripers are also holding well throughout the river too. A buddy caught a nice 40+ inch bass on a jig and pods of fish are still rolling around on Joppa Flats. Night time seems to be producing best, especially for the bait guys, but light tackle and fly fisherman are still pecking away and landing good sized fish. The weather has been unstable and not often both sunny and calm, so the sight fishing has not been available. Tuna reports are flowing in and some BFTs were seen 3-4 miles east of Gloucester in the past few days.

From Martha’s Vineyard, Capt. Tom Rapone from Highly Migratory Guides checks in with this report:
We’re still working through the transition period between bass and hardtails, but the bonito fishing has been getting more consistent with every passing tide. In the past week we’ve had mornings with up to a dozen bones on fly and light tackle. Most of the action thus far has been in the offshore rips south of the island, but some consistent inshore fishing for breaking bonito can only be days away. Still a ton of bluefish in the mix, too. Find some moving water and sandeels and you can pretty much hang bluefish up to 10-lbs. until you’re too sore to go on.

Last, but not least, Salty Flyrodder Joel Filner checks in with a report from the Cape:
A two week visit to Cape Cod brings back to me the early days of my saltwater adventures. How tough it is to begin anew in a different water, with tides, weather, terrain, structure, bait, seals, and access all to be part of the experience. We go once a year with college friends and this year was to be a longer stay in order to see a little more of the area and try to learn some new tricks. Most years I found that fishing at night or early morning was the trick. The tides are very important on Cape Cod Bay as the height and rapidity of the flow makes for tricky wading. I was singularly unsuccessful wade fishing on the 4 attempts, with not a nibble, and the only day I actually saw fish in the water was the last day at noon just after the top of the tide and the blue fish were cruising the bait, small minnows, as the tide turned. Just barely within casting distance and they chose to ignore my fly. A spin fisherman waded out further and managed one fish at the end of his range, but lost him as the fish cut the line. We did go out on a big boat on the bay, the Triton, out of Rock Harbor, once with my kids and once with my friends. The first trip all were successful, with 8 keepers, one 39 inch bass, and multiple blue fish for the half day. The second trip was much tougher, lots of blues, and only two bass, one keeper of 32 inches and one 26 inch fish. The captain commented that the second trip was more typical of the week, unlike the first week trip as the fish were not as active and further out than normal. All in all, a pleasant family/friend activity. My treat was to go out with Joe LeClair out of West Falmouth for a terrific day on the water. We fished his local waters off the Vineyard and the bays and islands off Falmouth. It rained for a part of the morning but that did not deter the fish or the fisherman. New waters with a new guide and new fish made for a learning experience as well as a rewarding day to work with another pro on the water. For the first time I watched large schools of Bass feeding on or near the surface on Kril, over a long stretch of water along the shoals. They just could not be bothered with the fly whether in front of them or into the pods of fish. I lined them and down they went, soon to surface again, and to guess their direction is a trick only Joe could master, even then no real fish moving to the fly. We did hook up with smaller bass, some additional blues, and one Giant bass, who ran into the backing twice, moved the line, and broke off on the rocks below the surface. We both cried. Again learning the water is key as off Montauk or in the Peconic, or Gardiners bay, the bottom is not rocky or with any real structure so the big fish move to the deeper waters.
This fish headed for the rocks below, only about 15 feet, and my usual action would be to let him run, but Joe cautioned me to keep him up if possible, and of course my drag was not set as tight as it should be and the bass won. We also fished the tidal water where the flow of the tide over rocks makes for a great feeding ground for the bass in large numbers. Boating skill is required, but the bass were there. We increased the size of the fly to get the bigger fish and it worked well as the size increased with the fly. Again a learning experience. The day was worth the effort and the guide was worth the trip.
Gonna go back next year and if possible maybe a trip to the Cape in the Spring if I can tear myself away from our great fishery.

Wow!  On that note, I’m gonna sign off.  See ya on the water…

Capt. John McMurray

FOR BETTER OR WORSE – BREAKING NEWS ON SUMMER FLOUNDER
Just this week a summary report of the most recent Summer Flounder Stock Assessment Workshop was released.  It’s a difficult read for a civilian but it looks as if the only real change is an increase in the natural mortality estimate (the number of fish that die from natural causes).   It follows to reason that this drives a significant drop in the long term number of fish that could be achieved under a management plan.  Still with me?  Yeah, it’s boring and sometimes confusing stuff, but important nonetheless.

