My fishing story

[eppefour]

I have been fishing since I was a little boy. During the school year I fished in the streams around Easton, Pa. I often fished the Bushkill Creek and the Delaware river north of Easton. Many summers I spent time near the town of East Stroudsburg, Pa. I fished in the little streams and ponds in that area while I stayed with friends. I never caught much but those days in the outdoors meant a lot to me.
In the summers we spnt a month in the Villas , NJ. I fished almost every day. My father would take us fishing twice during that vacation each year. We would go to one of the piers that rented row boats. The pier had a tow boat and they would tow us out into Delaware Bay. We would anchor and fish there for hours. Usually we caught weakfish with a few flounder thrown in. There was a boat that would come by selling sodas and sandwiches. When you were done fishing you would raise your oar into the air. When the pier saw the upraised oar they would send the towboat to bring you in.
The other days I would go to the pier, usually Abinani’s Pier in the Villas. It was about a mile from our house and I would walk with my little fishing box and my pole. I would sit out on the end of the pier with all the old guys and fish for flounder. I rarely missed a high tide. Other days I would fish from the jetties on the south end of the Cape May beaches.
I got older and went to college and my time was limited for a few years. In started fishing with a friend when I graduated from college. Every Tuesday after work I would drive to the shore. I fished with a friend on a 26’Luhrs out of O’Deulls Marina on Ocean Drive in Cape May. We fished flounder and bluefish mostly. We rarely missed a day starting with the mackerel run in April. He supplied the boat and I supplied the bait and gas.
I got married and had children and my fishing time was limited for a few years. I went for a boat ride with a friend in the late 1970’s. He has a 16’ boat and we had 5 people in it. I think the water came up to the gunnels. We had so much fun, and I realized what I was missing. Shortly thereafter I bought my first boat, a 26’ Cruiser Inc Barnegat. The salesman told me it was hardly ever used and that the previous owner had died prematurely and didn’t use it much. Later I learned that he always said that.
We went to that boat every weekend. We overnighted on it. I fished during the day and at night it was our camper. We helped the local economy. We paid for dockage, meals , fuel, bait and nights at the boardwalk for the kids. We fished mostly for flounder , but sometimes bluefish were on the menu.
We outgrew that boat and I bought a 26’ Cruisers Inc cabin cruiser. We enjoyed that boat the same way, fishing every weekend and helping the local economy.
Then I bought a 26’ Chris Craft Commander with twin inboards. Boy was I hot stuff. I had a portable marine water-cooled air conditioner that I took from boat to boat. Air conditioned luxury at the shore with a small fly bridge boat. We fished most days and took trips down the inland waterway from Ocean City to Cape May. We bought a condo at the shore so that we could fish more and have a more comfortable place at night. I kept the boat at All-Seasons Marina in Ocean City but also paid for a transient slip in Sea Isle City at John’s pier when we were at our condo. We also rented the condo so we couldn’t always go there.
Then I went big time. I bought a brand new 1986 33’ Egg harbor. I loved that boat. It had gas engines and came with a capacity of 320 gallons of gas. I added extra tanks to get to 420 so we could fish the canyons. We fished for flounder, weakfish, bluefish and tuna. I think I spent money like water. We used to fish the Ocean City Overnight tournament every year and did pretty well. My son and I made some canyon trips overnight with just the 2 of us. He worked in bars so he was used to being up in the middle of the night so I get a couple of hours of sleep. We traveled on the boat usually to New England. We loved Newport, Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket. One day I decided to buy a 48” Ocean. My wife said that if I could afford that, I could afford a shore house for the family. I never got the Ocean, kept the Egg and had a great shore place in Ocean City.
Now I have a smaller boat, a 26’ Wahoo inboard with 2 150HP Volvo 4 cylinder gas engines. It is a perfect boat for retirement and I use it a lot. We fish inshore most of the time . My son and I used to take it 35-40 miles out to shark fish, but I don’t do that often. Over the years I have probably spent a million dollars in the New Jersey economy on boats and boating. I don’t regret one cent. Someday when I can’t fish because of age, I will have great memories. When friends get together we remember the good times we had. The pictures on my wall in the den are of my Egg during the Ocean City tournament. Two of the 4 in the picture are gone now, but I look at the picture and will always remember the days we spent together.
I want my son and my grandkids to have these days too. I don’t want them to be unable to fish at all. The closures are hurting us. I have charter fished in the states but these boats will disappear. The sea bass closure last year almost put a lot of guys out of business. If there is no fishing I will drydock my boat and hope to find someone to take it off my hands. No more dockage fees, winter service, fuel bait or equipment. If everything disappears now my grandkids will have to go to Mexico or the Bahamas to fish. I guess I will too.
Don’t close our fisheries haphazardly. Do more research on fisheries. Don’t settle for one-sided science. Give us a chance. Our property values are already down. Don’t put us in the situation where more people in New Jersey will walk away from boat payments and mortgages.
I am a registered New Jersey voter. I am very careful about casting my vote. The chances that I will vote for this administration are becoming slim to non-existent. I feel that part of the Massachusetts vote was due to the fishery industry in the coastal towns. I will exercise my vote and my voice .
John W Eppehimer Sr