Boat fish vs. Shore fish

[Flaptail]

I am sick to death over this boat fish don't count crap! I fish from boats, surf, jetties, rocks, marsh edges, salt creeks and the surf. You know what? Each one is difficult, some more than others but to me a fish taken from a boat is just as valued as a fish from the surf. Surf fishermen are die hards to be sure. As John Cole said in his great tome "Striper", "surf fisherman learn to expect nothing when they go out to fish". I know I do. (especially these two past seasons) but anyone who owns a boat knows what being a die hard is as well. Waves, wind, fog are more the norm than not. I once had the opportunity to spend some time at the Chatham Light CG Station. I asked the chief Petty officer there how many days a year is it calm, on average, out in front of the station. Without hesitation he told me,"nine".

If you have ever been in close to the rocks at Cobbly Beach on Pasque when the southwest was whistling and the ocean swell was with it you know what bad is. But you go in there because those are the very best conditions to lay a plug in there as the bass get all cranked up. The best bassmen go in there with no hesitation even at the risk of losing a skeg or takeing a blade off the prop. Same goes for off Monomoy in a Southeast or Northeast blow. You catch a big one on your boat be proud, it shows you learned something. Same goes for the surf.

Getting beat to death in the surf or beat to death on a heaving rolling deck it's all the same. Frank Woolner once told me that it's ok to know how to surfcast well or troll well but the truly great Striper man is the one who masters them all.

[thefishingfreak]

well said
mike

[JohnR]

You just want to stir crap up because there is no poli talk...

AND you said you fish from rocks and jetties? Last week youy were asking about sandy beaches in RI ... Sand Sissy

Boat fish count - apparently not for everyone, but they do count. Sometimes they don't count as strongly as surf fish. Let's say that someone gets a just shy of 50pounder on say 8 pound test or so frantically hopping from rockpile to rockpile and then say the that person gets bested by someone with a somewhat larger fish on the same 8 pound test line but gets to follow it around a little in a boat or perhaps doesn't need to suffer as many hazzards in landing such fish. Yes - they are both incredible accomplishments but I would find it hard to disagree that the shore bass was the more challenging and that fish was far more likely to get away.

Part of fishing is mastering the art and science of it. Becoming accomplished in many facets of fishing and being able to enjoy the work, the success, and the pure pleasure of having a line wet. I want to be successfull in the surf, on the boat and eventually on the fly - someday. But right now, surf fishing - and especially catching bigger fish from terra-firma - is more rewarding to me because of all it entails to even tangle with a nice fish. If / when I get a fifty, I'll be satisfied either way I get it but I know in my heart that it will be just that much more satisfying if it were from the surf - JMO

[tlapinski]

this should be added to the list of "try to avoid" debates on the site. we all have our opinion on the subject, and NO ONE can change anyone else's mind on it. i won't even bring my view on the subject up because this has been beaten to death. of course, if you bring this up in February, i might not be so level headed about it. right now i am too busy fishing.

[Flaptail]

Ok Toby! I read about you losing that fish. That sux but it really breeds that fire to go back and do it again. I read in a book that a guy named Francis Miner took an 86 pounder out at the Block in 1886. It was reportedly weighrd measured and even photographed but all the documentation has been lost. You never know, you might have had one of her descendents with the same genetic make-up.

John R., when you want to really get into the flyfishing thing let me know. There was an 11 year period when that's all I did in Saltwater. I got the perfect skiff for the Monomoy flats. It's perfect in the fact that I can get you there, pull it up on a bar and get out and wade. In July I can get you onto 20 to 30 pounders that will be rolling at yer feet in 3 feet of water. The rest will be up to you.

[JPowers]

Flap,

Boat fish ???????? Of couse they don't count.

Beach fish don't even count.

Only canal fish count.
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[tlapinski]

Originally posted by Flaptail
Ok Toby! I read about you losing that fish. That sux but it really breeds that fire to go back and do it again. I read in a book that a guy named Francis Miner took an 86 pounder out at the Block in 1886. It was reportedly weighrd measured and even photographed but all the documentation has been lost. You never know, you might have had one of her descendents with the same genetic make-up.

i just read that last night in Nick Caras's book.

[Fish On]

Flap has my vote. They all count and I'd be thrilled with a 50 from anywhere......except perhaps the fish market.