Also reporting from that region this week is Captain Mike Duclos from Tiderunner Charter and Guide Service:
“Despite the fog, hot days and the constant afternoon threat of thunderboomers, July has been a very good month to fish.
The striper fishing has remained consistant with the main component to catching fish being the time to locate where they are feeding today. The Race has been on and off with the outside of Fishers Island being the better choice most days, the rips of Watch Hill and around the corner to the East have showed us some great tides with lots of 24″ to 30″ fish to keep everyone happy.
The flies of choice have been small squid, silverside and bunker imitations with the always go to deceivers in white with silver or pearlescent flash,being key.
The light tackle fishing has also been very good with sluggo’s to 9″ fished in the slow water, while jigs from 1/4oz to 1/2oz with pink or natural soft baits anywhere the linesiders are busting bait on top.
Our average has been a nice 15 Sripers to every 1 Bluefish caught , lots of bass around, and soon the bonito will be showing up adding to the number of possibilities.”

Rhode Island Saltwater Fishing Reports

Captain Greg Snow from Snow Fly Light Tackle Charters checked in with this report:
The fishing continues to be better than good out here on  Block Island .  With the Spear fishing state record at 68pds and the rod and reel state record at 75.6pds both being set within a week of each other in our waters so I guess it would be redundant to say that there are some ridiculously  large creatures  locally  right now.   My fly fishing clients have boated and released 19 bass over 30 pounds in the last week with one client landing a 26,32, and 39 pound fish on a biblical morning trip.   This particular client was the only 60+ foot caster of the bunch which tells you the opportunities  we have seen recently.  The water temps are about 66 so I expect that our large striped friends are going to be on the move to cooler waters any day now.  Acres of voracious blue fish have invaded BI which will keep lines tight for weeks to come.  BFT reports are pouring in so I will be out looking hard this weekend so  look forward to what I hope is a great fast fish report next week.        Tight Lines…Capt Greg Snow

Massachusetts Saltwater Fishing Reports
From the Boston are Capt. John Mendelson from Boston Fishstix Guides checks in with this report:
“The fishing has improved a bit this week in Boston as we suspected it would the week after full moon tides.  We still have tons and tons of bait–mackerel, juvy herring, adult pogies, and even a few squid!  The bluefish have started to trickle in so expect the mackerel to begin to thin out.  We have been fishing structure and grass flats.  The juvy herring seem to be concentrated more over grass than on the sand/mud flats and the bass are following. Though we have been off the water the past two days for some boat maintenance and a weather related cancellation, we will be fishing every day for the next five days starting tomorrow. It should be a good weekend and next week’s tides are good also.”

Capt. Dave Rimmer checks in with a report from GLOUCESTER TO SALISBURY, MASS:
“Reports are coming in from around this region that striper fishing is still very good. Some may have heard about the 54 pound monster that was landed on a live mackerel a couple miles off Gloucester harbor. I also witnessed a 47 inch bass caught and released at the mouth of the Merrimack River on a live pogie last Thursday. So live bait is obviously getting it done during these dog days of summer, but light tackle and fly fishermen are still producing too, especially in low light conditions. My guide friends in the Essex River are seeing more and larger fish, and Plum Island Sound has been much the same. Although the fabled Joppa Flats has slowed, there was some outrageously good fishing there last Friday, and a buddy landed a 28 pounder on a sluggo. Bluefish are also around, although they have not yet made a big inshore push. Most are being caught trolling deep in 50-100 feet of water. Now is the time I personally sharpen the hooks on my crab and shrimp flies and start dragging them across the white sandy bottoms along the many beaches in our region. This time of year often produces calm seas and bright sunny days, so sight fishing becomes really doable for us around here. And a lot of anglers are focusing on fishing after dark, not something I do much of as a guide these days, but mid-summer night fishing can be very productive. We are coming on a nice tide series with ebb flow at dawn abd dusk and a new moon, so this next week should be good fishing all around.”

From out on the Vineyard, Capt. Tom Rapone from Highly Migratory Guide Service checks in with this report:
“7.22.08: Bones and Blues
The water surrounding the Rock is smokin’ hot these days. East side water temps up to 78 degrees have forced us to change gears in the last couple weeks. Topwater bluefishing has been a blast with tons of fish up to 10-pounds on both tides. 1-2″ squid have begun flushing through various rips in Nantucket and Vineyard Sounds. If you find the right edge it’s non-stop bent rods. My client this morning put the first 2 bonito of the year on the deck of my boat – a matching pair of fat 7-pounders. It was a great start to what will hopefully be an action-packed late summer season… Still some bass on the west side of the island, but increased commercial pressure has made it a tough fly and light tackle bite.”

