[Got Stripers]

Originally Posted by Mike P

I honestly think that I never killed 10% of the bass that I released, but based on what I saw over the years, I have no problem believing it as an across the board figure.

I started noticing a decline in the fishery around 2010. By 2012, I figured, that's it for me. I walked away and never looked back.

In fact, some of my best fishing memories, the most fun I ever had, were those all-tide bluefish blitzes on MV, in the late 1980s and 1990s. I had a small group of friends that I fished with, off Islanders and natives, and we had a blast catching teen blues from the beach. Bass were an obsession, usually a solo quest, and I'd often leave pissed off after a bad night. I can't say that it was always fun.

Those big blue days were insane. For almost a month my buddies and I would motor just outside Scituate harbor and decide which endless bird action we wanted to go in. For as for as you could see north or south, birds were everywhere and we caught double digit gators until our arms were sore.