macojoe
09-22-2003, 01:29 PM
This was to be a start of a very interesting day/night!! I and Pete (the cohog guy) were to leave here at about 1 pm on Sat and go to M&D’S Bait and tackle in Wareham. We would me Mark from Taunton about 6 or 7 pm for a night of fishing at the Canal. Mark has fished the canal for years and no’s it well, which we find out! And decided that it is a little to well for are likening!!
Well we got to M&D’s about 2:20pm and this was a cook out for the members of the Stribed-Bass.com site. When we arrived there was only 4 other guys there and we all got to no each other a little. We went into the bait store and had a look around. Mike the owner has one of the nicer bait stores on the cape and I only wish I lived closer to him!! This is the guy who had a FREE rod building class at his own house. This is how I learned to build rods the right way. I had already built a couple of rods before I went there but they were not as nice as I wanted to make, but very useable, and I still have them! And they have accounted for plenty of fish.
Well it didn’t take long for people to start showing up. Everyone brought something to eat. I brought some Mac salad and Pasta salad. Other stuff included Marinated Duck, Deer burgers, Deer sausage, Hot Dogs, Burgers, Potato Salad, Striped Bass, Brownies, Cookies, Soda, Chips, ect ect………….
We all ate like pigs!! At about 4pm we all started to head out to are secret fishing holes to see who would be the big winner! The fish to be is a 41 ½ inch Bass. That was caught in the spring leg of this tournament.
Pete and I got some bait (live eels and Mackerel) and headed to the canal to see what we might see. When we arrived we went for a walk and asked around to see who was getting what. No one was getting much on the east end so we decided to move on. We got to the herring run and this is were we would start the night. Pete did not have any fishing line on his reel and I had a spool of 20# test line so he spooled up with that. This was way to light for the canal, but all we had. After we started to fish I gave Mark a call to see were he was at. He was getting ready and would meet us at Bud’s bait and tackle in Bourne. So after an hour or so we decided to get are crap toghter and head for Bud’s. When we got there Mark was just pulling in. He said are you guys ready to fish or what!! We want big fish only tonight!! He said we were going to the best place on the canal!! I no by this comment that we were going to go some where that was going to be a pain to get to, cause all the good spots are!
Mark asked if we brought are waders because we are going to get wet!! I had mine but Pete did not have any with him. Mark said if we were to go to this place we would all need waders or we would not be able to get there. So thank god Wal-Mart was just up the st. and Pete and I went to get him some waders and would meet Mark at the area we were to fish.
When we got to W-M we found the waders right away and bought them for $79.00 which is a pretty good deal for Neroprem. We were now ready for what ever Mark was going to throw at us!! (Yea that’s what we thought) We meet him at the (some places can't be told). We got are stuff all set and he said come here? We went to the water edge and he says see that light over there?? It was about 300 yards away in the canal it self, we said yea, he said that’s were we are headed!! I said what!! Yep and this is the only way to get there. We have to get into the canal it self and wade along the rocks on the side all the way there.
For those of you who have never seen the canal it is a man made canal some 7 miles long and 50 feet deep in the center. I am not sure how wide it is but the water zips thru there screaming!! I can remember one night in my old boat, when we were out there when the fog came in and we started to go home and we could not see are way. I was going about 10 miles an hour so not to hit anything. Well after about 10 min. I could see the next buoy and when we got to it, it was the same buoy we started at!!
Ok so now we descend into the canal with rod and a bucket of live eels, and anything else we needed for tackle in side the buckets with the eels. We start off with Mark in the lead, then Pete and my self in the rear. First we are in the water and then back up on to the rocks, then its back in the water. We have to be very quiet as the rich people that own all the houses above us will call the cops, and then we will screwed. So Pete was the first to trip, and I thought he was a gonna !! But he was able to grab a rock and save him self from going under. Then Mark almost went, but he has about $700 worth of clothing on just for this purpose and will just float away if he does get caught up in the current. I was going along slip sliding away, and walking on moving rocks. And let me tell you it is not fun knowing that one wrong move on the rocks under you that you can’t see you are going down!! You only have one hand as the other is holding the bucket with all you gear in it and not to mention the $250 rod and reel that you would rather go in the water then to lose that rod!
Well after about 45 min of Navy Seal training we make it to are distention. Mark and Pete start to fish first as I sit and try to catch my breath. I also wanted to think about the trip we just made and wonder how Stupid we are?? And then think about all the life threatening things I have done in the past all in the name of Fishing!!