Well said!

[Roger]

I always thought the boat v shore thing was just a way of twising someone's tail.

After all, I know that the only fish that count are the one's caught on a fly. Heck, anyone can throw an eel.

[Clammer]

Flaptail =I<d love to take that offer // F/F on the flats //

why did ya start this argument again ??????

offer to taKe the die-hard surf fisherman //who[[ really ]] believes boat fish don,t count/// out ,on the conditions you posted /& up tight & personal /// There are only two guys on this site getting use to the way & where I take my boat ..JohnR & Fishpart // & I don,t think they,ll say B/F don,t count ////

ask Eben if he has any more respect /since I put on the rollover spot////


S/E wind say only 15-20 , add some fog ,for the @#$% of it add some darkness // your going plugging or tossing eels /up tight /not anchored safely offshore////

the same night the hard core S/F drives his nice warm 4X4 to a given spot // carmly dresses up & gets ready /// walks to the shoreline & begins to fish////

go figure ??????/////////////

it really only matters that your enjoying yourself // no matter how ,where or why your fishing ///
we agree we all are addicted to fishing --whatever form you choose to fish doesn,t matter /////

the shooting star I see from my boat // that makes my night ,,is the same star that just the made night for all fisherman out there // boat or no boat ======i

its not about the fish IMO

[Backbeach Jake]

the shooting star I see from my boat // that makes my night ,,is the same star that just the made night for all fisherman out there // boat or no boat ======i
Aye...that's it, exactly

[Pete F.]

I only tell one of my brothers that and just to bust his butt. Besides trolling is the biggest sin, well next to chunkin.
Pete

[rizzo]

I cant understand how you can argue it. Fishing from a boat offers more MOBILITY, the ability to have all your gear with you, GPS, FISH FINDERS, depth finders, live wells, the ability to reach DEEPER waters, better spots, stongers rips and cover a ton of water. Its not a matter of being dangerous because each can be at times. The boat and its components are an incredible tool to help find and catch fish. Look at some of the guys who know what theyre doing on boats compared to the sharpies on shore. Guys in boats have tons on 20s, plenty of 30s and some 40s. Getting a 40 from shore doesnt happen nearly as often as it does from a boat. So from here I conclude that a fish from shore means a whole lot more than one from a boat, especially the larger fish because as a shore fisherman you dont have anywhere near the acces to them as the boaters do.

[cheferson]

Does spear fishing count?

[Bronko]

Was at my a spot last night throwing some sloggo's and FinS for a while. Had a couple of schoolies then it went dead for a while. For about 10 minutes I was having some small taps on the rubber. I thought it was just micros taking half hearted runs. But then I feel a little tension and a "fluttering" at the other end. Sure enough a tiny tinker mackeral. I couldn't believe it. In all my years of fishing this spot I have never seen them in this area. They are obviously out a couple of miles, but had never seen them in this place...... I know the next question is did you live line it? The answer....NO. I would have, but when I was showing it to my buddy, the little b&*stard shot out of my hand and into the wash. It was about 6-7 inches long and all lit up with color. I was pissed. I then went on to have a high 20-low 30 inch fish spit a sluggo before I could land it. Fun night though. Might try the canal in the AM.

[fishdog13]

none of them count anymore you all know that. it's a matter of how much you paid for that plug. or a fancy rod with yelloow stripes or whatever.

[bassmaster]

steve i want to fish in the snow again off them rocks

[fishweewee]

I don't get the same thrill of the chase/hunt when I fish for stripers from a boat vs. shore.

Don't get me wrong, I do enjoy my boat fishing, but most of the time these are "meat" trips to fill the freezer.

I've caught some nice fish over 35 lbs. from boats and my largest shore caught fish is 40 lbs.

Guess which venue left the biggest impression on me?

-WW

[BigFish]

Most boat fish do count Steve... just the boat caught stripers over 30 pounds don't count!

[thefishingfreak]

i see my boat as a tool.
just like someone with a custom wrapped 12' lammi and VS gold reel, see's that as a tool.
anyone can go buy one, but it's how you use them that makes it actually catching. and not just fishing.

i enjoy the wind in my face, and the engines screaming in sync. and the sound of the hull crashing thru the waves.
but the sound of the drag ripping out, and the pull on the line is the same. wheather your standing in the breakers, or floating on top of them.
mike

[Goose]

boat fishin sux
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....if it don't count
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especially when its mid summer....then boat fish realy sux if they don't count.

