Live Pogie Fishing

[Rockport24]

I think the big bass slaying is only going on in certain spots and pretty much only a boat game. From what I've read about the years leading up to the moratorium, a lot more people were into big bass from shore and boat. Plus, there were less comm regulations and such too right? And wasn't a keeper 16 inches for like a lot of years before that too?
I just find it hard to believe we are headed down the same path as those days.

[nightfighter]

And then there are days like today. Very different than yesterday.... NW wind was up early, no bunker finning = no bunker snagged = no bass caught with bunker, even fresh dead bunker. Did hit on a school of small fish that were feeding on bait identical to the 2 oz. crippled herring lure. So I'm seeing healthy representation in all sizes of the stock here.

If the bunker are there, the fish will be there. I'm snagging the bunker to get them, as are 90% of the recs I see. And IMO the majority of the recs with live bunker immediately head out, away from where they got the bunker, and away from the fish.... (I do laugh when I see those boats steam out of the harbor, because they seem to get maybe one fish for every five bunker they fish.) And snagging them is not an efficient way of gathering bait. But it is part of my 'quest' in the early hours before the rest of the world gets up.

Comm season gets going on the 13th. (I do not hold a comm license BTW) Then it's a different game out there. But I'm not seeing any slaughter being done by the other recs. I like to think I've just been lucky so far.