Nov 16th, 2009

Fishing Report by Sue Foster

Water Temperature (WTMP): 58.1 °F

Fill your tackle box!
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 2009 White 
Marlin T's!   Short Sleeve, Long Sleeve.  Still have a few Shark and 
Tuna Tournie T's left on sale!  ... and plenty Calcutta & Oyster Bay Shirts 
....  Call 410-524-3433 if you want to order a shirt over the phone.

 Oyster Bay Tackle has 
launched a brand new web site!  We will be adding and improving on the site 
in the weeks ahead.  Any questions or suggestions e-mail  Sue Foster.

Northeast storm Ida hit Ocean City, MD and Delaware Beaches just as the 
fishing started to heat up. What would have been a good fishing weekend saw 
flooding, high tides, and beach erosion. Fortunately, we have a much better 
forecast for the week ahead, and hopefully we'll see some good fishing for 
Thanksgiving Week and Weekend!

Before the blow, we had stripers and bluefish, inshore and offshore, plus a 
really good tautog bite.

Assateague was closed during the storm, but right before the blow we had 
some reports of nice stripers caught. Allen Sklar caught a hefty striper 
last Monday afternoon. His picture is in our  Photo 
Gallery under Surf Fishing Pictures.

"Koss" posted on Stripers Online on the 11th: "Fished da beach yesterday. 
Started South in a very fishy spot but didn't have even a nibble so I moved 
a bit north. Met the familyOC near sundown and gave them the rundown of my 
day...a big fat skunk. Jes (Mrs. LuckyOC) said something about my lucky 
charms just arriving and wouldn't ya know it, not 30 minutes later my blue 
yonder started zingin. Not the most aggressive fight I've ever had but I'll 
take a 43 anyday.
"

"OCLucky" didn't catch any stripers but got into the dogsharks on the 10th: 
"Went out this evening... nada for me... if dogfish where fun to catch, I 
would of had lots of fun . Hopefully this storm improves things and not kill 
the rest of the fall run."

(Not likely! We still have plenty fishing time left and the storm did seem 
to give us some nice holes along the beach!)

"Poppy" caught and released a big one right before the storm descended upon 
us. Here's his post from Stripers Online: "The Fishing Gods have bestowed 
good luck on me and rekindled my enthusiasm for fishing the DelMarVa coast 
w/ lures. This report is a tribute to yet another Striped Bass that I was 
privileged to do battle with.

Made a last minute decision to fish Tuesday night.weather was starting to 
kick up out front and water was rough. Just lures by decree. And any lure 
other than big, heavy pencils poppers and/or metal, 3.5 oz and up wasn't 
going to cut it.

I started out w/ LJ Kroc's, but switched over to big wood-a Big Don's Pencil 
Popper. Nothing. I was thinking about quitting, but then came a strike.a 
strike that would lead to one very memorable night. A strike that reminded 
me as to why Striped Bass rank as one of the great game fish to be found in 
the surf.

The best words I can describe the initial strike are ".what the hell." Not 
only was the strike hard and my rod doubled over, but when I leaned back on 
her the fish astounded me w/ her authority by quickly turning and bolting 
for the horizon. The way this fish took line was startling.just a constant 
speed against a medium drag setting.her run was long and I was so amazed 
that I just stared at the spool as the line continued to go out-it was like 
I was in a trance! I remember laughing a little because the whole thing 
seemed crazy.here I was standing on a dark and deserted beach in the middle 
of November w/ a storm brewing, tossing lures and at the end of my line was 
a fish that was telling me she was the boss! Finally collecting my thoughts, 
I got tight on the fish, stopping her run.

I was fishing my Arra Lamiglas 1322 w/ one of my beloved Ambassadeur 6500 CS 
Rockets. The rod and reel would perform I thought.but I knew that I had a 
good size fish at the end of my line and given the stormy conditions, I was 
worried what connected me to the fish-16# IGFA mono line! Line designed to 
let go at 16#...not a once over.

After turning her, I started gaining line, but the rough conditions and 
sweeping current coupled w/ the fish's desire to escape made every inch of 
line gained a small battle in a bigger war. At times it was a near 
standoff.it was very hard to budge her, making me just stand motionless w/ 
rod in hand. The current was strong this night and the fish took advantage 
of this, positioning herself so that my fight would be against both her and 
the current.

After some time I managed to get the fish close.but then more than ever it 
was a tug of war.the surging near shore waves made for a powerful undertow, 
amplifying my concerns about losing the fish. I played the waves as best as 
by neck light would allow me to see. If I was going to lose this fish it 
would be in the crashing breakers just in front of me.the backwash and 
accompanying undertow were my enemy. I would pull her in w/ an incoming wave 
and feel the pressure on the line let up temporarily, but seconds later felt 
the line go tight again as the relentless backwash and undertow would grab 
the fish's big, heavy body and pull her back into the surf. I feared that my 
line would part if I stood my ground, so I yielded to the powers at hand and 
would let up allowing the fish to get into enough deeper water where she 
would right herself and regain her strength to fight on! The only analogy I 
could make is; it was similar to fighting a ray in the surf.a fight that is 
hard to win!

To keep things in perspective, the rod is rated for about 4 - 5 oz.and even 
though I was now connected to the fish w/ a 30# shock leader, I still felt 
outgunned!

