Been waiting for months for the season of making life miserable for the cobalt missiles of the north Atlantic... The sat shots showed though that the water was already twenty miles past the "fence" for the South Jersey Shark event.
I believe some where around 180 boats went to work and though numbers were good the size just didn't match up to the hype...
In fact not a qualifier in the fleet. I saw two fish air out that may have made the grade and I heard reliable sightings from a couple others of the same thing but chatter didn't include near miss stuff... We laid in on the "A" spot and the first bait was still being let out when we had our first bite. As dinky of a mako as you'll ever see. Maybe 30-40 pounds soon was at the transom and let go. Thjat kinda bugged me. I had laid out a bait ment for a pig and the little brat got it first...
I figured it was gonna be a busy day but it stayed quiet for quite a while. We moved a few miles setting up on the "b" spot and it wasn't long before things improved. A good steady pick was to be had and when it was done we had tallied four more releases, a couple duskies, the the "last" fish.
As it was floppinbg around out there I noticed a mark on it... Is it? Yep it is... Got the fish on the leader. Time was up for the day. There had been so many fish reported I didn't feel we were in the running for a release trophy and we were pig hunting anyway.
I went for the tag. The fish went for me. He won that one...
Doinking the Deep never has a good ending for the doinker. Add a hungry crew, a gut hooking and needing to get that tag and in keeping with tradition it got a top sider shampoo on the deck.
Day two started hot with two more out of the gate... Then went dead. We saw or played with no more...
Nexy shot is in a couple days with JCSA then Mako Mania...
I hope to see you there...
Decided to shake the dust off Deep Deckhand and Eric W and slid off into the north waters on a little "splorin" run... LAte start is nice and about 10:00 arrival at the spot with the help of Erics rocket. That boat is a freak of nature with the speed she likes to run.
I laid it on what promised to be a great drift and a few minutes later we bested a mako... Not gonna say what size or where cause I don't want a lot of company come this weekend.
We continued on and a brutally strong fish. Was thinking whip tail but was shocked to see a blue shark and not even all that big of one ... Oh well. A short time later we had a slob of a blue that didn't fight near as hard as the smaller one.
I went to reset the drift but the wind flopped and the tide turned... Good structure but only a bluefish or two. The wind picked up against tide giving us an ugly slide and two more drifts with only blues sent us packing for the beach through a couple thunderstorms.
All in all a great day. Mako and blue cherry popped for Eric and another blue cherry for his dad...
Since my last report its been an all out marathon of fishing and a little frustration tossed in. Went and did a half can exploratory and picked a single... Off to the JCSA Capts meeting. Alrready confusion...
Forgot which crew I was fishing with. There were three boats within two block of each other that I fished last year and couldn't remember who was who. Finally met up with the right crew and stuck around to see if we won the 50/50... No such luck.
Late getting to the boat later getting to bed. The boys were enjoying some good conversation and a drink or two into the late late. Froze my cahones off as I tried to sleep. Seemed like I blinked and it was time to hit the briny.
I knew the rats were south and had been seeing rats to my north too so I went to my old standby stomping grounds. Laid up in gorgeous but too warm water. We tried four drifts but dusky and rats were the words for the day including a brute dusky that fought like a thresher at the end of the day... So much for JCSA...
It was good to get on Cammys Dad again. SHe has issues. The owner hit something late last season and tor a shaft and wheel off. The repleacement three bladersgave up about four knots and a blown up genset would mean no microwave for the historicly great food that joins us for this event each year.
I had sent Deep Deckhand fishing with the owner of the contender I run as I couldn't be both places at once and they scored five nice makos where I sent them. So that would be where we would head.
Arrived to perfect condition and fifteen minutes later we had a moderately good fish. I had six voices over my shoulder telling me to kill it. It was no winner and I didn't want to. The arguements started and ran all day. I'll elaborate in a bit. Colin and I did our ledgendary third gill kill and it was back to fishing. We had a slob bait get drilled but the fish was no bigger than the first. We let that one go with no discussion.
