Posted on August 25th, 2022
Check out our tour of Atlantic Tackle in West Ocean City!
With 156 boats fishing day 4 of the MidAtlantic Tournament today we had a feeling that it was going to be another busy day of scales action. What we didn’t know was that we would be seeing several more blue marlin over 400 pounds. We also saw a new leader in the category at 619 pounds and a new leader in the tuna category at 210. It’s been an exciting week of fishing so far….here’s who leads after four days of fishing.
White Marlin
1st Place Catch 23 73 Lbs
2nd Place Max Bet 65 Lbs
Blue Marlin
1st Place Lucky 7 619 Lbs
2nd Place Kilo Charlie 607 Lbs
3rd Place No Quarter 539 Lbs
Tuna
1st Place Lucky Duck 210 Lbs
2nd Place The Right Place 193 Lbs
3rd Place The Right Place 152
Dolphin
1st Place Valentine 43 Lbs
2nd Place Lovin’ Life 39 Lbs
3rd Place Buddy Rowe 31 Lbs
Wahoo
1st Place Caitlin. 43 Lbs
2nd Place Reel Joy 29 Lbs
3rd Place Caitlin 28 Lbs
Outside of the tournament inshore mahi fishing continues to impress as folks are catching plenty of “peanut” sized fish from 3 to 10 pounds. The Ocean City Girl got in on the action today.
Captain Victor Bunting on board the Ocean Princess has had some good fishing lately and today was no different with sea bass and some flounder on board.
Captain Chris Mizurak of the Angler reported a slower day than usual today, but he was still able to get some fillets for most of his clients.
Adam Lehr landed this “chopper” bluefish at the route 50 bridge this afternoon.
Luke Pitarra caugh these nice 17″ and 20″ keeper flounder fishing over ocean structure with his dad Mike.
Captain Monty Hawkins of the Morning Star had a good day of fishing today that included a flounder over 8 pounds.
Sure have been fortunate with tropical systems this summer. Today was just another beautiful day on the rip. Pleasant air temperature, calm seas, a great crowd with many long time regulars – it’s why I do what I do.
My friend and, honest injun, concert pianist Professor Yulia Gorenman (YouTube search and enjoy!) plus slayer of untold fish and destroyer of any masculine notion of angling superiority, Miss Holly; the ladies did the deed on today’s reef units. The deployment was atop Tyler Long’s Memorial Reef where, one day I promise, Capt Kane & Capt DJ’s sons will double anchor their clients for some fine tog fishing.
Or maybe not. Maybe by then it’ll all be spot-lock fishing with GPS guided systems and no anchors. Still, it’s going to be a really toggy place. Someone’s going to be getting mugged* on the rail in a big way. (*mugged – when someone sees you get so much as a nudge and drops right next to you. Believe me, some have mugging down to an art.)
And, wherever tog call home, of course, our other temperate species will too.
Fishing began in a train wreck of sorts. I couldn’t buy my clients a bite at first. I’d mark cbass along bottom – none or precious few would bite. We’d all see mahi swimming around with nothing but contempt for our offerings.
Darn!
Finally a skilled young angler, Tommy, caught a mahi and broke the spell — everything seemed to start biting.
Whatever works!
Hurricane Murray, I’m sorry to report, left his mojo at a restaurant last night – or at ballet class, he can’t figure. Holly, fishing Murray’s right side saw no issue with outfishing him 3 to 1 on keeper sea bass. She served him up a fine bit of snack-down for being high hook on fluke yesterday.
Kenny and friends come down from the Long Island area every year. They taught all aboard how to catch big fluke where there ain’t none. It’s about a near miracle to watch – Kenny especially. He caught an 8.25 lb fluke today which I’m sure is our largest of the year.
Though we once had it too, even into the early 1950s; north of DE Bay they have a better recollection of the winter flounder fishery. What most anglers below DE Bay call flounder are actually summer flounder in the book – they’ve always just been ‘flounder’ to us. To distinguish between trips up north a ‘flounder’ trip up there targets winter flounder – they use ‘fluke’ for summer flounder – eg “I’m going fluking.”
If you asked Kenny if he’d been flounder fishing today he’d probably look at you funny: “Haven’t caught em in years and never this time of year. Had some nice fluke today though.”
Ask the guy next to him? “That guy was killing the flounder!”
My friend Yulia and her son Misha, despite throwback fluke and sea bass galore, found themselves with a good dinner’s worth of sea bass, I hope. She’s spoiled though – spoiled bad. Misha has just returned from commercial salmon fishing in Alaska and made dern sure Mom was stocked up!
Steaming for home now. Ocean’s just as calm as it could be. Wonderful day to be at sea.
Ohh, be derned if Murray, our very own Prince of Portliness, didn’t rope a really nice sea bass at day’s end. Sandbagged again; Holly still outfished him bad. It’s just that he won the pool second day straight!
Dagoned Covid.. I just lost a big party for Saturday’s 6:30 to 4:30 @ 175$ trip..
I would never have dreamed we’d have fishing like this in August during the 1980s. Boy I hated August back then. Would have cheerfully removed the entire month from the calendar.
Now it’s a fine month of fishing..
See “Fish Report” at morningstarfishing.com if you’d like to join some old regulars & book one of these 6 suddenly-open Saturday seats along my starboard rail. Anna’s Reservation line is 443-235-5577
Email & FB to me will only goof it up for you. I can sometimes catch folks a fish – reservations and other office work? Oyyyy….
Tomorrow’s another day.. We’ll see what’s in store.
