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Cape Cod &the Islands
September 7th, 2003 |
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| FishWire Coordinator: | Dave Churbuck |
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The days dwindle down to a precious few ...
Cacoethes Piscatus is, roughly (according to my high school Latin), the "itch to fish" and I have a bad case of it these days. A couple chilly nights, shorter days, the sight of school buses, and I'd rather be fishing. The water is still quite warm -- warmer than the air on some days -- and that means the fish are as thick as they ever will be in the Cape's waters, building a bit over the next month as they strap on the feed bag for the long swim south for the winter. It's always depressing to contemplate the winter from the vantage of September, but this month is the bonus, the pay-off month for we tourist beleagured townies who lay low during the high months of July and August lunacy and come out of hiding and their nocturnal habits (like shopping at the grocery store at midnight) only when the SUVs roll out of town festooned with mountain bikes and stuffed with sad summer folk. I stood in the middle of Main Street here in Cotuit on Monday night, long after the yacht club meeting had adjourned and the skiffs were pulled for the season, and marvelled at the fact that not a car was seen or heard for ten minutes. Summer has a couple weeks to go, and the so-called "shoulder season" is beginning, so invent a dentist appointment the next sunny day and drive out to Coast Guard beach, trudge down to the inlet, and live it up in shirt sleeves at least one more time, for, as the poet said, "the best is yet to be." One issue that has not been very visible on Reel-Time is the proposed Wind Farm being applied for by Cape Wind Associates. One hundred and thirty wind mills would be built in the center of Nantucket Sound, just far enough from shore to put the project in federal waters. These will be tall structures that will be visible from beaches along the south side of the Cape and from Martha's Vineyard.
This summer I attended, on consecutive nights, two informational meetings. One was presented by the Conservation Law Foundation; the other by the Save Our Sound opponents to the project. I came away with the following observation: an offshore project such as the Nantucket Sound wind farm has never been proposed and examined in this country before. They have a track record in Europe and in land-based installations in this country, but as far as ocean-based projects go, no precedent for it exists. As such, the very fact that this project has been put forth is very significant, since it will establish, for the first time, the process for permitting such projects on what is indisputably public property. The issue, as I see it, is that if it doesn't succeed here in Nantucket Sound, then another project could be applied for elsewhere, with the same controversy and unresolved issues. I am in favor of letting this wind farm application move through the regulatory process and not killing it outright through some special designation of Nantucket Sound as a national park or wildlife refuge (the proposed bill by Rep. William Delahunt to do just that has not been filed yet) I am not necessarily in favor of a wind farm in Nantucket Sound. (an interesting side note, every year of delay makes the project 5% more efficient due to technology gains, according to the CLF). I hope, that when the dust settles and the decisions are made, we are left with a clear path for the permitting and review of such projects, so that when the next application is made for Long Island Sound, Buzzard's Bay, Cape Cod Bay, Nantucket Shoals, or wherever, that there is no ambiguity about how it will happen and what obligations the developer must assume. Reel-Time has not taken an "official" position on the project. We attempted a poll in the forums, but the voting was sparse and inconclusive. We won't issue a press release for or against the project, as some environmental groups and individuals have in the past. I suspect that the majority of Reel-Timers are opposed to the project, but some are keeping an open mind and waiting for the facts. Those facts aren't all in. The results of the data collection tower have not been made public. Other studies are ongoing. To condemn it out of hand because it looks ugly is, at least in my opinion, short sighted and ignoring the opportunity to once and for all clarify the law. Technology and progress have a habit of making convention fly out the window. Look at what technology has done to copyright law. Now that we have discovered the technology to generate electricity in middle of our federal waters, we also have discovered how inadequate our laws are to cope with the possibilities. I urge you all to study the project, to get informed about the facts, and go on the record with your opinions. I also urge you all to let due process run its course, and to trust that the combination of advocates and opponents, experts and laymen, will yield the right decision for Cape Cod and the rest of the country. Finally, not enough of you have bought Reel-Time schwag from the Reel-Time Store. We're looking into a new supplier for bumperstickers so you can tout your favorite fly fishing site with pride. The Bonito version of the Reel-Time t-shirt has been a big success. But there is tons of great stuff in there from coffee mugs to tackle bags. So visit, order, and help support us and keep Reel-Time running. Don't forget to send me your own reports, and until next week...
