Stellwagon Trawlers
 

There were at least a dozen trawlers out there yesterday (probably every day), mostly middle bank and north raping the top of the bank. In all the miles we traveled yesterday covering most of the bank E-W & N-S we never saw a sign of bait on the scope.....better hope the bait replenishes in the next couple weeks.

Do you mean trawlers? :smash:

Yup!:smash: Give me a break it is Friday, snowing and I spent all day yesterday on the bank looking for fish!

When you say trawlers, are you talkinging about the big mid water herring boats, or just bottom draggers?

I think they were all the mid water type.

They're draggers... Trying to get the last fishing in before the rolling closures start today.

Might be a few midwater trawlers, but as you said, the bait (and fish) have been scarce there the past few weeks so I don't see why many would be there.

these were smaller boats, didn't look like the big midwater boats. just wierd not to see any bait ot there

So any fish caught?

lots of cod, no haddock

Isn't stellwagen was a year round closure for groundfish . . . Says so here

http://www.nero.noaa.gov/nero/fisher...s/GOM_RCA2.jpg

That closed area highlighted is east of Stellwagon.

May 1 the Stellwagen sector opens to commercial fishing again.

I am sure that the "trawlers" being referred to are scallopers. They are not shut out of the rolling closed area.

FYI all of the fish on today's gloucester auction "scratched" meaning it was a pile of junk with no demand. So they're all out there killing themselves and not making a penny on it.

Scallops is what I heard too.

Where's it go in this case? Make fish sticks?

what causes it to be scratched? beat up in the nets or poor handling?

Lack of demand and soft spawny fish. There's only a few people who can take really bad quality fish.

They'll try and sell it again today. The yields on the spawny fish suck.

If you ever want to know how how much fish is on the auction you can call the hail line 978-281-9600 for Gloucester and 508-999-0153 for New Bedford. It's a recorded message telling you what's available.

Sometimes it gives the boat name. They'll say 40k lbs coming in on the Harmony. The harmony is a dragger and the fish quality sucks. "Cape Boats" means nice hook fish or nicer long line fish.

From articles in the New Bedford Paper the Mid-Water Fleet that fishes for Nor-Pal is tied up and not fishing. The are/were Mid-Water Trawlers.

Good.