The Fish Whistle

Mount Pleasant (Northern Suburb of Charleston, S.C.)

2011-04-27T11:19:00.000-07:00

Since this is a fishing blog, I will try to keep my recap of our trip to South Carolina to boat/fishing experiences. In the process, I will neglect many of the great times we had with new friends and old. I won't go into the terrific meals we had which ranged from shmancy super delicious Washington DC French/American cuisine to an oyster roast wheel-barrowed in from local pilings.

Our first fishing adventure came with OC Polk aboard his 18' Parker. We met OC and his first mate Lisa Marie at a boat ramp by an inlet on Sullivan's Island. We cruised 8 miles offshore on beautiful flat seas to an offshore reef. We spent the next 5 or 6 hours hammering fish. We caught some nice Black Drum and Sheepshead. The biggest fish were 10 and 11 pounds and in all we caught over 160 lbs of fish. You can see a video of the bait above.

Later that day our hosts Ben and Marci treated us and some of their friends to a cruise around Charleston Harbor in the sportfishing boat Ben runs. The Jabez is a 56' fishing extravaganza complete with fancy pants fighting chair and the whole show. It's the boat on the right pictured below and you can click on the link if you care to see more.

The next morning we decided to join OC at work. OC pilots the Spirit of the Low Country, a giant Pink Lady kind of rig that seats over 500 people. You can see Ben and I in the space located behind El Capitan. The boat took us out to Fort Sumter which recently celebrated the 150th anniversary of what is generally considered the beginning of the Civil War.

Later that afternoon, Gayle went to the beach with Marci, and Ben hooked me up with his friend John and his son Ellison for some Redfishing. John's boat, when planed off, draws less then 6" of water. You can probably tell in the short video below. In the picture below you can see I was successful. In fact, I was the only guy to catch a fish. I caught that fish on a shrimp with a jighead. We had a tough day of fishing with a bit too much wind and a drainer tide. We did not spot many fish and we polled around for a long time. Much thanks to John for all their effort there. Going up and down those nooks and crannies is really fun and I would do it again in a heartbeat.

Unfortunately, we had to get back home to relieve the grandparents and to get stuff done. Apparently, Gayle and I missed a fishing extravaganza offshore on Thursday. The Jabez caught a pile of black fin tuna and several wahoo and who knows how many other types of fish. Hopefully, next time we go to SC, we can jump aboard.

Report from a Public Hearing on Proposed Rule Changes for the Kennebec

2011-04-04T18:17:00.000-07:00

Did you know the rules on Striper fishing in the Kennebec may change? It's true. To bring you up to speed, let me summarize the special regulations that have been in place on the Kennebec watershed for the past 18 years. In the area between Small Point and Cape Newagen and all areas upriver there has been a catch-and-release-only season from May 1 to June 30. Also, during this time of year, all use of bait has been prohibited in these same areas.

The proposed rule changes for May 1 to June 30 would shrink the catch-and-release area significantly. It would open up the entire Sheepscot as well as the Southern and Western facing beaches of Popham. More significantly, bait would be permitted in the entire Kennebec watershed as long as fishermen use circle hooks.

Tonight, at the Bath City Hall, I attended a public hearing on this rule change. I witnessed a very civil and orderly debate on this topic. According to several people in attendance, the last time there was a hearing of this sort (in 2002), the meeting was so disorderly that people could not speak without being heckled from the opposing side.

Lining up against the rule change was the Coastal Conservation Association(CCA), the Maine Association of Charterboat Captians(MACC), and various other recreational fishermen. Some of the more notable speakers against the amendment were Duncan Barnes, the president of CCA, Forest Faulkingham, the president of MACC, and Doug Jowett, a long-time guide out of the midcoast. Their position was that Striper fishing is on the decline and why make it tougher on the fish by shrinking the catch-and-release part of the river and permitting the use of bait.

In support of the amendment was the Recreational Fisherman's Alliance. There were many captains who spoke out in favor of these changes including Russell Troy, Barry Gibson, Jeff Tims, Pete Ripley, and Bill Spencer. Chris Grill, owner of the Kennebec Angler, also spoke out in favor of the amendment. Their position was that the current situation does not reduce pressure on the fish and favors one kind of angler over another.

I, as most of you know, am a bait guy. I love to work my way up the food chain. Not having to use artificials will save me tons of money on lures and will allow me to fish the way I love to. I grew up fishing nothing but artificials for Stripers, but I just prefer to step up to the "Meat Table" as Captain Russell Troy once told me.

At the same time, I want to protect our fishery. I just think we have little effect on the overall condition of the Striped Bass fishery. I hate to pass the buck but I am afraid I will here. Our Stripers come from the Chesapeake, that we know. Also, we know, that Maine is the end of the Stripers' swim. We also know that very few fish are caught here in comparison to places like Virginia and New York where the fish breed. If we really want to preserve Striped Bass the solutions lie to my South.
In the meantime, I hope this amendment goes through. This summer I am excited to take people like Zach and Cindy Taylor fishing with live ones. They always come in June which means they have always had to use artificials. For the Taylors and other families, this amendment will make the Striped Bass fishery a little more accessible.

Finally, tonight was great for another reason. It was so nice to take off my teacher hat and put on my fisherman hat. I am so lucky to be able to have two great jobs. I must say that wearing my charterboat captain hat is always fun and I am really looking forward to putting it on come June.

2010-12-29T05:22:00.000-08:00

Woke up early this morning. "Daddy." "Daddy!" "DADDY!" Dang boy. At 6am the sky here in Boothbay was dark from clouds that ended in the far eastern sky. As a result, the sky looked pitched black over the snowscape and dark ocean ending in a horizon of dim light. There was absolutely nothing about that sky that said let's go for a boat ride.

Nonetheless there are many guys from town who have switched over to shrimping. Rusty Brewar, captain of the 38'(that's a guess) F/V Look Out, has been helping me with basketball and telling me about Shrimping. Yesterday he eyed my boots and said,"You could come on the boat with me this winter with those babies." I let Rusty think I could handle it out there this time of year but I am not so sure. Guys shrimping go out in all kinds of weather. "The shrimping season is like a sprint" Rusty told me. Indeed, they haul in all kinds of shrimp and supply the entire state with Maine shrimp for year round consumption in just a few short months.

That is the fishing report from this area right now. In southern maine ice is just beginning to form on Lakes and Rivers. We are supposed to have a warm up this weekend too so the beginning of ice fishing season will be delayed for many. Smelting will be delayed even longer. Bummer. I just got a brand new ice auger and I would love to feel a little tug.

Happy Holidays.

The Fat Lady Has Not Yet Sung!

2010-10-12T11:15:00.000-07:00

Guess what. You guessed it. There are still fish here in the Gulf of Maine. Over the weekend I went out with some friends including Matt and Mark Piccerelli from Rhode Island and Captain George Harris of Super Fly Charters. We had a real good time despite the wind and the temps and defied all odds and caught fish. I got a nice 30" and we cut up two more fish and made some delightful grilled Striper for dinner that night.

Yesterday George slayed the Groundfish off of Monhegan and today he is catching Stripers with clients. Conclusion? There are still fish to be caught on the coast of Maine. However, I am done for the season. If you want your fix you should give George a call. George runs the same boat as I and he knows his stuff. He has done almost 140 trips this season alone.

Anyway, not sure what fishing news will be here till next May but I am sure there will be something. I will update anytime I catch a fish through the ice or I hear about something of interest. Make sure you have the Fishwhistle in your RSS reader.

October

2010-10-05T12:38:00.000-07:00

Holy shit! Its cold on the ocean. Water temps are mostly in the 50s, but Sunday Morning while on a fishing film shoot for my film making class we endured air temps in the upper 30s. Standing still was fine. Moving was the problem.

We Macked up by the Cucold's Lighthouse and the sunrise was terrific. We captured great HD video and I will share more of it eventually. What a cold ride! You can see a little bit of the footage below.

Today, its raining like cats and dogs but the fishing reports from the week have not been real promising. Our season, therefore, may be over. Too bad. This time of year I just can not get enough tugs as I have been able to fish myself quite a few times over the last month. The fishing has been real consistent too so its real sad for me to have put the rods away.

The next time I haul in a fish it may be through the ice. I will let you know if the Fat Lady has sung after this weekend.

What We Do When We Get a Babysitter

2010-09-26T12:22:00.000-07:00

Today Mimi and Papa came up from Falmouth to babysit and Gayle and I hit the water. After the grandparents showed up at 10:00am we found the Macs by Spruce Point. We trolled over them and jigged back until we had more than we needed.Bundled up and packing bait we headed upriver. We were soon stopped by the Coast Guard for a safety check. Rafted up with their Zodiak, the Coasties went through our gear and paperwork. Twenty minutes later we were on our way and 20 minutes after that we stopped in Bath for some lunch.After a cheese steak and meatball parm we got back on the river. Cloudy skies and northeast winds made for a dreary day. When we made it to the hot spot there were several other boats there already including my friend George Harris. Yesterday George won the Kennebec River Pro Am Fly Fishing Tournament. George's presence alone means fish. Gayle and I both caught several Striped Bass up to 30"and Gayle took several cool shots with my cell.
Sure hope these fish stay around. I have the fishing bug hard right now. Cannot catch enough. The weather is getting colder and I know my fishing days are numbered.