I reckoned that some 25 minutes had passed since the initial hookup and half 
of that time was the fight in the final breakers. But I was not going to 
give up.no way.not after all the trials and tribulations of hunting for a 
fish like this on a lure. So I continued on, patiently waiting for a big 
enough and well timed wave to get this fish on the beach.

The moment arrived as another big wave came and I started to pull.but this 
time I got lucky.as the fish was surfing towards the sand I noted another 
big wave quickly bringing up the rear.all I needed was for this second wave 
to push the fish further in before she was seized by the backwash again. I 
watched as the second wave added just enough push to beach the fish. 
Success! She was high and dry for the moment... I then quickly laid my rod 
and reel down on the sand (hate doing that) and got her to higher ground

Vitals; 47" x 26.5" = 41#...released! Not a real giant.but a fish that gave 
me not only a most memorable fight on a cold, dark wild night in November, 
but also a fish that gave me a GIANT reason why I surf fish

I didn't catch any other fish after that. Rather befitting I thought, 
because the one fish caught deserves to stand alone for that night. 

 Habor Tackle (410) 213-9365) reports on the10th:  "Announcing the 4th 
Annual Assateague Striper Tournament, held on Assateague, with cash prizes, 
and scheduled for November 21-22, 2009 sponsored by Harbor Tackle. If anyone 
is interested call Harbor Tackle for more info.  Striper fishing is picking 
up. I weighted in a couple of nice big stripers taken from the beach on 
Sunday. Monday morning Ed Moore came in with a 43 ¼ striper from the bay 
behind Assateague using a lure for bait. Tog fishing is great. Off shore 
lots of big blues on top and under them are some stripers. "




Want to surf fish Assateague with a guide? Or simply go down to the island 
for a BBQ on the sand?   
Delmarva Beach Adventures will take you to Assateague Island to surf 
fish or just relax. 443-944-3468.

Need a class on surf fishing? Old Inlet has group lessons. (302-227-7974)


Many anglers ask about reading the beach when surf fishing. "Poppy" a very
good angler has posted another very good description with pictures on
Stripers Online. Check it out: 
Reading the Beach  He draws it out completely! If you're not catching 
fish in the surf, you need to study this!

We at Oyster Bay and Fenwick Tackle heard of some fish in the surf before 
the blow. Not many, but there was a fish here and there. A big bluefish, a 
striper, and dog sharks were the fare. I walked up to the beach in a couple 
places to see the beach after the storm and there seems to be a trough all 
along that could be very fishy on the high tide. Several cuts seem to appear 
as well.  There are some high cliffs of sand in some places that may make it 
hard to get to the beach at some streets.  The lower streets where the 
boardwalk runs from 28th Street to the Inlet is flattened out and you can 
walk up to the beach easily.  Nice holes around the jetties there as 
well.....

Sunday and Monday were beautiful and sunny. The calm after the storm....Wed, 
Thursday, Friday and Saturday were NOT!  I have some pictures and slides of 
the storm on our  
Oyster Bay Facebook.

Dan Smith, my webmaster, posts on  
Fish Talk: "The Nor Easter Storm has passed .. 2 to 3 days of 50 MPH 
plus winds and rain has taken it's toll on the beaches along coastal Ocean 
City MD Maryland and Southern Coastal Delaware. I have put up a  photo gallery so 
you can see the damage done to beach cross overs and significant beach 
erosion.
http://gallery.atbeach.com/gallery.php?gid=10

Weather forecast is GREAT for the coming week! Temperatures forecast to be 
above 60 degrees - sunshine , etc.. it's possibly a great chance to get in a 
last of the year surf fishing trip ! .. the larger CHOPPER blues will be 
venturing along the coast this time of the year. See the  weather forecast here: 
http://liveweather.atbeach.com/ .. Good Fishing.. dan.

Bluefish bite on finger mullet and mullet 
rigs  or simply chunks of finger mullet or box squid on surf rigs. 
Stripers bite chunks of mullet or bunker. Sharks take any kind of cut bait 
or squid. Lures also work.

Oceanic Pier (410-289-2602) could not open until Sunday afternoon because of 
the storm surge. The streets were flooded!  Richard didn't have much to 
report except that some anglers were catching some tautog at the inlet after 
the storm.   Richard says the pier will close during the week and will be 
open Friday, Saturday, and Sunday for the rest of the month.  Richard wants 
everyone to know that when you come to the pier, go to the Oceanic Motel and 
park, then come buy your ticket and he will give you a pass for your car.

Bobby Gower on the party boat " Bay
Bee will start striper fishing.

(The Bay Bee runs out of O.C. Fishing Center. Call 410-213-1121 for
reservations.

Striper fishing was happening on the Route 50 Bridge before the storm. 
There were some keepers, both day and night.    Anglers have been working  Gotcha 
Plugs, Swimming Shad lures, and lead heads with soft bodies attached. 
Five and Six Inch bodies seem to be the ticket.  Anglers are also using live 
eels and live spot.

Tautog!  The tautog bite was really good before the storm. We took a ride on 
Sunday afternoon and I saw one nice one being swung in at the North Jetty! 
Some days when the weather is too windy to do anything else, tautog is the 
only game in town. Tautog bite from the Route 50 Bridge, the bulkhead along 
2nd thru 4th Street, the end of the Oceanic Pier, and the Ocean City, MD 
Jetty and the Indian River Inlet, DE Jetty.  Tautog bite on green crabs or 
sand fleas.

