RI Fishing ReportThe main theme this week has been the mid and upper bay has been good all the way up into the rivers. There have been solid fish in the 15-20 pound range with a few fish in the 40lb range. Most of them have been caught on big swim shads, pogie chunks or live pogies. Blue fish have finally showed up in the bay too.
Source: Rhode Island Fishing Report – May 19, 2016 – On The Water
The fish in the ocean once numbered the grains of sand in the Sahara, he said. “And there was thinking that there was nothing we could do to touch it. Yet, it turns out, the killing of the fish in the ocean was far easier than the killing of all insects on the land,” Mr. Bolster said.
Today most striped bass caught along the eastern seaboard were spawned in the Chesapeake Bay. Yet more than a century ago, striped bass spawned in many of the rivers of the eastern seaboard all the way up to Maine.
- See more at: https://vineyardgazette.com/news/2015/09/30/author-tracks-decline-fisheries#sthash.9wx2Yw8x.dpuf
Source: Author Tracks Decline of Fisheries | The Vineyard Gazette – Martha’s Vineyard News
As striped bass begin their annual to migration to the Chesapeake Bay and other spawning grounds, local fishermen can look forward to another few years of decent fishing. But a sudden drop in the number of juveniles in 2012 will eventually reverberate up the coast.
This year’s juvenile index, announced in October, was the highest since 2011 and the eighth highest on record. The average number of juveniles counted at 22 sites around the bay was 24.2, more than double the 60-year average of 11.9. The figure has increased every year since 2012.
The young-of-year index, compiled by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, has varied between around one and 60 since 1954 when the counts began. The numbers tracked the collapse of the striped bass fishery in the 1970s and 1980s and its recovery in the 1990s following a coast-wide moratorium.
Gary Nelson, fish biology program manager for the state Division of Marine Fisheries, said this week that the annual counts closely follow the pattern of catch rates in Massachusetts, although it takes four or five years for the fish to arrive in local waters.
He estimated that about 70 per cent of the local catch comes from the Chesapeake Bay, with the rest arriving from the Hudson and Delaware Rivers.
- See more at: https://vineyardgazette.com/news/2015/11/17/and-down-recovery-continues-striped-bass#sthash.zdnMZ7Jv.dpuf
Source: Up-and-Down Recovery Continues for Striped Bass | The Vineyard Gazette – Martha’s Vineyard News
Fly fishing is often perceived as a difficult and expensive sport to pursue, but it doesn’t have to be either of those things. Unfortunately, when people look into taking up saltwater fly fishing, they get a glimpse of some high gear prices and instantly drop the idea. Looking at the vast array of choices in a fly fishing catalog can be very intimidating, especially when top-of-the-line gear is promoted and can reach astronomical prices. The first time I considered saltwater fly fishing, I dismissed the idea as too complicated and expensive. However, with a little more research, I found that you don’t need to over think it when you’re just getting started. I’ve found that there are many great options that won’t bankrupt your kid’s college fund.
Read this short guide to saltwater fly fishing for beginners and you’ll be shaking with excitement at the prospect of you’re first saltwater fish on the fly in no time.
Why it’s so hard to design a fish ladder that works
No matter what type of hook you end up choosing, you can certainly help things out by crushing the barbs. If you talk to any angler who makes this their habit, he or she will be able to confirm that the bump left when the barb is squeezed up against the point still makes it pretty tough to get the hook out.
And one final question remains: How many of these small bass do you have to catch? Hey, I’ll never begrudge someone the pleasure of feeling life at the end of the line, especially after a long winter, but bragging about catching untold numbers of hungry, uneducated schoolies is a head-scratcher in my book.
With so many small striped bass all around…, I typically start thinking about catch-and-release.
Source: Catch And Release Technique Matters With So Many Schoolies Around | Columns | capenews.net
This big striper exploded on a baitfish fly just a few feet off Capt. Aron Cascone’s rod tip.All photos by Sandy HaysI spent last week on vacation on the coast of Rhode Island, sharing a big beach house with a bunch of high-school buddies and their families. It was a spectacular time, and I even got to sneak off for a day of fishing, along with one of those old friends, photographer Sandy Hays. Months earlier, Capt. Aron Cascone had invited me to check out his unique flats fishery on Ninigret Pond, a tidal estuary in Charlestown, so I decided to. . .Read More »
Source: Photos of the Day: Sight-Fishing for Stripers in Rhode Island – Orvis News
Photo Gallery: Shad on the move
Source: The Day – Shad on the move – Photo Gallery – News from southeastern Connecticut
Unmoved by the seductive entreaties of crocus blossoms, returning osprey, even the first chorus of peepers, I’m not convinced that spring is here until the herring start to run. That’s when I draw my first thoroughly hopeful breath of the season, knowing that within a month or so I’ll be fishing — the one incontrovertible
Can a fly rod really hold the secret of life? In the central Montana mountains, a paralyzed man and his wife are proving the answer just might be yes.
Source: Fly rod makers Tom Morgan, Gerri Carlson create ‘Unity with the Universe’