Uneventful, frigid, and beautiful ride home. Cut up a fish and back in time for the in-laws to go play golf if they want to brave the cold too.

September

2010-09-19T12:16:00.000-07:00

I am ignorant. One spot in the Kennebec River has made me stupid. Maybe all that is a little harsh but its been about a month since I have become a weekend fisherman and during all that time, every single weekend day, I have fished the same spot. As a result, I really do not know first hand if there are fish anywhere else. The problem is, that from the reports I hear, and the lack of fish that I see, I am stuck in this one spot.

The good thing is we have caught a ton of fish every weekend. Most of the fish have been above the slot as they have been all year. We have not gotten fish out of the mid-30s but my pal George Harris boated this beauty in the same spot one super fishy morning.

Anyone following me on Facebook will know that many of these weekend fish have been wrestled away from seals. To be honest, I think the same two or three seals just hang out in the same spot. One is small and black and the other is big and kind of speckled. Anyway, that is probably crazy talk but taking your fish back from the seal is serious. Today, we relentlessly circled over the seal until he released the Striper he stole. We aggressively scooped the fish into the net, just ahead of the marauding seal and landed it safely inside the boat. Today's 34" survivor was then released somewhere downstream. Later, a serious Kennebec River fisherman came alongside and said,"You have the worst luck with seals this year." Dang.

The spikes have grown into Tinkers but they can be had right in the harbor. There is also a ton of tiny herring there too but harder to catch those little buggers. No point in trying anyway since the Macs are small and plentiful.

My boy Colin Yentsch caught his 18th and maybe more BFT today too. He was anchored up within sight of land down off the coast of southern Maine. He went down Saturday night after dinner. He needs to get into the spot at night to get bait under his lights. He can't fish at night, however, for the BFTs because the bluefish are so thick down there.

That's all for now. I guess the next big question is will there be something worth posting about in October?

August

2010-08-14T14:02:00.000-07:00

I am entering a new part of my season. I am going from the time of the summer when I think I am ready for it to be over, to the part where I become nostalgic about fishing and chartering. This morning, as I waited for my clients, I sat swinging in a chair watching the light slowly creep into the horizon. Just twenty five minutes later, the sun still had not come up and we had completely blacked out my baitwell with Spikes. Spikes are Mackeral so small they are beyond Tinkers. Basically, the perfect bait. There are plenty of Herring around too but the Spikes make terrific baits in just about all situations. You can see what the Spikes look like on the finder when they are really thick.

As we cruised to the spots, sun coming up, wind down, I wondered do I have a great summer job or the greatest summer job?

We began on a mud flat in just two to three feet of water. The wind was down so we could all see Stripers swirling on bait in an area roughly three acres. The Stripers were rolling and eating crabs off the bottom. We took two fish, one keeper and one too big in the shallows.

When we lost water on the flat, just ten minutes cruise from there, we began fishing structure in the Kennebec. We had several double hookups and caught Stripers up to 31". The river seems to have turned back on and I am looking forward to a strong week.

Only two weeks left till school begins. I have some openings at the moment, but I expect to be busy right up till I go back to school on August 30th.

Fishing report

2010-08-01T15:58:00.001-07:00

Ok, I am sorry about my blog neglect. My apologies. I have decided to try bullet points in the hopes it will inspire me to write stuff down more often. Problem is, I am kind of sore from all the banging around and a little beat too and this hurts my ambition.

Here you go:

Spike Macs 4" to 5" have invaded Boothbay
Herring can be jigged up regularly in the morning hours if you know where to go
Stripers are being caught on the ledges in the Kennebec in current
Stripers are also being caught on the flats in just a few feet of water
Bluefish have appeared inland way above the Bath bridge
Tuna are showing up, both giants and shorts some inside of Seguin

This place is fishy right now.

bait

2010-06-27T18:49:00.000-07:00

On Thursday, Striper fishing in the Kennebec and Sheepscot rivers will truly open. Bait restrictions are lifted and anglers may keep one fish a day either 20" to 26" or over 40".

Tonight, I ventured out to assess the bait situation in the harbor. It was a very fishy calm evening. Light wind made it easy to see fish on the surface. Several times diving Osprey gave away the bait's position too. I found Mackeral but it seems quite obvious that the abundance of Macs we had a few weeks ago is, for the moment, a memory. However, this could turn around any day and I was able to catch Mackeral, it just wasn't the free for all you like to have.

There were herring availible for me as bait tonight as well. My fishfinder picks them up perfectly and I just drifted into them in the middle of the harbor. They were smaller herring then the ones I caught earlier this year. These baits are absolutely ideal.

The Latest Fishing Report

2010-06-19T17:57:00.000-07:00

I would like to apologize. I have let Facebook make me lazy. For the past month I have neglected this blog and relied all updating of fans of Sweet Action Charters to Facebook. By so doing I have also neglected to share any real detail about fishing the mid coast. Lame.

The season is in full swing and the fishing has been good. More fish, in more places, in my opinion, then in some years. We have been most successful in the early morning on top water lures. The rest of the time we have had luck jigging or casting lead headed jigs with plastic bodies. Most of the fish caught this year have been slot fish(20 "-26") or above. While we have had lot's of success this year with artificial lures I will be excited when bait restrictions in the Kennebec are lifted on July 1.

Speaking of bait, there is a lot around. We have had terrific Mackeral catches and there looks to be a ton of herring around as well. I have heard tell of Bluefish and the Mackeral drying up in their path so Boothbay might be next.

Happy Father's Day to all the daddy Fish Whistlers!

The season is definitely getting closer

2010-05-16T02:13:00.000-07:00

I just got back from an early morning cruise. At 4:30 am Boothbay Harbor was a quiet place. Smooth glassy water interrupted only by swirls, seals, birds, and me. There are tons of Jellyfish out there right now but they will be gone when the macs come in. I am hoping that Mackeral will arrive this year by Memorial weekend. We have good weather coming up and everything seems two weeks ahead of last year.

Early Macs means early traps so I will be getting the lobster gear together in the coming weeks too. I noticed this morning that there was quite a bit more lobster gear in the water now tight to shore so those guys must be thinking the same thing as I.

The other question on my mind is, when do I go over to the Kennebec River and give it a try for Stripers? There are basically a couple things that will influence when my first scouting mission will be. First, my calander is pretty crazy. Until a project at school comes to its conclusion on May 26th, I don't really have prayer of going. Also, my wife is going to a wedding in Cartagena, Columbia from May 28 to June 4. My mom is coming to help so there is a small chance of fishing then. My last day of school is June 15 so after that fishing will become my job. The second main factor that determines when my first trip is are the reports I hear. Some guides, like Peter Fallon and Gordon Gillies of Gillies and Fallon guide service, live on the Kennebec and they can scout the river as easy as I can cover Boothbay Harbor. People like that are terrific sources.

Gayle took the shot below last evening. She and I went to Five Islands for dinner while the kids were at the grandparents. We took the boat which meant a chilly but calm ride around Cape Newagen. If you have never had the pleasure of going to five islands by boat you should make an effort to give it a try. The place was empty which is unusual. Its one of the prettiest places around and it has a great Maine feel to it. Gayle had a fried haddock sandwich with Cilantro mayo and I had fried shrimp and we were both happy.

Garmin is Money

2010-05-14T16:31:00.001-07:00

Some of you may remember that I had strange power issues with my Garmin 5212 last year. Well, about a month ago I called Garmin and explained my problem to them. Despite being a month over on my two year warranty, Garmin agreed to fix or replace my bottom machine/gps. I sent it in two weeks ago, and today, I received a brand new unit! You can see it above, pictured on our porch, with the screen sticker still on it. I can not say enough about this fine machine. It has terrific clear radar, a vivid fishfinder, and the gps is top notch. The best part is its intuitive touch screen interface. Now I am extremely impressed with Garmin's customer service too.

Progress

2010-05-02T14:43:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, the boy had his first experience of the season on the boat. I figured he would not tolerate his life jacket or being stuck in such a small area, and, as always, he proved me wrong. All day long he kept urging me to put his life jacket on him to go on a boat ride. I think we went out on the boat twice and we had to drag him off each time.

Gayle took the kids to Falmouth today! Yeehaw. What a pleasure to be able to get stuff done. Did a bit of school work and then went down to the boat. Got the radio working and re-installed it in the overhead drybox. I also got the livewell running and secured. Tied up more gear too.

Then, I took Jonne Trees, Our local television station's master video guy, out to Burnt Island to scope camera shots for a student's film.

