Block Island show Sunday 9AM

Just watched it Ross, it was a great show.

good show.. where is spring?!?!

Good show. They got nothing but blues the first day, and then when the islander, Dave, came along the next day, they smoked the bass.
All light taclke day-fishing with live eels.

Can ya see that guy and the camera crews going into twin maples..The shop owner while a nice man,is not the warmest of folks.Definetly a Islander..I found that part of the segment amusing.I bet they woke him up at 11 am...

Can ya see that guy and the camera crews going into twin maples..The shop owner while a nice man,is not the warmest of folks.Definetly a Islander..I found that part of the segment amusing.I bet they woke him up at 11 am...

That's just how John is. Been on that island all his life. Seen it all. Done it all. His father Mac before him. Check out Leo Orsi's book "Striper Chronicles" to learn more about them.

Can ya see that guy and the camera crews going into twin maples..The shop owner while a nice man,is not the warmest of folks.Definetly a Islander..I found that part of the segment amusing.I bet they woke him up at 11 am...

NIB,
I’ve known shop owner John Swienton a long time and he’s always been like that – just squinting under the long bill of his sword fisherman’s hat – you’d be like that too if you had to deal with all the summer time yahoos over there. When the shop is not occupied you can ring a bell outside the door to notify him. He stops whatever he’s doing in his home which is next door, opens the shop and waits for these guys to figure out what they want – many times they just want info – and then after 30 minutes they leave without BUYING anything. If you’re going to make a guy open his shop and be brazen enough to ask for “hot spot” info, for god sakes BUY something first!

His dad Mac gave me my first pointers about the island and directed me to my first island bass. I watched as his physical condition deteriorated over the years and it was a sad day when he passed. Really miss him.

As far as this TV episode goes I wish they would have shown more of the island – best parts were scenes from the bluffs and of the dead fish photos on the Twin Maples walls of fame. I recognized a few of the fishermen - one was striped-bass.com member (rebaalk).

DZ

I agree DZ; that was some of the cool part, even the kayak sweetwater stuff; there is a NCSWFC member who goes over there and just freshwater fishes...


I thought it was entertaining, but I'm still not a huge fan of light tackle bassing (with what, 12lb spin gear?) seems like a lot of wear and tear on the bass, especially if they are into big numbers of fish...

I caught some of the other show; fishing adventurer, which I dug. Very much how we fished/fish down south w/ Tautog01; rent a boat, or walk the beach fishing for whatever bites, and happy to catch them! No pretentious guides, just fishing and having fun!

Block is also a sweetwater paradise!

One of my favorite freshwater stories happened when Zeke Silva and I were fishing on Block Island during late May/earlyJune back in the mid 80s. A few of the New York surf gang came driving by us in their buggies one morning as Zeke and I were coming out of a fresh water pond (Fresh Pond) in our waders. They stopped to chat with us - we told them we were catching largemouth bass and pike during the day and stripers after dark. One of the guys looks at us and says "No fish is safe out here with you guys around".

Fresh Pond had a good pike population back then - the state introduced them to control the yellow perch. Zeke's largest pike went over 10 lbs. We didn't get much sleep over there in May/June. We’d surf fish all night then catch dawn on the ponds and bass fish until 10 am or so - then sleep in the buggy till 3 or 4pm – eat dinner and catch the evening bite on the ponds – once it was dark we were back wading the boulders in the salt - talk about zombies!

The freshwater fishing is often overlooked out there, but it can be pretty great. A few years back a friend and I took a canoe into a small pond and nailed the largemouth. We had one about every cast and some had some good size. We paddled to the middle of the pond and were able to reach every inch of the shore from there.

It is a good break from pounding around in the boat, or trekking miles on beaches covered in bowling ball like rocks.

That's just how John is. Been on that island all his life. Seen it all. Done it all. His father Mac before him. Check out Leo Orsi's book "Striper Chronicles" to learn more about them.