Now back to the arguement. Somebody is misinformed. Me or the tournament comittee... Seems that they announced that it is a two fish limit per day?????? Said directly that it was from NMFS?????? First I have heard of that. I know jersey has a two fish limit for fish taken in state waters but thought fed was one fish and that it superceedes any sate law. Since makos are taken outside the state waters I would think fed one fish rule is in place . The tourney committee said different several times over the radio that its two...
We then had a tripple of little rats gather at the chum bucket. We caught and let go two of them in quick order...
PETA? GREENPEACE? Humane Society?
Then began the most bizarre thing I have seen sharking.
I had heard chatter of an express boat with blue balloon floats on their rods running through and setting in peoples slicks and causing quite a scene. We had just reset when here came that very same crazy bunny hugger piece of shit. I barked at him on the radio. He turned up our slick aiming directly at our midships. I took that as an act of aggression and took clear and careful aim. I announced my intention to unload one round off his bow and the next would be through the eisenglass. The dumb pick started zig zagging at us closer and closer. I came off the helm and was ready to unload. I guess he realized I wan't kidding and could probably see the bore of my weapon when he took off.
The boats name is the "MS. Kinnison" from Montvale, NJ. If anybody knows where it docks please let me know. I think there is a reward for that info from others as well as my self.
BAD SALESMANSHIP
Got back to the dock wore out from rats. The marina we were at had no cleaning table. We had to use Hoffmans next door at the suggestion of Rob B who I fish with now and then. I had finished dicing up our fish and was back at the Dad when about three hundred pounds of angry man unloads on me .. Who told you you could use that table? I told him and he started asking if I knew somebody else. No... He got all in a huff. "I didn't see you buy any fuel from me today." We hadn't fueled yet. "That table's off limits to you..."
I understand the guy is new but if he had taken the time to find out who I was I think he would realize that I have probably run over 100,000 gallons of his fuel through variious tanks through the years... So in response to his kindness I took on 220 delicious pricey gallons elsewhere...
Today got set up... Perfect conditions but the fish werent there. Six drifts covered the entire area before we found two ginormous bluedogs close to fifteen feet long each... That was that.
So to date I'm sixteen makos, six blues and four duskies into the season without a good one yet. I should have retired from sharkin two years ago...
Gonna have a bag of white castles and answer some pm's now...
Those really close to me know that I really don't like eating fish. Gotta get creative in ways to make it palatable to get it past my lips.
Enter Mr. Mako... I don't count them as fish. Its a sea food variety all on its own. Clams aint scallops, crabs aint lobster and fish just aint mako... With this in mind reemember I said I got to get creative to make fish edible? Well with this top shelf treat from the deep I find simple is a whole lot better...
The ingredients are simple but need to match in quality to your main dish. You wouldn't wreck a good fillet mignon with dollar store ketchup would ya?
I start with an onion. Not any ol onion but a genuine vidalia onion. These can be found at the onion stand at exit 37 in Georgia. If they aren't from there they probably aint vidalia... The next ingredient is a green pepper from Florida harvested after a touch of dry weather... The soil at Catsle Deep happens to produce some of the most suitable quality. If however you dont have Castle Deep near by a good farm stall should work. For grins, a smattering of jersey grown cherry tomatos adds a nice touch. Finally we go with fresh caught Jersey Mako. You want to harvest your own in water of 63-68 degrees and a color of a mostly blue green. Dice the mako into 1 1/2 inch cubes.
Get some kabob skewers... Then lay pepper with wet side toward mako which is capped with onion wet side again toward meat. You can toss a couple tomatos in there for color.
Cook on medium grill til vegetables start to brown or onions start to get clear..
You will want to serve this on a bed of rice. But first add the secret ingredient. Lets bring it to gourmet status. Make Chef Ramsey proud... Bust out the Bernaise sauce...
SMother liberally in the sauce and tell your clogging arteries to give it a rest cause the mako will off set the cholesterol in the sauce with ldl vs hdl...
Insert fork, bring to lips, enjoy the pleasant fragrance, feel the tatste burst in your mouth. And tell the next guy who give you or me crap about killing a mako that until he tries it like this he will never understand...
08 shark season closes out...