Nick of the  Get Sum has been 
fishing for stripers and tautog. He has had some very good trips.

Larry Jock of the  Coastal 
Fisherman tells us about the action on stripers and bluefish inshore and 
offshore before the storm!  " Last night, (Wed) Dana Nelson caught a fat 
45.5-inch striper, north of the Rt. 50 Bridge, while fishing with Mark 
Longanecker on the "Cup Cutter". The striper weighed 37 lbs. and was caught 
on a live eel.

I spoke with Joe Morris at Lewes Harbour Marina today and he said that 
anglers drifting live bait in the Delaware Bay are coming back with really 
big stripers. Joe said that the hot spots were the mouth of the Delaware 
Bay, Buoy #6, south of Bouy #8 and Overfall Shoals. I know there are boats 
charter fishing out of Lewes Harbour Marina, so give Joe a call.


Tuesday, November 10, 2009: Fishing slowed a bit today. The bite on Isle of 
Wight was not very good. There was a good early bite of bluefish and 
stripers on and outside of Fenwick Shoal. Noah Fowler said the stripers he 
released were large. For the first time this fall, there were fish reported 
at the lumps off 28th Street.

Bill Regan reported a good mix of bluefish and stripers at the First Lump. 
Bill was trolling bucktails.

Skip Maisel reported catching a 46-inch bluefin tuna while fishing on the 
"Marilyn Sue" inside the Hambone.


Monday, November 9, 2009: Interesting day today with boats heading offshore 
in search of tuna and inshore boats looking for schools of bluefish and 
stripers. Inshore, the bluefish/striper bite moved from Isle of Wight on 
Sunday to around Fenwick Shoal today. Fish were alternating between rolling 
on top and sitting right on the bottom. Anglers had luck casting poppers and 
dropping jigs. Those trolling Stretch's also did well.

The "Morning Star" returned with some nice catches of tautog and a 43-inch 
striper release.

In the bay, nice size stripers are being caught in the South Bay. The bay is 
loaded with shiners."

My husband and I ventured offshore Ocean City, MD in our boat on Tuesday, a 
beautiful calm day before the storm. We ran offshore looking for sea gulls 
and gannants diving. Finally, after a pretty good run of 10 miles or so N.E. 
of Big Gull, we saw the birds. We casted bucktails with gulp, swimming 
shads, and jigged metal lures for 3 hours catching big bluefish one after 
another. I also hooked and released a nice sized striper.  We followed the 
birds about 8 miles to the south. Then puff, they were gone! But we were 
really tired. A couple of my pictures are on our Photo Gallery under  Offshore 
Pictures. (I wouldn't win any "fashion" awards with these pictures, but 
HEY, we were fishing!")

E-mail Sue Foster at:  Oyster Bay 
Tackle with your pictures and/or reports.
E-mail me your name and where you are from so we
can put you in our weekly fish reports and/or Gallery!

Need  surf
rigs? We have plenty in our shops or buy online!  Shop Online    


  Clark from Old Inlet (302-227-7974) reports from Nov 9th: "The surf 
report is hit and miss. Most are saying you'll fish all day and only get a 
couple of hits but the fish are big. Mike Walker fished the DMS Intraclub 
tournament on Saturday and caught a 36" striper, 32" bluefish and an 18" 
flounder. All from the Fenwick Beach. Mario Madrid landed a 20lb 4oz striped 
bass from the beach on Conquest Rd. It hit a bunker fillet. Improving 
striped bass fishing in the Indian River Inlet. The daytime incoming tide 
has been very good. Bucktails and live eels are the two hot baits.
They are picking up stripers in the Delaware Bay around the 8's and the 
rips. Live eels and trolling Stretch 25s.Very good tautog fishing in the 
Inlet." 

  Thanks Clark!

Bill Sports Center (302-645-7654) reports before the storm: "Stripers are 
biting good in the Delaware Bay at the 8's, Valley and Overfall Shoals. Eels 
have been working. A couple nice flounder have been caught too. Tautog are 
biting good at Indian River Inlet and the Inner and Outer Wall of the 
Delaware Bay."




Anglers now need a DE Fishing License to fish, crab, and clam in DEL:   The 
state has published a very good  
FAQ on the license requirement.


Individual Delaware Fishing Licenses are now available  
online.   We also sell them at our Fenwick Tackle Location.
 

This year, Delaware anglers will also need a F.I.N. number, similar to a 
hunting H.I.P. number. It is free, very simple to get, but necessary. DNREC 
has e-mailed us how to get it!

To obtain a  F.I.N. number or for more 
information, anglers may visit www.delaware-fin.com, or call 800-432-9228, 
any time of day, any day of the week. Those needing live operator assistance 
may call 866-447-4626 between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. (EST). "

Anglers are responsible for calling and getting this FIN number. We at 
Fenwick Tackle sell fishing licenses, but the FIN number is the angler's 
responsibility.  You can get your FIN number in advance of your Fishing 
License as well. So even if you plan to buy your fishing license at a tackle 
store, you can get your FIN number anytime!!!! Just remember to write it 
down and bring it with you!!! (You do have to update your FIN number every 
year. In 2010 you need to go online and apply again. It only takes a couple 
minutes. Simple, easy.... )
 

 (Maryland will have a similar FIN number in the year 2010. It will be free. 
We will give you info on that as the first of the year approaches. In the 
year, 2011 we on the coast will have a pay license.) For more info on the  FIN number go to 
www.countmyfish.noaa.gov

  The  Ocean Princess 
(410-289-6226) is docked for winter maintenance and will fish in January for 
tautog. "


Capt. Monty on the " Morning 
Star" works hard to catch fish for his customers.   Here's his report 
and comments this week. " Fish Report 11/12/09
Fish Report 11/12/09
Tog Limit Blues
Succession
Failings of Ivory Tower Fisheries Economics

If you took what I know about large-scale economic theory and stuffed it in 
a gnats ear it would rattle around like a BB in a box-car.. Hmm, I wonder 
what the good Professor knows about fish and fishing..


