Well, it's not the worst of winters, but here where I live, winter fishing is nearly non-existant. At least in the mountains and more southern climes, fishing goes on.
I will open this thread with an encouraging email I received from my occasional fishing partner, Hokie Paul.
While I'm not sure if I was with him, I think I was when he tagged and released a 12" redfish in the Mobjack Bay here on the Chesapeake on 8/4/22. That fish was reported as caught in Owls Creek in Va. Beach on 2/5/24 and measured 25". The angler kept the fish for dinner.
Not bad growth for 550 days, and interesting that the fish wasn't recovered further south. Paul also was concerned because the water temperature at the time of tagging was 86 degrees and he worried about the youngster's survival.
Goes to show ya, that catch and release does work, and that fish provided another angler a decent fight and a decent meal. Also goes to show me that I need to cultivate friends in the 757. My best friend down there has health issues that have curtailed his interest, but we did use to catch reds and trout in the Elizabeth when the Hot Ditch was still discharging.
So anyway, how's about we get a report or two to get us through the times between basketball, softball, baseball and recruiting news. Somebody...DAVE....3rdGEN...FRENCH...give us a report.
Comments
sadly, weather has sucked continuously for the last 2 months.
I expect to be spending time with the new granddaughter in Winston-Salem in late March; so I'm predicting perfect fishing conditions in N FL for big trout in...late March
Interesting info on that redfish Hokie Paul tagged. Per Chico Fernandez's book on Fly Fishing for Redfish (which I highly recommend) they generally stay in 50 mile area if I remember correctly, but I think most often it is much smaller than that. Depending on the area they live, they tend to grow 1-2" per year until they get into the upper 20 inches.
Hey flyguy, good of you to chime in. Great summary of your recent travels west in your later post.
As for the redfish, are you saying that the 12" fish Paul tagged was 6 or more years old? I don't buy that, but have no evidence to back that up. I'm less than positive on the reported catch length, I mean, some fishermen are prone to, well, let's just say a bit of hyperbole, but the fact that he took the trouble to report the catch lends credence to his measurement.
Climate's changing, fish are adapting, the portal giveth and the portal taketh. The fish portal can have the absurd and again, likely unprecedented invasion this past fall by the toothy cutlass fish. I know they are reputed to be excellent table fare, they play hell with lures and jigs and I can do without 'em.
My surprise is the relative closeness of the recapture, but based solely on the historical scarcity of reds in the puppy drum size in local waters here. Things are changing, though, and while I knew a lot of the fish that flee the Bay around here didn't go all the way to North or South Carolina where their presence in winter was more common, I am coming to terms with the fish hanging around Va Beach. As we all know, though, fish are gonna go where they can tolerate the water and get fed. No need for them to go any further, no homing thing like so many fish have.
I don't know how old it was. It very well could have grown quicker than that. I need to look back at the book again when I return home to make sure what I conveyed is correct.
The internets say: How old is a 20 inch redfish?
Redfish spawn from late August through October. At one year old, they will range from 10 to 17 inches long, averaging 14 inches. At 2 years old they will range from 18 to 24 inches, and weigh 3 to 6 pounds. At 3 years old, they will range in size from 20 to 28 inches, weighing 4 to 9 pounds.
The climate is definitely changing and I do think there are a lot more Reds in the Bay than there used to be. Out west, snowfall seems to be less common and then when it does happen, it's in heavier doses. Winters seem far warmer today on the east coast than during my childhood and my father echoes the same sentiment. Definitely concerning to say the least, about what the world will look like in 20 years.
Yeah, the web sounds about right for this fish's growth. The infusion of reds here in the Mobjack really began with a bang several years ago, and has continued to wax and wane a little, but with them being around every year now. The first several years I lived here, you did not catch a redfish, or if you did, it was a dink. Thankfully, that has changed to the point that we can target them, usually successfully, in a lot of the summer/fall season. If we can get the menhaden fishery curtailed here, we could very well see a real increase in angling pleasure and fish recruitment in the few years I have left to chase them.
they grow A LOT faster than that down here (FL west to TX)...end of year 3 fish should be mid 20's...they probably slow down later on
I've been out west since Mid January. Most of the time I've spent snowboarding, selling earrings to ski bunnies, some winter fly fishing and visiting friends. The other time I spent stuck in a hotel in Golden for a week with a frustrating case of Covid. The Fly Fishing Show in Denver was awesome. I randomly showed up and sold a bunch of earrings and surprised a bunch of my old friends at their booths. I really miss doing a tying table at the shows but it was cool wandering around, drinking and apparently catching Covid.
