11.09.20 The Fly Fishing Show in Edison is postponed....

     Well big thing that helps us get through the cabin fever each year has been postponed. There will be no The Fly Fishing Show in 2021, got word today it'll be back in 2022. The closest show, Lancaster, is still on for March 6,7 , 2020.

 

11.08.20 Tom Gilmore has passed away......

 

     New Jersey guy and fly fishing author Tom Gilmore has passed away. For those that are readers, or attend the seminars at The Fly Fishing show, Tom always put on a good show and was eager to share his knowledge on techniques and spots in bot the salt and freshwater. He was probably best known for his book, False Albacore, and I remember sitting in to see at the show and as a guest speaker at the Atlantic Saltwater Flyrodders meetings. His book really covered all a beginner and novice would need to know to target "allies" from the rocks or a boat. RIP snf thank you for your contribution to our sport Tom.

11.08.20 Joe Biden wins the presidential election....

     Ok, I'm calling it. After four days of waiting, not really watching the coverage outside of election night, I believe Joe Biden has one and will be the 46th President of the United States of America in January. 

     Congratulations President Biden. I listened to his speech last night on the way home from buttoning Cape May up for the season and I have to say it was a good speech, maybe in todays climate a great speech. I did not hear Vice President elect Kamala Harris speech but I heard that was good as well. 

     What I took away from his speech was that its not that I don't like Joe Biden. And this is not the time to state why, not about him or his party, but I will say what I don't like about his party, and for both parties for that matter, are the views and behaviors of their most extreme supporters. They make me sick to watch and talk too. I was never extreme, especially when it came to politics, and remain that way today.

     One of the things that really got my goat was when a former neighbor of mine placed a number sticker on the back of his truck stating, "Not my president". Well that is just wrong. Because if you work for a living, thats your boss, and if you are in a marriage, well thats your spouse, and if you are a citizen of the USA, well then the sitting President, "IS your President".  

(Adam Schultz / Biden for President)

    I will support and hope God watches over Biden and Harris as they hopefully do their best for the country and its residents. I believe Joe Biden will be a more moderate Democratic president and may even do better with a Republican Senate than one of his own party as the shift to the hard progressive left seems to be where that party wants to head.

     More people voted in this election, for both candidates, than ever before. I do wish the elections were in person, it would reduce the skepticism of things not being on the up and up. But American citizens have spoken up and made their choice, Joe Biden is our President come January, now its time for us to get back to working and living and taking care of our family, friends, and neighbors. We can't continue to make excuses about why for everything as we point fingers at others and blame. Turn the fingers around and point at yourself, only you are in charge of your views, actions nd how you treat others.  

May God bless our new-to-be President and Vice President and these United States of America. 

   

 

 

11.06.20 "The good, the bad, and the ugly...."

    

 So this post will be broken up into three parts, the first part the good.... Left Trenton at 315 and rolled into Atlantic Highlands at 5 and soon had the boat wet with the help of my doctor, Brendan Muholland, who had his Jones already in the water ready to go. It was a beautiful morning as Leif and I headed out way in front of the rush that was occurring at the check-in gate. So the first good was the boat didn't sink, it started, and we got underway without incident. The first big question was where are the fish and where are we going to go. 

     So the next good, we found bait, birds and bass. It was nice to hold a better fish than the schoolies we have become accustomed to on the beach. It was a sand eel bite, something I thought we would see a little later in November and into December, and I had come out expecting to be looking for the peanuts and adult bunker, but those we flew past in the bay with nothing on them. So my midday we brought some nice fish to hand and released them after a picture or two, and left before the fog rolled in and had the boats locked in for a bit. 

Okay, and now the bad. So at first light we took a slow ride out through the bay with bunker flipping and nothing on them. Now today was a take a guy fishing day with a little boat test mixed in day. Since the boat made it to the tip of the Hook, I was like "Alright lets go", and we did. We followed the channel out and decided to ride the line south. We went and went and went, and then saw the birds, and some boats, and then a lot of birds. I guess I was like that bug attracted to a bug light, "Don't look into the light"...ZAP!, because soon I was in the middle of the birds and there were fish on top, here and there where we were, and slurping on the sand eels. Leif landed a nice fish on a Ugly Ass Fly, that I guess if you were drunk and maybe on mushrooms it could have looked like a sand eel, but whatever, it ate it.