Hi All,
Saturday we had as fine a start as could be had, folks spread around the 
whole rail: a military dress-right-dress, not only with left arms 
extended--rods too--and all nicking away at tog.
Well, almost all, one fellow was solid into cbass no matter what-for crab he 
baited. He generated some good tags at least; then, later, turned his day 
around and crushed 'em..
Slick calm in the morning, coming saucy headed home - fair wind, not a 
worry.
Rode over the newly sited NRG Reef that Capt. Greg/OCRF sank that same day, 
11/7. Engineered by good fortune and clever endeavor this one. The pieces 
just came together at the right time - habitat complexity writ very large - 
wonderful.
When we 'discover' what reefing can do we'll be engineering on purpose, 
maximizing the production from each unit's footprint. Whether its oysters, 
corals, or a specific species of fish; we'll learn to build what's best and 
do so with a mind to succession--growth succession; the time sequence of 
organisms actually growing on reef substrate. A year old reef set may have 
crazy-mad mussels growing on it, but that won't be what's there 40 years 
from now...

Ah yes, more fishing.
Sunday we had a stunningly beautiful day. Really, you had to just look at 
the ocean and be thankful.
But we limited out by 9:30.
Ain't no way I'm going in: not yet. Lit up the big radar and--pow--scarcely 
2 1/2 miles further offshore worked a flock of gannets, the WWII 
Avenger-like torpedo dive bombers of the marine bird world that add a visual 
and audible component to the fishing, their cacophony of calls either to 
alert others to food or warn them to get out of the way as 
they--whoosh--plunge into their feast; the sudden swirls of 
fish--unexpected--only adding to the experience..
Nice.
Caught all the blues we wanted, yet far-far less than a limit; headed for 
home and still got in early.

Monday we were a tad further out and nearly limited when the tog bite quit.
..radar ain't fair.
Those birds pulled me 7 miles down the beach before it was over.. Blues. 
Wonderful fun.
One young fellow struggling.. what's up with that fish..foul-hooked? Dylan's 
too tired?
Ah, no.
Ritch: "Capt! Capt! Gimme the big net!"
Forty four inch striper.
Amidst these many blues we caught two very large striped bass. Tagged & 
released both because they were caught in the MPA, arguably the largest 
recreational no-fish MPA in the world, this the striped bass closed area 
from 3 to 200 miles offshore - all of the EEZ.
If I wrote the rules we wouldn't have kept them anyway--too big--but we'd be 
able to take one-a-man if ever that fortunate. Its been a no-take, closed to 
recreational fishing area for 24 years because commercial fishers exploited 
a loop-hole--then state regs didn't count in federal waters--so the fed 
slammed the door on 'em..
And us.
Dang thing's stuck.
Some say stripers are a rebuilt fishery..
Perhaps this is where Pew's "economic benefits accruing to recreational 
fishers through rebuilding" starts to occur.. but just not yet, not after 24 
years.
Lot more on that below...

Buoy Report: 44009 - 15 NM East Fenwick Island, DE. - Tuesday - 11/10/09 - 
5:50 PM - East wind 1.9 knots - 1.3 foot seas - 13 second period.
Coming in from a dive trip--an artificial reef monitoring trip--greasy-calm, 
ocean smooth as I've ever seen, the calmest calm-before-the-storm you could 
hope to witness.
Had spent the day anchored over a reef similar to what the Radford--a 560 
foot Destroyer set to sink next summer--might look like in the future; 
somewhat alike but, at 165 feet, smaller.
Nick Caloyianis and Clarita Berger were aboard, their underwater video work 
seen around the world. Just unloading their van worthy of marvel; carefully 
packed, Rubik's Cube perfect: no fisher ever had such equipment.
But then, we do try to stay in the boat.
Anyway, Nick--joshing--says he'd "like to drop right on the smoke stack."
I reply, "How about the wheelhouse?"
Set enough anchors for toggin.. Get a little practice.

They came back up from their first dive thrilled. Water warm, visibility 
wonderful, fish and growth in abundance..
And had down-lined directly to the wheelhouse.
An extremely late school of spadefish--their numbers huge by the standards 
of these past two decades though of very modest size some three decades 
ago--swam all around the upper structure of the once & now again proud Coast 
Guard ship Red Beech.
Breathtaking video--at least for a lover of marine life--still photos; a 
jelly in full bioluminescence, its lit up colors neoning along in a stream 
of natural wonder; those spades caught broadside to the lens, a yellow 
tagged sea bass trying to evade these filming intruders..
Should have pieces up on Maryland's reef website soon.
Truly splendid.
All a sign of what this reef-site centerpiece, the Radford, might look like 
in a decade; just a glimpse of her in several decades.

