04.22.14 REALLY?? Not a bite....c'mon.....

 

     I know fishing isn't all about catching....but c'mon....not even a bite! Took my favorite "client" out yesterday on her day off from school for some fishing. When a kid tells their dad, " Dad, I want to go fishing.", that's a sure drop what your doing and get going message. 

                               

     After "making bait" we headed down to Deal Lake and soaked some worms and threw a spinner for a few hours. We didn't get a tap. I kept telling Erin this was a good spot as I have seen countless fish come over the rail as pass by in my truck. Well, she didn't believe me for a minute. 

Some guide I am....couldn't even put my daughter on a fish.

    We had fun besides the lack of a bite. But there should be an unwritten rule that when a parent takes a kid fishing at least a bite should be in order. Now, I have always been against the movement that, everyone wins, everyone gets a trophy, because thats not really how the world goes. That said, I'll bend my "rules" a bit when it comes to kids and fishing. Yes, we don't always catch fish when we go, but it sure would have a cake topper to catch...even a sunny! 

I hope she calls me for another trip.....

04.21.14 Quick early in the back and then out front.....

     It's about this time that striped bass start to show in the back of the rivers and start to chase bait and eat. Hit it this morning looking for any signs of life back there but I couldn't find any. Started out with fly rod in hand doing more watching then casting. A few dozen casts didn't produce a bite so I moved out front.

     Things are surely off a week or so but you'll never really know if you don't go and either scout or fish. One thing I noticed the last two days is the amount of sand that is around at low water. I have to attribute this to the beach replenishment projects that have occurred south of here. No doubt that sand is moving with the current to the north. There are more sand bars then I have seen in years, Usually, even on low water, there are spots that hold water and current but they are less and less.

     I'm not looking for a bass to bite to prove that, but I see a noticeable change out there. I will have adjust my fishing closer to the flood tides in order to find fishy water.

04.20.14 HAPPY EASTER.....

     Beautiful Easter sunrise this morning and I forgot my camera so I had to iPhone it. Was hoping the Easter Bunny might come through with the first striped bass of the season but not today. Fished from dead low to an hour or two on the flood tide. Water looked great and had birds out and about picking. Found some half eaten bigger bait on the beach which is a good sign as things heat up.

                                     

     As much as I hate to I checked the reports from various websites and see that the boat guys are doing well on the bass already. Clamming, chunking, and trolling has started to produce fish upwards of twenty pounds. Looking online is a double edged sword, at least for me, you like to be connected as to whats going on, but a lot of it is dead fish pic after dead fish pic. I hate to be a striper-tree-hugger, but I do hate to see it when these pre-spawn bass, males and females, are harvested. It's a tough business to be in with my perspective. So, I either need to get a tougher skin or stop looking through the reports forums and just worry about myself and the water where I am fishing at that moment.

Have a great Easter Sunday with you and yours!

04.18.14 Okay.....we all know you can drink beer when you fly fish......who cares.......

      So let me preface this rant by saying I do like to drink a beer. For me it's Coors Light usually with some apps while hitting Happy Hour at one of my favorite local haunts here in Asbury Park called FISH. There are plenty of other times when people enjoy the taste of a cold one, working around the house, at a ball game, at a party, hey, even while fishing, and yes even while fly fishing. 

     There used to be a stereotype of fly fishing anglers. They were stuck up.....they smoked the finest cigars, they drank the best cognac, they wore creels and used bamboo rods, and they only dry fly fished. That image may not have appealed to everyone and to some it may have been "standoffish" or elitist. Well, times have changed. 

     Yes, after the River Runs Through It, there was a spike in fly fishing. Younger anglers were attracted to the sport and that lasted for about a decade.....and then things slowed. What was left was the original fly fishers......

     Over the years with the changes in the fly fishing industry and advances in technology and marketing we have seen that image of the fly angler change. It's not just 12 inch trout that are the norm anymore. Big fish, exotic fish, pretty fish, ugly fish.....every type of sport and garbage fish that could be caught has been done so on the fly. That, maybe, has led to a little blip of a spike in the market and interest in fly fishing.

