I hope everyone had a great New Year’s and you are enjoying this wonderful, mild winter in BAYMEN Land. Feels like early spring every day so far. But Feb/Mar could and should bring some snow and colder temps before the crocus and snowdrop flowers began to pop up.

Congrats to everyone that got a deer this past season and congrats to all that enjoyed the great duck hunting. One thing we have in BAYMEN Land is lots of deer, lots of ducks, and of course TONS of striped bass that migrate to our waters starting in late April and leave in mid-late October. They come here from the Chesapeake, the Delaware and the Hudson where they winter over and spawn. They go as far north as the Canadian Maritimes, with a healthy population at Nova Scotia. In fact, I talked with some Indians from the Island and they told me there is a YEAR ROUND population of big striped bass around Nova Scotia!

BAYMEN STRIPED BASS Charters for 2020 are just about booked solid for the year. I hold some weather delay dates, and I have a few regular season dates still open. I am booking 2021 now and it is booking steady with about 25 trips on the books as of today. I suggest you e-mail me your 2021 “Wish Dates” NOW and get them on the calendar so you have them all set. A 50% deposit holds your dates, balance due the day of the trip as always. Give me a shout at baymencharters@gmail.com

NEW STRIPED BASS REGS 2020: Our state is not tipping their hand yet, but it appears we COULD have a slot limit for striped bass this season of 1 fish per angler, per day, between 28-35 inches. But we will have to wait and see. As many of you know, I have been preaching 1 keeper per day 36″ inches or greater, from ME to VA, the past 27 years but nobody is listening. I still send in my comments each year during the Public Comment period. The good news? All the states are taking notice of the decline in BIG STRIPED BASS over the entire population of fish. There are still pockets of very big fish in our waters each year, in three or four spots. We do have a LOT of striped bass in our bay, but the BIG STRIPED BASS are missing. Hopefully, the new regs will change this. Stay Posted:

WINTER FLY TYING… I am kicking around this idea once again. Some of you remember I held the BAYMEN Fly Tying Club years back and we would have 30+/- anglers each week. It was just great fun with some great people. So, I am giving this some thought again. There would be a fee of like $10 bucks each week if you wanted to tie with The BAYMEN Club. I’d like to host it at my place, but just not enough room. So, I am poking around seeing what is available around Duxbury. Give me your ideas…

SPRING TURKEY HUNTS – I am guiding out of a camp in Vermont in early to mid-May for Spring turkey. The camp is remote, very comfortable, and has all the comforts of home. We hunt on the property and also around the area. Pastures, woods, and mountains. You would love this camp and the areas we hunt. I hope to have the pleasure of calling in a Tom for you this seaon.

FALL GROUSE & WOODCOCK – I also guide out of the camp in Vermont for ruffed grouse and woodcock in October (over your own dogs).This past season, we averaged 13 flushes per day. I have a massive number of covers, many of them right on the property. Packages available for 1-3 hunters. It is everything you’d expect for grouse hunting in New England.

FALL DEER SEASON – I also guide for fall deer out of the camp in Vermont. Bucks only rifle season in mid November. We hunt BIG WOODS and if we have snow, tracking a buck through the mountains is an option. With little or no snow, there are many deer trails to still hunt or take up a ground stand. It is a very enjoyable time to be in the Big Woods in search of buck.

BAYMEN SKIFF – If you are interested in my skiff, I am willing to sell for a fair and reasonable price. But if I have no takers, I will be re-powering with a new Yamaha four stroke. Contact me if you want to see my skiff and make an offer.

My JEEP is still available. I took it off the market after ZERO offers. They are a dime a dozen in our area and every other house owns one. Mine is still for sale if you want to take it for a test drive. It is a great little Jeep with I think 96K miles on it now. 4.0 litre, stick shift manual 6 speed, no AC. I have owned it for 2 1/2 years and have done nothing to it. It runs like a top and has the classic Jeep look.

PERSONAL NOTES: I have three kids heading to college come August. My oldest in the BU Masters PR program, my youngest still waiting to see where she gets accepted, and my middle is at South Kent School Prep looking for a basketball scholarship. He is ranked #1 in the entire state 2018-2019 so we will see what happens. If you have little ones, I can’t tell you how important it is to open accounts for them for college. Time flies quickly. Invest steady and slow, even in small amounts. It adds up over 15-18 years. Also, if you are not investing with Acorn, it is a no brainer! Check them out online. It is just another avenue to start your investing over your lifetime. And one last note – join a church with your family and attend Sunday service. It is a great anchor to stay focused in life.

Well, that’s the word for today. Contact me to get a trip or two or ten on the books. Give me a shout if you just want to talk shop or have questions about my guide servies, now in my 27th year. Time sure flies.

Capt. David Bitters, BAYMEN, www.baymenlife.com baymencharters@gmail.com Follow me on Instagram @baymencharters and on FB at Baymen Guide Service, Inc Baymen Charters.