Wow!  On that note, I’m gonna sign off.  See ya on the water…

Capt. John McMurray

TRY SOMETHING DIFFERENT
Hey…  We all have out spots right?  Some secret, some not so secret, but generally we stick to them.  Unfortunately, most of us are very pressed for time.  If you’re not, then you are either obscenely rich or unemployed and on some kind of fixed income.  Let’s face it, fishing, particularly from a boat, is an expensive past-time and you need to work a lot to support it.  You could say that I know that better than anyone else as I’m burning the candle at both ends for 8-months a year holding three different income producing jobs just so I can be out on the water as much as humanly possible.  I’m not complaining…  It’s just part of the deal.  It supports a habit that I was never able to shake nor did I ever want to.

The point is that we all embrace that time we get on the water.  And, hey, we want to catch fish during that time right?  So, we’re prone to go to those same spots we know produce time after time.  It’s even worse for the guides as they have a client or two on board who pay a lot of money for the chance to catch fish.  Yeah, some may say, it’s just nice to be out on the water, but don’t let them fool you.  They, like any other red-blooded angler, want to catch fish.  So, these guides want to go to those spots that they know produce as there’s a tremendous amount of pressure on the guide to do so.  But back to the point, it’s hard to stray from what we know and try new spots.  The end result of this is angry crowed conditions at those hot-spots like Breezy Point, Sandy Hook, Montauk etc.  And, it’s a real bummer because every year the crowds seem to get worse and worse, and subsequently, the etiquette get’s worse.

The thing is, there are a lot of fish in a lot of different places, and we all just need to take the time and put in the effort to find them.  These fish may not be busting and under birds as they tend to do at some of the well known hot-spots, but they can be found back in the marsh areas and they can be found in super skinny creeks.  They can be found in white sand flats that rarely get fished.  Sure, these fish are going to be spooky and more difficult, but to me, that makes it all the more fun.  Don’t expect to get the size and numbers that you would on a good day in Montauk or Breezy or wherever the crowds tend to follow the birds, but do expect to enjoy yourselves more.

So, try and use your imagination.  Find those areas that look fishy, even though you never see anyone fishing there.  Trust your gut…  Even if you don’t catch fish there on the first shot, look listen and try to feel the place out.  Notice what the tides are doing, try and see what the bait is.  Think about what conditions would make that place better.  Then, form a plan of attack and go back to those spots when you think they may fish better and work them hard.  You may come up empty handed, but on the other hand you just might score.  And, when you do, you can claim that spot as your own, and it is because you earned it.  Brag to your friends about it, but keep it a secret.

Sick of chasing bluefish with the rest of the yahoos out at Breezy Point, I found just such a spot in the back of the bay a couple of days ago.  It wasn’t easy, but we were rewarded with some giant acrobatic bluefish that were fining in just a few feet of murky water.  Man was that fun!  There were even a few bass in there!  Sure I strike out all the time trying those subtle “it-looks-fishy” places, but I always try and re-try them, because under certain conditions they are bound to work.

Like I said… Trust your gut…  Stray from the crowds and try something different this weekend.  It just may pay off!

Fishing Reports
Speaking generally, it does seem that the summer doldrums are beginning to set it.  Of course, there always seems to be someone, somewhere who’s catching fish.  Yet, the general sentiment is that we’re in that “transition period” after the spring/early summer and before the pelagic show.  All I’ve got to say is “THANK GOD FOR BLUEFISH!”  If it wasn’t for these big bruisers, I’d take the darn boat out of the water during the summer doldrums.  This week was definitely dominated by bluefish.  Not just in my neck of the woods but from Southern Jersey up to Montauk.  North of that, folks are still catching good numbers of bass, but it has become an early morning or night event.  The bluefin thing is kind of dead at this point.  Folks are still seeing them off of Mass, and Maine but I haven’t heard of any being caught in a couple of weeks.  That should change once we get into August though.  And, as some readers know, August can mean all sorts of pelagic fairly close to shore.  Keeping my fingers crossed for that.

New Jersey Fishing Reports
Nothing official from Jersey this week, but from what I hear there is still as bass bite on those bunker from central New Jersey North, but it wasn’t near what it was the prior week.  Mostly blues right now and lots of brown sharks.  Inside, it’s just too darn warm for good fishing.  There have been some fish caught at night though.  Offshore there hasn’t been much going on with the mid-shore humps.  Just about all of the bluewater action has been way out at the canyon edge, and that’s a hike.

New York Fishing Reports
I’ve had some great action offshore…  Unfortunately it aint with the tuna.  Some very, and I mean very big bluefish on some of the structure.  They are eating flies and plugs, well, jumping, tail-walking etc…, and hey, it’s better than nothing!  Even caught a few bass on the structure as well.  Earlier in the week we found some schoolie bass on poppers in Jamaica Bay and some big blues mixed in.  All-in-all, not a bad week for a “transition period.”  I’m expecting to see bonito any day now… Continue Reading »