Then, sun having set and dockside, Clarita, with her thousands of hours 
diving, experiences revelation: "Those spadefish could have been among the 5 
inch juveniles we saw on artificial reef in the Chesapeake.."

..this the same bay that is missing 99% of its natural hard-bottom oyster 
reef.

That calm buoy report now replaced by Storm Warnings, gusts to 52 knots, and 
23 foot waves with an 11 second period; its fantastically rough.
Going fishing for tog when the weather breaks.
If we limit - or get all we want - we can hope for blues to finish the day.

Below is a direct refutation of the report by Professor Gates published--and 
presumably funded--by the Pew Environment Group, titled:
One Last Chance: The Economic Case for Rebuilding Mid-Atlantic Fish 
Populations.
Fishing is more fun, but derned if there doesn't need to be some truthing 
too.
'Sancho, my lance.'
'This will be worse than the adventure of the windmills,' quoth Sancho.
Is what it is....

11/12/09
Capt. Monty Hawkins' refutation of: "One Last Chance: The Economic Case for 
Rebuilding Mid-Atlantic Fish Populations" Professor Gates, University of 
Rhode Island.

Alright Professor,
You have presented "One Last Chance" while I am at that exact point. You 
presume to tell me/us how fisheries restoration is going to play out in the 
Mid-Atlantic, how "an additional 570 million per year in perpetuity in 
direct economic benefits" is being missed out on by our reluctance to just 
STOP overfishing & rebuild.
Now granted, if you took what I know about large-scale economic theory and 
stuffed it in a gnats ear it would rattle around like a BB in a box-car.. 
Hmm, I wonder what the good Professor knows about fish and fishing.. About 
marine ecology.. About where little fishes come from.. And about the 
whittling away, sometimes bulldozing, hydraulically liquefying, Joint 
Foreign Fishing Venture selling of our original production engine - the 
habitat, that Essential Fish Habitat of Magnuson that we just can't seem to 
grasp unless we can wade into it..

I think the good Professor is standing slam in the middle of my proverbial 
Nebraska wheatfield, stretching horizon to horizon, telling me how hunting 
controls are going to rebuild the squirrels: how a rebounding economy of 
returning hunters filling motels, buying dinners, breakfasts, thermoses full 
of coffee, guns of every sort, ammo, dropping serious coin on ATV 
four-wheelers so they can get deep in the woods quicker, buying homes closer 
to the....woods?
No.
Its a wheatfield.
This giant wheatfield ain't gonna restore no squirrels.


From the Professor's Report: In the recreational sector, rebuilding these 
four fish populations {black sea bass, bluefish, butterfish and summer 
flounder} would increase landings by 24 percent more per year than status 
quo management, with an economic value of approximately $536 million per 
year (in 2007 dollars) in perpetuity. These direct economic benefits would 
have potential secondary impacts in the region through increased income, 
sales and jobs for related businesses such as bait and tackle shops, lodging 
and restaurants. Thus, the estimates reported here are conservative and the 
actual benefits are likely to be more expansive. These results provide 
analytical evidence that there is both significant value in rebuilding fish 
populations and foregone economic benefits from delaying rebuilding.

Bragging about a 24% increase? That's the plan?
We're toast.

Estuaries great & small, and our present marine seafloor the wheatfield, our 
fish the squirrels: the professor and all the great might of his 
fantastically deep pocketed sponsor, Pew, a sponsor who can get the NMFS's 
Chief Scientist to repeat word-for-word from this report; he, they, and all 
others who believe these words are simply missing a supremely significant 
point: Repairing the impact of up to several centuries of extensive habitat 
loss, though mostly from the last 60 years, is an incredibly important part 
of fisheries restoration.

Read the whole report - it Googles - habitat ain't there. This economic 
theory is either misleading--dishonest with a purpose--or ill-informed of 
fisheries ecology.
You can't spend five seconds reading about salmon without crossing into 
deforestation and dam construction: yet sea bass? Their habitat is 
apparently unworthy of inspection.
We can not simply take the heat off fish populations and expect a glorious 
revival. We must do the heavy lifting, the habitat restoration; its not 
going to happen by reviewing 15 year old studies of recreational fishing's 
economic impacts.

Fiddle. I bet a regionally based management plan would, based on the factual 
previous 4 years catch, increase sea bass catch by 378.26%.

Still, I have to agree, if you cut off all fishing for these species they 
would rebuild to the holding capacity of the remaining habitat - even 
higher. By today's standards that would be a lot of fish.
I saw a preschooler hold his shoelace as his mother tied the knot, "I did 
it!" Big hugs..
Like so, reducing fishing mortality to nearly zero increases populations.
I would call that neither fishery restoration nor management.

These theoretical stocks now rebuilt to new heights, an economic state of 
grace, they find their reproductive success too fruitful: and, outpacing the 
available prey base, they crash.

Where too is the diverted effort, the fishers patiently fishing other 
species while this nest-egg of income 'in perpetuity' gathers interest: 
these fishers are targeting something.. Tautog? Are we rebuilding in a 
vacuum? Where will this latent pressure go? As Yogi Berra said, "In theory 
there is no difference between theory and practice, but in practice, there 
is."

Where are fishers to shelter while regulatory nirvana, this magical stasis, 
is being created..
There is no shelter. We fish - or else..