      Then I received a text from a fellow Captain, "You realize your over three off right?. My heart sank, I looked around, for the 50 or so boats that were in, there was another 50 out, out and over the three mile line, and I was one of them. We quickly dropped the rods and headed in, and started to look around. While Leif made some casts I fired up the Garmin unit and found just where I was, still over the line, WTF?. So at some point I was out about 4 miles, and even after firing up we we're still over and we quickly jetted back inside. There were some fish there also, not the same sized ones, not with the bird action, and not as many blowing up on the sand eels. We stayed for a bit and then made a move, I should have done better and have known where I was......

And the ugly. So after the move inside and the slower fishing, I decided to leave fish to go find fish......oh boy.  We headed to the Raritan Bay and found some bunker all happy and flipping and then over to New York. I wanted to check out Lower New York Bay near the Statue of Liberty. As we made out way under and past the big bridge the motor hiccuped twice, thats all I had to hear. I spun her around and we started back in and that didn't last long. 

It would run, then die. Run, stop. We did this for about 20 minutes and 1500 feet. I decided to put my non-marine-mechinc skills to work.What I found was the priming ball was collapsed, and wouldn't refill with gas. The engine wasn't getting fuel. So we took turns squeezing it and running the boat.

                        

I never realized how far it is from the Verrazano Bridge to the Atlantic Highlands marina. I squeezed so many times by bicep hurt as I write this post. At times Leif took the wheel as I pumped, and then 

we would switch. Every time it died I thought for sure I was going to have to call TowBoat US in order to get back to land. Somehow we made it back, maybe Jim was blowing us home, and maybe he was just f'in with us and laughing out loud upstairs. There was a log jam at the ramp, a little hurried. We all watched as this poor guy with a brand new truck, new boat and trailer pulled out, without trimming his motor, and he dragged his keel and propeller up the cobblestone ramp.....ouch. Can't say a thing because that could have been me. 

     The other laugh Jim had, if he didnt cry, was this supersonic side scan thermal imaging contraption that ran along the motor.  Well as we made our way out front the force of the engine bend that thing over. If I can figure it out I will, and then straighten it out and put it into service again, for now its coming off for a much needed rest.

 It felt good to be on a boat again. It felt good to pull into Conte's Car Wash and give her a hot shower. It felt good to take a guy fishing and put him on the fish, and, it felt good to get paid that way again. No insurance company checks, no co-pays, just some cash in your palm for an honest days work. 

11.05.20 It's go time...

     Well two weeks after landing another dream boat and having it checked out its ready to go....I hope. Tomorrow it gets wet for m first time. Nervous, a little. Made sure my Boat US was paid up and active, went around nd double checking everything, put her on a charge before tucking her into sleep. And of course, I made sure I had the plugs, thats for you Popovics! 

     It continues to be a boat fishery this fall. Surf guys finding tons of bait along the beach but no fish on them, and if they are they're out of casting range. So hopefully tomorrow we'll get some fish, more importantly we get out and back without assistance. I took off the bow trolling motor so all my faith lies in that Yamaha 175 HPDI that hangs off the back. 

Fingers crossed!

 

11.02.20 Perfect example of a blow-out tide...and make sure your vote gets in the mail!

     Yep, up at 1, then 2 and then 3 am. I could hear the howling wind outside my windows, which are so old that they pulsate with the strong winds. But I was committed, to myself, to give it a go. I got down to the beach at 430 am. Idiot. I parked my truck into the west because that way I would have protection as I got dressed in the 35 degree air temps plus the 25 mph west wind that was cranking. There was the "Blue Moon", whats that? That's when you get two full moons within the same calendar month. 

     I could see the incoming tide was in fact a blow-out tide. Low was 130 and high 730 am, with all the light around I could see if a crab farted on the horizon, so I went to sleep at 440, woke up at 540 am. By then the place was just getting lit up, but there was no life, just Andy casting lefty to nothing.