We were there at the perfect time and place and tide. But it was the wrong tide in the meaning it was the highest low tide and the lowest high tide of the year. Which means that the current in the canal it self was moving very slow. In this area that we were at it is like a small cul-de-sac on one side. And this is what makes it a great place to fish. The fish pull off to the side to rest from the running water, and so does the bait. So at the rt time the fish and bait and us would all be tighter! Well being that the tide is going so slow the fish have no need to pull off the canal to rest. So all we saw were some bait and smaller fish jumping. Pete was the first to hook up and he quickly loosed the fish. As I said in the beginning of this story he had no line and the line we had was to light for canal fishing. O well I now start to fish with Mark while Pete is retying. Mark gets what seems to be a ok size fish but it gets off. I am feeling a few bumps but nothing yet? Pete gets in the water and casts right over Marks and my lines!! A$$---E!! Now we have one big mess. So after about 10 min. of cutting lines and stuff we are now fishing again. Mark gets another hook up and he gets it to shore it is a 24 inch striper, But we are after big stuff and he releases it. We fish awhile longer and get nothing. There are plenty of smaller fish on top but nothing worth getting. The tide has become slack and it is time to go home.
Now you would think this to be the end of the story, NOT!! Now we have to go back. Mark says that now that we are going home it won’t matter if the rich people see us. So we walk off the rocks and thru some chest tall eel grass. And up a short little path on to a road. It is a privet road and we were back to are trucks in about 5 min. Pete and I look at each other and say what the f---!! We crawled like river rats taking are lives in hand for nearly an hour just so at the end we could walk out just as if we were walking in are back yards.
I guess you have to be a fishermen to understand why we did it in the first place. You really have to love what you are doing to do something like this. And I really do love the sport of fishing!! So much so that I spend all my time and money on the sport and it is still not enough for me. I am a boat person 2nd, but with all my heart I love to be on the water, weather by my big boat, shore, or even a little row boat, I want to be on the water as much as possible.
Well I left the house at 1pm and it is now 1:30 am and I am dead tired. But I had to get this story down before I forgot the details (as if I ever will) I have not kept much of a log this year but this will be going in it for future reading.
I hope you all enjoy this story! I am not much of a writer and I have left some small details out as it is very difficult to tell them all. Stuff like the faces we were making and the personal digs at each other. But it was all done in fun! And I would have never missed it. A great day and night with two of my best friends doing what I love to do, Does it get any better??
Well we got to M&D’s about 2:20pm and this was a cook out for the members of the Stribed-Bass.com site. When we arrived there was only 4 other guys there and we all got to no each other a little. We went into the bait store and had a look around. Mike the owner has one of the nicer bait stores on the cape and I only wish I lived closer to him!! This is the guy who had a FREE rod building class at his own house. This is how I learned to build rods the right way. I had already built a couple of rods before I went there but they were not as nice as I wanted to make, but very useable, and I still have them! And they have accounted for plenty of fish.
Well it didn’t take long for people to start showing up. Everyone brought something to eat. I brought some Mac salad and Pasta salad. Other stuff included Marinated Duck, Deer burgers, Deer sausage, Hot Dogs, Burgers, Potato Salad, Striped Bass, Brownies, Cookies, Soda, Chips, ect ect………….
We all ate like pigs!! At about 4pm we all started to head out to are secret fishing holes to see who would be the big winner! The fish to be is a 41 ½ inch Bass. That was caught in the spring leg of this tournament.
Pete and I got some bait (live eels and Mackerel) and headed to the canal to see what we might see. When we arrived we went for a walk and asked around to see who was getting what. No one was getting much on the east end so we decided to move on. We got to the herring run and this is were we would start the night. Pete did not have any fishing line on his reel and I had a spool of 20# test line so he spooled up with that. This was way to light for the canal, but all we had. After we started to fish I gave Mark a call to see were he was at. He was getting ready and would meet us at Bud’s bait and tackle in Bourne. So after an hour or so we decided to get are crap toghter and head for Bud’s. When we got there Mark was just pulling in. He said are you guys ready to fish or what!! We want big fish only tonight!! He said we were going to the best place on the canal!! I no by this comment that we were going to go some where that was going to be a pain to get to, cause all the good spots are!
Mark asked if we brought are waders because we are going to get wet!! I had mine but Pete did not have any with him. Mark said if we were to go to this place we would all need waders or we would not be able to get there. So thank god Wal-Mart was just up the st. and Pete and I went to get him some waders and would meet Mark at the area we were to fish.