    Videos and the internet and the ease of photography with iPhones, GoPros, and point and shoot cameras has given us all the ability to share experiences and catches.....which, has led to a little spike in the fly fishing industry. On the same topic, the internet has also killed the local fly shop, reduced most peoples need for guides and books and info, since they can research it all for free and do it yourself. 

     One thing I have noticed is how the larger fly fishing companies have "changed", not always in a good way, to get a piece of whatever market share is left. Now change is not always bad, but, I am kind of resistant to change, so I may be a little biased. 

     I have seen the logos change, I have seen designs in clothing and gear change, I have seen the imagery in the catalogues change, I have seen warranties change, I have seen pro and guide programs change....all reflecting what fly fishing is "now". And, I don't like it a bit. 

     A few years ago the "hero" shot was the shit. Cameras with funky lens angles, with the help of a person making the image, could distort the smallest of fish to make it look like a monster. What you would see is a Beetlejuice sized angler head with Herman Munster sized hands....but hey...it was the rage. It became about big fish and a lot of fish. We saw it in the magazines, on the internet, and in the brochures. 

    Now I notice.....I hope your not in a 12-step program.....that fly fishing and beer drinking.....specifically PBR's (Pabst Blue Ribbon).....are synonymous. I have seen them ad nauseam in  the multitude of fly fishing videos making their way onto the internet and on the film tours. Okay, so you drink beer and you fly fish.......okay.......cool. Why is that annoying to me......because I never see a bottle of water, a protein shake, a soda, or a carton of milk. It's always a PBR, or more fairly, some other type of beer from a smaller local brewery. 

It is too fake, too staged, too product and message placed for me.......

    In the latest catalogue I received just the other day two fly anglers were sitting in chairs enjoying a cold one after a long days fishing, or really a catalogue photo shoot. I couldn't help but notice that in both of their hands was, of course, some PBR's. What struck was that each label was turned in exactly the same angle towards the camera......and that's when I knew that in the heaven's of fly fishing marketing department.....were shaking their heads because we have jumped the shark. 

I suspect now, with the legalization of marijuana in some states, that fly videos and catalogues, will soon be showing images of guides and clients, or a circle of friends around a campfire, or two sports enjoying a shore lunch, passing a joint between them enjoying what has become part what fly fishing 

manufacturers and companies want you to see, and become a part of. 

    Please folks, I am okay with my grandfathers company, I am okay with fly fishing, and I am okay with enjoying a beer while you do it....but please stop making me think that having a beer in one hand and a big fish in the other is what this sport has become and is about, I beg to differ.

04.17.14 NE AT 20-25 this morning and an update on the Jetty Country talks......

     Nice conditions out front today although it was a tad chilly with the NE blowing at 20-25. The water cleaned up nicely from the last few days south wind but the water remains around 42 degrees. Fished the mid flood tide on mostly the south side.....again without a tap......but one morning I will be happy to report that I got a tap, or maybe even a fish.

     Yesterday Frank Pallone held a meeting in his office with members of the ACOE, Joe Pallotto from the Asbury Park Fishing Club, Paul Haertel from the JCAA and few other parties. I saw some reports on how the meeting went posted by Haertel. He states the ACOE of engineers listened to the points made against beach replenishment and groin notching from Loch Arbor to Asbury Park, but, it is the towns that are requesting the work to go forward. There was talk of reducing the groin notching from 6 to 3, which, in my opinion, would mean Whitehall, Roseld, and Allenhurst would be the targets, and maybe throw Marine Place in there. There was also discussion about access in that area and there is talk of creating two additional locations.

     No matter what happens, this will be the last spring and summer to fish Jetty Country as we know it, as construction is scheduled to begin in the fall.

