DECEMBER 4th @ 4 P.M. SHARP! COME ONE; COME ALL FOR OUR ANNUAL HOLIDAY/CUSTOMER APPRECIATION PARTY...SEE BELOW FOR ALL THE DETAILS

In lieu of a fishing report this week, we are simply reminding you all that our Annual Holiday/Customer Appreciation Party in conjunction with All Seasons Marine Works, will be held this Saturday, December 4th starting at 4 P.M.

This will also mark the start of our annual sale where nearly everything in the store will be AT LEAST 20 % off, with the exception of some new stock. Come one; come all to take advantage of some great deals for some great gift ideas. Impress that special fisherman and women in your life! Gift Certificates will also be available.

Since we will have the event catered, if you plan on attending, stopping by or bringing a bus load of people, please RSVP to ejohnson@westportoutfitters.com. If you already received an Evite and responded, not need to RSVP again.

Keep in mind that the sale will run through the month of December. Hope to see you all on Saturday at 4 .M. sharp!

Stay tuned next week for the “2010 Season Wrap Up,” where we will discuss the season, the good, the bad, the ugly and take a look at the “2011 Season.”

Week of November 12th-November 19th

WINTER HOURS ARE NOW IN EFFECT…CHECK THE WEBSITE FOR DETAILS.

SUNDAY NOVEMBER 21st WE WILL BE CLOSING AT 12:00 P.M. TO ATTEND A TACKLE SHOW.

Before we get to the report this week, one very important announcement…this year our Annual Holiday Party with the crew from All Seasons Marine Works will be held on Saturday December 4th and begin at 4 P.M. In addition to this being a great party overall, there is also even more benefits for those in attendance. The party will also serve as the official kick off of our annual sale at Westport Outfitters, where select items will be up to 50% off. Rods, reels, clothing and other items are all great gift ideas for that special fisherman or fisherwomen in your life so don’t miss this.

Over at All Season Marine Works they are fully stocked with 2011 new boat inventory that can be viewed inside and outside on the premises. Do all of this while sharing some cheer inside the showroom where we have installed a 20,000 BTU wood burning stove. Throw in some good food, drink and friends and you will have the perfect night out. As always, kids & guests are welcome!! Please RSVP by emailing ejohnson@westportoutfitters.com so we can accurately get a head count for food and beverages. Look forward to seeing you all here on Saturday December 4th @ 4:00!

Well folks there is still some great fishing to be had, but it is apparent from looking out at the service yard that a lot of boats have come out of the water, as the dates to be out of your slips being dictated by local marinas and clubs rapidly approaches. It is in my opinion (a somewhat professional one) that the migration of bass that we all look forward to each Fall happens when we are all two beverages in around Christmas Day. Of course at this time there are virtually no boats in the water, but there are a few that stick it out. One is a very good friend of mine who will remain anonymous as to not divulge his entire strategy. He swears that some of the best Fall fishing he experiences each year happens in December and I am not talking about fishing the Housatonic River, but rather places like 11B, 28C and Middle Ground. It is also in my opinion that the reason we never really here about such excursions is that everyone has checked out and focusing on planning winter getaways rather than what’s going on in the sound.

So as you begin to rinse your gear off for the last time, perhaps you should put that favorite casting rod and reel aside, along with some of your favorite top water lures and try to make a mental note of that fellow fisherman who trailers a boat and is mechanically inclined enough to winterize his/her boat again after you head out. Give he or she a call about December 15th when the mercury is at an unseasonable 55 degrees (it always happens folks) and get back out there. If you do, I can assure you this, it will be hard for you to explain to others that were not present what you may experience….good luck!

Back locally, the story of the week continues to be blackfish which will run through December 6th here in the Western Sound. As is expected at this time of year, they are definitely starting to migrate into deeper water so it may be time to change up your tactics a bit. However, I have been advising to at least make one quick stop at some of your shallow water haunts first to see if there are any stragglers before heading out deep. Just to be clear, deep in this context is say between 20 and 30 FOW and drop those greenies down. We had dan L. phone in news about a 11.5 pound tog taken just off of Penfield Reef this Monday on a green crab!

Closer to home for us, we had a report from Tuesday where despite a decent breeze, Brad was into togs still in shallow at Frost Point where shorts were the word of the day, but he stuck with it and managed two nice fish up to 8 lbs jigging greenies.

Some of you track the success of the Micinilio Brothers and if that is indeed the case, you would have noticed that they have been silent and that is because they have been chasing Peacock Bass in Brazil. All in all a slow week according to Jim, but they did manage a good pull of fish all on light tackle form 12 to 23lbs (see recent catches).

Before the crew even got unpacked form the Brazil trip, they braved the 40 MPH winds on Wednesday and headed out on the Housey. Fishing the lower portion they managed about 24 fish all trolling tubes and swimmers in tight and did manage two fat keepers coming in at just under 35 inch range. Great job guys!(see recent catches)

The jigging bite out at 11B continues to be good, but not great. A lot of fish, but not a lot of girth or size to them, but that should get better and better from here on in, as we had mentioned previously. When dropping the diamond jigs down at this time of year, it is imperative that you are using a teaser off some sort of three way set up. Whether that is a store bought one or a saltwater fly, just make sure you have something. Many of the jigging reports from locals that look forward to using this technique all year, will tell you that most of their fish almost 4:1 will be taken on the teaser rather than the jig. If you need assistance on rigging these, stop by the shop for some guidance.

The inshore bite remains pretty consistent, while there are still small pods of bait working the coastline throughout Fairfield County. Tossing poppers would be your best bet or perhaps slow drifting some sandworms under a float in less than 10 FOW. There are plenty of fish beginning to push through and/or returning home. The schoolie action inside harbors lie Black Rock and Southport is non-stop and great fun for the kids and the light tackle rods. As the blues begin to push out, it is safe to break out the soft plastics again in tight. Also a great time to tie on a small clouser with the fly rods and stick some fish.

Daryl N. reported in that all Thursday A.M. he must have had at least 50 schoolies up to 24 inches just outside of Black Rock and also found some fish up inside of Ash Creek before the tide flushed out using the same technique.

Back to the freshwater, don’t overlook the quality of trout fishing that occurs locally here in the Fall. The streams have plenty of water in them and freshly stocked fish. The wild trout management areas that don’t receive any stocking have been on fire. Farther to our north, the Farmington continues to fish quite well. We sent a newcomer who is no stranger to big river fishing having earned his stripes out west and after some guidance from Kurt D., he landed 9 fish up to 22 inches all on the fly rod this week. Not a bad day on the Farmy!

Locally, the leaves are down, so that has cleared things up a bit, but still wade with caution. I personally had a decent A.M. on the Saugatuck on Tuesday. Fishing nymphs I hooked and landed half a dozen fish up to 18 inches, but still great fun on the long rod.

Well folks, that’s about it for this week. Please don’t forget to mark your calendars and come on down for the party on December 4th. Good food, friends, drink and fishing and boating stuff! RSVP to ejohnson@westportoutfitters.com.


Eric C. Johnson

Westport Outfitters, LLC

609 Riverside Ave.

Westport, CT

06880

www.westportoutfitters.com

www.allseasonsmarineworks.com

p-203.341.9490

f-203.341.9423

ejohnson@westportoutfitters.com

TAKE THE FAMILY FISHINGTM