My electrician, Howie, dropped by too and took out my Garmin so I can send it back.
Anyway, it was a lovely day of progress and I am now looking forward to the family's return.

the ladies

2010-05-01T09:20:00.000-07:00

Iz did a great job running the boat today. I felt comfortable leaving her in charge and she seemed to really enjoy having the wheel. It does help that there are few lobster buoys in the harbor to avoid right now.
The water temp was a chilly 43 degrees but the air temp over the next few days should help. The boat is running well and I can not wait for the fish to arrive in force. Over the next few weeks I hope to hear reports of Stripers beginning to show up in some of the rivers of Southern Maine. It would be lovely if we had warm water and fishable numbers by Memorial Day. Of course I won't be fishing over Memorial Day because Gayle is off to Cartagena, Columbia for a wedding.

Back to Blogging

2010-04-10T00:58:00.000-07:00

Time for me to get back to my blog. I apologize for not updating in so long.

Time to get myself, the boat, and the business back into gear. The picture above shows that my dock is being put back into the water. Other signs of the changing seasons are present in Boothbay too. Businesses in town seem to have more activity and buds on the trees are making tangible progress. I would say the trees look a few weeks ahead of last year.

So, I will be sending a newsletter out to former clients in the next few weeks. We will probably get the boat uncovered soon too. I need to update the Garmin 5212 to its latest version, paint the bottom, and re-install my radio, and off we go. Another fishing related task will be to hit LL Beans, where, as a member of the Maine Guide Association, I get 33% off. I am going to be purchasing 5 Shimano Stradic Reels for fishing light tackle and other saltwater goodies.

We had a great string of warm weather. Its now cold and rainy. Hopefully, we get some more heat, so we can get those water temps up, and get our season started. I can not wait.

A More Detailed Update on My Wife's Condition

2010-02-16T14:46:00.000-08:00

Gayle's surgery was a success. Dr. Sisti was able to remove the vast majority of the tumor. At the same time, he preserved the facial nerve, and partially saved some of the Cochlear nerve.

As a result, Gayle will be free of the numbness and facial weakness she has been experiencing for months and the tumor will never threaten Gayle's life again. The size of the tumor left behind will not need surgery and if it did grow, which is unlikely, they could radiate it.

Preservation of the facial nerve means that, hopefully, the only long term effect Gayle will have is the loss of hearing on the affected side. But, because Sisti preserved some of the Cochlear nerve, Gayle will retain a little of her hearing and might benefit from improvement in hearing aid technology sometime in the future.

At 5:15 today, I was able to get in to visit Gayle. She was out of it, nauseous, in some pain, but expressive. It was quite an effort for her to open her eyes which she forced herself to do when she heard my voice. She looked at me and made me switch sides of her bed. In a silent somewhat pained way she asked me to talk. She reacted to my news of Tom and Bess and Ralph hanging all day with a partial smile. Then, I tried to tell her about all the people calling,texting,and writing on Facebook and she definitely smiled again. Big relief.

Smelting 2010 Dresden, Maine

2010-02-07T19:18:00.001-08:00

Hoops and stuff

2010-01-25T12:10:00.000-08:00

What could be worse than going 2-11? Going 2-12. In just a few hours, we play Georges Valley, a team we lost to while I was investigating possible surgeons for my wife's Acoustic Neuroma in New York City. I have watched the video of that game several times and we should definitely get a W tonight. Put all sharp objects away if we lose.

Soon, I will get it together and write something down about Costa Rica. Considering what a terrific experience I had, one would think I would have shared more about it by now. Oh well, life has been nuts lately. Anyway, I promise to write about it soon. For those of you who love to fish you must go. Its unreal. I embedded one of our fishing videos below. If you have been following Sweet Action Charters on Facebook you will recognize it.

Costa Rica, Here We Come

2009-12-24T16:29:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone,

First, in case I have raised undue worry, Gayle is only in danger of losing her hearing in the affected side. This would be Gayle's left side.

Yesterday we met with surgeon #2 and since Gayle still has just about normal hearing this guy suggested a different procedure in case he can save Gayle's hearing. Its complicated stuff but the bottom line is we would be in good hands with either surgeon. We have decided to go with surgeon #2 because he seemed highly qualified and suggested that there is a small chance of Gayle retaining some hearing in the affected ear.

Right now surgery is scheduled for February 16 which is the absolute soonest this guy can work on Gayle.

Tomorrow we head for Costa Rica. Pretty darn excited. If I get anything good to post and a wireless signal I will post again in the next few days. Our first day of fishing is Sunday so hopefully I will have something to show or tell Sunday night.

fish are in my future

2009-12-22T18:31:00.000-08:00

Tonight, my wife, my dear friend Ralph, and I met with a potential brain surgeon for my wife's Acoustic Nueroma. The doctor raised no red flags with any of us and was pateint and took the time to educate us all, so even if the surgeon tomorrow is lame we feel good about moving forward. No word yet on when surgery might be, hearing loss is basically a given, but Gayle has a real good chance of avoiding other side effects from surgery.

Also, tonight my girl's basketball team lost a close game to Georges Valley, a rival school, located a couple peninsula's down east of us. My heart goes out to my players and their coaches. I know they are bummed but I hear from good sources that there was no lack of effort. We will play this team again at Georges Valley on January 25th. We will have to beat them on their court and I think we will.

A piece of fishing news related to Gayle's. We are going fishing on Sunday. Today, the doctor encouraged us to go on our vacation to celebrate my 40th birthday. We leave for San Jose, Costa Rica on Friday, after Christmas with Gayle's family. On Saturday we head to Manuel Antonio or right outside of the national park. Finally, on Sunday my wife and I will go inshore fishing with a guy named Jeffrey Zapata in his panga. Hopefully we will have some luck down there and I can post a picture or two. In any case, it will be wonderful just to have the opportunity to travel.

A Super High Tide, I Become the Girl's Varsity Basketball Coach, and MY Wife Develops an Acoustic Neuroma

2009-12-09T09:50:00.000-08:00

Well, right now Southport Island is getting pummeled with a Northeaster. No school today. Winds are going to be over 30 knots, its snowing and word is there are two cars off the road on Southport alone. I am home alone and have been since last Thursday. Obviously I should use this time to clean the house but I feel the need to get some information out so here we go. By the way, I am going to save the most important stuff until the end.

Starting with the most benign piece of this post, the coast of Maine experienced some super high tides during the full moon last week. Those of you familiar with this view will note that the water is up over the seawall and washing across the lawn. In the clip below my friend Jonne Trees of BRCTV took some video out at Ocean Point. The audio is terrible because of the wind but midway through, those of you familiar with Ocean Point, will be amazed at the water level. Cool stuff.

December 3 Full Moon High Tide, Ocean Point from Jonne Trees on Vimeo.

Well, since I last posted I was also given the honor of becoming the head coach of the Boothbay Region High School Girl's Varsity Basketball Team. I have always dreamed of being a head coach of a varsity team so it's more or less a dream come true. One gratifying thing about it was I was given the job based on my reputation as a teacher. I had always hoped my prowess as a teacher would be how I would ascend to this position instead of working my way up through the coaching ranks. I really did not want to coach AAU or volunteer my time. Unless I was going to be able to run the show, I would just rather be with my family.

I love my team. They are terrific girls and I am so proud to be their coach. We have about 19-21 kids and we field a Varsity and JV team. We are 1 - 1 and the JV's are 2-0. You can see our first game against Monmouth below. We were pretty nervous to begin the game but if you hang in there we start playing better and better. We lost to Lisbon last night, a talented team, from a larger school. They were also well coached. I can not wait till we play them again to see our progress.

One cool thing about this situation is my buddy Ralph Posner is going to report on our games for the Boothbay Register. I will try to post those articles here in case anyone is interested.

BRHS Girls Basketball from December 5th, Lady Seahawks vs. Monmouth Mustangs from Jonne Trees on Vimeo.

Finally, my wife has been diagnosed with an Acoustic Neuroma, a benign tumor located in the ear/head. I have been in contact with a dear friend of mine from high school, Al Lozier, and he has been tremendous for us. We spoke at length last night and I can not tell you how much I appreciate his advice and counsel. Al is a brain surgeon out in Wisconsin and simply one of the most competent people I have ever known. He says my wife's tumor is challenging but treatable. She is going to live through this but it's no cakewalk either. Her tumor is in the large range. It is 3cm and snow cone shaped. She will most likely lose hearing in the affected ear. The worst case scenarios are ones arising from complications from the necessary surgery. Al did an Acoustic Neuroma surgery on Monday and it took him 10 hours. If the our surgeon is too aggressive trying to remove the tumor or he slips up or whatever Gayle could have permanent damage to her face like paralysis. So, we are now trying to work on getting the right doctor.

Well, that's probably more information then anyone wanted. I will try to get some fish stuff in here soon but I have a lot of non-fish stuff going on so bare with me.