     On April 23rd the RFA is holding a striped bass public forum with Russ Allen from the NJDEP at the Holiday Inn on Rout 72 in Manahawkin. Now, although this will be a great event for anglers, both recreational and for hire captains and guides, to hear the NJ position on striped bass management and the ASMFC findings and status, know, that is being held in the center of a political and lobbyist based milieu. There will be a deep divide between those that want to catch and keep striped bass and those that are for conservation and protecting the striped bass while still enjoying the sport of fishing.

Should be an interesting night.

04.16.14 PHEW!!!!.....that's over with...now it's time to fish.....

     Well, after a long 8 month process of applying to and visiting colleges both far and near my oldest son Ryan.....drum roll.....decided on Rowan University! I am happy with his decision and proud of  him at the same time. In the end we were between NJIT, TCNJ, Rutgers and Rowan. Our trip down there today and time well spent with members of the math department was well spent. Ryan is majoring in math, well pure math, and this school seemed to meet his needs.

     Now, that said, it has been a long time coming for me as well. Time in the car, time at the schools, time spent talking with Ryan, and an untold number of hours online looking at everything from college and student reviews to rankings about education, crime, and yes, parties.

I am now ready to close that chapter, and get to taking people out fishing.....looks like the timing was pretty good as we are about to see the "true" spring start. Outside of todays snow, the temps in the air and the water should start to rise and the little and big fish should start moving, showing up, and eating in the fresh and salt waters!

04.16.14 Greeted with frost and a light coating of frozen snow this morning.......

                                

     Missed first light because my windshield wipers were welded to my windshield this morning. Temperature drop and some flurries overnight just a few days of temps in the 70's......

     I can't wait to stop posting sunrise pics and weather reports and replace them with client pics from the Upper Delaware and the Jersey Shore......I keep telling myself it's coming.....soon!

04.15.14 Out for a bit early...and the PA, well all three border states, Delaware River regs are a joke......

     Got out at first light on the end of the incoming with a S wind at 15-20 and a light rain. Passed on fishing the back last night so I stayed with my plan of fishing out front this morning. Worked a groin from the beach to about 3/4 of the way out without a tap. I've heard of, seen, and read of some sporadic catches up and down the Jersey Shores bays and rivers, and yesterday a local report of shorts out front on lures.

     Yesterday I received my Pennsylvania guide license in the mail. With it comes the digest with all the fishing size limits and regulations. During the early spring anglers flock to the Delaware River hoping to catch the striped bass on their way up to spawn. New Jersey has a closed season until March 1st, and then thereafter it's 2 fish a day at 28" and then one more with the idiotic Bonus Tag Program. For 2 bucks you can take another breeding female.

Pennsylvania regs

     Now Pennsylvania, and Delaware, just across the river from New Jersey , has a different set of rules. PA has no closed season and from April 1- May 31 they have a slot limit....two striped bass from 20-26 inches......really guys???? Are you kidding me. So if you want a big fish come over one of the bridges and set up for a cow bass.....and then head back over to Pennsy for some chicken finger size fillets for dinner from a 20" bass.

Striped Bass

28”, except only 20-26" fish may be retained from July 1 - Aug. 31 in DE River, DE Bay & their tribs.

Open Year Round

2, except catch & release on spawning grounds April 1 - May 31 (see Fishing Guide page 18)

                                                                    Delaware regs

Striped Bass & Hybrids (upstream of Calhoun St. Bridge)	March 1–Dec. 31	28 inches	2
Striped Bass & Hybrids*** (downstream of Calhoun St. Bridge)	March 1–30	28 inches	2
	June 1–Dec. 31

                           New Jersey regs

     It's time the fisheries management folks and the states get together and have one uniform set of regulations for the Delaware. It is an important river for spawning striped bass, and all kinds of factors have to line up for it to be a good years spawn in the river. I am out on the slot fish regs.......

     This past weekend was the Delaware River Striper Tournament......the winners of the slot category weighed in two slot fish 5.58 pounds 23.5 at inches and 3.02 pounds 20.25 at inches. They also had a "Calcutta" category, ie: big female fish....10 fish were weighed in and the winner was 39-1/2 inches......now no doubt those fish had to be caught on the Jersey side. Several participants were cited for violations......which if you think of it.....three states with three different regulations.....no wonder.