Using recreational catch data well-known to be rather barnyardy to 
effectively reduce fishing pressure as much as possible, while spouting 
fisheries restoration theory that can't pass simple scrutiny, represents 
railroading in the grandest tradition; its not modern management - its all 
the brute force money can buy, not the best use of available science....

The four fish in the study:
Butterfish? Can't speak to it.
Bluefish are not scarce, but they do not use our region as they once did: 
now only migrating through, not staying far into summer. A case for global 
warming? Eh, the summer spadefish and amberjacks of southern seas have 
diminished more too - used to frequently have the three species together. 
Lessened prey availability/findability a cause I think. Importantly, the 
blues we do have are remaining much further offshore - in clearer water - 
seas less sullied by the regurgitation of the region's un-biofiltered major 
estuaries.
Sea Bass management has created an abundance/scarcity stock oscillation that 
will repeat every 4 to 7 years by region depending on industrial winter 
effort. This "coastwide" plan fails to accept that no sea bass swim 
coastwide; they'll only migrate a small distance then return, often 
exactly--with the precision of GPS--to their home reef. The economic 
restoration of this fishery is not going to be found in broad-scale 
management or economic theory. It will never be well-restored, or bettered, 
without shouldering habitat management.
Summer flounder are at a population never seen in my life, nor that of any 
other party boat skipper that ever sailed from Ocean City, Maryland. Never 
targeted in my industry here prior to 2005, we now spend upwards of 100 days 
a year targeting these fish on the still-unfound reef system. Far beyond 
fully restored, we fishers await stock assessments that account this 
apparently new use of habitat--but it isn't new, its an adaptation: 
biological stock assessment having caught up, fishers could then enjoy the 
fruits of this success.

The worst enemy of fish and fisheries is ignorance.

There's coral out there in the mid-Atlantic. Bryozoans, hydrozoans, tube 
worms, sea whip, star coral; lots of varieties: my success at fishing 
depends on finding these emergent growths--reefs if you will, and you must.. 
for they are.
Those now barren bottoms that once yielded catches unimaginable to modern 
fishers, whose fish were caught without benefit of modern navigational 
equipment; they must be accounted for in restoration economics.
But aren't.
Can't.
At least not yet. Habitat's not been found.
Science sure hasn't - the councils don't seem to want to - fishers have to.

I await an unveiling of a large project by The Nature Conservancy in the 
coming weeks. Newcomers to the marine eco-wars; we may well see that their 
monumental effort at GIS mapping reveals information on habitat never before 
quantified; a peeling back of the veil through computerized mapping..

Management's success can not, must not, focus on catch restriction alone. 
Being blind to prey availability, water quality, seafloor habitat, estuarine 
habitat & more is never going to offer the least hope of driving fishers 
toward bioeconomic stability. In fact, accelerating along our present course 
is, right now, driving the whole industry off an economic cliff.

Wonderfully large-scale spontaneous generation--sky-fall--as our primary 
fisheries restoration plan isn't where I thought we'd be in 2009.

It is my strongest desire that some of the world's leading fisheries 
ecologists hear this plea for sanity in fisheries management and, using new 
tools, attack this economic thesis in a more scholarly fashion: that a truer 
path to restoration based on sound biological ecosystem restoration will 
emerge..
It will surely include catch restriction, but in no way rely exclusively 
upon it.

A boundless din of opinion across the fisheries, from Eskimo whaling captain 
to Virgin Island reef fisher to bloodworm digger in New England; the great 
truth of habitat production is all but absent in the ever-present fight for 
more quota.
From the many environmental groups now concerned with the fate of these 
fisheries are a few that have habitat in mind, at the fore even; but they 
lack the strength, the voice, the ability to be heard above that din that 
the behemoths posses.
Rebuild now these giants cry, economic splendor awaits - catch shares for 
all!
Billions of dollars vs. some several millions vs. some hundreds of thousands 
vs. a fisher that can still afford an internet connection.
Real world, real seas, real habitat loss: absent is a real foundation of 
habitat to support their restoration goals.

I believe that fisheries management in broad spectrum can fully restore 
fisheries. Using habitat technologies & protections, I believe that some 
species can be made more abundant than ever before.
I also believe that we are not going to succeed in the least with the 
present strategy. And, if we remain unconcerned with these other aspects of 
restoration our last chance has already occurred; that "One More Chance" 
will become someone else's first chance.
And their chance too is doomed without deepening efforts of management to 
directly grapple these many habitat issues.
Regards,
Capt. Monty Hawkins



 E-mail  Capt Montyfor more info. 
To receive Capt. Monty's complete newsletter e-mail  Capt. Monty.

Capt. Monty Hawkins
mhawkins@siteone.net
Party Boat "Morning Star"
Reservation Line 410 520 2076
http://www.morningstarfishing.com/


Watch the 
weather.


 Capt. Chris Mizurak of the  Angler 
party boat (410-289-7424) e-mailed in:      Friday, Sat... trips for tog 
are $60 per person and that includes rod, reel, and bait. 18 hour tile trips 
are being planned. Reservations required for all special trips, please call 
410-458-8343 for more information and reservations." 


