Catching Despite the Wind

By Scott Lenox

Catching Despite the Wind

The wind was supposed to blow pretty good out of the southwest today and I’m pretty certain that it did.  The bay was guarded pretty well since it was true SW, but the ocean was a different story.  I didn’t think that I was going to get any reports from the ocean today actually……wrong.

Where in Blazes did that swell come from? Doable, but on the edge of uncomfortable, I again paddled away from the closed part of our ocean temporarily seized by guvmint and an even larger area now being pounded by sound waves as the wind area is surveyed yet again.
The swell diminished throughout the day. Nearing day’s end the swell was fine even anchored side-to (where wind and current lay
an anchored boat in the trough with swells hitting along the rail – waves broadside.)
The bite where my clients were fishing was almost spectacular. Not a jumbo hunt, but mate Vic tagged 70 and threw back about 40 more without. A old friend was aboard yesterday and today – almost skunked yesterday, steady on em today.
That works.
Great sign for toggin’s future!
Morgan Mericle took the pool again; this time with a previously ‘third fin ripped’ male (& apparently marked by a mate who couldn’t find the third & fourth spines!)
Nice day..

Some of fishing’s woes are self inflicted by overfishing, some are management inflicted, still others are wholly beyond our influence. Marine fisheries restorations are, after all, a very young effort. Sea bass weren’t under management at all until 1997..
Our sea bass (most of our sea bass, save some really old jumbos) currently inhabiting the MD WEA (MD wind energy area) and currently being affected by surveying, have never heard (felt?) subbottom profilers before.
After 3 years of surveys in the early/mid 2010s we had over 500 square miles of bottom completely evacuated by sea bass and flounder. When surveying had first begun, however, sea bass early in the period only stopped biting as a survey ship approached – they didn’t flee entirely until we were into the second year of surveys. In year one when a ship was  about 7 miles away, but coming, the bite would taper. By three miles – none would bite.
At All.
Having had their feeding interrupted hundreds of times, sea bass finally just left.
I guarantee – It’s very safe to assume a subbottom profiler stops sea bass from feeding.
What a great thing just as they enter spawning season. I’m going to film it this time..
Has to be some fisheries people who want to look at this issue.
But maybe not. Seems like every guvmint agency has its “third rail” – that issue or agency no one had better mess with.
If curious how I can assert “they won’t feed” see “Fish Report 4/25/21.”
I’m positive..
BOEM – the big guns here – say surveying has no affect whatever.
None.
They win.
For now.
Cheers
Monty

Captain Marc Spagnola of Dusk to Dawn Bowfishing had another good night last night putting his shooters on snakehead and gar under the stars.

Mikey Johsnston and the crew had a good day trolling the Thorofare for flounder putting five nice keepers in the box.  Mikey told me that one of the guys on board had some Fish in OC Dale Timmons’ Deadly Doubles so they through a chartreuse out there and caught two of the keepers and another throwback on it!

Kevin Welkner put Bud Heim on a couple of nice keeper flounder this afternoon in the Thorofare.  Bud landed his first keepers of the year at 18″ and 20 1/2″.

Big Bird Cropper and Shawn found the school sized stripers loaded up at the route 50 bridge today.  The guys were throwing spec rigs and catching fish two at a time on every cast.

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