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I don't want to recap the specifics of the project here. The peak generating capacity of this project, the tonnage of pollutants it will remove from the atmosphere; the danger the blades may pose to terns and airplanes; all can be found on the websites of Cape Cod Regions
| NEWS |
| Where are the albies? Didn't anyone bother to tell them it is September? Surface blitzes in the canal -- blues and bass mix. Bonito at the Hooter and Bonito Bar. Bluefish by the acre off of Cotuit to Waquoit. Daytime fishing improving! Fall is here and the tourists are gone! |
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Captain Bob Paccia weighs in with this report on Saturday: "Blue, blues, blues, we’re singing those pre-migration blues… Everywhere from Falmouth, around The Elizabeth Islands to Wings Neck, across to Marion and east through the Cape Cod Canal, you’ll find school after school of bluefish in all sizes ranging from 4” to 12 pounds. Unless you’ve got an unlimited supply of flies you had better put on some heavy fluorocarbon bite tippets or that dreaded wire. "Fish deeper or outside the edges of the frenzied baby bunker, juvenile alewive and blueback herring schools, and you’ll get a shot at some decent size stripers that are picking off the stragglers and scraps that wash along with the currents. If stripers are your targets than you may want to discard altogether the bite tippet and take the chance of losing a few flies, but upping your chances at hitting a leader-shy trophy bass. Don’t forget that the larger stripers have gotten that size by being more selective in their feeding habits. Some of these savvy linesiders have avoided thousands of counterfeit offerings as they have traveled the waters from the Chesapeake Bay and back year after year. "The waters of Buzzards Bay are full of bait and the hungry bluefish and stripers are taking advantage of this rich food supply. False albacore and Spanish mackerel have joined in this free-for-all feast, but not yet in strong numbers. The bonito continue to be absent except in the waters nearer the Falmouth area. All of this could and should change soon. None of us are sure what affect the strong storm surges from the offshore hurricane Fabian will have on our fishing over the next couple of days." Bret Bokelkamp emailed this report: "We scouted the area on the East side of Butler's Point heading towards Wareham harbor. No activity. Ran over the the West end of the Canal. Probably bad timing. The tide had switched over moving East again, but all of the cold water from the tidal flow before had really socked in the fog. Could barely see 100 yards. No activity. The wind was pushing 3 footers in here and so we headed back. The farther west we went the more the fog lifted. "Moved as far west as Nye's Ledge off of Mattapoisett. There were large scattered schools of what I expect may have been Spanish Mackerel or Bonito, but we could not get any hookups. There were scattered birds working heavy for brief moments but would then move off to another point. We did this for some time without any results. "There you have it. The good, bad, and mostly ugly. More next week." |
"Some birds were working the area between Butler Point and Bird Island, again. We and the other two boats were not getting any hookups. Worked the area and followed the birds by moving upwind and drifting back through them without any luck.
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Captain Joe LeClair has been fishing inshore: "I have been catching loads of Bluefish and bonito inshore. The bad weather has made for some great inshore fishing. When the weather is not so bad the offshore fishing for Bluefin Tuna with light tackle and fly rods is under way. They are feeding on a variety of baits, some as large as 6-7 inch mackeral." Slater posts at http://reel-time.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=33142 that registration for the the Cuttyhunk Open has started. See his post for information about lodging, travel, etc. |
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A new user, Farmermg, reported on Thursday: "I was there yesterday and let me tell you....lots of fish all over. Saw at leat 20 3-4 minute blitzes 10 feet in front of me. Bunker were jumping onto the rocks!!!" BobG reported on Thursday: "Tried the east end around 8pm. Looked like a nice tide, last 2 hours of the west, wind was down. "Based on all the reports coming from north of the canal, looks like they're heading our way. |
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Ny nephews fished around the data tower for the wind farm project and came home with dogfish and sea bass. I haven't been out for days -- blame it on weather, work, back to school -- but am vowing to change that over the next few days. Reports of lots and lots of bluefish going nutty over the balls of wait from Hyannis to Waquoit. I've seen it. It's there. Mike Pajolek took a spanish mack off of Osterville the other day. Said it was a total blindcast situation. |
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Captain Leslie Smith at Backlash Charters reports: "As Labor Day has come and gone, thoughts on the Vineyard turn to the start of the Martha's Vineyard Striped Bass and Bluefish Derby, which commences on September 14th. For daily reports you can check out the official Derby website, www.mvderby.com. Ian Murray reports from the Hooter: "On Monday morning we left the vineyard at 9 am and headed south and arrived here in Greenwich, CT at 3 pm. It was a wet ride in our 23 SeaCraft but it was fun. We saw tons of life all through the race but didn’t fish much because the weather was bad and we were far from home. We’re hoping to get back up there this weekend." |
"This past weekend (labor day) we fished a rip just north of the Hooter and caught Bonito like I’ve never seen before. Friday, Saturday and Sunday we spend all day fishing the south side of the rip and boated plenty of fish each day. There were quite a few Blues in the mix and we even caught one keeper striper, but primarily they were bonito. |