Striper Fishing 2009 on the Coast of Maine

2009-10-14T07:42:00.000-07:00

Fishing this past summer was up and down. We had great days and slow days. According to Barry Gibson on the Shark 6, "Only about 25% of the stripers that migrated north to Maine in 2006 and 2007 made it up here again this year."(Maine Sportsman, October) Barry offers this explanation,"Sand Eels... mushroomed on Stellwagen Bank and adjacent areas, providing a perfect forage for stripers... There was basically a solid wall of sand eels in the path of stripers migrating north, so the bass just stopped there."

Others have suggested the cold water and rain at the beginning of the summer as the reason for this year's decline in numbers. From stories I have heard about people fishing on Stellwagen and other places outside I am more inclined to believe Barry's explanation. Unfortunately, or fortunately, Striper fishing is illegal in places like Stellwagen because it is outside the 3 mile federal limit.

Here is another thing to consider when thinking about the numbers Barry is talking about. The Striper fishing in Southern Maine was excellent in many places for much of the summer. As a result, when you are talking about 25% of the previous years catch you know that the fishing in Northern Maine may have been even worse.

In the end, I am not ready to make any final guesses about why the fishing has been on the decline. 10 years ago the fishing was much better. We had tons of schoolies and fish could often be located by diving birds. The absence of schoolies is the most distrubing piece for charterboat captain. We are on the northern edge of the Striper migration pattern and I have heard NMFS officials say that its always the edges of a migration pattern that get hit first when there is a change. Hopefully, El Nino can reverse this pattern. 11 years ago we had an El Nino and terrific fishing followed. Also, the fishing 11 years ago began the third week in May because water temps had warmed quickly with the warmer temps. We shall see.

Columbus Day Weekend

2009-10-09T13:10:00.000-07:00

Well, I can honestly report that I found no Macs between Burnt Island and Mouse Island today. Got out of work and my family was still in Portland so I decided to run the boat. Juju and I cruised around for a few minutes which felt great. Pretty chilly but still worth it.

I have not been Striper fishing in almost two weeks now. I have no reports from any captains but I would not be surprised to find that there are still some fish around. Tomorrow is supposed to be sunny and blowy so I don't want to bother but I would not mind going Sunday. We shall see.

Yesterday

2009-09-27T13:09:00.000-07:00

I fished yesterday with my friend Adam Harkins. The Macs were a bit slow out by the tip of Southport but eventually we got plenty of them. The weather was brisk to say the least. We had a hard frost the night before and cruising was tough. Wind chill had to be well below freezing. Long after getting off the water both Adam and I still felt the chill.

We fished from the mouth of the Sasonoa to Morse Cove on the Kennebec. No luck at all. Checked in with several other charter boats and they all had the same lame report. Hopefully, it was just one of those days. But, I am afraid that this year's bite might be over. We shall see... I was scheduled today to take a couple of students out but it rained. Hopefully, we will go out tomorrow after school. If we do go, we will be fishing the incoming tide. Tomorrow might be the day I admit my season is all over.

A few weeks ago I had the chance to fish with my friend and fellow guide, Peter Fallon. Check out his blog entry of the trip. Getting experiences fishing with my fellow guides are priceless. Peter is a super hard working guide. He must be in much better shape from polling his new boat around. You can see his sweet ride below. Someday I want to own a flats boat too. My boat could be poled around but conditions would have to be perfect for it to work with my T-Top heavy boat.

One last piece of information. Ben Polk of Jabez Charters just texted. Evidently the bite is on big time off the coast of South Carolina. Polk boated 13 White Marlin while other boats reported catching in the 20s and one boat took 41 White Marlin. I can not imagine that bite. But, if you have time and the opportunity SC sounds really hot right now.

Fishing Deep

2009-09-20T09:39:00.000-07:00

The fish above were caught in between 25' and 40' of water on the Kennebec River over this past weekend. The weather was real nice but breezy. The lower temps make cruising along in my open boat a bit chilly. The Macs have been ok but not nearly as abundant as I would like. We have been getting some real nice tinkers mixed in with larger Macs. Most of the bait has been caught around the Cucholds Lighthouse.

Got some custom made Rods from OC Polk. They proved to be perfect for the fishing we did. I am hoping that I can order some more of these rods for next season. I am hoping to buy all new gear for next year. If anyone has any suggestions feel free to let me know.

The picture below was taken yesterday from Damariscove Island. Mark Piccerelli is the guy you can see clearly. Later that day Mark grilled up some Striped Bass that was absolutely terrific. One of the finest fish eating experiences I have ever had.

So Sorry

2009-09-10T07:56:00.000-07:00

So sorry for not posting last weekend. The fishing was ok but not great. I have heard through my fishing grapevine that things have improved substantially so I can not wait to get back out there tomorrow. Allegedly, the fish are pretty concentrated in the Kennebec River. I am going to try to muster a crew to leave after work tomorrow. My wife and family are headed to Falmouth for an overnight so Gayle's parents can take care of the kids while she takes the Praxis Exam. This means I am free to fish both Friday afternoon and Saturday morning.

Anyway, one of these days I will post some more. I want to sum up the year in one of these posts and give my overall impressions of the fishing and the charter business. Below is a video many of you have seen before. I am reposting it here in a different format so my students at school can see it if they want to. Unfortunately, YouTube is blocked here at school among other sites that might help.

Lobstering on Friday Afternoon

2009-09-04T19:33:00.000-07:00

Hey, check the weather in the video. Wow! My daughter, who is 6, did a bunch of the filming. Ben Polk has the gear on and you can also see his wife Marci, and Murt Marci's cousin-in-law. Gayle, Iz and Evan are also there. Juju was on the boat too and you can see Evan giving her a hug.

I have 6 fishing trips in the next 3 days. One of them is with my cousin, Matt Henry, up from Washington DC for only a day before he has to get back to basketball practice.

I have heard good things upriver and at the beach. I am looking forward to giving everything a try. I think tomorrow we will try upriver. Can't wait.

I will post again one of these days.

Getting the Traps Going Again

2009-09-03T03:11:00.000-07:00

It is amazing and sad to me how quickly my hands repair themselves now that I am not fishing everyday. On Sunday, before starting school, I noticed I had two real good cases of Striper Thumb. Seemed like my hands were pretty boy hands by Monday afternoon with no signs of the summer's abuse. Striper Thumb, by the way, is what happens to your thumb when you grab many a Striper with your thumb to bring into the boat.

Anyway, last night I mustered a crew to get the lobster traps going again. We have been slack in fishing them for about a month. On board was Tim Harkins an his friend Carl and Ben Polk. Polk you might remember from last post captains the Jabez down in South Carolina, a 56 Core Sound/Jarret Bay. You can see a picture of that baby above. While its a pretty shi shi looking boat don't let that fool you about Ben. His father was a long time commercial fisherman and Ben has spent plenty of time working on the water in less fancy rigs both commercial fishing and charter fishing.

Anyway, before heading out I checked in with a Boothbay captain who has been fishing all week and he gave me the heads up that the Macs were still thick. So, we decided to catch our own bait for all ten traps. The seas were flat as the wind had only recently turned around to the Southwest. We caught near 125 Macs and it took us about 60 minutes. Ben got his gear on and stuffed the bait bags while I cruised us back to the traps. We caught 3 keeper lobsters, a Sculpin, an egged female which we notched and tossed, and a keeper Flounder. You can see Captain Ben cutting up the Flounder below.

I love the Flounder we get around here for eating. I was way more excited about the Flounder then the lobsters. As a kid I used catch Flounder all the time. Now, it is almost impossible to catch them. At least I have not been able to find any reliable holes. I am not sure what happened to the Flounder population here but one thing I know is back when the Flounder were thick people were still dumping their waste over the side. Since dumping your waste has become illegal the Flounder population seems to have dried up. This may be unrelated but maybe not.

Anyway, last night was a fun trip. One of the very best parts of my job is meeting new people like Ben who love to fish. I seriously have met some terrific people doing this job. This October I will be in a wedding for a terrific guy whom I met while taking him fishing. How cool is that?

Back to Being a Schlubby Librarian

2009-08-30T16:03:00.000-07:00

I have not posted here in a week. Not sure why really. There has been plenty of good fishing to talk about. Skipped going out in hurricane Danny yesterday which was good. But, I have been quite busy to. I am back to being a school teacher tomorrow. I took one day last week and spent some time in school trying to prepare. I am not really as ready for students as I would like. Fortunately, my new assistant, Lauren Harkins, has also been in to school to help us get set up.

My last two trips have been with Captain Ben Polk pictured above. Ben captains a 56' boat down in South Carolina. He is getting married here in Boothbay tomorrow. I really enjoyed my time with Captain Ben and his crew. I would love to have a chance to fish with him down in South Carolina someday. He and his new in-laws went fishing on Friday and did real well. Today, his father and two best friends, also went out with me and did great. We caught double figures in fish both days and that is always good. You can see a picture of a double hook up we had below. Of course, the shot is from my cell phone and I had to get my finger in the picture too.