When we got to W-M we found the waders right away and bought them for $79.00 which is a pretty good deal for Neroprem. We were now ready for what ever Mark was going to throw at us!! (Yea that’s what we thought) We meet him at the (some places can't be told). We got are stuff all set and he said come here? We went to the water edge and he says see that light over there?? It was about 300 yards away in the canal it self, we said yea, he said that’s were we are headed!! I said what!! Yep and this is the only way to get there. We have to get into the canal it self and wade along the rocks on the side all the way there.
For those of you who have never seen the canal it is a man made canal some 7 miles long and 50 feet deep in the center. I am not sure how wide it is but the water zips thru there screaming!! I can remember one night in my old boat, when we were out there when the fog came in and we started to go home and we could not see are way. I was going about 10 miles an hour so not to hit anything. Well after about 10 min. I could see the next buoy and when we got to it, it was the same buoy we started at!!
Ok so now we descend into the canal with rod and a bucket of live eels, and anything else we needed for tackle in side the buckets with the eels. We start off with Mark in the lead, then Pete and my self in the rear. First we are in the water and then back up on to the rocks, then its back in the water. We have to be very quiet as the rich people that own all the houses above us will call the cops, and then we will screwed. So Pete was the first to trip, and I thought he was a gonna !! But he was able to grab a rock and save him self from going under. Then Mark almost went, but he has about $700 worth of clothing on just for this purpose and will just float away if he does get caught up in the current. I was going along slip sliding away, and walking on moving rocks. And let me tell you it is not fun knowing that one wrong move on the rocks under you that you can’t see you are going down!! You only have one hand as the other is holding the bucket with all you gear in it and not to mention the $250 rod and reel that you would rather go in the water then to lose that rod!
Well after about 45 min of Navy Seal training we make it to are distention. Mark and Pete start to fish first as I sit and try to catch my breath. I also wanted to think about the trip we just made and wonder how Stupid we are?? And then think about all the life threatening things I have done in the past all in the name of Fishing!!
We were there at the perfect time and place and tide. But it was the wrong tide in the meaning it was the highest low tide and the lowest high tide of the year. Which means that the current in the canal it self was moving very slow. In this area that we were at it is like a small cul-de-sac on one side. And this is what makes it a great place to fish. The fish pull off to the side to rest from the running water, and so does the bait. So at the rt time the fish and bait and us would all be tighter! Well being that the tide is going so slow the fish have no need to pull off the canal to rest. So all we saw were some bait and smaller fish jumping. Pete was the first to hook up and he quickly loosed the fish. As I said in the beginning of this story he had no line and the line we had was to light for canal fishing. O well I now start to fish with Mark while Pete is retying. Mark gets what seems to be a ok size fish but it gets off. I am feeling a few bumps but nothing yet? Pete gets in the water and casts right over Marks and my lines!! A$$---E!! Now we have one big mess. So after about 10 min. of cutting lines and stuff we are now fishing again. Mark gets another hook up and he gets it to shore it is a 24 inch striper, But we are after big stuff and he releases it. We fish awhile longer and get nothing. There are plenty of smaller fish on top but nothing worth getting. The tide has become slack and it is time to go home.
Now you would think this to be the end of the story, NOT!! Now we have to go back. Mark says that now that we are going home it won’t matter if the rich people see us. So we walk off the rocks and thru some chest tall eel grass. And up a short little path on to a road. It is a privet road and we were back to are trucks in about 5 min. Pete and I look at each other and say what the f---!! We crawled like river rats taking are lives in hand for nearly an hour just so at the end we could walk out just as if we were walking in are back yards.
I guess you have to be a fishermen to understand why we did it in the first place. You really have to love what you are doing to do something like this. And I really do love the sport of fishing!! So much so that I spend all my time and money on the sport and it is still not enough for me. I am a boat person 2nd, but with all my heart I love to be on the water, weather by my big boat, shore, or even a little row boat, I want to be on the water as much as possible.
Well I left the house at 1pm and it is now 1:30 am and I am dead tired. But I had to get this story down before I forgot the details (as if I ever will) I have not kept much of a log this year but this will be going in it for future reading.
I hope you all enjoy this story! I am not much of a writer and I have left some small details out as it is very difficult to tell them all. Stuff like the faces we were making and the personal digs at each other. But it was all done in fun! And I would have never missed it. A great day and night with two of my best friends doing what I love to do, Does it get any better??