My insulated box trailer has been warm enough, but I have spent some evenings in cheap accommodations to make work, aka tying earrings, a bit easier. As usual with my travels, one night I hit something with my tire on i-70 in Denver at probably 70 mph. The tire deflated immediately, and I was stuck on the side of the highway for an hour and a half, trying to get the wheel off of the hub. It was corroded on there. Finally, a friend suggested via text using the bottle jack to press it off. It worked. The tires only had half of the tread worn off, but one of the three remaining had a slow leak. $1700 later, I have 4 new tires. Hopefully, only Covid and the tire replacement are my biggest issues of the trip.
I had one epic day fly fishing with my old boss on the Roaring Fork. The same stretches that produced 10-12 years ago, still produce today. The same flies seem to work to. Man, I miss that job and living in that town. There is no better place in the world to people watch.
After a week of snowboarding in Jackson Hole, I spent 5 days fly fishing in Wyoming a week ago. Let's just say, it was on fire and the best trout fishing I've ever done. I landed 6 trout over 20" and lost just as many that size. The biggest lost had to be 24" at least. I wade fished most days and floated one other with a new friend and guide. I don't think I'll ever be happy again while trout fishing, unless its on that river.
I'll be doing an earring tying event in Aspen this weekend and then snowboarding and fishing for a day or two around there. Not sure what happens after but I've got until the second week of March to play and explore. Already not looking forward to returning back east.
Wind River WY
Trout Sampling
Steamboat
What it's like driving across WY
Fly Fishing Aspen
I have nothing to report. Work a has limited my fishing even in the fall. Haven't gotten out since Christmas. Going to Chokoloskee (Everglades) for a week in mid March. Booked a guide for a day and then have 4-5 days of exploring on my kayak. Snook and Juvenile Goliaths main target but really anything (other than sailcats) that will hit artificial and pull.
Did you end up targeting the juvy Goliaths? I want to specifically go after those fish more but other than knowing one specific spot they live in, don't know what to look for.
I'm headed down this weekend. From watching EliasV on youtube, mainly rocky bottom or deeper holes along mangroves.
Thanks. The one spot I know where to find them in the Glades is some mangroves and they have holes. I've hooked four on fly, landing only one. I hooked it and used my trolling motor to back the boat away and drag his ass out.
He makes it seem like they are pretty common in the everglades as juveniles. I'd assume you need a heavy sinking line to get it down closer to the bottom but I only watch some fly fishing on youtube and don't actually do it. Hopefully I'll have a decent report to give.
Three of the four I hooked were sunning themselves right under the surface. They were hanging vertical in the water tight against the bank. Swam a fly in front of them and they inhaled it.
How did you do???
Well, the women lost Kitley, the men, well, just lost, but Spring has indeed come to some of us, and with it, some fishing news.
My friend who fishes the James for smallmouth has caught a couple of nice fish recently, and my friend on Claytor has reported that the walleye spawn is in full tilt boogie at Foster Falls and above. He's caught some nice fish and reported one boat had caught 22. He said that the Fish and Game folks were at the Falls shocking up the river strain for propagation. I've been there before when they were shocking and it is humbling to see the fish in the run you fished for two hours, and caught three or four fish, turn belly up and you realize you were fishing over dozens of big fish that spit in your eye.
Anyway, time's coming that the fish will be there and maybe we can resuccitate this moribund thread.
Spent the winter renovating a bathroom. That's done now looked at the boat last week and it had a full winter of gunk and leaves in it (also accidentally left my fly rod in the hatch all winter...so time for some new fly line). Got a quote for someone to come shine it up even though I typically do it on my own. After getting his quote I'll continue to do it on my own $800 for a half day of work is insane. Throwing her in the water this evening to see what's broken, if its not much I'll be fishing all day tomorrow.
You did it right. I'm in the middle of a bathroom reno. Going to start to eat into my non-existent fishing time.
Hope your boat fires right up and you catch some fish.
Me too, but because I have the excuse of incompetence and age related infirmity when construction rolls around, and because we have no kids and there are no trailer hitches on the hearse, I'm paying for a pro to do the work.
Also tried to get someone lined up to deal with the cleaning of the boat, but can't find a kid who'll put down their phone or game shit to spend a morning earning money. Guess I'm stuck with that. Either way, I never wash my boat in the Spring until I've had it out for the first time and made it home. I'll sweep the stuff and hose 'er down, but until I know I'm going again before it can get dirty again, I'll hold off.
Good strategy...just put mine in the water, fired it up, tied her off to my dock. Went to fire it up again and nothing. 2 year old battery so went ahead and threw a new one in, starts....sometimes. Going to go clean all my contacts...if its not that looks like I'm off to get a new relay and a solid $300 in parts before I even get going this season.
Nearly all my battery issues end up being due to bad connections. I keep sandpaper, a brass brush and a small tube of dielectric grease. One tube will last you 20 years or so, or at least mine has.
Fixed my battery issues which did end up just being bad connections. Couldn't get it over 4000rpm all day, throttle all the way down would hit 4k then bog to 3k and slowly go back and forth there for a bit. Later in the day it ran fine maxing out at 5300ish...until it didn't. Would max out at 3k and jump between 2-3k quickly, shut it down and idled home (about 5 miles against the wind and tide) after that, hearing the occasional cylinder knock. I'd immediately shut it down when it started knocking. Then fire it back up and the knock would be gone.
Tested compression this morning good on all cylinders, spark plugs look about how they normally do right before my service interval so I'm pretty sure I've got ~40 gallons of bad fuel on board I need to get rid of.
Turns out my fuel was fine but my fuel system was not. The previous owner had put some undersized garbage fuel strainer in instead of the actual fuel filter system that was supposed to be there. I noticed it awhile ago but it never caused any issues so it stayed.
New OEM fuel filter system, 100 hour service (plugs, fuel water separator, lower unit fluid, oil, oil filter), and 16oz of sea foam just for fun and now its running better than I've ever had it run pushing 5900rpm and 44mph at wot.
We welcomed our first child late last year so no fishing on my end since November. In the meantime I've bought way too much gear to try to fill the fishing void. And currently replacing hubs/bearings in my trailer for peace of mind.
What "quick clip" is your favorite? I've tried a few and hated them all so far. First one bent too easily and latest one takes me longer to unclip off the lure than it did to just cut and re-tie a loop knot. I gave up last summer but am willing to try again to save time and leader length. Only planning to use on hardbaits (topwaters, mirrolure, etc.)
Hoping to at least try for some shad on the James after work one day soon.
This is way too responsible for this forum. We only do that after our wheel flies by us on the road.
Norman Speed Clips. I really don't use them much but I will in the summer when I'm throwing topwater and keep getting misses I can quickly flip to something subsurface.
Big thanks to flyguy for having all the issues we don't want and making us all paranoid. Well it's been a couple years since I've had the trailer and I've barely even greased them, so it was only a matter of time before my "they're fine for one more trip" turned into a disaster. Bearings seem fine but hubs are leaking and grease is covering both wheels. Grease inside is milky too.
I'll try the Norman clips. Thank you.
I put brand new hubs on every two years at this point. They cost $50 each at OReilly's. Now, my trailer gets dunked 150 times a year and hauled up and down the highway more than 99% of boats in the country, but that seems to have stopped many of the bearing issues. Knock on wood.
And I still, to this day after decades of boat ownership, have never had to replace bearings on the various trailers I've owned. Now, to be fair, I install Bearing Buddies immediately if they're not on the trailer when I get it, and keep them well greased. I don't launch 150 times a year any more, nor do I routinely haul my boat long distance, but I most certainly have had times when I launched more than the average fisherman, and in my guide biz, I was on the road a lot. But, fresh water for the bulk of my time. Here in the salt, though, same same for the hubs, but my trailer is so suspect that despite my TowUS coverage, I pretty much limit my hauling to the local ramps, one two miles away, one four and a half. I've never had hubs burn out and lock up. Ever.
Not advocating, just sayin'.
I've got bearing buddies and I routinely pump in new grease. Regardless, the bearings eventually go bad or start to feel "rough." I think it's just the number of times they are dunked combined with the mileage I put on em. If anything, it gives me piece of mind.
At this point I wish I had bearing issues. My trailer is at its end of life stages. Replaced all of the suspension 2 years ago. My primary bunk supports are nearly see through, rust falls off of my axle if I look at it and I'm starting to notice some stress cracks on my i-beam. At 13 years old most of this is expected what I didn't expect was the cost of a replacement trailer...gonna just keep saying some prayers and hope this one holds on.
Sounds like my old trailer. After I found a massive stress crack, I bought a new one during Covid and went slightly oversize for my boat. Not sure if it helped with towing or not but the longer tongue is nice. Pro tip, get the same make as your old one and keep your old title and registration. I never paid taxes or registration for the new trailer. The old trailer will go to scrap if my buddy ever decides he doesn't want to use it for hauling shit around on his property behind his ATV.
I use the tactical anglers clips 50 lb version for trout and reds
I returned home yesterday from my 61 day jaunt through Colorado and Wyoming. 75 and sunny is nice in VA but they just got 4 feet of snow in Colorado. I'm in a funk trying to adjust to living in a house and the real world. Wish I was still out west. Final totals were 25 days shredding the gnar and a dozen days fly fishing. I am still having nightmares over a two foot brown that destroyed my fly and broke my tippet on a hole in the Gunnison.
My boat sits in Wilmington supposedly almost done with the rewire job. Friends keep asking me to take them shad fishing. Cranky old man Fly Guy doesn't care about shad. There have been some solid drum reports at the Cape, but it appears to be hit and miss.
I'll be focusing on selling earrings and maybe get in a few days on the water for brook trout in the next month.
Well, it sucks to be you, right? Welcome home, Cap'n.
Lol. Thank you
I haven't been even thinking about fishing outside of putting my travel box and cooler into storage for the winter. I have been buried by work and unanticipated expenses, including needing to get a new transmission for my Trailblazer. I want to get down to Hatteras (first good big drum blitz was this weekend), but I have no energy or capital to do any more trips. I am obligated to a week split between Abingdon and Little Rock Arkansas, a week in South Dakota, a graduation, and a week in Baltimore for work already eating up my spring calendar.
I hate being a responsible adult. I absolutely detest it.
I hate being a responsible adult. I absolutely detest it.
I feel this in every fiber of my being.
I've eked out a living on the issue.
I'm trying myself!
It is truly a life-long effort. One must be shameless in many respects, the world will try to tell you what you should, or shouldn't do. Fuck em. Just don't fuck your friends enough that they drop you. Real friends will put up with a lot from you, as you will from them, and in the life you aspire to, they are the best part.
Apparently shad fishing is really good right now in the James in Richmond. Meh.
I took a fellow to Freddiesburg to fish the shad run on the Rapp. He was a fly-only guy with a lot of experience in freshwater fly fishing, but had never tried for shad. He whooped, he hollered, he declared shad a "high octane fly fishing experience" and a freshwater mini-tarpon that impressed him to the max.
I get it, different strokes and all. I have no regard for largemouth bass, and am meh on speckled trout around here. But watching Lefty Kreh and Flip Pallett fly fishing for mudding carp, I'm convinced that most fly fishermen don't care what they catch as long as they can do it on a fly, and hopefully one they tied theirownselves.
Yep, they are indeed fun for some. I am not a fan. I like to fish for bowfin and lots of people hate that.
Spent a week down in the everglades, fished for four days. First day went out with a guide, started by looking for tarpon. Found quite a few rolling, worked around the area for an hour. It all lined up with one rolling in casting range, bomb a swimbait a few cranks and get thumped. Fight it for 5-10 minutes (bad at estimating), at least 5 jumps. Leader breaks, guide estimated around 50 lbs. Saw them rolling occasionally for next 30 minutes. Didn't get any more eats. Rolled to another spot for tarpon saw a few rolls but that was it. Then pounded a mangrove shorelines the rest of the day, pulled off a decent snook. Small jacks, snook and mangrove snappers all hit MR17 worked erratically.
Second day, pretty slow on my own in the kayak. Caught one trout. Tried jigging for grouper. Didn't have any luck around the oyster bars.
Third day, tried a different pass. stumbled upon a point with current and some rocky bottom. There are many areas I found like this but this time hooked up with a solid I'm guessing goliath. It was pulling hard and making runs around the kayak. I had a lure hanging over the front and that got tangled in the mirrolure. All while a big tour boat pulled passed and stopped and watch the debacle. It eventually pulled off. I was shaking from finally getting the bite I wanted. Cast back in and get jammed by a gag grouper which I manage to land. Next cast get a small jack and then nothing. Go to another spot, get smoked instantly pulled down the pass a half mile for 15-20 minutes. Finally see its a 4-5' shark. Poke around the rest of the day and don't get anymore action.
Fourth day, go back to the grouper spot, nothing. Jig other areas and nothing. Make a cast at a tree hanging over the water, get smoked a snook and manage to get it out of the tree somehow. Current picks up and shoot over to another pass, find a ton of dink trout, some sail cats mixed in but keeps me entertained for an hour. Poke around and the wind picks up. I don't realize how bad it is so end up crossing the bay thru 1'+ whitecaps with wind blowing close to 20 mph. Was so glad to make it back across. My windy did not have the gusts even forecasted that high.
Fun trip, wish I could have dialed in the patterns more. Did have a cold front hit after day 2.
Thanks bro, solid report. Sounds like fun, but sorry you couldn't get that goliath or land one of those tarpon. Bucking that wind and waves in a kayak could not have been fun. Hope you had a beer and some shrimp to improve your day!
Beautiful pics. Silver King is well timed. Grouper colors are awesome. Snook always get a thumbs up. Nice work!
Well I guess since it's April 1, its no longer Winter but with the 20-30mph forecast for the next few days, early Spring fishing won't suck any less than Winter fishing this week I don't think. I'm headed down tomorrow through Sunday on what should have been a well timed OBX trip. The weather man has been a real drag recently though so I guess I'll have to hope the big drum come in on the back side of this SW heavy wind. Hopefully we can get a few bites later in the week if we don't get blown off the beach first.
Did in fact get blown off the beach a few days. If you like catching 20-30" sharks this was the week to fish OBX surf. I managed a couple puppy drum in between them, but it was mostly a steady supply of dogfish and little sandbars. The water is still just too cold. I did talk to a couple guys who did pretty well catching a mixed bag of more desirable species in Frisco through the middle of the week, but alas, that's the only ramp I managed to skip from 38-55. Hopefully there will still be some big fish around when I go back in late May.
The sandbars are a damn menace. I couldn't get away from them in the fall.
Boat faked me out...it is not fixed still have a fuel pressure issue somewhere, really don't want to have to dig into my VST.
What is your engine?
I've dug into the VST on my F115 three different times. It's actually not that bad. Take pics of each step, so you can make sure you put it back together correctly, which is obviously the key. I always went into mine to change out the stupid little tiny screen in it.
Your other issue may be the in-line "strainer" as they call it. It's just another filter but for whatever reason Yamaha calls it a strainer. Supposed to be changed every 400 hours. You can tell the difference between an old one and a new one by blowing through it. My old F60 had what seemed like pressure issues and that strainer was completely clogged up. New one fixed the issue immediately.
Yeah on the 150 and up the strainer is more of a filter - with a removable bowl and filter, the previous owner had replaced the filter with the strainer made for the 115 and under...when I replaced that everything ran great for like 3-4 hours of run time until it all started again. I was able to track down a temperamental leak in a fuel line that I think might be causing the issues I'm seeing now. If this doesn't do it the VST will be next but from what I know the VST issues are usually a high speed issue but I'm also getting fuel starve symptoms at idle.
It's most likely the fuel line leak. I've had issues when I've had a pinhole leak in a fuel line. Luckily it was a very easy fix. I could also smell the fuel sometimes when I tilted the motor up.
Really hoping that's it - won't have time to put it on the water until later this week. Been a royal pain in the ass but when I went to check if it was the fuel pumps my finger brushed the fuel line that goes into the pump and fuel sprayed everywhere, so I could see how chop or something could unseat it enough to cause a problem, even when fuel isn't spraying out I imagine air is getting in there at lower pressures which would also cause fuel starvation.
from my fun experience last spring and summer w/ a fuel-starved outboard...if the bulb is full, the problem is on the motor side; if the bulb is flat/empty, the problem is on the fuel tank side...and that is the sum of my knowledge on said issue
Yeah ive traced everything from the tank to the VST and outwardly it all looks okay. Manual pumps are all good. I'm at a complete loss and don't feel like trying to figure it out anymore too many possible parts and time to waste so for the first time in my life I called a mechanic to look at one of my boats.
mine was the anti-siphon valve, possibly the least expensive part in the entire fuel/outboard complex...unless you pay a mechanic to try a bunch of other things first before you finally figure it out yourself
good luck!
Got tired of waiting on the mechanic so I checked my injectors and they were pretty filthy. Cleaned them with some home made set up. threw them back on and ran like a champ. I now am certain my VST needs cleaned so that's the new task...wish the placed it in a slightly easier to access spot pretty much have to take apart the entire intake system just to get it out.
I still haven't been fishing yet this year, no fish to catch here in the winter anyway.
Smallmouth, however, have been showing up for my dedicated smallmouth friends. I recently got some pictures, one of which was of a 22-3/4" momma that tipped the scales at more than 6lbs from the James around Buchanon. Since I'm absolutely incapable of techno stuff, I'll send the picture to someone with more abilities and hope to get it on the site.
That's a stud. I hope to take some smallmouth trips this year since there are spots that closer than my jaunts to the bay and enjoy being on the river. I'll add that picture soon.
Thanks 3rd. Love the fish that you have to scroll down to see it all! My buddy and former associate, Jim Richmond, was rowing that trip. They only got 4 fish that day, but this one and an 18" fish that weighed over 4 lbs were the highlights.
I'd like to be fishing, but no time. I was supposed to be down in Destin this week looking for bonito and blackfin tuna off the end of Navarre Pier, but a wedding (in Little Rock Arkansas) has intervened (happy wife, you know the drill.) I have blocked off the week of Memorial Day (not the holiday) to try for cobia at Buckroe. Hopefully they show after the complete no show last year.
The Hewes Redfisher 18 "Pretty Fly" has returned to my driveway in Rickmond. My cousin spent two months totally re-wiring it. Looks like he did an excellent job. I'm going to put new springs on the trailer axles which are flaking away heavily with rust, change the impeller, oil, etc.
The big work I need to do is to fix the trolling motor. Minn Kota has broken again and will not turn. My good friend says I need to invest in the new Power Pole trolling motor. Apparently it is brushless and blows the MK out of the water. Price tag: $6000.
YIKES.
I've heard the hype about Power Pole motor but haven't been on a boat with one. Got a friend looking at getting a Hewes or Maverick. Wanted to get your opinion on the Hewes after having it for awhile now.
I won't sell my Hewes unless I've got a gun to my head. Or am in a desperate financial situation. Or I'm buying a new Redfisher 18. It's perfect for everything I do. Only complaint I have is my 39 year old knees don't like the little space between the seat and helm. If driving while standing up, I find myself leaning forward over the wheel and it hurts my knees after awhile. The solution is to get a removeable leaning post installed. I've seen several of them and will likely get one. The newer Redfisher 18s have much more space there and a better seat setup than my '03. I don't like the front hatch on the new ones though.
Fished the Rose River today and did well. Five fish to hand, had 25-30 eats. Biggest was 10." I always get so many bites on dries from Brookies and miss them, but it's a win if they eat regardless. Lots of fun, incredible weather and scenery. If you haven't fished the Upper Rose with a 2 weight fiberglass fly rod, go.
Are they still adding limestone to the river? It's been nearly 40 years since I fished the Rose, and it was in trouble then.
I've never heard of limestone being added to it. I generally fish the upper section in the Park. I'd say it's doing well. Does get pressured a lot though
Like I said, it's been 40 years since I lived in the area and probably a couple of years before that since I've fished it. The problem was acid rain and the brookies were in trouble. Again, long time ago so memory could be a bit befuddled, but I think they coptered in limestone boulders and may have even done bucket brigades for harder to reach places. I did hear subsequently that the fishing was returning but I never went again.
My trout fisherman, Hokie Paul, went out yesterday. Managed one bite all morning, a 20" rockfish. Talked to a netter who declared that most of the big trout still around died over the winter, which surprises me since we had a mild winter. He also said he's catching a lot of rockfish and catfish and plenty of reds. He can only keep a few of the reds, so I guess he's just tossing the dead ones back? I know reaping the harvest of the Bay is a way of life, but frankly, I chafe at the idea that commercial interests of a few outweigh the interest of the bulk of the rest of us. Also wonder why Paul and his buddy couldn't get a red to bite. Maybe the nets? Water is still pretty chilly for much action anyway, but still.
They rip the reds out of gill nets and toss them back in. I've seen dead ones and seen them swimming around with gill net marks.
They ALWAYS swim way just fine according to the netters. And if you're a fly fisherman you're the president of CCA and ruining their lives because they can't make money any other way.
Some actual fishing to report. Fished the James for shad with my brother last night for a couple hours in Richmond. We hooked onto a couple shad but didn't land any. I did catch a white perch, the biggest bass I've caught in years (4+ lb), and a catfish. My brother also caught a catfish. I was using a micro spinner with a white curly tail. First fish I've caught since November.
First fishing trip for me this year. Too much wind to fish the morning, not much better this afternoon. Fished the East River in the Mobjack. Found some rockstriperfish on a dock and caught a couple over 21" and a smaller one with a couple breaking off on pilings. But nothing else. No reds, no trouts and only a few missed hits, likely the striped basses pulling the tails of our Super Flukes. The two bigger ones inhaled them.
Lots of birds, osprey galore, but the fish we were after were absent. We'll try again Friday, but the water temps on this side of the Chesapeake Bay have dropped at least 4 degrees in the last several days, so that likely is delaying the trout and red moving in. There is some bait around, according to the graph, and the cormorants are hanging out, sure sign of food.
Heard from a local guide about big drum at the Poquoson Flats, corroborated by French (though he's running around out West trying to see some bighorn sheep or something). Hopefully the move north won't take much longer.
And another slowwww morning on the Mobjack. East River gave up a 21+ rockfish to my fluke and the North produced a 19" rock for me, with a 22+ chunk and later a beautiful 16-1/2" puppy drum for Paul, spots galore. The wind was cold and incessant, wouldn't have traveled for the experience, but had enough enjoyment to rate it a plus. Next week it'll be hot as hell, so the water temps, today from 63-66 in the rivers, should get to rising in the Bay. I think I'll wait a week or two before heading out again. Unless, of course, somebody calls and invites me. When it comes to a fishing trip on somebody else's boat, I am a shameless mooch.
Entered in a mahi tournament...28ft cc found the only window during fishing time to get out was between 5 and 9 this morning so we left the dock at 1am. Not sure this offshore thing is for me after getting destroyed in 5-6 at 5s for 3 hours on the return trip. Good time caught 4 mahi lost a few others.
5-6' @ 5 seconds is no joke. Glad ur good. Some good eating!
If it wasn't for the tournament no chance I would have gone. My whole body feels like a got beat with a bat and it took me about 12 hkurs to shake the chill of being drenched and cold.
I have a feeling the sportys that are out today fishing the same to worse conditions will smoke us but had the 3rd biggest dolphin at the end of yesterday...mainly due to lack of boats.
I used to fish with a guy who ran all out regardless of the conditions. Now, we're talking Chesapeake Bay waters, but one morning I honestly lost a filling on one particularly hard landing. Could not convince him that we'd rather fish a half hour less than to go balls out to get there. Even when his 80 year old father went with him and grimaced the entire ride out, he didn't pull back on the throttle. A jerk in other ways, I no longer fish with him, but I must admit, I don't miss it.
Also, since this is the first nice day in a while here, I drove down to the local ramp to watch the shit show of googans getting their boats out to put on their boat lifts at their multimillion dollar waterfront homes after a long winter's nap. Hilarious. Got some actual belly laughs at this one guy. I never need reminding about my absolute refusal to fish public waters on the weekend, but it is always fun to have it confirmed yet another year.
I would have died from seasickness and then full body pains after riding around in that shit. I only go offshore now when its slick
Man alive! Now I have to rethink dinner. As good as shrimp and asparagus Alfredo fettucini is, this post blew that out of my mind.
Well, another day of "meh" fishing. Windy as hell, annoyingly so, buddy got six rock, 5 shorts and a 20 or so, all on flukes and 5 out of one area. I fished the bottom hoping for anything other than a darned striper, but gave up later and got my only bite of the day...another darned short rockfish. All fat and healthy, but where's the rest of the fish population?
I have a friend who's had some nice fish from the New and a few from the James, so smallmouth fishing seems to be off and running, and I was texted a picture of a really big channel cat from Claytor. Thing looked to be close to 15 pounds, more or less.