     Folks who run tournaments, and several like the DRST do it as a fundraiser for good causes, have to consider setting their own standards when it comes to size limits and categories.....some years these tournaments, both in the rivers and the ocean, promote catch and kill, there's no catch and release categories, for the purpose of the weigh in and prizes, again while raising money for a good cause.

    I have to commend the Berkely Striper Club for organizing and promoting a catch and release tournament when the bigger fish are around. It is something we should all support and embrace before it is too late.

04.13.14 Almost fell asleep between the warm breeze and the sound of moving water....

     I found a perfect cradle in between some rocks and watched at least 30 rods not move during the few hours I was there. Well, the only time they moved was when an angler reeled it in to check on their clam or worm. I was so relaxed I caught myself nodding off a few times.
    I did eventually get up and and fished the end of the incoming and start of the outgoing. One other spin guy who alternated between a small swimmer and rubber covered the same area with the same results I found...not a tap. Seems like the recent earlier week catches were a bunch of fish that most likely have made their way up the Hudson.....some of those fish were over 20 pounds.

With the warmer temperatures staying around it should bode well for the water temps, if we can get that south wind to turn around.

04.12.14 Nice night for a few casts, and a bonfire...

     Joined some clam and worm soakers out tonight on the outgoing tide. Luckily the nice night made up for a lack of a bite. It was fun wading out in the flats in the dark waiting for a bite on every cast that never came. It's all part of the game...."Shouldda been here last night"

04.12.14 No more tossing and turning....when I'm up now I'm out the door....

                              

     Tossed and turned for about five minutes before deciding it was just time to go. Time is better spent early spring fly fishing for stripers than sleeping, no matter what time it is. Today my son and his mom are hitting our last college acceptance day visit at Rutgers-Camden so I had a few hours before we head out at 730. Beautiful night with a NW wind at 5-10 and air temps near 60. Had the moon up so it would have been easy to spot any bait or bass around making any kind of disturbance on the water. Worked a small black Montauk Monster around for a while alternating swimming it with a wake and

                                     

subsurface. I should have soaked it in clam or bloodworm juice. I wasn't discouraged because although there has been a good bay bite on bait, I don't know if the bass have made there way to the rivers yet, and they aren't looking up just yet. As always you'll never know if you don't go, and if you wait for the reports there's a chance you would have already missed any bite happening that day.

     On a side note......lots of private and charter boats are making their way out this weekend for their first shot at the bass......I feel sorry for those fish. The water temps have spiked are in the 50s and 60's, it happened almost overnight. Most boats will be anchored up chumming and clamming and putting a beating on the fish on the same numbers everyday. For a few weeks the bass have been making their way into the bay staging and rooting around for food as they await the arrival of the river herring and bunker before making their way up the Hudson to spawn. Also, down south steady reports of the Delaware strain are being caught on their way up to spawn. I wish there was some better fish management this time of the year, maybe reducing the number of fish that can be harvested with a cap of fish no bigger than 32" allowed, just for the early spring. We can have different size limits and bag numbers for different times of the year.

SO HERE'S A WARNING....if you don't like seeing tons of pictures of big dead pre spawn bass then stay off the internet till Tuesday.

04.11.14 Usually only takes the first trip up to get really psyched for the Delaware.....

     Felt good to make the trip up to Roscoe to get my drift boat and bring it home before the season. Maybe some bottom paint, or new carpets or rubber mats, maybe some wax for the outside. I love pulling off of Route 17 and getting met with the 'Highest Quality" live bait sign at the Sunoco.....I wonder if that means they sell live minnows? 

     I stopped on the Beaverkill side of Junction Pool and found a few anglers out nymphing and spinning there way around. Water looked good although a little high from all the snow melt and runoff. Better a little too much water around this early on than not enough. Before I hit the house I drove over the mountain to check on a few fellow guides that were setting up camp, well house, before the season. It was good to see some familiar faces after a long winters hibernation. 

