Bunny Clark Fishing Update
Written & Edited by Tim Tower
September 28, 2016, 9:00 AM EDT
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At 3:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 62°F, the sky was clear with stars, there was no wind to speak of and the visibility over the ocean was very good. More later.
We had a following sea for the ride to the fishing grounds. The wind was light out of the northwest with a chop of less than a half a foot. On the grounds, the wind was the same to start. Later, the wind hauled out of the west, the same velocity. The last two hours of the fishing gave us southwest winds of five to eight knots and seas in chops of a foot. The wind was over ten knots from the south southwest with seas of about two feet on the ride back to Perkins Cove. All day long we had six foot long period ocean swells presumably from Hurricane Gaston to the east of Bermuda. The tide (current) was moderate to strong overall. The air temperature started out at 65°F at sunrise to 71°F at it's highest. It was a bit humid today. The sky was mostly cloudy but they were high thin cirrus clouds so there was always a sun shinning through. The visibility ranged over thirty miles. The surface water temperature reached a high of 68.0°F. The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 80°F (with a low of 54°F). In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high was 77°F with a low of 64°F). Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 84°F (with a low of 49°F).
I would classify the fishing as "good" all day. I wouldn't say it was any better than that because the tide was a little too strong, there were a few too many dogfish caught and the tangles were a lot more frequent than I would have expected (probably the current). The catching was very good but that includes over fifty dogfish and just shy of two hundred sub-legal haddock. Landings were good. Most legal fish landed were haddock, by far. The cull was about two or three to one. This was one day where I just couldn't keep track of all the sub-legal haddock released. Where is the DMR when you need them? Legal landings included the bag limit of cod, quite a few pollock, thirty-seven big redfish, twenty-two cusk, two white hake and five butter mullet. I'm not sure who was high hook. If you just counted fish caught I would have to give it to Steve Selmer (NH). If you leave it as we normally do with legal fish only, I wouldn't really know. Steve's largest fish was a 10 pound cusk. But he caught a pollock, the last fish of the trip, that was almost that same size. And he broke off a small tuna that he hooked on the bottom and swam straight up to the surface with Steve's jig in its mouth. A couple of turns on the surface and the jig was chaffed off by the teeth near the swivel. Dennis Rhoades (VT) won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, a 19.5 pound pollock. Keith Dayon (ME) won the boat pool for the second largest fish with the second largest fish, a 19 pound pollock. The third largest fish was a 16.25 pound white hake caught by Jim Turner (ME). Jim also caught the largest cusk of the day, a Maine state trophy of 14.25 pounds. This is the largest cusk we have seen since July 12, 2016. I took a picture of Jim holding his trophy fish. This digital image appears on the left.
Other Angler Highlights: Steve Volk (VT) landed a 9 pound cusk and a 12 pound pollock, his two largest fish. Ron Foley (VT) caught a 12 pound pollock. Ken Carter (ME) landed a 9 pound pollock but released three cod that were, each, 9 pounds. Art DuHamel (ME) boated the largest cod at 12 pounds. His largest pollock weighed 11 pounds. His brother, Roger DuHamel (VT) landed a 9 pound pollock, his biggest fish. Jim Smith (NH) caught an 11 pound pollock, his largest fish. His largest cod weighed 9 pounds. Bob Romeo (NY) landed the hard luck award for, somehow, getting his line in behind the spool of his reel. To get him back fishing with the same equipment, I had to take the side plate off and then put the reel back together again. Not a big deal but enough to warrant getting the shirt!
Note: We were bothered, somewhat, by blue sharks. On one such occasion, I figured it was time to move because of them. Adam Theriault (ME) objected; "The fishing is good, let's stay." So I changed my mind. And I'm glad I took his advice; the fishing ramped up, it was the best fishing of the day and we caught our two largest fish of the trip after his suggestion. Thanks, Adam! Adam's largest fish was a pollock that weighed 10.75 pounds.
Wayne Johnson (NH) was aboard today, his third time this season. Normally, I see him once or twice. Although he didn't land a fish of 10 pounds or better, he did very well. His legal haddock count was twelve and he caught some of every species we caught today except white hake. Wayne did lose two very big fish. And, near the end of the trip, when it was a bit slower, he made an aquarium out of the bow box. Don't ask.
I received a $30.00 donation from Randy Brouillard (VT) helping me with my cancer fund raising bike ride with the Pan-Mass Challenge today. Randy did very well fishing today but didn't land a fish large enough to write about. I do very much appreciate the contribution to the cause. Thank you very much, Randy.
At 5:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 64°F, the sky was mostly clear with a brilliant display of orange in the clouds on the eastern horizon, the wind was light out of the southwest and the visibility over the ocean seemed very good. The rest of the day was a mix of sun and clouds, mostly sunny one time, almost overcast the next. From mid afternoon on the sky was mostly overcast with the yellow orb of a sun navigating through the clouds. The wind blew out of the southwest most of the day. But it was light with hardly a ruffle of a flag. The visibility was very good. It was muggy all day with a high temperature of 83°F in Perkins Cove. The air temperature was still 80°F at 6:30 PM. The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 80°F (with a low of 54°F). In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high was 82°F with a low of 68°F). Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 82°F (with a low of 60°F).