     I made my way down a fee rock piles an could see Richie checking things out from the comfort of his truck. As I made my way back to the warmth of my vehicle, he was coming down the beach from his. 'Did you see those blow ups off %4&*&?". Nope. Okay turn around and walk about a mile following the birds that were over bunker that had bass on them. Enough blow ups and sprays to say it sucked to be a surf fisherman today. Before we left the bunker were from left to right all the way down the beach riding that outer bar, which has been extended as a lot of sand has been pulled off the beach and deposited on top of, and in front of, more sand. Somebody better call Frank Pauline quick, all these part time residents are going to get bent out of shape if they don't see 1/4 mile of sand in front of their built-into-the-sea-wall-cabanas. 

     And remember tomorrow is the deadline to vote by mail here in New Jersey. Its your civic duty, every vote counts and you can't complain about the outcome if you don't let your voice, well vote, be counted. I don't care who you vote for, don't care much for opinions, and don't want my opinion or vote changed. I respect your right to vote, respect mine. I have and will support every sitting President we have had since my adulthood, regardless if I voted for them or not. Trump, Obama, Bush, Clinton, Bush, and Reagan. Whoever wins tomorrow, well hopefully we'll know within a month, I support them, wish them well, and hope God blesses them and the United States of America.  

11.01.20 Just like the You Tube video showed...

  ...well not really. After taking off the stickers my next move was to see how easy the bottom paint would come off. Watched some videos, did some Google searches, and found the product Multi-Strip well recommended. I stopped by the Dollar General and picked up some cheap cling wrap and went to work. According to the videos, just put it on, cover it, wait a few hours, and "it'll fall right off"....right.

     So in the rain I did just that, just concentrating on the bottom paint just below the water line. I covered it after applying healthy amount of stripper, and waited, and waited. I purchased a plastic blade 

and went to work. The stripper came off, as did several layers of anti-fouling paint, but never got down to the gel coat. Below is what was left after application #1. It beast the alternatives of sanding and scarping or blasting, but I know I'm in for many more hours of watching and waiting and scraping. I fired up the engine and it purred like a kitten. So far so good, going to get her wet later this week.

 

10.31.20 Happy Halloween 2020

 

    No fishing for this Halloween 2020, but the above picture is from a Halloween I will never forget....Blitz-o-ween 2014. Best beach day ever, check it out  HERE

11.30.20 Getting ready for the boat....

     So now that I'm back to boat fishing, well hopefully, I went through my gear and found what needed to be cleaned up or repaired. I found these two rods, a 9 ft 10 wt and 9ft 12wt, both snapped during an outing with 30, 40 and 50 pound bass eating big flies a few years ago. Hopefully they'll be back in time for some action this late fall. 

     So let's be real. Outside of a few big fish caught on IBSP the last few days the beaches along the Jersey Shore suck for surf fishing. Doesn't matter if your throwing flies, plugs, ducktails, chunks or whatever else you have in your arsenal, the fact is it isn't the same anymore. It may just be a convenient time to bitch see most aren't catching these days, but its the truth. I'm not talking about getting one, or a few, but being on the fish. For those that fish tides, and moons, and weather conditions, you know what I mean. Yes, you can fish the same exact spot 1,000 time, and sometimes, or even often, you just might be in the right spot at the right time. Its kinda like being anchored up on a wreck for hours and hitting the mother lode of fish swimming below.

     Why do I say that? Because I get it. Those that charter for a living, I mean living as in no other job, or those that side hustle, like myself, need to show pictures of people with fish in order to get people to fish. Now, outside of social media where displays of catches and happy anglers are getting a bit much, captains and businesses that have committed to publishing reports have to do just that, good, bad, or indifferent. Yep, sometimes you just have to say "The fishing sucked". That's why I like The Average Angler blog. Its the truth all of the time. I don't know the actual statistics, but failure is more often reported than success, or what people would identify as success, which would be catching. What is success when it comes to fly fishing? An experience, of being outdoors, learning things, trying new things, and then just maybe actually catching a fish.  