Waves

2009-08-24T04:46:00.000-07:00

I pulled the boat out of the water on Friday after my trip for peace of mind. Hurricane Bill was coming and I had to take a few days off for a bachelor party and leave town. I have done a bit of work to it and hopefully Gayle and I will get it back in the water this afternoon. My next scheduled trip is Wednesday but because the weather looks so good tomorrow, I may try to convince long time client Chuck Stees to go.

Here is a link to some video of the waves made by the Hurricane. The video is shot out at Ocean Point by my friend Jonne Trees of our local public access station. The Hurricane hit Nova Scotia so points facing North East got hit the worst. Check this article from the New York Times about a death caused by a rogue wave up at Acadia National Park. The picture above was taken by the NYT in Cape Elizabeth Maine.

Now, I am on my way to the shower. Going in to school right now for the first time of the summer. Big Time Ouch. Just what I wanted to do with my day off.

Fish lessons

2009-08-19T09:15:00.000-07:00

Every once in a while I get the chance to take someone who has never even touched a fishing rod. Yesterday, was just such an experience. Rita and her 70 year old mother, both originally from India, caught fish for the first time in their lives. These ladies had to be taught everything and in a four hour trip they learned how to catch Mackeral and Stripers. I chose a spot for Striper fishing that would make it as easy as possible. We fished in the Kennebec in just 2' of water. Rita and Tara used cut Mackerel to get their bites. Tara, the grandma, tangled with a Striper until she gave up and let her rod tip down. Too bad she could not keep her line tight because it would have been cool to see her land it. Rita caught hers at the end of our trip. When the fish was finally brought in, Rita was spent but extremely happy.

Today I had Dell Ludeman aboard. He also caught his first several fish in just 2' of water. The beauty pictured below was caught in 30' of water. This underlines how different and diverse Striper fishing can be.

Fishing Stuff

2009-08-17T11:53:00.000-07:00

Saturday (8/15) was a great day. You can see just a few of the fish caught in the pictures above. I went out twice.

In the morning, I went out with a repeat client and his father-in-law. We had success fishing deep in the Kennebec. We worked it hard. The bait was difficult and we hit many spots but these guys really perservered and it more than paid off in the end.

In the afternoon, I went out with the mellow uncle and his niece and niece's boyfriend. We also had success fishing in just 2' of water. For everybody aboard it was their first time catching a Striper and was also their personal biggest fish caught.Water temps were 68/69 degrees which is hot for Stripers. Generally, I would rule out catching bigger Stripers in water that hot but in the picture below you can see a fish caught in the exact same spot with that hot water. Who knows? The more time I spend doing this, the less I think I know. One thing I know is that you can't beat catching these fish in shallow water with light gear.

At the end of our second trip, I spotted the Ella and Sadie cruising back into the Townsend Gut. Colin Yentsch and his two daughters had spent the day on Powderhorn Island in the Sheepscot River. Powderhorn is the perfect place to escape the heat because of its beach, beauty, and location on the coldest river around. Anyway, Colin had promised me some Tuna so we pulled up to the Ella and Sadie. Colin, went into his hold where he had some Tuna iced up in his fish box. He hooked my clients and myself up with Tuna steaks. Good times. Below you can see Ella and Sadie next to a Tuna which Colin was able to sell on his boat named after the girls.

Yesterday, I took a much needed day off. The weather was hot and we spent a bunch of time on the water.

Today, Mike pictured below came with a long time repeat customer, Bob. Bob from Houston has been taking me out 2 or 3 times a year since my first year. For Mike, a freshwater fisherman, this was his biggest fish of his life and his first Striper. Mike caught his fish in deep water. Over the next few days with this hot weather I expect to spend more time at the beach and fishing deep, looking for that cooler water.

Reports

2009-08-15T01:58:00.000-07:00

Striper fishing has been up and down like a yo yo. Very hard to predict too. I have had terrific and slow trips on the same day and on consecutive days going to the same places. I have heard the same reports from other captains from Bath to Boothbay. Two more trips today and tomorrow I will take a day off so my wife can get some help with our kids and I can have a break from the water.

Tuna fishing is happening but the schoolies, footballs, little ones, etc, don't seem to be around yet. One Tuna Fisherman/Lobsterman I know reported Tuna up in close chasing something that looked like a Bally Hoo(how do you spell that?) right out of the water. He just watched the 400lb tunas helplessly as his bait was well below the surface.

In the picture above you can see one of Colin's Tuna's that was loaded into this truck immediately after returning to shore.

2009-08-13T17:45:00.000-07:00

30" fish caught by my uncle Bill yesterday. Good times.

So beat

2009-08-13T16:49:00.000-07:00

I am so beat. Getting up at 4am day after day and doing 2 trips a day has really worn me out. Friday and Saturday will be two more days spending all day out there doing double headers.

This week I have spent a lot of time with Tom Coyne and his family. In one of the pics here you can see Tom's brother Joe, his nephew Michael, and his son Thomas. Thomas is the blond bombshell(self-proclaimed) you can see in the back. I wanted to include this picture because these guys helped us get on the Macs quickly. According to Thomas, they caught 200 Macs in that row boat. I asked him if he was counting and he said he started counting at 150. I also thought this was one of the funnier looking Mackerel slaying operations I have ever seen. Funny, smunny, they were killing them.

You can also see John in this picture below sleeping on the ride back. John is definite charter boat or guide material. He's capable, affable, intense, and likes to learn about a variety of things. What a joy he was to have aboard. He was patient when the fishing was slow and quick to help out when help was needed. When he had a fish on, he clearly showed he knew how to bring in a fish.

The fishing today was slower than yesterday but still good. The weather has been beautiful and in the afternoon we were able to fish the beach with some success.

Colin Yentsch just got in from a 2 day Tuna jaunt which landed several fish but none big enough to sell. Still they had action and caught Bluefin Tuna which is no small feat.

Another Day another postponement

2009-08-11T14:12:00.000-07:00

Had a great morning with the guys pictured here. Most of them were inexperienced fishermen but we caught our limit and then some.

The afternoon trip was called because of a line of thunderstorms coming through. At least we were able to postpone till tomorrow.

Several real busy days coming up which is good. The fishing seems to be improving across the region in that fish are starting to show in more places from the reports I have heard.

For you basketball fans out there. Here is a link to a Youtube Vid in which my cousin, Matt Henry speaks about a basketball camp he has just taken part in over in Montenegro. Matt is the director of basketball operations for the Georgetown Hoyas.

Isabella's First Fish and Some Fish Stuff

2009-08-11T01:25:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I had long time client Bob Gourley aboard and his friend Dick. We probably caught close to or more than 20 Stripers, all in the slot range except one that was too big. It was a blast. The weather was great as was the fishing.

My afternoon client today, Tom Coyne, told me that his party caught 14 Stripers aboard the Redhook yesterday down at Popham Beach. This is by far the best report I have heard out of there. I know the Redhook took two big fish there last week but I know the beach has been disappointing for most of this year and all of last.

I have not heard of the "local" schoolie or giant Bluefin Tuna action but the bite is on if you are willing to travel southwest.

The video below shows a family trip with my in-laws, wife and two kids. Iz catches her frist striper. Mimi did all the shooting, thanks Mimi. Anyway, I thought you would enjoy a video more than some pics.

Interesting Day

2009-08-07T12:13:00.000-07:00

My day began today with my GPS firing up like it's supposed to. Hooray, I turned it off just to check it and it would not turn on. After fiddlemucking around for a bit we got back on. Adam, Gayle, Evan, Ruby, and I headed to Robinsons's Wharf to get bait for our traps. Adam and I saw Colin and that is when I took the picture in the previous Voicethread. Hugh Thompson, one of the coolest dudes around, directed us to the wharf barrel and we loaded up on herring. It took Adam and I 25 minutes to haul our ten traps. Adam is really freaking good. He does the whole show except run the boat and he is fast. Pretty strong guy, too. Occasionally, instead of my having to maneuver the boat, Adam will just chuck the trap like a shot put. Anyway, I have decided that I love lobstering again and I think having Adam enthusiastically carrying a big load of the work is a big part of it.

At the end of lobstering at approximately 8:30am I checked the on-board Doppler and there was a tiny bit of precip way up in NH/VT. It was a beautiful day and the Doppler supported that.

A few hours later at about 10, my mom took over to take care of our sleeping one year old. Gayle headed with me to my favorite herring spot to catch bait for my trip. We spent 90 minutes and caught 1 herring. Talk about frustration. The good news was my electronics were still working.

Dropped Gayle off and headed back out to scout out some Mackerel for my afternoon trip. I was fishing off Spruce Point when I noticed the clouds to my northwest. I checked my Doppler and I could see a line of storms either headed at us or just north of us. I began to head in to Kaler's to pick up the Calvo's, a family of 4 at 12:30. I noticed many of the other charter boats both sail and fishing headed out.