At 5:30 AM this morning I was sitting at the computer entering figures in the database when Jared called. He was at the boat and said he could see water in the sediment bowl of the Racor fuel filter system in the engine room. This is part of the routine for getting the boat ready to go fishing. All I could think was that the fuel truck must have put in kerosine without me knowing it. So I went down to take a look myself. Jared was right! In fact, all I could see was water in the sediment bowl! It didn't take me long to come to the conclusion that I had to cancel the day trip. It was very disappointing to have to turn anglers away, some of whom had come from Vermont all the way from the Canadian border.
But how could water have gotten into the fuel to the point where it was perfect one day and completely the opposite another? Turns out it was the fuel fill plate. And it's probably something I should have seen coming but figured it would last the test of time. I'm not going to bore you with the details here. But I can tell you that I fixed the problem after some sleuthing.
And thank God I deal with Estes Oil. Mike Estes, the owner, sent the three best guys he has with a reclamation tank, pumps and hoses to start the process of taking all the fuel out of the contaminated tank. In the meantime, Jared Keniston, Sean Devich and I worked at rounding up materials (me), clearing/cleaning filters, fuel lines & filter casings (Jared with help from Sean) as Dave Apgar and Tom Gray (Estes' best) pumped the tank dry. Mark Hamilton, in the meantime, Estes' road tech, came by to make up hose fittings to get the hard to reach areas of the tank and to make sure we were on the right course and had the right additives to put in with the fuel. At the same time, Lisa's advice to me at Jackson's Marine in Kittery helped me solve the water contamination problem. All in all, it was a very good learning experience and a good feeling to have people like this behind you when things go wrong. Left up to me it would have been a long night with a probable cancellation of tomorrow's marathon trip.
We had the engine ready to go by 3:00 PM, an hour before we were to take the afternoon half day trip. Jared and Sean cleaned the boat up, got the rods and bait ready and left the dock on time to complete the afternoon half day trip. I took off back home to get a shower and get dressed to work at Barnacle Billy's restaurant.
Captain Jared Keniston and Sean Devich ran the afternoon half day (4 PM - 8 PM) trip. On the fishing grounds, the wind blew out of the southwest at eight to ten knots. Seas were chops of about a foot. The air temperature reached a high value of 67°F. The tide was moderate. The visibility ranged to twelve miles in haze. The sky was overcast. The surface water temperature reached a high of 64.5°F.
The fishing was very good. The ocean was fairly calm, there were no dogfish and the tide was minimal, really. The catching was good; there were quite a few sub-legal cod and pollock caught, as well as some redfish and a butter mullet. Landings were fair. Legal fish landed were four cusk. Drifting was the method. Everyone used bait and a couple of cod flies.
Allison Bark (MA) won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, an 8 pound cusk. The second largest fish was a 6.25 pound cusk caught by Barry Bark (NY). Jeremie Taylor (SK) landed the third largest fish, a 5 pound cusk.
Other Angler Highlights: Joe Feistl (PA) caught the only other legal fish, a 4 pound cusk. Mike McClure (CO) landed the hard luck award for losing the most rigs on the bottom! At least he didn't win the award for sea sickness!
At 3:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 72°F, the sky was overcast, the wind was light out of the west and the visibility over the ocean was very good, at least. Another easy ride to the fishing grounds was had by all aboard the Bunny Clark. There wasn't even any spray for those sitting aft. On the grounds, the wind started out light from the southwest, hauled out of the west, died out a bit, hauled out of the northwest and then died altogether. The wind was never more than three knots to begin with. But, after 1:00 PM, the wind died and left the ocean flat, glassy calm. The ocean was glass calm all the way back to Perkins Cove. The sky was overcast for most of the day. The overcast was not thick. Rain never seemed a possibility. At times we could see the sun as a light yellow disk through the clouds. By 1:00 PM, the sky cleared leaving mostly blue sky. The air temperature was around 70°F for most of the morning. In the sun it was hot. It was also humid. In the shade the air temperature was 76°F for a high on the grounds. The tide (current) was moderate all day, light for the last hour of fishing. The visibility ranged over thirty miles. The surface water temperature reached a high of 66.0°F. The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 81°F (with a low of 65°F). In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high was 76°F with a low of 68°F). Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 86°F (with a low of 59°F).
The fishing was good to very good all day. There were more tangles than is normal. And we caught over eighty dogfish, mostly whips. But we also caught a lot of fish. Catching was very good as were the landings. The fish size average was lower. Most legal fish landed were pollock. There wasn't another species even close in numbers. We caught our bag limit of cod but only kept fourteen. Legal landings also included forty-one big redfish, five cusk, thirty-six haddock (the cull was four sub-legal to one legal!), two white hake, two whiting and five butter mullet. We lost seven rigs to blue sharks. We drift fished and anchored. Anchoring produced the most fish. All terminal gear worked well.
I couldn't tell you who was high hook. Everyone caught a lot of fish. However, Larry Reed (ME) caught, far and away, the most dogfish. I know he caught at least twenty but no more than forty. But Larry also won both boat pools today, the pool for the largest fish and the pool for the second largest fish, the two largest fish of the trip. Both fish weighed 12 pounds. One was a white hake. The other was a cod. Jim Iams (ME) caught the third largest fish, an 11 pound pollock.