Well it was an interesting one... Finished her off with a run through the mud hole that left no stone unturned. Ba had yellow water. That continued to the Arundo and Oik Wreck areas. No fish on the wrecks them selves. In fact we tried bottom baits in every place withonly one nibble the whole day. Lillian and Slew had dirty green. Monster ledge was lime green. Mud Hole proper was dark dirty green. Glory was clean dark green and chicken was a sewer.
We dragged a blue shark and a couple blues out of the glory and we did have "the bite of death". One fish hammered a whole blue on the big stick and began the slowest most boring but deliberate run I dealt with this season at 26 ponds of drag! (over the strike button) . Back hook pulled and what appeared to be mako tooth marks of the way big kind were left in the bluefish head...
In all we caught a mountain of fish this season. Not one work getting excited about but a load. I got to see 21 makos for the season along with eight blue sharks and four dukies. The sudden warm up I think is what had us screwed out of the bigguns but still a load of action. I want to thank all who I had the pleasure of fishing with. No greater group of guys could be assembled. Look forward to next year already...
Its been a fishathon since I got here... Within an hour of unloading the rolling tackle box I was rigged out and at the task of loading up on fishing. First after noon I was throwing metal then plastic for blues but they just weren't there...I switched to rubber and slowed the retrieve... I got a fish, a first on rubber for me... A dogfish...
I tried the bridges for bass but itwas a pick of blues.
I workedat it early yesterday for bait species... Loaded up with shrimp, killies, spearing, bunker, etc... Did a river fish and poked a couple sea robins with a couple smallish fluke for good measure...
Turned up the heat last night starting on the beach. A steady stream of blues, skates, dogfish, and sea robins was interrupted by something that half spooled a 20 lb spin outfit. I switched to the bridges...
Out of the gate it was blues and more blues. Fine by me cause most were the right size for sharking...A few robins broke up the monotony then it was game on with a slob bass... Before I could get him to the gaff range though the hook pulled. Kind of... I looked and the hook had been inverted in the bait so I guess the pigh was just holding on to the bunker head rather than actually being hooked... Fished it til about 2AM...
Today was six hours of fluke drifting. Had fish going both ways on the tide. Oodles of em but the new 18 inch min kept keepers to a couple . lot of 17.5" though. I think size limits should be out lawed. I feel like a scumbag letting go a good fluke that I just ripped the guts out of but if I keep it I'm a criminal.
Added a few blues to the mix and then went and checkedmy crab traps. 3966 miles east south east of dutch harbor capt Deep was on the crab with two dozen keepers on his string. The berring sea has nothing oon the straits of the Navesink River...
Back at it
Shrewsbury or Navesink your choice... Not on fire but a good steady pick of blues, fluke, and evena couple bass around...
The usual hotspots have been producing but some moving around has been required to stay on the flukes...
I came up with a trick for slightly better quality fluke. ... Good ol florida shrimp tipping jig heads has been working very well if not better than the ol standbys. Clams have been quiet with better results being had on bunker chunks.
The beaches have been a good pick of mixed junk with skates, robins and dogfish filling in the action between the more desirable species...
For the last week I have been scraping and scrounging trying to get bluefish for bait. I have been all over the north part of the state hitting bridges, beaches, rivers, side streets... I have managed a couple dozen blues between the zillion or so sea robins and other critters along the way.
Tonight I quit and got a bite to eat. Went back to the beach tired and beaten to wolf down a half a sub. Bunkers were pushing in. Right near dark. Last night was a quick bass and a blue for me so I reloaded. Just out of reach the school erupted. I was thinking bass or blues but the hole in the water was too big. Then I saw the tell tale tail... Not a slob but definately a thresher. Just about as far as one could sling a 3 ounce pencil popper off the beach... He was most certainly getting it. Man they can turn quick!
Might be an idea my next night off to sling a small blue out there or better yet get some bodt with a yak to drop some on appropriate gear a good way out...
Mike Rowe can kiss my scuppers... Opelios are for pussies... Kings are for cupcakes... 3661miles east south east of dutch harbor lies another crabbing comminity... Dooshberry borough located on the hazardous Bering Bay some called once by natives Navesink River!
