It was the date I thought it was going to happen. October 21st. It wasn't going to happen for me anyway unless I fished the graveyard shift because Tuesday's are my day working in the hospital. But I thought it would happen for others. But in my mind I knew I'd be somewhere near the water at some point of the day.
When I got word that our friend's Mother had passed and we'd be heading out to Long Island I thought I might bring my gear just in case there was a break in the day. Obviously the trip was all about paying respects and being supportive to the family, but, while out there... . I had my stuff packed before we left Sunday morning for the drive east. I first had to make a pit stop to do
some last minute fixes so my parents could get the seal of approval from the fire inspector in town. They finally sold their house after 19 years. They can now enjoy their new house and their new life finally being fully retired.
Our car was packed with suits and dresses and suitcases (for our one night stay) along with waders and fly rods and a sling pack, and, a screw gun, sheetrock, spackle, and some hand tools. Added to that was some last minute swag, like "Hey, we're not taking this". So add in some tarps and housewares.
After I played Bob Vila we were off to the North Shore, not North Fork, of Long Island. Theresa had found a cute, like really cute cottage, on AirBNB that was literally in the back of someone's yard. It was like staying in a tiny house with all the stuff you needed, including a most comfortable bed, for a good night's sleep.
It was a two-parter wake on Monday with dinner in between. A lot of the action was in and around the Village of Stony Brook, which is definitely a place I could live. That whole area is very nice and not what I think of when I think of Long Island. Stony Brook was in the news last August when Mill Pond collapsed trapping thousands of fish, reptiles, and waterfowl. It was a town's all hands on response in catching and relocating the wildlife, something not always approved of by the wildlife powers that be.
The brackish pond emptied into Stony Brook Harbor and I'm sure was a natal estuary for many species of forage fish. Theresa and I stopped at the Stony Brook Marina where I looked
over the channel to Young's Island. I knew it wasn't fishing time, but, if I saw anything breaking I had my rod in hand ready to make a cast. One thing, that current rips in and out of that harbor and the spit of land known as Otto Schubert Beach.
One thing I don't know is the Long Island Sound. Several of my fishing guide friends call it home either in the waters off of the New York side or across the pond in Connecticut. Besides it's size, 1,300 square miles, with 600 miles of coastline, it is fed by several large tributaries on the Connecticut side. Overall it's 110 miles long and 21 miles wide at its widest part.
The eastern entrance, where the Block Island Sound is, is the fishing Hot Spot known as "The Race" and it's western, if you will, exit is when it joins the East River between the New York City boroughs of the Bronx, Queens, Brooklyn, and Manhattan. Montauk is the most eastern end of Long Island, with Block Island to the east when looking out and Watch Hill to the northeast. Those are both in Rhode Island. I can see where and how that triangle was historically such a good fishing spot during the bait and predator fish migrations.
So while I never made a cast I increased my local knowledge of the layout of the land out in that part of Nassau County. I've now visited the Nissequoque River and the Stony Brook Harbor, the next point east would be the waters in and around the Port Jefferson Harbor. One of these days we'll spend a few days out there with our friends and I'll make it a point to fish one of these places hard. You know how these visits go, either it's a fishing trip or it's not a fishing trip. Yesterday afternoon it took us 4-1/2 hours to get back home and a clogged highway is more of what I think about when I think of Long Island. But that's not a fair shake, there's some really beautiful parts out there.
