Fishing with Captain Dan 08-15-08
It started raining before we got on the water about 10 PM tonight. I think that is what made us stop and fish in a new spot. The wind was blowing from the south so we tucked into a lee side of the shoreline.
In order to get the bait casting rod on the troll Dan put the trolling motor on high. As I am patiently waiting to take my first casts of the night I see Dan do the herky, jerky motion and set the hook. Soon a 23 lb striper was in the boat.
Good fortune soon turned to slow fishing. We thought trolling the shoreline would productive but after an hour of no bites we were ready to try a new location. We had to pass the spot Dan caught the first fish to motor to our new area. As we approached the catch zone I got a bite. Dan stopped the boat and we started casting our eels. Soon a short striper was on the boat. And it didn't end there. As long as we stayed in a 200 yard zone we landed fish after fish. Lots of fish were in the 40" range.
The bite was so hot we didn't measure any fish. At the beginning we weighed each fish. Our first 5 keepers weighed 23, 16, 17, 22 and 32 pounds. After that the action didn't allow down time. We needed to revive the fish and get the eels back in the water.
The big fish of the night was 32 pounds.
We dressed for the weather. It didn't keep my hands from feeling and looking like prunes. There is one thing I really like about landing a big striper. It is when you are kneeling over the side of the boat reviving the fish. You can feel their strength returning. With one short whip of that tail they are gone. And you get a face full of water. I laugh and smile each time.
Thank you Captain Dan for having me as your first mate. It takes special friends to be able to share a boat for hours in dismal weather and be better friends at the end of the night. I am looking forward to when we can "do the drift again".