I met the Calvo's at 12:50. They were dressed for the beautiful sunny day that it was - shorts, t-shirts, flip-flops, etc. I showed them the Garmin (Still Working!) and explained to them my concerns. We agreed to go out to catch bait and stay close. We went back to Spruce Point and began to Mackerel fish. I got to know them and was having a pleasant time. But, the screen told me to head in and before we even caught a mackerel I was running full steam back into Boothbay Harbor. By the time we got to Harbor Island, you could feel the barometer drop and the wind change direction as the sky quickly blackened. We got into Kaler's, tied up, and got off the boat. The rain quickly started and lighting could be seen all around us including Spruce Point. Fishing with me is definitely not Deadliest Catch but sometimes it can be deadly enough. The Calvo's and I were giddy we got off the water when we did and I once gain want to thank my stepfather for buying me that Satellite weather receiver which worked all day.

By the way, the images above are of Boothbay but I did not take them today. Unfortunately, I was ill-prepared for documenting today's events.

The Ella and Sadie

2009-08-07T06:06:00.001-07:00

A day of work with no clients

2009-08-06T16:45:00.000-07:00

Today I spent the day cleaning the boat and trying to fix my Garmin. Dragged my pressure washer down to the dock and my wife and I worked hard at it. Later, Adam and I replaced all the fuses used by my Garmin 5212. I am still only receiving intermittent power. As luck would have it, my marine electronics guy, Howie, is on vacation this week. My worst fear is that the whole unit will have to be sent back and then a new one will have to be shipped. TO be continued.

Spoke with Colin today. He is back from spending a couple more days offshore. He got two more Giants out there. He is a fishy bastard. He reports that there are tons of sharks, tuna and whales from Platts to 3 Dorys. There is also a ton of ground fish.

Anyway, I got to go so I hope my grammar and spelling are not too bad.

Late one

2009-08-05T19:17:00.000-07:00

I am beat. Having difficulties with my Garmin and they kept me on the boat until 9:30 tonight.
I am planning on working these electrical issues out tomorrow.

We managed a trip today and had a great time. Hannah and Keenan had a double hook up. Biggest fish either of them had ever caught. I hope they come back some day as they were such a pleasure to have aboard.

Tuna bite

2009-08-04T18:34:00.000-07:00

Sunday

2009-08-02T13:58:00.000-07:00

Another unwanted but much appreciated day off today. Yesterday, I had Ingrid and Nelson aboard from Philly. We had a great time and this was Ingrid's first time fishing.

Word is the ground fishing and tuna fishing is hot and heavy offshore. Many boats out there after them too. If anyone is interested in this experience give me call.

Got to go. Off to dinner across the island.

Doppler

2009-07-31T09:18:00.000-07:00

Recently, my friend and fellow guide, Peter Fallon posted to his blog about going out in bad weather. Peter is a terrific writer and he vividly portrays a charter captain's concerns. Its a must read if you have the time. Peter also talks about having his wife read the Doppler radar from shore to get an update on the storm's path.

I, too, used to call home when the sky began to darken or I heard a warning over the VHF. Now, things are different. In the video below you can see clearly how my satellite-fed weather shows me exactly what we all can see if we have a computer in front of us. One nice thing about my electronics is how it also can zoom in and out easily, shows the storm's tracks, and any warnings, too.

Today was a day off. Not by choice. Tomorrow, I will be back at it.

Nice Tradition

2009-07-30T11:43:00.000-07:00

One thing I love about going fishing here is the transition from the ocean to the river. Today we got bait in Boothbay Harbor and then brought the bait up river. I love the change in the scenery, wildlife, and water. Many charter fishermen spend their whole time in one or the other which is cool, but I like it when we get both the river and ocean.

Today, we further cemented a tradition in the Wright family. This is the second year we fished together and I can tell these guys are hooked. Last year we caught more big fish including a 39" by Jack who is now 11. However, the fishing was good today. Everyone caught lots of bait and we caught Stripers too including our limit of slot fish. They were a pleasure to have aboard.

Anyway, I have been getting tired of the obligatory dock shot so I brought something more then my cell phone. I made the video below and I apologize for my bad video skills.

2009-07-29T10:23:00.000-07:00

The fishing the has been good the last few days. Today we caught fish in several places on the Kennebec River. The guys aboard Tom, Chris, John and Luke did a great job. They conquered the bait which is no easy task. All of them caught fish and released more.

Yesterday, My uncle Bill chartered me. He is literally my best customer, hiring me several times a season. He expects that I fish with him too which is nice because I actually get to catch a few. Dagny, (Bill's wife/My aunt) pictured below, almost always comes too but rarely fishes for the Stripers. Dag is content to catch lot's of bait and hang out and soak up the rays and the scenery. But, the action yesterday was pretty good too and it inspired Dag to get into the mix. Dagny was fishy and caught several.

Good Morning

2009-07-26T13:09:00.001-07:00

We had another really good morning. We started early, which I always like, at 5am. We went in search of herring and we soon found them. As we were working on the bait, the fog rolled in. There were also showers to the west. This was a morning when my electronics were worth their weight in gold. At the same time we could check the doplar radar vie satellite feed, find the herring beneath us with the sonar, and monitor boat traffic nearby in the fog with the radar. I was actually psyched their was fog and weather because it kept boat traffic down on a Sunday.

We had an excellent morning again on the strength of the bait. There were others fishing around us both yesterday and today and I never saw them boat a fish. We, on the other hand, caught many. We took 4 home as you can see from the dock shot. The other picture of Sam and Jayson was a double header that was released.I have heard of some fish being caught in Boothbay Harbor, specifically Linekin Bay. I have seen precious few signs of fish here myself. The weather is gray, rainy, and cold again so I doubt it will get much better soon. So, for the meantime we will spend most of our time fishing west of us in the Kennebec and Sheepscot.

Early morning bite

2009-07-25T18:16:00.000-07:00

Judge Roy and I headed out this morning at 6:15. I had already spent an hour and a half gathering herring for our trip. Roy caught this baby about 30 seconds into our first drift. We caught a bunch of fish and had a great time together. Just about every herring we used equaled a bite.

Another Rain out

2009-07-24T18:44:00.000-07:00

Today we got some serious rain. Some parts of southern Maine got as much as 5". At least my trip was postponed and not canceled.

Here are a few fish pics from different charters I had this week. In one picture my uncle Bill holds up two herring pulled from a Striper's belly in two states of decomposition. Sorry about the picture quality. All photos were taken from my cell phone.

The best fishing has been early in the morning and on a dropping tide. Before today's rain the herring were thick in my spot so hopefully that continues. Today's day off was nice but I am anxious to get back on the water.

Sunday Morning

2009-07-19T04:02:00.000-07:00

My trip today begins at 11:30. So, I woke at 5am to see if I could get some herring for use during the dropping tide. I caught 60 of these Striper delicacies before 6am. Guess it took about 35 minutes using a Sabiki Rig. Blueback Herring, as pictured, make great bait. These Bluebacks can grow to be 10 or 11" but the ones I was catching today were between 3 and 6".

When I got back to the dock I was pretty happy with myself and I realized my bait pump wasn't working. That burst my bubble. It was just a bad connection so fixing that didn't take but 20 minutes. Still, this reminded me that making a fishing trip run smoothly is unlikely and hard to do.

Looking ahead to next week, the only day with no clients is next Sunday. Half of the clients are repeats and I am excited to see some old friends. I have two trips that are just single men, and several that are fathers and their kids. Looking forward to every trip.

july 18- Another cancellation

2009-07-18T16:33:00.000-07:00

My client postponed this morning. The good news here is he postponed and did not just outright cancel. This is the 10th such cancellation of the season.

I did not fish at all today other then pulling my lobster traps. Marty Weeks and Bailey are pictured below helping me out. Sorry about my finger.

July 17 2009

2009-07-17T12:44:00.000-07:00

Today, I fished twice again. But, not with clients. The clients I had lined up for today never called. Too bad, it was a fishy day. Instead I decided to take freinds and family.

At 5am, Adam and Tim Harkins headed out with me into thick fog. We put a dent in the herring population and then cruised over to the Kennebec courtesy of the radar. Tim is pictured above with a few keepers. We caught fish today drifting over shallow water. We also caught some river herring while around Phippsburg. Adam had a curfew so we had to get back early.

After filleting fish and hanging around for a bit, Gayle, my step father Dick, and son Evan decided to head up river with the dead herring I had in the tank since the morning. We had some good action as the video will show. Evan is barely hanging in there in some of the footage and I am the worst camera man in the world but its still worth watching if you have high speed. Big storm is headed are way so tomorrow's trip is in doubt.

July 16

2009-07-16T17:27:00.000-07:00

Fished with the Haskells today. It was a bit chilly and both were beat from flying from overseas and catching their limit of Striped Bass so they caught some naptime in the bow. Once again, drifting the herring was the magic today.