     Some guys are dialed in and will use every method available to get you into fish. The cell phone network, flies, plugs, shads, livies, eels, you get it- those are mostly the fly and light tackle guides, good for them and good for you if that what you like. For those die hard fly anglers, you know catching comes second to fishing. If you look at the posts, if you do that, just about everyone is reporting and displaying pictures of people with fish, it was that good. But what about the pictures when you don't catch, the reality of paying for a charter and not catching, why is that reported as proudly as when you catch, it is for me, and like minded clients, fishing is always better than catching. 

     So this blow has slowed the boat slaughter that was happening and bound to continue. Hopefully those fish are way south and over the three mile line. That way they get some chance to spawn next year. Above is a view of Belmar now at 130 pm at low tide. No doubt the beaches will have changed a bit, hopefully enough for some bait to get caught in close and bass not freaked out by the new nd continued changing structure, or structure less Jersey Shore. 

10.29.20 It's official...they're here

     Alright, rant for today. Yesterday the big girls showed up on their migration south where they'll winter over before hopefully SPAWNING next spring. That's if we don't kill them all first. So in New Jersey no fish over 38 inches- everyone thought was a great idea, protect the big ones. Problem is, when there are only fish up to 28 inches and fish over 38 inches left, it takes a lot of catching, and killing, to get your slot fish. 

   Yesterday there were fish from Monmouth Beach down to IBSP, with fish on the beach down south. Its hard to safely release a fish, let alone a big one. Yesterday I caught a 37 inch bass and had to time "my release" back into the water from the outer end of the groin. I have caught 40 pound bass in my Jones, takes a while to get them it, and even longer to revive and release them. And my boat is two feet off the waters surface. How about the party boats? Catching big ones, hoisting them up, hitting the rail first, then the deck, then a photo and then what? An albie dive back into the water? 

     This is not good. Guys are fishing through big fish trying to find their keepers. Live lining bunker with snag and drop rigs isn't any better. These fish don't have a chance. We should do better. 

     I had to go today. Fish around yesterday and the blow later today. This morning will be good.....forget it. I started in the OG and headed north after not-a-tap for 45 minutes. So I went to where I was yesterday, not a tap, not for me, Leif or Ritchie on different beaches and rocks. 

     I had a Double Barrel Popper leding and Andrew Warshauer Hollow Fly. Incoming tide, clean and green, good whitewater, nothing. Before I left I was shooting the shit with Richie about how

disappointing this morning was and we saw the bucker out a ways with fish on them. Today is the kind of day where you just have to stick around, like 8 hours and hope to be on the right beach at the right time. See you after the blow, boat gets wet next wee! Can't wait. 

 

10.28.20 First keeper of the year, well almost.....

        It's the tale of the tape. Initially I thought it was a keeper when I placed the rod down next to it, but after measuring the white tape when I got home, the tape is at 28 inches, I see I am and inch or so short, but it was a good fish, fought like a bigger fish, and wasn't easy to land on the outer third of the groin.   

     Conditions were great this morning, but it took first light forever to arrive. High tide was at 6 am, west wind, water was clean a green. Boast came out of the inlet and stayed there, I first thought they found a body of fish, but it was just a staging area for the boasts until light arrived and they could move north, either way north to the New York Bay or, a mile off the beach from where I was. 

     Fished a groin, stayed with the popper and dropper. Had the below fish, "I swore it was a keeper", blow up on it after a long cast. That was one and done for me. If I were a betting man, and one with a rain coat, I would be out there tomorrow morning, its the day it is supposed to blow, and conditions should be the same as today. Leif and Richie were in the area and caught as well, but I'm thinking I was the pool winner for the day.

    

      After a beach outing I went and picked up my boat. She looked different, happy, not disappointed, and ready to get splashed into the Sandy Hook Bay..sooner than later hopefully. The warnings about the wiring and this boat are coming in person, by phone, text and email. I get it, I will try and figure out what to do, I'm thinking of towing it over to Terry Sullivan's house for a professionals opinion. Below is a pic of Terry from 2012 working on my old Jones in front of his house. 

     The other concern I have is the autoride or suspension issues with my 2005 GMC Yukon. Towing capacity 5700 pounds, Jones 19'10" comes in at 2100 pounds, plus the gas and the motor and the stuff, and 2 tons of wiring. Anybody that knows anything about the GMC air suspension system please give me a call 732 261 7291. Thanks