Striper Talk Striped Bass Fishing, Surfcasting, Boating - View Single Post

Mr. Sandman · 01-24-2007, 06:42 PM

I've been biting my tongue not saying anything, but that is difficult for me.

IMO OTW did slight disservice to their viewers/readers with that show. They made it appear like they were fishing in a salt pond...Fun to watch with guys casting eels off the bow and ML hanging off the side in a wetsuit but it was a really nice day, problem is you don't get too many like that, esp in the fall, esp on the weekends. I fish it each year a about a doz times each season and if the wind/seas pick up it ain't like what they showed. Just ask anyone who goes there on a regular basis.

1) If the wind blows decent out of the SW ...you ain't fishin in 13' of water on that side. I don’t care how big your boat is…

2) Those rock piles to the north known as "old man" as you approach Nomans…the seas build and will crest and even break in heavy weather. To feel the boat heave upward like that and come from nowhere is something very weird .
3) The ride home in a CC can be an "experience" in itself, and might add to your list of "have I got a story for you..." tales. While it doesn’t appear that far it can be a long run in bad weather and it can get pretty darn sloppy and passing through devils bridge when the tide is honkin out with a SW sea running in can add some real excitement to your day, esp in a CC. Know what the tide and wind are doing. I am sure there are lots of guys here that have stories of the wall of slop at the bridge.

4) Don't head out there in an 18'er, even if it is calm. I know you could but don’t.

I think they should have stressed how serious and tricky the conditions can get out there. They might have said something but it didn’t stick in my head. There are guys with a lot of experience that have ended up on the rocks and lost their boat and nearly their life. A few years ago a comm. fishermen had his 24'er with twin OB'’s overturned ejecting them both in the water, they had to swim for the beach. There is a lot you don’t hear about too.
If you go for the first time, go on a bluebird day with someone who has fished it and leave before the afternoon wind picks up. My advice is if the forecast has the number 15 or above in it…forgetaboutit.

Here is the globe article about the 24’er..

Then there was the case last August of a fishing boat near Nomans Island (off the southwest corner of Martha's Vineyard) on a day described as moderately inclement with winds between 10-15 knots out of the south. There was a small-craft advisory, but those conditions rarely keep boats from going out.

Scott Terry, a 52-year-old commercial fisherman from Martha's Vineyard and his teenage mate, Mitchell Pachico, left the dock before dawn on a 24-foot twin-outboard fishing boat. As they made their way from Gay Head toward Nomans -- a former Naval bombing target about 3 miles off Martha's Vineyard -- Terry said a ``good swell" began to run, but nothing severe. A lobsterman pulling his traps in the area, says Terry, who added that while he goes to the best fishing grounds possible, he would never test himself, his crew or his boat with conditions he considers dangerous.

Terry and Pachico were bouncing live eels off the bottom to entice striped bass, when, out of nowhere, a wall of water 15-20 feet high rolled into them, lifting the boat to the top just as the wave crested, flipping the boat. Though not a rogue because of its location, the wave did conform to one rogue characteristic: It was more than twice the height of any of the other waves.

Terry and Pacheco saved themselves by clinging to the bottom of the boat as long as they could, then making it safely onto the rocky shore of Nomans, where the Coast Guard picked them up in a helicopter. Luck and clear thinking helped save them, but if the incident occurred farther offshore, the outcome might well have been different.

Some people believe the sudden upheaval of water might have been created by the meeting of a coastal riptide and a large, incoming swell. Terry, an experienced fisherman, told the Globe last August:

``I've seen lots of swells and a lot of big waves. I've fished in a lot of tough conditions before. But I've never seen anything like that. It just came out of nowhere."

ref:http://www.boston.com/sports/article...ise/?page=full

01-24-2007, 06:42 PM	#20
Mr. Sandman Registered User iTrader: (0) Join Date: Sep 2001 Posts: 7,649	I've been biting my tongue not saying anything, but that is difficult for me. IMO OTW did slight disservice to their viewers/readers with that show. They made it appear like they were fishing in a salt pond...Fun to watch with guys casting eels off the bow and ML hanging off the side in a wetsuit but it was a really nice day, problem is you don't get too many like that, esp in the fall, esp on the weekends. I fish it each year a about a doz times each season and if the wind/seas pick up it ain't like what they showed. Just ask anyone who goes there on a regular basis. 1) If the wind blows decent out of the SW ...you ain't fishin in 13' of water on that side. I don’t care how big your boat is… 2) Those rock piles to the north known as "old man" as you approach Nomans…the seas build and will crest and even break in heavy weather. To feel the boat heave upward like that and come from nowhere is something very weird . 3) The ride home in a CC can be an "experience" in itself, and might add to your list of "have I got a story for you..." tales. While it doesn’t appear that far it can be a long run in bad weather and it can get pretty darn sloppy and passing through devils bridge when the tide is honkin out with a SW sea running in can add some real excitement to your day, esp in a CC. Know what the tide and wind are doing. I am sure there are lots of guys here that have stories of the wall of slop at the bridge. 4) Don't head out there in an 18'er, even if it is calm. I know you could but don’t. I think they should have stressed how serious and tricky the conditions can get out there. They might have said something but it didn’t stick in my head. There are guys with a lot of experience that have ended up on the rocks and lost their boat and nearly their life. A few years ago a comm. fishermen had his 24'er with twin OB'’s overturned ejecting them both in the water, they had to swim for the beach. There is a lot you don’t hear about too. If you go for the first time, go on a bluebird day with someone who has fished it and leave before the afternoon wind picks up. My advice is if the forecast has the number 15 or above in it…forgetaboutit. Here is the globe article about the 24’er.. Then there was the case last August of a fishing boat near Nomans Island (off the southwest corner of Martha's Vineyard) on a day described as moderately inclement with winds between 10-15 knots out of the south. There was a small-craft advisory, but those conditions rarely keep boats from going out. Scott Terry, a 52-year-old commercial fisherman from Martha's Vineyard and his teenage mate, Mitchell Pachico, left the dock before dawn on a 24-foot twin-outboard fishing boat. As they made their way from Gay Head toward Nomans -- a former Naval bombing target about 3 miles off Martha's Vineyard -- Terry said a ``good swell" began to run, but nothing severe. A lobsterman pulling his traps in the area, says Terry, who added that while he goes to the best fishing grounds possible, he would never test himself, his crew or his boat with conditions he considers dangerous. Terry and Pachico were bouncing live eels off the bottom to entice striped bass, when, out of nowhere, a wall of water 15-20 feet high rolled into them, lifting the boat to the top just as the wave crested, flipping the boat. Though not a rogue because of its location, the wave did conform to one rogue characteristic: It was more than twice the height of any of the other waves. Terry and Pacheco saved themselves by clinging to the bottom of the boat as long as they could, then making it safely onto the rocky shore of Nomans, where the Coast Guard picked them up in a helicopter. Luck and clear thinking helped save them, but if the incident occurred farther offshore, the outcome might well have been different. Some people believe the sudden upheaval of water might have been created by the meeting of a coastal riptide and a large, incoming swell. Terry, an experienced fisherman, told the Globe last August: ``I've seen lots of swells and a lot of big waves. I've fished in a lot of tough conditions before. But I've never seen anything like that. It just came out of nowhere." ref:http://www.boston.com/sports/article...ise/?page=full Last edited by Mr. Sandman; 01-25-2007 at 09:12 AM..