We had a real fishy day here today. Winds were light and skies overcast. We missed a bunch of storms too. I have no clients tomorrow, as of now, as the guy who I thought I would take has not called. So, if things don't change i will head out with a friend and has dad.

July 15- My anniversary

2009-07-15T15:51:00.000-07:00

Fished twice today.

My morning began at 5am when I met Greg and Tristan Black from Camden, Maine and their friends Andy and Ivan. The Blacks have fished with me several times before. We had a beautiful morning with calm seas and blue skies. We started catching Stripers at the end of the outgoing tide. Then, it was the tiny herring that did the trick. Earlier in the morning we had spent some extra time getting these Striper delicacies and we used every one of them. In the end, the dead herring fished just as well as the live ones when drifted.

Tristan had to release the one above as it was just beyond Maine's slot limit. But, they caught their limit with one fish per person including me.

The afternoon trip featured a family from North Carolina. They caught their Stripers on a mud flat in 2 to 3 feet of water. They also caught a couple of Catfish. Tobacco,cattle, and chicken farmers by trade, this family was brand new to salt water fishing. Ashton, pictured below caught the biggest fish of her life with me today.

Didn't hear a thing today about Tuna. Spoke a bit with Captain Peter Fallon and he reports some Stripers in the Kennebec. Tomorrow, I am back at it with some repeat customers. Hopefully, I will keep taking pics with the cell phone and keep this blog going.

fishing report

2009-07-14T13:28:00.000-07:00

Tommy managed to catch this baby in the afternoon right before we had to take off to beat the rain. Fishing in the morning continues to be best. I have Friday thru Sunday open right now in the early morning. I hope somebody calls. If not, I am going to have to drag some friends out. News from the fleet continues to be mixed. Several boats from Boothbay failed to boat a fish today and Peter Fallon reports the New Meadows to be slow too.

Anyway, there have been some reports of footballs(Schoolie Bluefin Tuna) at the mouth of the Sheepscot. I will keep you posted regarding these beauties.

Tomorrow I fish twice so if I am not too beat I will update this blog again.

2009-07-13T17:39:00.000-07:00

Fishing in the early morning seems best right now with the tides we have. Herring can be caught reliably in Boothbay Harbor right before sun up and Striped Bass can not resist a herring drifted through current. Afternoon fishing has been slow. The fresh water and cold temperatures are hopefully now a thing of the past so theoretically all fishing will improve. In the mean time, getting up early seems to pay off.

Tim and Susan C from Lewiston took home their limit of Striped Bass and released more Saturday morning, all fish in the slot. They also got to see a beautiful sunrise and be on the water before the 30knot gusts that blew up later in the day. I picked them up on the dock at Smuggler's Cove Hotel where they were staying at 5am. I know people don't want to wake up early on their vacation but its well worth it.

fishing report

2009-07-08T15:45:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I fished with Terry, Susan and Parker Buchanan from Pennsylvania. You can see Parker above with the only Striper we managed to boat. In between all the catfish we caught, we had only a few other chances at Mr. Striper. The Buchanan's were terrific sports and they endured some cold winds and rain. But, we were the only ones out there and we had a good time together. I really hope I get to fish with them again.
Today's trip canceled because of the weather and tomorrow's trip canceled because of health reasons. That brings my number of canceled trips to 8. Considering I do between 50 to 60 trips a year this is a big number. Hopefully the weather gets better. The streak of bad weather we have had is longer then any I remember. The fishing has been affected for sure. Hopefully in the next 10 days the rivers will empty of their fresh water and the fishing will improve. I will keep you posted.

fishing report

2009-07-06T16:46:00.001-07:00

Over the weekend we found some good fish up river. This is surprising considering all the run off. On Saturday, Adam Harkins and I landed many fish all in the slot. On Sunday, Sam, Jane, and Ben Kaler with friend Dennis all caught fish.

The Mackeral, which have been prolific, are becoming scarce. Spent an hour or two with friends on Sunday afternoon and did not produce very much. This means I will begin early morning bait runs. to insure god fishing for my clients.

Anyway, Adam is pictured above. We caught all our fish this weekend in less then 3' of water.

Fishing Report

2009-06-11T19:25:00.000-07:00

There are fish here! Tonight, while listening to the Yankees lose again to the Red Sox, Adam Harkins and I caught about 100 Mackeral in maybe 30 minutes. You can see a little Mac Action in the video below. My favorite part of the video is the view of the fish finder loaded with Macs.

There are Stripers here too. Most of them are up river though I did get a reliable report of some fish on the beach to the West. Tonight, I also caught two keeper lobsters and this female lobster pictured above with eggs.

My fishing trip on the 40F/V Ella and Sadie over the Weekend for Rob Carbone's bachelor party was a blast. The fishing was not great but we did catch a variety of fish and enjoyed the comfort that boat provides for off shore fishing. Unfortunately, we did have one guy who got sea sick so we decided to head in early. However, I know the ground fishing is excellent if you are willing to put in the time and head down to the northern edge of Jeffrey's Bank.

Good News

2009-06-03T17:31:00.000-07:00

I have just woken up from a five hour nap. I was suffering flu like symptoms at school so I went home early and crashed. While I don't feel great I feel well enough to update everyone on the fishing. This fishing report is a long time over due.

First, the water temps are slowly warming up. As a result, Mackerel can be had out at the tip of Southport Island. You can see a picture of the lighthouse there below. With Mackerel around the Stripers should not be far behind. However, there are no reports as yet of any large schools up the Kennebec River which is usually the first place they turn up north of Casco Bay.

Tuna have also been reported down off the Northern edge of Jeffrey's Bank. Harpoon fisherman, over the weekend, from Southern Maine, brought in a dozen Giant Bluefin Tuna according to my friend John Manter.

This weekend I will surely get out fishing for pleasure. My friend Rob Carbone and several of his mates will be fishing together for a bachelor party. Depending on the weather and other factors we hope to go offshore for some ground fish. But, we may end up just fishing for Macs and Stripers. I will surely update the blog Sunday night.

Fishing Report

2009-05-21T18:00:00.000-07:00

Memorial Day has arrived. I have no clients and its just as well. My friend and fellow guide, Peter Fallon reports that while the Kennebec is filled with bait and the water temp is up, the fish just aren't there yet.

But, I believe the fish will show anytime now. Saco Bay Tackle, a tackle store just south of here, reports strong fishing both inshore and off. With luck I will get on the river sometime in the next week or so.

Unfortunately and fortunately, I have many things happening on land that will keep me off the Kennebec. However, I have good connections and so I will be able to keep everyone updated as to the quality of fishing in the midcoast.

Check out the cool shot of my friend and fellow guide Colin Yentsch with a warm water lobster he caught down in the Bahamas.

More Signs of Life

2009-05-15T17:57:00.000-07:00

Their have been some signs of life on the water. According to a Dresden resident the Alewives are stacked up right in town. The Eastern River flows through Dresden Mills and the alewives return there every year. Stripers are usually not too far behind. The Eastern River flows into the Kennebec and these returning Alewives are part of the reason our fishing can be so good in the late Spring.

Along the East side of southport the water temperature is 48 degrees. While this is cold, there are pockets of warmer water and lots of sea life. In the video below you can check out the birds. While our video camera took some great video you won't be able to tell that these birds are feeding on Brit, tiny herring. I saw several pockets of these birds in frenzy across the harbor too. If you are really hungry for more glimpes of life on the water in Boothbay, Maine or want to see the boy or the dog check out the video below titled Cruising out to Mouse.

Putting the Dock Out.jpg

2009-05-11T18:11:00.001-07:00

0511091642.jpg, originally uploaded by fishwhistle08.

If you look closely in the picture you can see Jerry Gamage putting another finger of this dock in place. This one man show uses the winch on his truck and a 13' skiff to haul out and put in this entire dock.

Water Temperature is 46 degrees right now in Boothbay Harbor but that's up a few degrees since we put the boat in a few weeks ago. Small fish are now visible under this dock. Lobster boats can be seen setting traps out in the harbor on a daily basis. Occasionally a center console will go by. Things are coming back to life on the water.

long over due

2009-04-28T17:40:00.000-07:00

The boat has been sitting here on this dock for two weeks. Its running great. Unfortunately, we have had only a few chances to get out on it. But, nearly everyday I walk by it with my boy. Seeing it resting in front of this lobster pound makes me feel really good. The pound, as you can see is covered in lobster traps. The dock, at which the boat sits, is my dear friend Rob Carbone's parents house. I love living here on Southport and being a part of it. We are super lucky to have this boat, the business, my job, each other, my good fortune goes on and on.

Of course we would be remiss to not mention here that none of these dreams come true would be possible without the support of our parents, both natural and in-laws. On this mother's day its easy to remember why we owe our mothers so much.

Anyway, the Stripers are definitely in southern Maine now. I have heard from several captains in the York area all the way up to the Saco River that fish are being caught. This means it would be possible that migrating fish might reach the Kennebec by Memorial Day weekend.