I hope I did not come out in a condescending manner
I think he's just typical.You gotta love it.
I purposely bought something every time in.NIB knows what makes the world go round..Even on a Island..
After a while I think he looked forward to our meetings just to shoot the bull.
He's a good guy..
I remember reading something on the shop in the book.Seems I am getting more forgetful these days.I guess I will have t reread it.

John is unique- DZ hit the nail on the head- I have seen John give the same talk about 20 times to normal tourist folk on how to catch fluke at the channel or how to catch a schoolie here or there.. I can relate as I have to do the same thing in my line of work...

One time I siezed up my spinning reel and Mac worked on it for a half hour and charged me $5 - not too many like him.
Mac once kept NBC Anchor Brian Williams waiting to buy a boatload of lobsters while he explained fluke fishing to two kids on bikes buying bait.

One time I siezed up my spinning reel and Mac worked on it for a half hour and charged me $5 - not too many like him.
Mac once kept NBC Anchor Brian Williams waiting to buy a boatload of lobsters while he explained fluke fishing to two kids on bikes buying bait.

I love it! That's a great story

That's just how John is. Been on that island all his life. Seen it all. Done it all. His father Mac before him. Check out Leo Orsi's book "Striper Chronicles" to learn more about them.

About the only interesting part of the book; that and the part about Zeke's on Jamestown.

I hope I did not come out in a condescending manner


Not at all!

Speaking of buying in there, ever see those home -made looking black, green and pink needles hanging next to the Lupos? BUY SOME! :btu:

Not at all!

Speaking of buying in there, ever see those home -made looking black, green and pink needles hanging next to the Lupos? BUY SOME! :btu:


Ya, I have a fe they are not the neatest but they catch.

Scuds?
They are the best kept needle secret...

Ya, I have a fe they are not the neatest but they catch.

The scud needles: I know they don't look pretty but builder Marc Ducharme is from the old school. His plugs adhere to my old adage which is "Don't give me pretty - just give me practicality". Marc started making his homemade needles in the late 1980s. One of the most unique things about his needlefish plugs is that they were developed and designed "specifically" with the Block Island environment in mind. Of course they also work in other areas but they really excel in the shallow boulder fields of the west side I call home. For his needles to be carried in Twin Maples is a testament to their effectiveness.

DZ

and, if you are picky, you can poke through and find some 'unique' colors and shapes! :D

they are my inspiration when I make plugs; they aren't pretty but they catch!

FYI, anyone who missed it. The episode is supposed to be rerun Saturday morning at 7.

Interesting show. I liked the host, but Capt Rich was a little too boastful and exaggerates a bit much for my taste.
Ex:
- At the start he tells about how he uses the fishfinder and that he can tell bass from other fish; then they only hook bluefish every time he finds bass on day one? Yet he seemed convinced that they were bass when they hooked up.:huh:
- He considers 20# line to be "light tackle" eeling? :confused:
- His 30# bass look more like sub 20s to me.:yawn: The last bass caught by the host seemed pretty big though.:kewl:
- He endlessly ribs the host about his fishing ability, yet he had to get a guide to find bass on day 2. :doh:

Nothing wrong with the actual doing, just the boasting/BSing. BS is like salt on food; a little makes it interesting, too much is distasteful.

I like that he had good energy for TV, and explains the techniques, conditions and equipment that they use. Too many shows just show hookup through release.

All in all a good show.

He did go overboard ribbing the host - Byron. I wonder if he would have done that with a bigger name. I also wonder if that hurts his chance to guide any other TV fisherman around BI

He did go overboard ribbing the host - Byron. I wonder if he would have done that with a bigger name. I also wonder if that hurts his chance to guide any other TV fisherman around BI

Probably won't affect him. His guiding area is Western LI sound. Also, he has is own show, Northeast Angling with co host Andy ?. Capt Andy is quieter and seems to keep things realistic. Together they have a pretty good show, though the last one was about catching scup (iow, bait).

Maybe he was just trying to upstage host Byron, the freshwater bass guy.

FYI, anyone who missed it. The episode is supposed to be rerun Saturday morning at 7.

Good morning. It's on again.