 Capt. Kane Bounds of the   Judith 
M at Bahia Marina (410-289-7438, 410-251-5859, 443-497-1361) is fishing 
out of Bahia Marina at 22nd Street in Ocean City.   "
 We are tog fishing every Sat & Sun. for the rest of November with 2 extra
days added. Wed Nov. 11 Veterans day and Fri. Nov 27, the day after 
Thanksgiving.
 Visit our web site for pictures, reports and scheduling info.
 "Call Capt. Mike   410-251-5859 


Check the weather before driving hours to go offshore.  Go to  
Coastal Marine Forecast to get an idea of the weather and height of the 
waves.


  Stop by to the Oyster Bay Tackle location and buy your 2009 Ocean City
Reef Foundation Charts. The donation fee for these charts are $25. $27 if 
you use a credit card. These charts pin-point all the GPS numbers for all 
the
Artificial Reef materials that have been scattered near offshore wrecks, 
reefs, and
obstructions. The charts give you hundreds of numbers to find fish. All the 
money collected goes back into the Artificial Reef Foundation.  You can buy 
them  
online.




Capt. Rick Yakimowicz of the "Thelma Dale V" Reports from Fisherman's Wharf 
on Nov 11th:
 
....For a change of pace we finally had a decent weather weekend in the 
forecast and were able to get away from the docks with all but one of our 
scheduled trips as last week came to and end. We missed Friday with just too 
much wind but have been out every day since and have been enjoying some 
outstanding fish catching action. Tautog and Stripers are the catch of the 
day depending on your pleasure and both fisheries have had their moments 
with anglers catching some trophy size fish over the last seven days with 
several citations being weighed in for either species on nearly a daily 
basis....


Both Saturday and Sunday and then again on Monday we saw decent numbers with 
the Tog. I can't boast that we had limit catches or anything like that but 
what we lacked for in sheer numbers of fish we made up for in quality. Pool 
fish each of my last three days would weigh in over nine pounds with the 
biggest just shy of eleven pounds. We had some very nice fish. Each trip a 
few anglers were able to excel and naturally with Tog fishing there is 
always a few frustrated fishermen that were just providing an all you can 
eat crab buffet just to fatten up the fish for others!

.....The outlook is good to have continued success with both the Tog and the 
Stripers in the upcoming days and weeks. Word has it that there is an 
abundance of Stripers and Slammer Blues up the Coast and these fish will be 
migrating into our area over the next several weeks. Tog fishing is better 
now than I have seen all fall and should continue to improve as the water 
temperatures continue to drop. We will have some good fishing as long as we 
have the weather to make it happen.



....We have dropped back to just four days a week now with the regular 
All-Day wreck trips. I will be running Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and Mondays 
from now until the middle of December and we will be fishing just for the 
Tog on these trips....

....Our schedule goes like this; we are fishing daily for Stripers departing 
the docks at 8:00 a.m. this is an all day trip and will generally return to 
the docks around 4:00. We are using live bait for the most part however 
there are quite a few fish now being landed on jigs. Wreck fishing for the 
Tog will be Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday. Wreck trips depart the 
docks at 7:00 a.m. and return to the docks around 4:00. Crabs are furnished 
for the Tog trips. No reservations are necessary for either boat.


 If you would like any more information about trips sailing out of the Wharf 
or you would like to book a private charter please give us a call at (302) 
645-TUNA.

His full report and boat info is  
here.

Capt. Rick Yakimowicz
Thelma Dale V
catchfish@verizon.net"

  VA 
charters.
(Wilson Cropp Charters and Guide Service. Cape Charles, VA- 1-434-531-6376) 
Capt. Wilson reports... good striper fishing very soon....."


  Capt.Dan Stauffer (866-623-4746) of the  Fin Chaser does wreck and 
trolling trips.

Please feel free to e-mail me your fishing reports and pictures,  either 
inshore or
offshore, from the Ocean City or Delaware area.   E-mail  Sue Foster

CHECK OUT the Fish Talk Forum - At 
The Beach - Fishing Ocean City MD Assateague Island - Delaware Fishing 
Beaches


 (Just a note to say to my readers that many of my fishing reports are from
other anglers and party boats that come over my e-mail. When I "copy/paste"
their reports I try to leave them intact. It keeps the fishing reports
lively and interesting. But any comments/politics within the quotes are
their comments and views, and not necessarily mine.)

Need info on where, how, when to fish, crab, and clam? Go 
to  Drifting 
Easy Archives and READ UP! It's all in there and it's 
FREE!!!!!!



James A. Donofrio, executive director of the  Recreational Fishing 
Alliance
has been actively working on the summer flounder and sea bass crisis. The 
RFA believes the future of our fisheries is dependent on fixing the 
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act which has laid down 
strict time-frames that do not take into account livelihoods and that a 
fishery is rebounding steadily.
 The RFA is fighting hard for our right to fish.  

  Save the Summer Flounder Fishery Fund


Newsflash: (Lots of info here if you are interested....) RFA Legal Defense 
Fund - The Fight For Angler's Rights
October 9, 2009 - The  RFA has 
assembled an experienced legal team to take on the case to overturn the 
federal shutdown of the recreational black sea bass fishery.

 2009 Tide
Charts and Public Fishing Locations

Need to tie a knot? Click 
Here. This is really cool! You can also click  Here!


Good fishing...

Sale!  
Pirates of the Carribean Push Button combo for kids. Regular: 19.99 Now 
on sale for 12.99!



 Gift
Certificates  Call 410-524-3433 or order 
ONLINE.