     All went well, except a few things, there was far more water inside my boat than I had hoped for, and, shortly getting on Route 17 my truck started to make a weird hissing/leak/vacuum sound and didn't seem to have much power. I'm no mechanic, but something was up. Luckily for me it was bumper to bumper slow and steady traffic on the Thruway, 17 in Jersey, and the Parkway all the way home. 

     Found out some interesting history about my new truck this past week, that I'll share at another time....lets just say I think there's going to be a battle at the dealership during this week coming up. 

I will be up on the Delaware starting April 23rd and will be up and down on and off through the first week in June. If you are interested in a float trip on the Upper Delaware give me a call at 732.261.7291 or email mr colin@theaverageangler.com. I have some dates available but as we get closer they start to disappear. 

04.10.14 Nice night with the Spring Lake Liveliner's....

     Had a great group of anglers come out tonight at the Spring Lake Liveliner's meeting. Even though it wasn't a crew of flyrodders they enjoyed the talk. It seemed they were most interested in the parts talking about the ongoing beach nourishment and proposed 'Jetty Country" project, well disaster. That topic crosses any angler type lines as all of us are facing a new look Jersey Shore this year. It's not enough that we have to worry above the striped bass numbers alone, but the environmental impacts, the angling pressure and harvesting from the recreational and commercial sides, and strong or weak spawning year....but the impact of man pumping sand up along the Jersey Shore and destroying structure for bait and predator fish alike?

It's amazing that this species survives.........and we can find one to bite a fly.

04.10.14 Wonder where all that pumped sand goes??????

     Tonight I'll be doing a presentation at the Spring Lake Liveliners meeting in Spring Lake Heights. It starts at 730 so if you're in the area stop down. Went out to scout their "home waters" so I knew what things were looking like. While coming over the bridge I couldn't help but notice the line of sand traveling south to north outside of the Shark River Inlet. That's why Sandy Hook needs to be dredged every now and again.

This sand is coming from the beach nourishment work in Belmar currently happening at 16th Avenue. Don't think for a minute that the bass that come back year after yer to the same places won't find huge changes on the beaches this year, if they can make their way through the sand to find their foraging spot.

04.09.14 Checked out the bay and had the flats to myself.....

     Was surprised to not find a soul out on the bay today while stopping in on a couple of spots. Got there about an hour before dead low and enjoyed walking out on the bars and making casts on a beautiful day. Water felt great and the gauge in the 'Burg was showing 51 degrees.......that was a great sign. Didn't see any bait or birds interested in anything. It looked like it might be about a week out before it gets good back here and on a return trip I will try and catch a little more of the meat of a tide.

04.08.14 ASWF meeting with speaker Dan Schafer.......

     Headed south to Seaside for the ASWF meeting. The speaker was Dan Schafer from Insomniac Guide Service, HERE, who spoke about flats and sight fishing for striped bass in the summer. Captain Schafer specializes in skinny water fishing down near Stone Harbor and Avalon, New Jersey. He is dialed in to the creeks and rivers down there and poles his skiff around chasing stripers, sheepshead, tog, and redfish. 

04.08.14 Nice afternoon at high tide.....

     The way my work day played out I had a shot at getting down to the beach at high tide. Nice water, nice west wind, couldn't ask for better conditions. Worked a BTD through the white water....without a tap, but had a blast out there doing it in 65 weather.
     Might be time to start stalking the backside......might give it a go tomorrow.

04.07.14 'Let me take a selfie..."

