Year Of The Small Fish!

[Flaptail]

Originally Posted by #^&#^&#^&#^&#^&#^&#^&#^&#^&#^&#^&

There are still big fish in Maine Larry. Blew up yesterday on the low.

We gotta do the the trip next season Scott, Salty's Guide Service covering all of south Coastal Maine!

[Back Beach]

I would say its been the year of the medium fish. Lots of 18-25# fish for me and the(surf) guys in my circle this year. Fished a lot more than usual this year too, about 60 nights, and I know that helped. Real big ones 40 plus# were rare, if non existent from the surf. Pretty good numbers of high 20's up to mid 30's this fall though have been taken by a few guys. 99% of them at night on eels, of course. Every late fall is a twinkie fall if you decide to stand there all day and pound the poor little ones to death. Was at the canal this week catching a few of them on top, and after I hooked several smalls through the eyes, gills, and other vital areas, I said f-this, no sense messing these little guys up just for kicks. Even small single hooks do too much damage to them IMO. Let them be.

[l.i.fish.in.vt]

without a doubt the cape fishing, wellfleet to rp was a big disapointment for me this year.stared off memorial day with some decent fish.one good morning right after the 4th of july. fished everyday and night in august for a few keeper up to 15lbs.now on the other hand i did a couple of trips down to LI to my old stomping ground and did very well with fish up to 35lbs.i think the lack of large bait , such as fllounder herring bunker and the like the fish are heading north are going right past the cape to NH and maine. a good portion of the fish stayed in NJ till mid june on the mass of bunker that were there than they stayed off the south shore of LI. the back bays were loaded with peanuts and adult bunker this year.i think RI also had a good yearform what i have seen on here.

[Striperhound]

Larry, this fall has been the twinkie fall for sure. Does it bode well for the future, maybe? But we all want large!

[Slingah]

dinkfest '06 for sure......the usual spots didn't produce....yet....I'm still trying for a while.....
still a good year......

[Karl F]

year of small fish, yes..

year of No fish, Where and When they should be.. yes

year of seeing bait like I hadn't seen in years.. but no fish?.. yes.

year of getting my eyes opened that you don't need a big boat to boat fish.. Most Definatley.. Thanks Flap..that day will live with me till my last breath...

year that I questioned everything I knew of the outer beach...

another fall run, that was "you had to be there"... no real large..

year I only knew of one fifty pounder taken from my beach...

a fall that had some day fishing that made you stop and look.. aquariums in the first and second breaking waves...

YEAR OF THE SEAL first time i encountered a seal closure on the beach

[ThrowingTimber]

our problem here in ri, is all the big'er' fish were/are concentrated in the center of the bay. As such, boaters (not attacking anyone just an opinion) see this as their opportunity and as such it is their right to shoot fish in a barrel.

What rubs me the wrong way is the following:

Guys who are not commercial, fishing like they are and fishing like its 1970.

Guys limiting out more than once daily. Double and triple dipping etc.


All the bigger fish are / were in the center of the bay these guys go out an slaughter more than their fair share, then complain about lack of fish

If you kill them all there wont be anything left!! hhahahahahahahaha

[Flaptail]

Originally Posted by Karl F

year of small fish, yes..

year of No fish, Where and When they should be.. yes

year of seeing bait like I hadn't seen in years.. but no fish?.. yes.

year of getting my eyes opened that you don't need a big boat to boat fish.. Most Definatley.. Thanks Flap..that day will live with me till my last breath...

year that I questioned everything I knew of the outer beach...

another fall run, that was "you had to be there"... no real large..

year I only knew of one fifty pounder taken from my beach...

a fall that had some day fishing that made you stop and look.. aquariums in the first and second breaking waves...

YEAR OF THE SEAL first time i encountered a seal closure on the beach

Only one fifty on Nauset? Man with the talent that fishes there that really says something. Seal closures, just a horrible thought that is.

Karl wait till next year and we will have a really good day in the skiff, course you'll have to be there at dawn with me and have that white Salty spookem wit ya. What are you doing Memorial day morning?

Sluggos aren't too bad are they? All my bass came on plugs, no eels allowed.

Toady me and stiffy watched a couple acres o' boids with bass under them at noon time feeding off a Plymouth beach front but the wicked west wind had them beyond casting range. They are still around though so it isn't quite over.

Numbskull's Banana is a bass catching machine built by the finest most experimental plug builder on the site in my opinion. Many people I resepct said that the Frech Banana was just a wild idea that couldn't and doesn't work but it took Georges mind and hands to bring out it'd full potential. His LazyFish plug is a springtime killer as well. Hand carved and perfectly balanced. If you ever fish with him and he pulls that banana out of his bag put your rod down and just watch, it's amazing and a lot has to do with how really good George is. He is one of the best I ever fished with.

His company, Stiffy, Alan Cordts, KarlF, Slingah and Tagger there's a bunch of guys who know what it is all about and my thanks go out to them for making my season one of the best in a long time and re-invigorating my spirit and passion to fish hard and enjoy it even more.

[RIROCKHOUND]

Originally Posted by Back Beach

Was at the canal this week catching a few of them on top, and after I hooked several smalls through the eyes, gills, and other vital areas, I said f-this, no sense messing these little guys up just for kicks. Even small single hooks do too much damage to them IMO. Let them be.

Mike... I dont alter my tactics in the fall for the lil'guys nor am I out in april...

This year was odd for me personally,
May was the best May I've had in a while for both size and numbers...
June sucked the big one and I didnt escape into the bay much for skiff fishing b/c of engine issues..
July and August I fished sporadically for a slow surf bite...
After Labor day it got better until mid Oct with a decent number of good fish
and it aint over by a longshot, 3 weeks left...