Here we find manly men seeing "blue claw gold"...Fortunes waiting to be made but the price can be heavy. Every year the Bering Bay claims dozens of owies by those who for a moment lost concentration long enough to get a nasty blue claw pinch!
Awaiting the harbormaster ok to go... The Dooshberry Duranautic sits in her berth...
On her decks she will be ladend down with monsterous pots. Each weighing four or five pounds these potential bone crushers are the working mans tools...
As the crew provisions for the brutal long trips that can last sometimes in excess of two hours. We take a look at more tools of the trade... While this may be the grapple type tossed by so many of the guys you see on "the other crab show"...
On the Bering Bay the manly mans use a more manly snag hook... Shown here by Sag Deep Deckhand...
A greuling 12 minute run to the crab grounds wasn't without perils. While ice and rogue waves are problems in the other place. Here they have Sea Rays that throw really big wakes... A check of the gps has them on their gear. THe hydraulics strain under the weight of the first pot of the string...
"Sag" signals to the wheel house the crab count of the first pot...
Then shows off the "blue claw gold" before joining the others in the hold...
Back at the processing plant the "shedder tank" is readied to receive the contents of the hold of the Dooshberry Duranautic.
...............................Crab Count..............................
Cornelia Marie 186,000
Northwestern 137,500
Maverick 89,000
North American 36,000
Early Dawn 31,000
Dooshberry Duranautic 46
Despite a steady rain early the owner of the Contender I have been running in tournaments this year was eager to go. Deep DeckHand and our bot detailer Anthony were aboard also... Some people go fluking just to go fluking. The Boss man though is possibly the only man I know as competitive if not more than I and this would be no joy ride... Oh noooooo! This was to be the first official Fluke Off aboard the new Contender we keep up here, "Fraid Knot"... Rules were set and the gloves came off... Bust out the body armour it was all out war.
The owner came hot out of the gate with the first keeper. I got into a slight early rut catching a kingfish and a few robins before the cadence kicked in on the flat ones. Dissatisfied with the first few drift locals we went for broke and made the rubn to some ranges... The rods got to workin and there was no love for fluke or man as we went at it...
Drift conditions varried and it was a chore keeping up with them but it all worked pretty good. Finally it was time to call it quits. I edged Deep Deckhand by one fish but really it was anybody's game til the end. Roughly eighty fish with eight keepers, a sea bass and a kingfish was the tally...
Great time for all aboard in preparation for the real fluke tourney upcomming...
DAY TWO:
Deep Deckhand didn't join us today. Somebody got drunk in the alley near his jewelry shop and busted a window that needed tending to...
Withoutr him aboard I was able to go to my really sneaky drift spot. I teach him everything he knows not everything I know... Man! The spot was on fire... Charlie and Anthony were on their games and the brutal pace never let up from lines in to go home time. Yesterday almost all the fish were 17 1/2" with eight keepers for about eighty fish/ Today the size range was all over the place. Most right at 17 " a few 15-16 and a hand full of postage stamps. Did get ten good keepin class fish though out of the roughly 180 fish we caught in this number smack down.
Todays tourny was limited to biggest fish which I only narrowly nudged past Charlie... I think he had the most by a couple. Anthony was right in the thick of it keeping pace . I had 62 or 63 fish. Anthony probably close to the same and I'm pretty sure Charlie had a few extras cause of doubles on his hi lo rig. Three wins in the bucket for me but only squeakers. These guys kept me on my toes. The company couldn't get better and although not the glitz and glamour of the big game its been a ball!
The new contender is a sweet little rig with big boat handling that really caught me off guard. Her happy place is 32 knots at 4300 rpm and is sipping 15.7 per hour for roughly 2 mpg...
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Said directly that it was from NMFS?????? First I have heard of that. I know jersey has a two fish limit for fish taken in state waters but thought fed was one fish and that it superceedes any sate law. Since makos are taken outside the state waters I would think fed one fish rule is in place
A check of the gps has them on their gear. THe hydraulics strain under the weight of the first pot of the string...