We made it out again this past weekend in full force. With a decent forecast we were geared and ready to make both the long-range trip as well as an inshore Tog fishing trip. I must admit that the weather was not quite as favorable as the weatherman had promised but really what else is new.

We departed on time Friday night in search of more of those Jumbo Sea Bass and Tilefish that we have been seeing our last several trips. The fishing was much better than the conditions that we had to actually fish for these fish. After a long night riding through sometimes four and five foot waves we arrived on the grounds around daybreak. Instead of the forecasted ten to fifteen knot winds, we would add the two numbers together for a steady 20 to 25 knot wind that was constantly changing directions as the sun came up.

We battled both anchoring as well as trying to stay in touch with the bottom from the start. Fishing the depths of 300 plus feet of water was quite a task for those who were not equipped or prepared for the challenge. Fortunately the fishing was much better than the conditions we had for trying to catch them. Although this trip would ultimately end up with expectations for some folks not reached, I would still have to call it a success. Sea Bass up to nearly six pounds and Blue line Tilefish up to ten pounds were coming over the rails nearly all day long. Even though we never really accumulated the big numbers that we had seen on some of our prior trips with the big Bass there were undoubtedly some impressive fish landed and the Tilefish made the day for several diehard fishermen.

Top hooks would end up landing well into double digits with the Sea Bass and would also take several Tiles to help make their coolers look good by days end. I know of one lucky angler that landed over a dozen Tilefish up to 12 pounds along with 17 Sea Bass. Average landings were much less. The fishing was tough at times to put it mildly, you would need a minimum of a pound of lead just to stay in touch with the bottom and I know of several anglers that told me they were using much more. At times the rewards were greater than the frustration of dealing with the weight and the conditions with some very nice fish coming up from the deep water. As the day progressed the winds finally started to moderate as well as the current and it became much easier to fish and some guys really started to fill the boxes.

Once again those that fished with the braid prevailed. In these deep waters the mono just doesn’t seem to make the grade, there is too much stretch. There were times that the current was so strong the belly that would accumulate in the line just dropping to the bottom would end up twenty or thirty feet away from where you dropped your line. I don’t think I need to elaborate on what would happen after that but I will say that it’s a good thing that all of our mates have good eyesight to sort through the damage!

Pool winners were John Driscoll from Gibson Island Maryland with the catch of the day being a 16 pound Wreckfish and Mr. Kim from Severn Maryland who was rewarded for his rude awakening with a scar from a falling drawer on the ride out, catching the biggest Jumbo Bass of the day. John even though your fishing buddies think you should be banned from the trips you are always welcome aboard and Mr. Kim I hope your head feels better!

We also had a Full-Day trip out over the weekend. Capt. Cerg ran the Tog trip Saturday despite some moderate winds and a light crowd. His trip met up with pretty decent success catching Tog up to citation size with average anglers landing a few and the top hook tallying eight nice fish by days end. We will continue trying for the Tog on weekends for 2 more weeks at which time we will resume with our daily Full-Day schedule sailing at 7:00 a.m. It is possible that we will be fishing for the Mackerel on our regular all day trips, one could only hope for a decent run. Water temperatures are in the zone right now hovering around the 45-degree mark and there seems to be quite a bit of life in the inshore waters. If these Mack’s do make an appearance I will be sure to post it here. It will likely be just a couple week run given the water temperatures we are seeing now.

We will be running two more special long-range trips both this coming weekend and the following weekend remember advanced reservations are mandatory. These trips will depart midnight Friday and will return on Saturday as Capt. H likes to say “probably after dark.”

If you would like any more information about trips sailing out of the Wharf or you would like to reserve a spot on one of the upcoming special trips please give us a call at (302) 645-TUNA.

Until Next Week Happy Fishing!

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