This will be my last report for the 2005 season even though there were times it seemed as though the season couldn’t come to an end soon enough, looking back it seems like it wasn’t that long ago we were just starting out the year.
We really didn’t go out in a blaze of glory for our last scheduled weekend for wreck fishing but we did hold our own. Tog fishing certainly had its moments both Saturday and Sunday but it was very typical for these fish. Finicky biters on the tide, and of course not biting when you most thought that they should. That would sum it up. I think that my top hooks over the weekend had an average of only six or seven fish and of course some had less. Even though the average size fish was decent I would still have to call this fishing slow. Not exactly the way I wanted to end the season but we had it much better than some did so I was grateful. We even saw several fish landed on just clam, which is a sure indicator of just how rapidly the water has been cooling down.

Striper fishing was also slow over the weekend. Some boats got lucky and landed a good number of keeper sized fish but most of the fish caught fell short of the 28” minimum size restriction. We had a very slim sponsorship Saturday and Sunday for the Stripers and both trips over the weekend ended up poor. These fish are certainly still around but they too have been finicky. Monday’s bite was a little better but still a lot of short fish. We will continue trying to sail daily for Stripers up until the 8th of January 2006.

As I stated last week we are in the progress of making out the schedule for the 2006 season. Not a lot of changes really. Look for the first long range Sea Bass trips early in March and the Daily schedule to resume around the last weekend in March fishing for Mackerel.

I am trying to set a few dates early on for Blackfish while the creel limit is still set at 10 fish. As soon as the schedule is finalized we will have the dates and prices posted on the website.

With any luck the fishocrats will give us some breaks for the upcoming year and maybe, just maybe our regulations will be the same for most of our targeted fish. It’s not likely they will be giving in to any more favorable regulations for us but it would certainly be nice. One thing is for certain we will be at the biologists mercy and they will come up with something that we will have to work with like it or not. Keep your fingers crossed!

If you need more information about trips sailing out of the Wharf or if you would like to purchase a gift certificate or book a charter for the 2006 season please give us a call at (302) 645-TUNA or stop by the office.

Until Next Year Happy Holiday’s And Happy Fishing!

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