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Captain Lynne Heyer at Cross Rip Outfitters emailed this report: "It's feels like Fall's is in the air.The weather is cool and dry. The fishing is getting better, so what more could you ask for? Okay, no hurricanes please. The reports from our land Captain Burt Went are good. He has been fishing Eel point the past few days and doing well. His client, David Perez, caught his first fly caught Striper this morning. Burt says there were many Blues and Bass mixed in. The best times for blind casting is still dawn and dusk. If the sun comes out nice and bright then hop on the flats on the sound side. Should start to see better numbers of Bass up looking for a crab lunch. For flies try small tan or olive clouser's or crab patterns. Burt did not see any tuna species swimming around. I don't think anyone on Eel Point has seen any Bonito or Albies in that area. The Great Point area is also heating up.I have heard of several reports of Spanish Macks and Bonito being around. Stripers should also begin hunting the point in the eves. I know around the old lighthouse has been a favorite spot to check out.The insde of the Gauls is also a favorite haunt of Bonito and Albies. I expect to hear any day about the Albies showing up. As far as the west end boat report I may have to get a fresh report later. Over the weekend the Bonito fishing was red hot! The weather not so hot. The spin guys have been crushing the bones with the Yozuri's and bombers. The hot flies have been the Polar fibre minnows in various colors. Of course the store has an ample supply if you are in need of some new cool secret patterns" Bill Pew at Fisher's Tackle reports this week that it's pretty much the same situation as last week, only more of it: "Bonito have improved on the west end with twelve to fourteen fish per man, per boat, per tide. Most of them are being caught on spinning rods, but they are getting them on flyrods too at the Bonito Bar. There were a few more Spanish Mackerel caught up at Great Point. I have a report from a customer who fished in the surf at Great Point after dark a few nights ago and caught six to ten keepers -- no real big fish -- nothing over 36 inches. "Beach bass fishing is turning on, even into the day time hours. I caught a bass that was about 34" inches on Monday at Great Point on a Hopkins while looking for bluefish. Bluefishing continues all over the island, but nothing too big, other than one customer who caught a 12 pound fish on the fly rod, breaking the Nantucket Angler's Club record for boat fly rod bluefish." |
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Skunkbuster reports: "Labor Day: Maybe it was the northerly wind on Sunday, but for whatever reason there were a huge number of bass hitting bait on the surface all along TNB at dusk. Only problem was they were a couple hundred yards off shore most of the time. I landed two fish around 18'' on 3'' storm wildeye shad when the fish came in closer. Must be peanut bunker or juvy herring around, saw some bait spray but couldn't ID. Good twilight tides the rest of this week too. " Tuesday Night--a personal best at the ditch Yozuri-Man reported, in the same thread: "worked same general area for the start of the incoming on 9/1 am. Saw lots, lots of bass in tight. They were not feeding on the peanuts, but corralling or herding them around. Of the hundred or so fish that swam by me that morning, I caught zero. They wouldn't open their mouths Tried everything I had on me(wish I had a handful of fresh sand eels!). All the fish were ~24-30" and varied from jet black to monomoy clear. Left around 1pm very frustrated and was forced to the rest of the day!" Early in the week, Scorton Angler reported: "In any other year, this wouldn't be worth a posting. But weighing in against the gloom you've been reading about in and around the Sandwich creeks this summer, I can report that near the top of the high tide in the middle of this afternoon, there came a half-acre of bluefish, just 100 feet from the surf, blitzing the big fat menhaden that are all about. Then, just as quick as they came, slashing on the surface, they moved on, but not before making two more surface-boiling stops on their way west to the creek. There may well have been stripers mixed in, but it all came and went too fast for me to tell. "On the other hand, I spent the entire incoming tide on the beach with family and friends, and in the entire 7 hours there, these two minutes were the only sign of surface action I spotted anywhere. "Yes, I took one, a five-pounder, but only because the water looked so autumn-fishy that earlier in the day I went back to the house to get a spinning rod. I just barely got a cast off before the boiling subsided, but that's all it took to hook one. "So, for what it's worth, I consider this a good end to a tough summer on this particular stretch of sand, and an encouraging start to the fall. "Lots of boats trolling around Scorton Ledge and back and forth from there to Sandy Neck, though, and they persisted long enough that I figure there must have been some catching going on." Scottne reported what was happening at the Ledge: "Guys, for what it's worth I can tell you exactly what went on at the ledge Fri-Mon. "Friday they killed them but mainly blues with some mid sized 35" fish mixed in but about 8 to 1 blues. "Saturday went to the bass with 30 or so caught and only a few blues, biggest was 43". Smaller then last year for sure, most were small keepers. "Sunday....STUNK. Wind was brutal. I was on the shore, saw fish but caught nothing. Boaters did poorly/terribly. "Monday....STUNK...no real wind, ledge from the boat was dead. We were one of the boats you saw off and on today, 1 small bass, 2 blues on the ledge. Saw only choppers caught and only a few of those. About 3pm we ran across those blues you saw. There were thousands of them on the peanut bunker and juvi herring. Interesting to see that they moved from the shoreliine due north and pretty quickly. There were some other fish mixed in too, not sure what they were. "The east end on the way in had some breaching bass out at the 2nd can. Not my boat so we didn't take a shot at them." |