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December
4, 2008
- I took a couple pictures of the hand rails that I had
made for my boat. They fit into the gunnel rod holders, so
they can easily be installed and removed depending on sea
conditions. They are great for extra support and safety on
those choppy days around the CBBT. As for fishing, we've
worked hard lately for fish but have caught some nice stripers
at night under the bridge lights.
   
November
28, 2008
- I hope everyone had a happy Thanksgiving! I've
been neglecting my reports of late, so I thought I'd take a
quick moment to make a post. We wrapped up my Middle
Peninsula season with some fun striper fishing in the marshes
and now I have the boat at Taylor's Landing in Norfolk/VA Beach
for the late season fishery at the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel.
The weather continues to be a beast this fall, but the days we
have gotten out produced lots of FAT 28-32" rockfish by casting
to the pilings of the CBBT. There is an enormous amount of
bait around. I expect mass mayhem when the migratory ocean
fish join up with the resident bay fish to gorge themselves on
the plentiful prey. We had great fishing well into
February last year, but with the cooler temperatures this year
we may have a shorter season that ends in January. I still
have quite a few open dates for the next few weeks, so don't
miss out on the world class striped bass fishing at the CBBT.
  
November
8, 2008
- This has been the windiest fall that I can remember.
The weather has kept us off the water most days. Let's
hope that Mother Nature gives us a break as we head into the
latter half of the season. The days that we have been able
to get on the water produced good numbers of rockfish in the
shallows. One day we actually were able to sight fish to
stripers on a flat because of perfect conditions - no wind,
bright sun and gin clear water.
      
October
28, 2008
- Somebody turn off the fan!!! It's been wind, wind and
more wind! Speckled trout fishing has been a bust with
specks few and far between this fall. We probably won't
see many more puppy drum since they are on their way south for
the winter. On the bright side, we've had fantastic
striped bass fishing on days where the weather has allowed us to
fish prime shallow water spots. The largest boated on fly
this week measured 33". I have found a few short lived
blitzes of stripers under birds in early morning. There
will be more birds and breaking fish as fall progresses.
Striper fishing in the shallows will be prime during the next 3
weeks. This is my favorite way to catch rockfish, so don't
miss out on the action!
Check
out the November issue of Saltwater Sportsman.
There is a great article by Ric Burnley about speckled trout
fishing that I am lucky enough to be included in.
As a
reminder, it can get very cold on the water for the remainder of
the season. Be sure to wear layers and foul weather gear.
Bring gloves, a knit cap and more clothing than you expect to
need. Dressed properly, your attention will be on hot
fishing action instead of cold shivers.
     
October
10, 2008
- Striper fishing in the shallows has been on fire!
Most mornings, we're catching 40-50 fish and have landed them to
32" on fly. Having line ripped off your reel as a striped
bass streaks across the flat is a sure adrenaline fix!
Puppy drum have been in good numbers but speckled trout have
been harder to come by. Late October is historically a
prime time for specks, so I hope their numbers increase as the
month progresses.
      
October
2, 2008
- After a long stretch of wind and rain, we have been
hitting the water everyday. Stripers are out in force.
Speck fishing was slow after the Nor'easter, but they are
showing in better numbers now that the weather has settled.
Yesterday, we shot an episode for the Fly Rod Chronicles
television series. My guests were the host of the show,
Curtis Fleming, and the owner of Rose River Farm, Douglas Dear.
We got some awesome schoolie striper footage. I'll post
the trailer for the show when the producer has it available and
will keep you posted as to air time for the show. Check
out The Fly Rod Chronicles website at
www.flyrodchronicles.tv
      
September 22, 2008
- Autumn has greeted us with cool temps and strong NE
winds. Once the weather settles out, we will have great
shallow water fishing for stripers, pups and specks.
October through mid-November is my favorite time to fish the
Middle Peninsula. Open dates are going fast, so book your
fall trip today!
      
Fall
& Winter Fishing Forecast
-
Today marks
the official start of the fall fishing season – my favorite time
of year to be on the water!
I’m a little
sad to see this summer go because we had some fantastic
fishing. Lots of pretty speckled trout were caught including 7
citation size fish of which 3 where over 28 inches. We also had
some big number days on puppy drum. Our best morning produced
nearly 50 redfish. The stripers this summer where particularly
fat and healthy which I attribute to the large year class of
peanut bunker, the primary prey for all gamefish in the bay. It
has been many years since I’ve seen this much bait – a very
encouraging sign as we head into fall!
The next five
weeks will produce a mixed bag of stripers, specks and reds in
the shallows. If the summer is any indication, we are in for a
banner fall for all three species. Fishing the shallows of the
Middle Peninsula is probably my favorite form of fishing that
our region offers. Calm water, beautiful scenery, little boat
traffic and quality fishing make for a great day on the water.
By early November, the majority of puppy drum and speckled trout
will have moved south but large numbers of striped bass will be
traveling through the shallows eating everything that crosses
their path. We will also see stripers blitzing in open water of
the bay along the Middle Peninsula during the month of November.
By the start
of December, I will be focusing my efforts out of Taylor’s
Landing in Little Creek which is only a 4 mile boat ride to the
CBBT. The mass of striped bass along the bridge tunnel from
Thanksgiving through late winter is unbelievable. Fish by the
million under acres of feeding gulls and gannets will flood the
lower bay and ocean and we’ll be there to tangle with them on
fly and light tackle. January is my favorite month to fish the
CBBT because the crowds are gone and fishing is at its best. We
had many days last January where we caught over 100 stripers per
trip. There were times when we surpassed the century mark in
number of fish in under 2 hours. Late fall and winter is also
the time for trophy striped bass. We catch numerous FAT
stripers over 40” during this time. With a warm winter we will
see spectacular fishing into February.
Contact me
ASAP if you are interested in booking a charter because fall &
winter dates are going fast.
I hope
everyone has a terrific season! |