     Nice morning out as the sun came up. I couldn't figure out at first what the burning smell and smoke in the air was from but later learned it was from a brush fire down in Wharton State Forest. Since it was low tide I made my way out to the tip of the groin and enjoyed making casts around the exposed rocks and birds that were swimming around crabbing.
     Tired of shooting sunrises, although never tired of being there for them, I propped up my camera on a rock and took a "selfie". It's always great taking pictures of other fly rodders, but today I was the only one out fishing. The smarter ones are in the back bays soaking clams and worms. As I set the the camera on self timer I wondered how long it would take to "sink" my first camera this year. I have to have a better year than last as my Canon G-12's each made their way back to Canon for repair a couple of times each.
     I feel that the season is about 10 days away and then it will be go time. Early mornings in the back of the rivers mixed in with some long day floats up on the Upper Delaware. I'm looking forward to both but have to clean up a ton of stuff beforehand. Finishing up with my sons college choice is job #1. This past weekend was TCNJ, which is a top contender, and NJIT, which just doesn't offer his exact math major. And, that just plain sucks, since they offered him $12,000 a year to go there...uurrgghhh!

04.06.14 Each morning has a different look....

     Sunrises, like fishing, are kind of like a "don't know until you go" kind of thing. If you wait, or are delayed, you will miss it. It's kind of like waiting in a movie theatre waiting for the movie to start. First there's first light, then the sun breaks the horizon, then it's up in the sky. It all goes down pretty quickly.
     As I watched light arrive I scanned the horizon looking for signs of fish life. Bunker, river herring, anything flipping or moving near the surface would have been seen easily as the water this morning was flat and the visibility clear for miles upon miles. Soon, hopefully, we'll see those signs of bait fish, followed by the blow ups caused by the bass and blues crashing the bait.

Either way it's a great way to start the day....

04.05.14 Time to get out and scout before the fish just show up one day.....

     If you are lucky enough like I am to live a good golf ball drives away from the beach then you should be out scouting your favorite salty waters. Although the winter was long and drawn out, spring has started and one day the fish will just show up.
     As the water temperatures raise and the bait, bass and blues make their annual move don't get caught off guard and not ready. If you haven't gone through your gear, get going. Start looking at the tide and moon charts and plan your strategy. Take a drive down to the beach and note the changes man and Mother Nature have and continue to make along the Jersey Shore.
     In the above pic I was down there just as the tide started to ebb. Where would you fish? Where is the water holding? Where is the structure? All of this sand that has been pumped up onto the beach has started to get pulled back into the ocean. It settles off the beach and travels with the currents in a northerly fashion. The changes in beach structure are staggering.
     The rivers and back bays have started to warm. The USGS gauges are now running above 40's, some days near 50. These areas haven't changed as drastically as things have out front, so there it's more waiting for the temperatures and fish to arrive than keeping up with all the physical changes.

Fishing is more than just wetting a line and catching a fish.....you have to start thinking like a fish. So put your time in and get down to the water and get your striped bass thinking cap on.

04.04.14 Got the boat back and it looks sweet on the new trailer.....

     Well my 1998 Jones Brothers 19'10 LT looks brand new. Had work done inside and out and it looks like its never been fished. Had the motor tuned up and all the regular preventive maintenance done. Got the prop restored and tuned up so we are ready to run.

Give me a call to book a boat trip in the next few weeks where we'll hit the rivers and bay for early bass
or later for bass out front, 732.261.7291.

04.03.14 And so it begins.....

     Yep, its that time. Spring is here. Flowers are blooming, birds are chirping, and leave blowers are humming. Thought I take this morning and make take my maiden voyage for 2014. There's been some recent catches of bass in the bays and rivers and I even saw one from out front. This time of year the anglers soaking worms or clams seem to dominate the positive fishing reports although bass will hit the plug or fly if things line up.
     The water temperatures out front are 41 and in the Raritan Bay 43, they will fluctuate a few degrees on the tides and time of day. Today was perfect, wind from the NE, lots of white water, lots of swimming birds picking crabs...it just felt fishy. I spent about an hour or so making casts with a BTD (bucktail deciever) more getting out the cobwebs and loosening up the shoulder. I've been in the gym so the shoulder is loose, just not fly casting loose at this point.
     It felt good be out and back on the rocks getting into the rhythm of casting and contemplating. Even though I went without a bite it was good to be back out there. It feels like its been such a long time since I landed a fish, that's because it has.

04.02.14 Nice way to start the day......

     Starting to feel and look like spring down on the beach.