Oyster Bay Tackle (410-524-3433) will be open daily 8-4 or 5 this 
week. 8 to 3 on Sundays.  Fenwick Tackle (302-539-7766) is open 8 to 3 or 4 
daily.   For information e-mail  
Sue
Foster. I always check my e-mail at least once a day!



 Need a gift certicate? Give us a call at 410-524-3433. You can also buy
them 
online. New! Besides Gift Certicates we now also have Gift Cards for 
Oyster Bay Tackle. They work just like a credit card! (These only work at 
Oyster Bay. If you want to use it at Fenwick Tackle, buy a regular Gift 
Certificate.)

2009 White Marlin Shirts!  Short sleeve and long 
sleeve!   Order  ONLINE. 
Shark and Tuna shirts are also still in stock. Call for shark and tuna 
shirts. (Out of Large shark) We have M, XL, XXL, and XXXL.  410-524-3433.

 Sputnik 
sinkers back in stock!

 We have a some 7 1/2 foot "rental quality" wooden pole beach umbrellas 
(164.99) and custom
umbrella bags (19.99) at our at our (no tax) Fenwick Tackle location.  Also 
we have a new 6 1/2 foot wooden pole umbrella for only 119.99. And on sale! 
Quality clamp-on umbrellas for 19.99!  Telescope beach chairs at our Fenwick 
Tackle location! 49.99 to 74.99. The best made beach chair in the USA!

We have Calcutta hats, visors, t's, long sleeve t-shirts, sweatshirts, tanks
and new 
T-shirts on our online mall. We have the  Bloodworm scented
Fish Bites in stock. You can buy these items    online.


Tire deflators are great! Call Oyster Bay Tackle at 410-524-3433 or order  on line.


We also now carry the  
Oasis Trailhead Tire Deflators. 59.99 for set of 4 in store.

To buy a dozen assorted flounder rigs for $21.99. (Reg- 28.08) call
410-524-3433, stop
in our stores or 
Order Online.

To buy a selection of a dozen of the most popular Got-cha Plugs in our area
for 44.99 
Shop Online or call 410-524-3433.

We have a great value on a stuffed surf box

Big surf box for 49.99- a $56 value- available on line, at both our
stores, or call 410-524-3433.

We offer a great value in our stores or on our web site of
a package of 12 assorted surf rigs. (Value $28.28) for $23.99. 
Surf rigs buy online or call 410-524-3433.

To buy a big stuffed  Flounder box
for 49.99 stop in our stores, Shop Online, or call 410-524-3433.-

We have 
6-packs of bucktails   and we
have fishing
books.

  There's a new product out called "Rod Log." It is an affordable storage
system for your rods and reels you can set up in your garage or carry with
you to your boat. Check it out. 

Visit our  online mall year
round.  Check it out and 
e-mail me with any comments or suggestions.

We have a   
Australian Gold
Suntan Lotion web page that shows all the Australian Gold Suntan
Products available in both our retail stores. Oyster Bay Tackle~410-524-3433
and Fenwick Tackle~302-539-7766. E-mail 
 Sue for pricing and availability or call 410-524-3433.

Visit our  Website.

Visit our 
Drifting Easy Archives  to learn where and how to crab, clam and fish in
our area.

 Sale! 

We have lots of rods and reels out for this season by
Daiwa, Tica, Sea Striker and Okuma.

If you have any fish reports please share them with us on our  Fish Talk Board or e-mail
Sue Foster at:  Oyster Bay
Tackle.  E-mail me your name and where you are from so we can put
you in our weekly fish reports!

Visit our 
T-shirt page of our Online Mall to see all the t-shirts available
including this year's popular Calcutta T-shirts and our new Inshore-4
T-shirt.

Tire Deflators, Calcutta t-shirts, 2009 White Marlin Open,
Storm Wild-eyed Shad lures, Gift Certificates, Got-cha Plugs, Ugly Sticks,
Tica rods, new Okuma surf rods, Daiwa reels, Windcheaters, Mann's, Stretch
25 lures, Mullet Rigs,
Aqua-Clear Tangle free Rigs, Tsunami Shads,  Tandem Rigs, Spec Rigs,
Beach Runner surf rods on sale, Penn Reels, Okuma reels,
Collapsible Bridge and Pier Nets, Rat-L-Traps, Calcutta Hats, Stuffed Tackle
Boxes and more. Stop in to our shops or  Order Online.

E-mail Sue Foster at:  Oyster Bay
Tackle
if you have any questions about our inventory or if you want to place
an order for an item we do not have on-line.

 Shop Online    

Tides: These are ocean tides, add 2 hours for the bay, approximately 1 hour 
for Indian River:

High Tides: (Add approx 6 hours for low tide)

Monday, Nov 16th, 7:33 A.M. and 7:48 P.M.
Tuesday, Nov 17th, 8:16 A.M. and 8:31 P.M.
Wednesday, Nov 18th, 8:59 A.M. and 9:14 P.M.
Thursday, Nov 19th, 9:43 A.M. and 9:57 P.M.
Friday,  Nov 20th, 10:26 A.M. and 10:41 P.M.
Saturday, Nov 21st, 11:09 A.M. and 11:26 P.M..
Sunday, Nov 22nd, 11:54 A.M. and 11:54 P.M



CHECK OUT THE Ocean City MD Coastal Delaware fishing forum -  http://fishtalk.atbeach.com   

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