Preparing for Launch

2009-04-20T05:00:00.000-07:00

Over the weekend, my wife and I picked away at the usual chores associated with launching the boat. I checked and emptied the filters, put the muffs on the engine, and ran the motor. Then Gayle and I spent some time pressure washing the deck. This week we are going to scrub away some of the river slime on the side of the boat and wax too.

On Thursday Adam Harkins and I will install my radios in a new overhead electronics box. That's pretty much all that's left between now and putting the boat in the water. If that goes smoothly, the boat could go in Friday. We shall see...

Strange Tide

2009-04-19T05:10:00.000-07:00

On October 28th, 2008, the Boothbay Region experienced a strange tidal surge. The event was reported by national news outlets and many friends of mine from away called to hear if I had seen the strange wave or knew why it occurred. The Boston Globe explained that unusual tidal surges had happened before but were extremely rare. However the Globe's explanation, weather related, seems highly improbable to me. Some believe there may have been an underwater landslide, but this explanation seems to be in question too.

After researching the event a month ago, I came across the Boothbay Register's online link to their reporting. I found that one of my students, Alec Dodge, had actually filmed the action. I spoke with Alec and he admitted that he had only shown the video to his immediate family. Actually, the Weather Channel called our school looking for Alec and he lost their number.

Since then I have seen the video and I must say that its the most important video ever shot in Boothbay Harbor. You have to see it to believe it. Alec shot the video from Mill Cove, an area where the tide barely moves. Yet, one can see the tide moving like a rapid around the wrecks pictured in this google earth shot below.

Alec and another student of mine are now editing the video. He has made no decision about what he will do with the priceless footage. If Alec makes the video public I will surely share it here.

View Larger Map

Rhode Island Saltwater Fishing Show

2009-04-07T19:58:00.001-07:00

0404091246.jpg, originally uploaded by fishwhistle08.

Had a great time last weekend at the fishing show. My daughter loved the scavenger hunt and the casting.

Electronics

2009-03-29T19:53:00.000-07:00

If anyone has forgotten the sweet electronics we installed last summer check out the video.

Some News

2009-03-29T01:57:00.000-07:00

Soon there will be more fishing to talk about. Next week the fresh water fishing season opens here in Maine. I will be traveling to Providence RI to visit friends and family. While there I will check out the New England SaltWater Fishing Show.

Sometime this week the boat will lose its cover. Hopefully, we can begin soon, the building of the dry box and repositioning of the radios overhead. We have had a few moments in the past week when I thought it would be cool to have the boat in the water. My goal right now is to have the boat in by Fishermen's Festival which would be the weekend of April 24-26. The dry box will house the two way radio as well as a new XM compatible radio. Really looking forward to listening to baseball games or whatever while out on the water.

Fishermen's Festival is a local tradition dating back beyond my memory. There are some pretty interesting and unique events including trap hauling and crate running contests, a codfish relay, the Miss Shrimp Pageant, tug of war, pancake breakfasts, and the telling of tall tales. For me, its a time to get together with friends returning to Boothbay.

As the season gets closer, this blog will get more and more active. In fact, I plan to podcast in addition to the blog. You will be able to listen here and of course on this blog as well. You will also be able to subscribe to the podcast with Itunes to listen on your mp3 player or wherever. I hope to make these podcasts with my laptop, Skype, and a microphone attached to my Ipod. Here are some of the people and topics I plan to podcast with and about beginning in May.

1. Fishing reports from charter captains across Maine
As treasurer of the Maine Association of Charter Boat Captains I have access to captains across the state.

2. Nikki Tibbets ad Emily Spoffard
These two ladies are currently juniors at Boothbay Region Highschool. They both have their own boats and lobster licenses and are part of families who have been fishing here for almost 200 years.

3. Colin Yentcsh
A professional fishermen, Collin just recently returned from working on a sportfishing boat down in the Bahamas. His time in the Carribean sounds like ESPN on Sunday morning.

4. Adam Harkins
We are going to podcast with Adam on the water. Currently, Adam works for MSRC, but he cut his teeth on the back of lobster boats sterning and gill netting. He and I will head out to catch bugs together with our fleet of kids.

5. Matt and Mark Piccerelli
Fishing reports from Rhode Island. Matt is a captain and his brother Mark is a part owner of a 30' sport fishing boat with twin Verados.

6. Clients(You Maybe?)
Perhaps some of my clients will want to get in on the podcasting and help me report about our time on the water.

7. If anybody else has any ideas or requests feel free to leave a comment or email me. Thanks.

The last piece of news is that the boy(Evan) has begun to crawl!

Spring?

2009-03-08T17:47:00.000-07:00

This weekend's weather was like a desert oasis. In the video you will see my daughter and her buddy Isabel without jackets. If you turn the volume up you can hear the birds too. Its nice. It won't be long before we get to talk about fishing.

Below is an aerial view of where the girls were sea glass hunting.

View Larger Map

Sequin Island Care Takers Needed!

2009-03-05T16:52:00.000-08:00

Ever want to spend the Summer on an Island? Check out this page about Seguin. It looks like they need someone for the Summer after this one. Seguin is a very pretty place. I have never set foot on the island but I really want to. I once took a group of sightseers out there and they said it was incredible. Since there is no dock and the beach is tough for getting in and out I was surprised to learn that there is a gift shop on Seguin. The video below gives you some idea of how pretty it is.

Ocean Point

2009-03-05T16:42:00.001-08:00

Ocean Point, originally uploaded by AdolfChrist.

A student of mine took this shot from Ocean Point. In the distance you can make out the Cuckholds Light and Sequin behind it. Here is a cool site to learn and see more about the lighthouse.

2009-03-04T03:33:00.001-08:00

newsletter, originally uploaded by fishwhistle08.

This year's winter newsletter is finally done and printed. If you are on the Sweet Action Client list you should be getting yours soon. Much thanks goes to Bess Hey, my mother in law, for having the newsletters printed and then driving them from Gorham ME to Southport ME on a Tuesday night. The newsletter has the usual stories about fishing in the summer and a whole page dedicated to Smelt fishing too. If you want a copy of the newsletter please send me an email at wolotsky@sweetactioncharters.com.

Monday was a snow day putting my last school day this year at June 19. We got about 10" and it still feels and looks like winter around here, Yesterday, I asked students what they did with their extra time off. The best response was "I went to Irving(convenience store) on my snow machine."

Sea Weed Harvesting on the Afternoon Walk

2009-03-01T07:31:00.001-08:00

0228091604.jpg, originally uploaded by fishwhistle08.

Yesterday, I was surprised to find this boat harvesting seaweed by my friend Hal's place. The Harvestor had a bunch of seaweed in floating bags tied to a mooring about 200' north of his current position. Sea Weed Harvesting is a bit controversial as many think harvesting the rockweed damages the coast. I've seen this guy out in the summer but did not realize he harvests year round.

Yesterday was quite warm in the morning but now we are supposed to get 10" to 14" of snow later tonight. The temps are supposed to stay cold all week so I may get one more chance at Ice Fishing next weekend. We are going to haul the smelt shed off the ice on Tuesday.

out towards ocean point with my cell phone from Capitol Island

2009-02-25T14:23:00.001-08:00

out towards ocean point, originally uploaded by fishwhistle08.

Its super pretty around here with the new snow we got on Monday. It won't be long before we live in mud city however.

Anyway, on most days after work I walk the dog and this is one of the many views along my way. As long as you are geared up you can not find a better place to walk the dog in the Winter than Capitol Island, Maine. Geared up means covered head to toe and wearing cramp-ons.

Macdaddy

2009-02-21T08:30:00.001-08:00

Macdaddy, originally uploaded by fishwhistle.

Here is a great picture of a Mac with the Sabiki stuck right in its nose. This Macdaddy is a nice size for a live bit. Fishing with live ones is my favorite style of fishing. I would expect to be catching Macs regularly by the second week of June. However the Macs could show up sooner if we get some warm weather in May.

Sweet Morning

2009-02-17T11:20:00.001-08:00

1218080707.jpg, originally uploaded by fishwhistle08.

Early morning from our front porch. Time to put the Christmas lights away.

music video

2009-02-15T10:02:00.001-08:00

A music video with a few fishing pics from last summer

Voicethred about putting out the smelt shed

2009-02-15T09:52:00.000-08:00

Short Video Daddy Daughter Smelting Night

2009-02-15T09:48:00.000-08:00

Winter Update

2009-02-15T09:36:00.000-08:00

Its February break for me and anybody else in public school here in Maine. Time for me to work on my winter newsletter. Last weekend I did some ice fishing here in Boothbay and also at my smelt shed.

Lately I have been thinking a lot about the upcoming salt water season. I hope to do a lot more spring fishing. I am hoping to spend some time in May locating flounder.

A narration of a fishing trip in VA

2009-01-19T02:46:00.001-08:00

Flickr

2008-12-18T18:16:00.001-08:00

This is a test post from , a fancy photo sharing thing.