[Slipknot]

Steve, don't take it personal when you see the boat fish don't count thing online. I think it's just good natured ribbing/commraderie/competition thing or something.
They both have their places and both fish count. Obviously it is more challenging overall from the shore, but there are instances where some shore fishing is less difficult than some boat fishing. Boats can't exactly fish inlets the same way shore anglers can for instanceNot everyone is cut out to go boat fishing in nasty weather, same with shore. This debate will go on till eternity.

[JHABS]

Boat FISH, Shore FISH Don't matter to ME , Its GETTING OUT and FISHING That COUNTS.................. I'll TAKE what I can GET......................

[bud8fan]

Boat Fish? Shore Fish?


Catching Fish!!! Now thats what I am talkin' about!!!

Take it from someone that hasnt wet a line in over a month and a half!!


THEY ALL COUNT!!!!!

[Hooper]

My biggest striper is a 48" , 40 lb bass taken from the beach at Monomoy Point of all places on October 31st, 1985.

I was with a school group and we had spent the night on the island at "The Shack". I awoke at sunrise and grabbed my eels and walked from the shack to the rip at Monomoy Point. By $hit luck the tide was running and running well, a flood tide. I took the fish on a live eel that I had cast and drifted into the rip. At age 13, it was the greatest moment of my life, to that point. (my next greatest moment wouldn't happen until age 18... )

I dragged that fish back to the boat we used to get out there and waited for my classmates to arrive at the boat and see my catch. I have never been so proud of a fish since that day. It was truly the highlight of my fishing career. I have had incredible days on the water since then, some that were simply unbelievable, but that fish was very, very special.

Since then, I got a decent job and have owned two boats, and I fish exclusively from my boat now. The truth be told, I catch FAR more fish from the boat than I ever caught from the beach. That was the single biggest reason for buying a boat, to catch more fish. Period.

But, that one big bass, back in 1985 when the stripers were few and far between, is still is my single best fish. And what do you know, it came from the beach at a spot I now fish from my boat all the time.

[Notaro]

I like fishing from a boat more than shore sometiems...

[Backbeach Jake]

Nice story , Hooper.

[Roseneath]

Boat fish count... just not as much.

I fished from a boat all my life (until this year). We'd jig for bass at Middleground and Tom's Shoal in the spring, in the summer we'd anchor off P*** Island (great spot) and toss chunks of pogies into the current, and in the fall, fish tube and worms off Gayhead.

Rarely did I ever get off my boat skunked.

This year (from shore), I've been skunked more times than I care to share... the funny thing is that I've never enjoyed fishing more.

IMO the "not knowing if I'll catch a fish" makes the fishing more exciting and the fish more rewarding.

[justplugit]

Do canoe fish count

[Flaptail]

No Dave, canoe fish don't count!!!! Hooper, I commercial fished from shore on Monomoy in the late seventies and early eighties. Took the skiff out and landed on shore, we would walk for miles catching, marking our fish then tossing them up on the beach to be collected on the way back in the morning as we walked the miles to the skiff. Start at sundown and still be fishing as the eastern sky started to lighten up. Surfcasting on Monomoy was the only place I have ever been spooled, 250 yds. of Twenty pound test. The fish took a seven inch windcheater in the first wave and the rest is history. I had one night where three of us took a total of 33 bass over 30 pounds ( and we really didn't know what we were doing), I had one night where I took eleven and the smallest was 38 pounds and the biggest was 42 pounds. Back then we never measured fish we called them by weight not length. Average pick was 5 to 7 bass a night all 30 pounders on average. Never, ever saw a seal and there were sand-eel by the zillions. I remember when the whole gang of us from Worcester hit the island one Friday night and in the morning lined up in front of the four beached skiffs are 40 odd bass from 15 to 40 pounds.
My friend Dave Laporte aka Stifftip, and a friend of his took 1000 pounds plus in one tide in October of 1978 with eels on that beach. The island was wide open then you caould land on any part of it and surfcast away. The break in the island in 78' actually was the start of the end of the great surfcasting there with all the shoaling of the sand. It was the start of the flats fishing era though. When I think of what we had there then and what we have there now I want to cry.