Other Angler Highlights: The fourth largest fish was a 10.5 pound pollock. There were two pollock of that weight. Both were caught by Boo Whitten (ME). I also weighed another pollock for Boo that came out at 9 pounds. Jim Morrell (ME) caught the only other white hake. It weighed 9 pounds. He also caught a 9 pound pollock. Karilyn Bonney (ME) landed the best double keeper catch of the trip. Her double included an 8 pound pollock and a 9 pound pollock, both fish caught on the same line at the same time. I also weighed two other fish of hers. One was a 10 pound pollock. The other was a 9.5 pound pollock. Jason Johnson (ME) caught the sixth largest fish of the trip, 10.25 pound pollock. However, he lost the two largest fish of the trip as well. We never did get to see these two fish. Rand Richards (ME) landed a 9 pound pollock, his largest fish. T. J. Jodrey (ME) caught a pollock that weighed 9 pounds. Travis Mahan (ME) landed the only Maine state trophy today, a redfish. It weighed just a skosch over 2 pounds. I took a picture of Travis with his prize. This digital image appears on the right. Bob Jones (ME) landed the hard luck award for losing two jigs and for catching many fewer fish than I expected. It was probably the banana!
I received two very generous donations sponsoring me in my bicycle ride with the Pan-Mass Challenge today. One donation was $170.00 from Larry Reed & Crew. The other was a $50.00 donation from Jim Morrell. Jim was part of the crew but chose to give his donation separately. Jim said I could add it with the crew's donation. But I thought it more appropriate to include it here separately. This problem is closer to him than anyone else that fished with us today. Thank you all so very much for the support. I do so appreciate it!
At 5:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 66°F, the sky was a mix of clear sky and clouds the wind was blowing out of the northwest at ten knots and the visibility over the ocean was excellent. It was a beautiful day today. By sunrise, the wind was blowing out of the northeast at ten knots, more or less. The wind kept up for some of the morning before hauling out of the east and dying out around 1:00 PM. The wind was light out of the south by 5:00 PM. The sky was clear all day. The air temperature reached a high of 80°F. The visibility remained excellent. The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 77°F (with a low of 57°F). In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high was 75°F with a low of 64°F). Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 83°F (with a low of 51°F).
On the fishing grounds, the wind blew out of the northeast at ten knots, dropped to five knots before the morning was out. There was very little wind in the afternoon. Seas were chops/seas of two feet to begin the fishing and calm at the end. The sky was clear all day. The visibility was excellent. The air temperature reached a high of 69°F. The tide (current) was strong. The surface water temperature reached a high of 64°F.
The fishing, the catching and landings were very good overall. The current was strong but it didn't seem to matter much. Fish of keeper size were small on average again today. Most legal fish landed were pollock, by far. Legal landings also included eighteen haddock, nineteen cod and one cusk. Only nine dogfish were caught and released. Anchoring, only, was the boating method employed. Jigs and cod flies caught the most fish.
Todd McDonald (NH) was far and away the high hook of the trip today with the most legal fish. His largest fish was a 9.5 pound pollock, the second largest fish of the trip. Dakota Sanger (ME) won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, a 10.5 pound pollock. It was Dakota's birthday today. Fitting! Ten year old Danny Sullivan (NY) caught the third and fourth largest fish of the trip. They were an 8.5 pound pollock and an 8 pound pollock. Joe Pelletier (KY) landed the hard luck award for most tangled lines.
At 5:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 56°F, the sky was crystal clear, the wind was light out of the northwest and the visibility over the ocean was excellent. By dawn, the sky was not completely clear. High cirrus clouds were present. It was never overcast today but there was enough high cloud cover to give the sky a milky/blue look. The sun was shinning through the thin clouds all day. The air temperature was nice just a little way away from the water. In Perkins Cove the air temperature reached a high of 76°F. The wind blew out of the northeast at very light speeds, died out and then hauled out of the south. The visibility was very good in some haze. The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 77°F (with a low of 53°F). In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high was 70°F with a low of 60°F). Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 79°F (with a low of 47°F).
On the fishing grounds, the wind blew out of the northeast at eight knots to start. The wind dropped off to nothing by the time they were ready to head in. At most, the seas were chops of a foot in the morning. The rest of the day the ocean was calm. The air temperature reached a high of 65°F. The visibility ranged to twelve miles in haze. The tide (current) was light to moderate. The surface water temperature reached a high of 65°F.
The fishing was very good to excellent. If not for sixty-five dogfish it would have been excellent. But the drift was perfect and the ocean was calm, a perfect fishing platform for humans on the high seas. The catching was very good. Landings were a little better than good. Most legal fish landed were pollock. Legal landings also included eight cod, thirty haddock, seven cusk, two cunners and one white hake. The haddock cull was one legal fish out of three fish caught. Drifting was the method. Cod flies caught the most fish.
Brian Murphy (NH) was the fisherman of the day. He was high hook with the most legal fish and he won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, an 18 pound pollock. Brian also caught a 13 pound pollock. Marian Murphy (NH), Brian's essential dory mate, was second hook. Her largest was a 13 pound pollock. Between them, they caught a third of the total fish landed today. It was a good day to be a Murphy! The second largest fish was a 15 pound pollock caught by Hank Koziarz (NY). Steve Curtis (NH) caught the third largest fish, a 13.5 pound pollock.
Other Angler Highlights: Patrick Perkins (NH) caught the first fish of size to weigh, a 10 pound pollock. Brendon Greeley (NH) caught a 12 pound pollock, his biggest fish. Becky Curtis (NH) landed the hard luck award for getting the most tangled lines.
Captain Jared Keniston and Sean Devich ran the afternoon half day (4PM - 8PM) trip. On the fishing grounds, the wind blew out of the southwest at five knots. Seas were calm. The air temperature reached a mild high of 63°F. The tide (current) was light to moderate. The visibility ranged to eleven miles in haze. The sky was fuzzy clear and sunny. The surface water temperature reached a high of 65°F.
The fishing was excellent. There were no dogfish, the ocean was calm, the current was light and the weather was perfect. The catching was very good. Landings were poor. Legal fish included three mackerel, three cusk and a cod that was almost legal. Drifting was the method. It was an all bait night at the terminal gear end of things.
Nine year old Maddy Rathbone (MA) won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, an 8.5 pound cusk. The second largest fish was a 6 pound cusk caught by Bob Burns (ME). Pete Hawthorne (MA) caught and released the third largest fish, a 5 pound sub-legal cod. Dick Warren (MA) landed the hard luck award for being the sole angler without a fish and for a high frequency of tangles.
At 5:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 54°F, the sky was crystal clear, there was no wind to speak of, the bell buoy could be heard (usually means northeast wind if any) and the visibility over the ocean was excellent. Ashore, the wind never really amounted to much. The wind direction was out of the northeast. We may have seen ten knots but I doubt it. Mostly it was five knots or less. We had no wind after 2:00 PM. The air was cooler today, perfect really. The high air temperature in Perkins Cove was 75°F. The sky was sunny all day with high cirrus clouds giving us a milky blue color instead of the bright blue you might see on a day where the wind was blowing out of the northwest. The visibility was very good, at least, in some haze. The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 75°F (with a low of 51°F). In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high was 72°F with a low of 60°F). Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 82°F (with a low of 48°F).
On the fishing grounds, just within the influence of Hurricane Hermine, the wind blew out of the east at ten knots in the morning. By afternoon, the easterly wind had increased to fifteen knots. Seas were chops of one to two feet or more over a building sea swell. There wasn't much of a swell in the morning but, by the time the end of the fishing had occurred, swells had reached the four foot mark. The sky was sunny all day, in the same manner that it was ashore. The air temperature reached a high of 66°F in the shade. The tide (current) was moderate to strong. The visibility ranged from fifteen to twenty miles in haze. The surface water temperature reached a high of 64°F on the fishing grounds.
The fishing was very good, at least. The current and swells kept it from reaching the excellent mark. The catching and landings were excellent, one of our best extreme day trips of the season to date. Most legal fish landed were pollock, by far. They were pollock of a much bigger average size than we have been seeing. They had about a quarter as many legal haddock. The haddock cull was one legal out of three fish caught. Legal landings also included the bag limit of cod and ten cusk. Released fish included few sub-legal cod and pollock, two wolffish and one dogfish. They drift fished and anchored. Everyone used jigs and flies. No bait today.
High hook could not be determined; it was too close to call without counting fillets. Isael Suriel won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, a 21.5 pound pollock. This is a tie for the Bunny Clark's second largest pollock of the fishing season to date. The second largest fish was a 19 pound pollock caught by Kevin Durning. Justin Grenier caught the third largest fish, a 17 pound pollock.
Other Angler Highlights: Although high hook could not be determined, Roger Hopkins and, son, Justin Hopkins were playing the part as they do on every Bunny Clark trip they attend. Roger's largest fish was a 14 pound pollock. Justin landed a 14 pound pollock, a 16 pound pollock, a tie for the fourth largest fish of the trip, and a 14.5 pound pollock. They left the boat with the most pounds of fillets. Keith O'Rourke also caught a 16 pound fish to tie for fourth. The fish was a wolffish, the Bunny Clark's third largest wolffish of the season so far. Mike Durning also caught a wolffish. Mike's fish weighed 10.5 pounds. Tony Martias caught a 15 pound pollock, his largest fish. He also caught a double keeper catch that included a 13.5 pound pollock and a 9 pound pollock, both fish caught on the same line at the same time. Bill Durning caught a 13 pound pollock, his largest fish. Bill Grenier landed a pollock that weighed 15.5 pounds. Fotios Papaliosas caught the largest cod at 12 pounds. Ron Nelson was close with an 11 pound cod. William Grenier boated a 14.5 pound pollock, his best fish. Joe Dibiase landed the hard luck award for becoming the token hurler of the trip! Ouch!
At 5:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 54°F, the sky was clear, the wind was blowing out of the northeast at ten knots, the bell buoy could easily be heard and the visibility over the ocean was excellent. At sunrise, we had overcast skies that were clear again by 8:00 AM. The sky stayed clear and blue with high thin clouds all day. The wind steadily increased out of the northeast. By 10:00 AM, the northeast wind was fifteen knots sustained. After noon, the wind increased to twenty-five knots. Seas were about ten feet crashing up along the rocky shore line. The northeast wind didn't really back off all evening. There was a surge in the Cove but it wasn't so much that we had to put storm lines out. The air temperature in Perkins Cove reached 73°F. The visibility over the ocean was good in haze and mist. The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 74°F (with a low of 51°F). In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high was 74°F with a low of 60°F). Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 81°F (with a low of 47°F).
I spent the day working at Barnacle Billy's restaurant. The forecast didn't seem to diminish the interest in the area or a walk along the Marginal Way to those people finishing up the end of the long weekend in Ogunquit. It was perfect weather for watching the surf today. The air temperature was perfect, the sun was out all day and the viability was perfect for a walk anywhere.
At 5:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 62°F, the sky was overcast, it was drizzling rain, the wind was blowing out of the northeast at fifteen knots, seas were still ten feet or better and the visibility over the ocean was fair in mist and haze. As the day progressed, the wind diminished, the light rain was done by noon and the seas dropped substantially. There was some surge in the Cove during the morning but that too was done, pretty much, by noon. The wind blew out of the northeast to over twenty knots, at times, during the morning. After noon, the wind was a sustained twelve or fourteen knots, no wind along the shore by sunset. Depite the lack of precipitation after noon, the sky stayed overcast until 5:30 PM when we got a peek at the sun. We only got a couple of glimpses before I lost interest in looking at the sky. As the wind decreased so did the visibility. The fog rolled in around sunset and remained with us through the night. The air temperature cracked the 70°F but I never did see the highest value. The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 71°F (with a low of 62°F). In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high was 72°F with a low of 63°F). Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 78°F (with a low of 64°F).
I spent more time working in both offices (Barnacle Billy's & Bunny Clark) than normal. I went for a short bike ride in the mist before showering and going to work at the restaurants. I worked there until about 4:30 PM. At that point business was slow. So I went home, changed into my other work clothes, gathered materials and headed down to the Bunny Clark. I had a few things to do. But primary on my list was replacing a float switch to my tertiary bilge pump in the engine room. As the name implies, we have two other more senior bilge pumps, both without float switches which allows us to maintain the water level in the bilge on a regular basis. If the water gets higher during an emergency or whatever this last pump automatically kicks on. We lost the switch over a month ago but since that same pump worked on a manual basis, I didn't want to change it until the boat was not fishing. Today was that opportunity. I was done with all projects completed by 6:30 PM. All systems are now a go.
At 5:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 67°F, the sky was overcast, it was raining lightly, there was no wind and the visibility over the ocean was poor in black thick fog. The fog hung around the shore most of the morning. By 10:00 AM, it was starting to retreat to open ocean. We had drizzle and light rain all morning. By 2:00 PM, the drizzle stopped (the rain had stopped a couple hours earlier) and the clouds got higher. The rest of the afternoon was very dry but the sky remained overcast. We never did see the sun, or stars, for that matter. The visibility was fair at best along the shore. The wind blew out of the east at ten knots max, all day. The visibility was poor in the morning, fair at best over the ocean. The air temperature reached a high of 73°F in Perkins Cove. To my knowledge, that was the highest the air temperature got. The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 71°F (with a low of 63°F). In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high was 76°F with a low of 65°F). Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 80°F (with a low of 66°F).
On the fishing grounds, the wind blew out of the east southeast at twelve to eight knots. Seas were chops of one to two feet over a three foot swell from the same direction. The air temperature reached a high of 65°F. The tide (current) was moderate. The sky was sunny all day (quite a switch from inshore). They had fog initially but that cleared to give them eight to ten miles of visibility. The surface water temperature reached a high of 65.9°F.
The fishing was very good, the catching was better than that and landings were good or better than that. The fish were all smaller than normal today. Most legal fish landed were pollock, by far. Legal landings also included the bag limit of cod, eleven haddock (the cull was one keeper out of every four haddock caught) and two cusk. They released four dogfish. They anchored and drift fished. Jigs and cod flies caught the most fish.
Jared didn't volunteer any information leading to a pick for high hook. I didn't ask. I would have suspected Jim LeMay. But that's just me, fishing with him for many years. Jim didn't do well on the pool front. His largest fish was a 7 pound pollock. Still that was the fourth largest fish of the trip. Arthur Green (NY) won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, a 9 pound pollock. The second largest fish was an 8.5 pound pollock caught by Rich Warner (ME). Tom Davidson (ME) caught the third largest fish, an 8 pound pollock. Jenny Warner (ME) had the hard luck of getting a bit sick. This, of course, landed her the hard luck award t-shirt!
I received a generous $100.00 donation from Rich & Kathy Henderson (MD) sponsoring my in cancer fund raising cycling event with the Pan-Mass Challenge today. They just flew in from Baltimore. I saw them at the restaurant. They both have been very generous to me over the years in support of this cause. Thank you both very much!
At 3:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 68°F, the sky was overcast, there was no wind and the visibility over the ocean was poor in black thick fog.
We had to pick our way out of the Cove to get to the open ocean. It was black thick of fog, barely able to see the bridge as we went under it through the channel. In fact, it was foggy all the way to the fishing grounds. But there wasn't a breath of wind all the way to the grounds either. On the grounds, the oceans surface was calm over a long rolling sea swell of three to five feet from the southeast. This didn't last. By sunrise, an easterly wind started blow. This cleared the fog and gave us about six or eight miles visibility. We had this kind do of visibility until the last few minutes of the fishing, when the fog shut in again. The fog was intermittent on the ride back to Perkins Cove. The sky was overcast most of the day but we never had rain. We did see some blue sky and some sun but not much. The air temperature reached a high of 75°F. It was a little humid. The tide (current) was moderate all day, light for the last hour of fishing. The surface water temperature reached a high of 66.9°F. The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 76°F (with a low of 65°F). In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high was 76°F with a low of 66°F). Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 84°F (with a low of 64°F).
The fishing was good to very good all day. The catching was very good, excellent for some. Landings were good. Most legal fish landed were pollock, by far. Legal landings also included one monkfish, one whiting, thirty-three haddock (we also released ninety-eight sub-legal haddock), one redfish, nine cusk, nine cod, one white hake and six butter mullet. We released a 9 pound wolffish, forty-two dogfish and one barndoor skate. We fought seven blue sharks and lost. Drifting was the method. All terminal gear worked well.
Rich Gargan (NY) was the fisherman of the day. He was high hook with the most legal fish (including cod of twenty-four inches or better) and he won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, a 24 pound barndoor skate. This is the first barndoor skate that Rich has ever seen or caught. It's also the largest barn door skate of the Bunny Clark fishing season to date. We have only caught two this season. The other was caught by Steve Selmer (NH) on July 12, 2016 in 100 fathoms of water! The barn door skate is considered an endangered species. Much more information on the barndoor skate and like species can be found in our latest Guestletter on line. I took a picture of Rich holding his first ever barndoor skate. This digital image appears on the left. Rich also tied for the third largest fish of the trip with a 14 pound cod, the largest cod of the day. Some of his other notable fish included two pollock of 10 pounds each, a 7.8 pound cod and a 12 pound pollock.
Bill Wallace (ME) won the boat pool for the second largest fish with the second largest fish, a 17 pound pollock. He also tied with Rich for the third largest fish of the trip. Bill's fish was a 14 pound pollock. Bill also lost three jigs to blue sharks and landed the hard luck award for his misfortune.
Other Anglear Highlights: Todd Adams (NH) didn't keep a single fish. He caught quite a few cod and haddock but nothing over 8 pounds. Gary Bertone (MA) caught a 10 pound pollock and a 12.25 pound pollock, his two largest fish. Ray Westermann (MA) caught a 10 pound cod and a 9.5 pound cod, his two best. John Baker (ME) caught the pee wee monk. It weighed 2.5 pounds. Roger Aldridge (NY) landed a 9 pound pollock, his largest fish.
I received two donations sponsoring me in my Pan-Mass Challenge bicycle ride for a cancer cure today. One contribution was from Bill Wallace for $25.00. The other donation was from Todd Adams (NH) for $30.00. Thank you both so very much for your support. The ride was over on Sunday, August 7, 2016 but cancer doesn't follow the PMC and neither do I. In fact, I accept donations to my fund raiser until December 30, 2016. I certainly appreciate everyone's help in this worthy cause.
At 5:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 69°F, the sky was overcast, there was no wind, although the buoy reports were giving a light southwest and the visibility over the ocean was good in some haze. Ashore, it rained for just a brief time before the sky cleared up later in the morning. The sky was a mix of mostly blue with some clouds. The air temperature soared. By noon, the air temperature at my old homestead was 92°F. The wind was very light out of the southwest all day. By 5:30 PM, the wind was blowing out of the northwest at fifteen knots or better. The visibility was good in the morning, very good after 6:00 PM. The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 91°F (with a low of 62°F). In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high was 93°F with a low of 73°F). The high temperature value of 93°F set in Boston today ties the record high temperature for this date set last year. Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 94°F (with a low of 63°F).
On the fishing grounds, the wind was light out of the west southwest all day. The ocean was calm with long low rolling sea swells (about 4 feet high) from the southeast. The sky was a mix of sun and clouds after an overcast right out. The air temperature reached a high of 73°F in the shade. The tide (current) was strong. The visibility ranged from fifteen to twenty miles in haze. The surface water temperature reached a high of 66°F.
The fishing was good, no better than that. The tide was a bit too strong, even though the ocean was calm, and the dogfish were everywhere. The catching and keeping (landings), both, were very good. The large majority of the legal fish were small with a handful of really good sized fish. Most legal fish landed were pollock, by far. Legal landings also included twenty-four haddock. The haddock cull was four to one, for every five haddock caught, one was legal. Other legal fish included twenty cod, ten cusk and one redfish. They released over one hundred and one dogfish. Drifting was the method. Jigs and cod flies caught the most fish.
I never made it to the boat to ask who was high hook (see below). Captain Ian did not put the name of the individual on the day sheet; probably it was impossible to tell. Tim Rozan (ME) won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, a 19 pound pollock. Tim also caught an 11 pound pollock. The second largest fish was an 18.5 pound cod caught by Lewis Hazelwood (MA). Jon "Griff" Griffin (MA) landed the third largest fish, a 16 pound pollock.
Other Angler Highlights: Bob Gingras (MA) caught a 10 pound pollock, his largest fish. Rick Gelaznick (F)) landed pollock of 10 pounds as well, his best. Ray Westermann (MA) landed a 12.5 pound cod and released a 10.5 pound cod, his two best. Troy Wendling (MA) boated a 10 pound cod, his largest fish. Fred Ostrander (MA) landed the hard luck award for the most tangled lines and for losing jigs.
Tim Rozan and Lewis Hazelwood donated a combined $20.00 to sponsor me in the Pan-Mass Challenge after today's trip. The donate the same after every trip. And it adds up! Thanks so much, you two. I appreciate it very much!
Monday morning I started to get chest congestion and knew I was headed for a flu or, at best, a cold. I hate to get sick in the summer. I combat these things with overdoses of Vitamin C. So on the marathon trip yesterday, I hydrated more than normal and kept taking VC on a regular basis. This also meant I was making trips to the loo more often than I would normally. Being the dutiful endurance athlete that I am, I check the color of my urine all the time (champaign is the color I prefer but today it was more like a clear mountain stream). VC is water soluble so you can't take too much. And I believe in Linus Pauling and his advocacy of large VC doses to kill bodily infections, particularly colds. I carried this on after the trip and into the night. However, I experienced the same after I got into bed, frequent trips to the loo. At 1:15 AM, I went again but instead of going back to bed, I decided I would go down stairs. It was dark but I negotiate these places in my house with regularity. Not this time. When I realized I was a foot further forward of the hand hold than I needed to be, the outcome was evident. Head first into the black void I went.
My wife, Deb, found me at the bottom of the stairs moaning, crumpled up in a heap. When I came to, I walked right back up and fell on the floor. I have no recollection of this. Memory loss is a symptom of concussions. And I certainly had that. Deb, of course, called 911. The police arrived before the ambulance. I was pretty banged up but no broken bones except a couple of chipped teeth. And I had a few bruises, two strained wrists (no swelling), a very sore right knee and a black and blue bloody toe. I was very fortunate. The CT Scan at York Hospital came back negative for blood on the brain. And there were no cracked or broken cervical vertebrae. But the muscles in my neck were, and remain, very sore.
I was released from the hospital at 3:30 AM, a half hour after I normally get up in the morning. But I was a bit dizzy and maybe even a little sea sick (don't tell anybody about this). The rest of the day was spent in bed. This Sunday the "Senior Games" (for cyclists 45 years and up) road cycling race takes place in Kennebunkport for a chance to go to the Nationals in Birmingham in June. I had assembled a team for this event with two other cyclists of my caliber. But of course this won't be happening. The chance to qualify only happens once every two years. In last years race I won my age group and came in second overall. But this wasn't a qualifying event. So I was looking forward to this years event. Instead, I am looking forward to having my knee feel good enough to ride every once and a while. And of course there is the physical aspects of captaining the Bunny Clark which should be no problem by Tuesday. I am certainly looking forward to that. I was not depressed; my family covered my shifts at the restaurant, I can catch up with the desk work later and I'm trying to get this fishing update behind me so I don't have that to think about. I feel very lucky today.
And, because I was not mobile today, Gill, our dog, was trying everything possible to get me out of bed. He would jump on and off the bed. After that he would sit there at the foot of the bed and bark and bark, sharp barks. And then he tried the whirling dervish routine trying to get me to chase him. He looks like he's chasing his tail in that move. In the end, he settled for licking my breakfast plate clean. He hung around the bedroom most of the day.
At 5:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 66°F, the sky was mostly cloudy, there was no wind and the visibility over the ocean was excellent. Ashore, the sky was a mix of sun and clouds. We had enough cloud cover at 3:45 PM to have a rain shower. But that was only brief. Other than that the sky remained the same throughout. Wind was nothing all day. The ocean was flat glassy calm along the shore. The air temperature didn't make the climb it did yesterday, reaching only 77°F as a high today. The visibility was very good. The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 91°F (with a low of 62°F). In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high was 93°F with a low of 73°F). Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 94°F (with a low of 63°F).
On the fishing grounds the wind blew out of the east a less than five knots, barely a whisper, all day. The ocean was flat calm with no sea. The air temperature reached a high of 74°F. The tide (current) was moderate. The visibility ranged to over fifteen miles. The sky was a mix of sun and clouds. The surface water temperature reached a high of 65°F.
The fishing was nearly excellent. There were few dogfish (twenty-five total), the weather was perfect and the tide wasn't bad. The catching and landings were good overall. Most legal fish landed were pollock, by far. Legal landings also included fifteen haddock, nine cod, five cunners, fourteen cusk and three butter mullet. The haddock cull was two to one, sub-legal fish to legal fish. Drifting was the method. Cod flies caught the most fish.
I wasn't informed as to who was high hook. Jeremy Prue (ME) won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, a 16.5 pound pollock. He also caught a 10 pound pollock. The second largest fish was a 13.5 pound pollock caught by Jerry Whitney (ME). Keith Langervin (ME) caught the third largest fish, a 10.5 pound pollock.
Other Angler Highlights: Abe Braden (ME) landed a 10 pound pollock, his largest fish. Steve King (NH) boated a 10 pound pollock, himself, his best fish. About two thirds of the boat today were anglers celebrating the marriage of Matt Laubauskas (ME) - coming up, a bachelor party, sort of. No drinking. Jared gave the hard luck award to Matt to ensure that he would have good luck the rest of the way through, a Bunny Clark tradition of sorts (I.Keniston, 2009).
This morning my left hand had swollen up. It was very painful. My right knee, too, was swollen up, the first swollen knee I have ever had. Even when I hurt my knee distance running in college it never swelled. I felt the patella (knee cap) and knew it was broken. This was right where I had cut it. So, against the better wishes of my wife, I drove myself to York Hospital where I went through a battery of X-rays. In fact, my patella was fine. Of course I had trauma but I had just separated the collagenous fibers on the surface and had not broken it. This was great news! The bad news: I had broken my hand. So I was given a splint, told to see an orthopedic doctor on Monday and told that my concussion warranted staying in bed for the next two days. I had expected that one. So I drove home and got into bed. The rest of the day I spent icing my hand and knee, reading (you can read but you can't watch TV - I don't watch TV anyway, so no great loss) and messaging my cycling friends on the outside. It was not fun. I would much rather be working, fishing or riding.
On this day in 2001, I was captaining the marathon trip. We hooked a bluefin tuna of about 300 pounds and fought the fish for three hours before losing it for lack of a harpoon right next to the boat. We had chased that fish for three miles before losing it. When we got back to our anchor, the analog cell phone rang. It was my father telling me that the Twin Towers in New York City had been hit by a passenger airline.
At 5:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 70°F, the sky seemed overcast, the wind was blowing out of the south at fifteen knots (just offshore - less in Perkins Cove) and the visibility over the ocean was poor in black thick fog. A half hour later the fog had disappeared and we could see the distance to Boon Island at least or about ten miles. Ashore, the wind blew out of the west southwest at fifteen to almost twenty knots. The sky remained overcast for most of the morning. At 10:30 AM, we had a weather front come through with strong winds from the west and northwest to over forty knots in places and heavy rain. The rain lasted for twenty minutes. The wind knocked trees down, one hitting a pole on Pine Hill that killed all the power to Perkins Cove, closing all the businesses down there including Barnacle Billy's. The wind settled down after that and blew out of the northwest at fifteen knots or so. The sky cleared leaving a mostly sunny sky, this around 11:15 AM. We ended up getting power down at the Cove at 3:35 PM. We opened the restaurants shortly after that. [Now we shall see if I should have sent the staff home or made the decision I did. Always good PR to open when you can, I think.] The air temperature reached a high of 80°F and stayed at 80°F after the wind shift until at least 4:00 PM. The visibility went from good before the wind shift to excellent afterward. The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 80°F (with a low of 53°F). In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high was 83°F with a low of 63°F). Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 82°F (with a low of 51°F).
On the fishing grounds, the wind blew out of the southwest at fifteen to twenty knots with higher gusts. Seas were three to five feet in chops with no sea. Late morning they got hit by the same frontal squall we got, albeit a bit later. Wind gusts were up around the forty knot range, the system produced a water spout, rarely seen in Maine waters and it hit them while they were on anchor, forcing them to drag and fetch up again. Problem is it was just like short-scoping; you drag until you get to something that might not let you go! And so it almost did. The anchor hooked into some old Brownell #16 tub trawl gear that was hung to bottom. For twenty minutes Ian made circles, direct jumped, scoped out, kedged and pulled until finally it broke free. Of course, Ian didn't know at the time what he had gotten into. When the anchor surfaced it was buried in trawl gear. After the squall the wind settled in from the west and blew ten to fifteen knots. Seas dropped to three and four feet, chops. The high air temperature recorded in the shade was 66°F. The tide was strong. The visibility ranged from one to three miles in fog in the morning and excellent in the afternoon. The sky was a mix of sun and clouds, an overcast ride to the fishing grounds. The surface water temperature reached a high of 64°F.
The fishing was not good; the weather was too much of a deterring factor. The catching was very good (mostly sub-legal cod, haddock and pollock). Landings were fair. All the fish were small today. Legal fish landed included eight mackerel, one cunner, twenty-one pollock and nineteen cod. They caught exactly seventy-nine haddock, fourteen of which were legal. Twenty-seven dogfish were released. Drift fishing and anchoring were the methods. All terminal gear worked about the same.
I wasn't informed as to whom was high hook. Of course, I was in bed licking my wounds. So I didn't meet the boat. That all changes tomorrow (Deb says; "We'll see!"). George Johnson (NY) won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, a 7 pound pollock. The second largest fish was a 6.5 pound pollock, also caught by George. Everybody else on the boat caught a 6 pound something, either a cod or a pollock. Cameron Baker (NY) landed the hard luck award for getting more than a touch of the mal de mer.
As for me, I was in bed living vicariously through my brother at the restaurant, Ian on the high seas and my racing mates, cycling. My "team", the two guys I was to ride with placed 6th and 8th and first and second in their age groups. I could have helped, I know I could have. Another friend that I ride with, Harry, placed third in a race that measured 204 miles! Almost 9,000 feet of climbing. That is one thing that I could not have done as well, not nearly. Harry is a beast. I have never been capable of seeing his best; I'm just not fast enough.
At 5:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 50°F, the sky was clear, there was no wind to speak of and the visibility over the ocean was excellent. At sunrise, the ocean was flat calm with some calm spots and some wind ripples from the northwest. The air temperature dropped to 48°F before rising to 60°F by 9:00 AM. The sky was mostly clear. The wind stayed light out of the northwest or didn't blow at all for most of the morning. By noon, the wind had hauled out of the southwest. We saw winds no stronger than ten knots along the shore. The air temperature got up as high as 77°F. The visibility was excellent all day. The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 73°F (with a low of 44°F). In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high was 72°F with a low of 59°F). Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 78°F (with a low of 43°F).
On the fishing grounds, the wind was light out of the west northwest to start, calm and then out of the southwest by noon. Wind speeds ranged to ten or twelve knots out of the southwest. Seas went from perfectly calm to a foot or more in chops. The sky was clear all day, with a couple of clouds. The visibility ranged to over twenty miles. The air temperature reached a high of 65°F. The tide (current) was moderate. The surface water temperature reached a high of 64°F.
The fishing was very good. The weather was perfect but the dogfish made it a little less so. The catching was excellent, a fish a cast. Landings were good. Most legal fish landed were haddock, by far. In fact, had Bob Key (PA) known what a seventeen inch haddock really looked like, landings today would have been higher. Ian was wondering why Bob was releasing so many keeper haddock! The haddock cull was a little better than two sub-legal fish to every legal one. Or for every 2.8 haddock caught, one was legal. