WEEKLY "Gone Fishing" AT THE BEACH
compliments of: Sue Foster, proprietor of
OYSTER BAY TACKLE, Ocean City Maryland,
and Fenwick Tackle, Fenwick Island Delaware.
Sue provides us hopeful fish catchers with a timely
UP TO DATE FISHING REPORT
and other handy fishing advice. ** Also CHECK OUT FISH TALK fishing forum At The Beach **

Ocean City Maryland & Assateague Island - Delaware Beaches - Ocean n Bay Fishing Report
By Sue Foster, Oyster Bay Tackle Shop, Ocean City MD - Fenwick Island DE

Jan 11th, 2010

Fishing Report by Sue Foster

Water Temperature (WTMP): 41.2 °F

It's winter and only a little bit of fishing is going on. Party boats are
catching some tautog in Ocean City. Didn't hear anything from the beach or
inlets this week.

Shop Online

(Oyster Bay hours- 10 A.M.-1 P.M. on any nice days during the week. Call
410-524-3433 to see if we are there or to place an order. We'll definitely
be there on Saturdays for a couple more weeks between 9/10-1, weather
permitting.) E-mail sue@oysterbaytackle.com if you want to order something
over e-mail.


I didn't hear of any surf reports this week. It's possible to pick a striper
up. The water temperatures really dived this week though.

Many anglers ask about reading the beach when surf fishing. "Poppy" a very
good angler has posted another very good description with pictures on
Stripers Online. Check it out:
Reading the Beach He draws it out completely! If you're not catching
fish in the surf, you need to study this!

NOTE - Don't forget to register with the National Saltwater Angler Registry.
It is very, very simple and fast. (And Free!) (But necessary!)

Here's the link:
https://www.countmyfish.noaa.gov:443/register



E-mail Sue Foster at: Oyster Bay
Tackle with your pictures and/or reports.
E-mail me your name and where you are from so we
can put you in our weekly fish reports and/or Gallery

Clark from Old Inlet (302-227-7974) reported on the 4th:
"Wow is it cold out there!! A few stripers in the Inlet last week but
nothing since the weather turned cold over the weekend. We'll have to see
what happens to the water temperature during this cold snap to see if the
stripers will be here over the winter. Tautog fishing in the Inlet is pretty
much done.

"

Anglers now need a DE Fishing License to fish, crab, and clam in DEL: The
state has published a very good
FAQ on the license requirement.


Individual Delaware Fishing Licenses are now available
online.


Delaware anglers will also need a F.I.N. number every year, similar to a
hunting H.I.P. number. It is free, very simple to get, but necessary. DNREC
has e-mailed us how to get it!

To obtain a F.I.N. number or for
more information, anglers may visit www.delaware-fin.com, or call
800-432-9228, any time of day, any day of the week. Those needing live
operator assistance may call 866-447-4626 between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. (EST). "

Anglers are responsible for calling and getting this FIN number. (You do
have to update your FIN number every year. In 2010 you need to go online and
apply again. It only takes a couple minutes. Simple, easy.... )


NOAA's e-mailed me their formal announcement on the launch of the angler
registry:

NATIONAL SALTWATER ANGLER REGISTRY OPENS ON NEW YEAR'S DAY
New program, part of improved data collection system, to help protect nation's
ocean resources

Saltwater recreational fishermen have long expressed concerns about the data
used to estimate the effects of recreational fishing on ocean resources and
the nation's economy. The National Saltwater Angler Registry, which launches
on Friday, will help address that concern by providing a comprehensive list
of the nation's saltwater anglers that will be used to improve surveys of
fishermen. These surveys are used by NOAA scientists to assess the health of
fish stocks and to estimate the economic contributions of anglers.

Many saltwater recreational fishermen will be required to register before
fishing in 2010. The registry is open for registrations starting Friday,
January 1. But if you have a state saltwater fishing license, you may
already be part of the registry.

"Registering, recreational anglers will make their catch count," said Jim
Balsiger, acting NOAA assistant administrator for NOAA's Fisheries Service.
"The National Saltwater Angler Registry is an important tool that will
enable us to better estimate the health of marine fisheries so that we're
able to preserve the pastime of recreational saltwater fishing for
generations to come."

"Recreational fishers need the registry," says Capt. Monty Hawkins, a party
boat operator and recreational fishing advocate based in Ocean City, Md.
"People's lives depend on the quality of the government's information. It's
the basis for management decisions on everything from creel limits to
whether to shut down whole sections of the coast. I've been harshly critical
of recreational fishing data in the past, but I welcome the registry as a
way to improve upon the current system."

Gordon Colvin, a biologist with NOAA's Fisheries Service and interim senior
policy advisor on recreational fishing to Balsiger, who has spearheaded the
registry implementation, said that many anglers will not need to take any
action to register, because their coastal states already have agreements in
place with NOAA to share state saltwater fishing license information.

WHO NEEDS TO REGISTER:


Recreational saltwater fishermen will need to register if they:

. Fish in one of 10 coastal states or territories which do not currently
have comprehensive saltwater angler license or registration
requirements-Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New
Hampshire, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, Virginia, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

. Fish for or are likely to catch anadromous species in tidal and salt
waters; these are fish like river herring, shad, smelt and striped bass that
live in the oceans but spawn in fresh water, OR

. Fish in the federal waters more than three miles from the ocean shore or
from the mouths of rivers or bays

WHO DOESN'T NEED TO REGISTER

Some anglers don't have to register if they:

. Hold a valid license from one of 15 coastal states with comprehensive
licensing or registration - Alabama, Alaska, California, Connecticut,
Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, New York, North
Carolina, Oregon, South Carolina, Texas, Washington;

. Are not required under state law in one of these 15 states to hold a
fishing license as is sometimes the case with seniors or active-duty
military;

. Are under age 16;

. Pay to fish on licensed charter, party or guide boats;

. Hold a Highly Migratory Species Angling permit or subsistence fishing
permit (others fishing aboard may have to register);

. Fish commercially under a valid license.

National Saltwater Angler registration is free in 2010. To register
beginning Friday, anglers can visit http://www.countmyfish.noaa.gov and
click on the Register link, or call the toll-free registration line at
1-888-MRIP-411 (1-888-674-7411) from 4:00 am to 12 midnight EST daily.

Anglers will need to provide their name, date of birth, address and
telephone number, and will receive a registration number that will allow
them to begin fishing immediately. They will receive a registration card in
the mail in about 30 days.

Steve Medeiros, executive director of the Rhode Island Saltwater Anglers
Association and a leading advocate for a saltwater fishing license in his
state, said the registry is an important step. "While it's true that some
fishermen don't like the idea of having to register to participate in a
sport they've taken for granted their whole lives, anyone fishing today
knows that increasing pressures on the ocean are having a real effect," he
said. "If we're going to pass the sport down to our children and
grandchildren, we're going to need sound management based on good data."

The registry will be used as the basis for conducting surveys of saltwater
recreational fishermen to find out how often they fish. It will eventually
replace the use of random-digit dialing to coastal households, a system NOAA
has had in place since the 1970s. The goal is to improve survey efficiency
and reduce bias by making calls only to homes where people fish, and
reaching saltwater anglers who live outside coastal counties.

While the registry is among the most visible aspects of NOAA's Marine
Recreational Information Program, it is only one component of this rigorous
multi-year, multi-phased overhaul of the system NOAA uses to collect and
report recreational fishing data. Each piece of its design and
implementation has been guided by close working relationships among NOAA
personnel, fisheries managers, state partners, independent scientists and
the recreational fishing community.

Recreational fishermen should also remember that regardless of whether an
individual is registered with NOAA, they must obey all state regulations and
licensing requirements where they are fishing.

For more information visit www.countmyfish.noaa.gov or call the MSSA office
at 410-255-5535

For more info on the FIN
number go to www.countmyfish.noaa.gov

If you have a FIN number in Delaware that number is good for Maryland, but
you need to get one every year. BUT,If you get a FIN number to fish in
Ocean City from NOAA, you still need to get a separate FIN number if you
fish in Delaware.






Oyster bay tackle
11615 Coastal Highway
Ocean City, Md
410-391-0222
http://www.oysterbaytackle.com/