On board today, regulars Gary Condon, Mathew Daily, and Greg Powers for light tackle striped bass.

At first light, heavy, dense, pea soup fog and it pretty much stayed that way all morning. We did not see land for about half of our trip. Without GPS, it would have been difficult to navigate. So, chock one up for technology. I guided ten years without a GPS and only had a compass and sonar for depths. I use to put a lot of thought into winds, currents, drifts, weed beds, sounds, bird flight direction, lobster buoys, sand bars and rips. It made me a better guide because of it.

We worked our way through fish and headed for Gurnet point in the dense fog. About ten other boats fishing the bay today. We found fish from the harbor to the Gurnet. We also ran as far as the power plant and up to Burt’s. No fish at all on the backside of Brown’s. Everything was inside the bay and along the north edge of Brown’s. Some fish were up on the bank, but not as many as yesterday. That said, we still slayed them!

Some fish were on the bottom, but the vast majority were within three feet of the surface or rolling right on top. Once again, some big fish mixed in (there are also some giants inside the bay) but the smaller fish picked off our rubber crank baits and topwater poppers every time. However, Gary and Matt both landed keepers. Tons of bait (literally) around the bay and lots and lots of schoolie-sized bass from 16″ inches to 27. 5 inches. And tons of fun on LT gear! A bunch of seals in the bay today and also I saw my first flock of sea ducks: about a dozen surf scoters.

Total catch and release for the morning: 105 fish and 2 keepers. I am guessing, but I think in 2017 we have had more one-hundred plus fish mornings on my boat than in any other year in the past twenty-four seasons! Just keep your eyes on the year 2020: Could be a VERY big year in our bay for keeper bass…

Back at it. The winds are staying away and lets hope this fog thins out. I like a see-through fog. It keeps the fish up and active. But the thick, dense fog makes for slow going and it sure is harder to find the fish.

Tight Lines,

Capt. Dave
www.baymenlife.com

PS – I saw a giant fish for a split second today, roll through a school of bass. It was a VERY big fish and could of been a dolphin, a small Great White or a Giant Striped Bass… could not tell in the thick, dense fog!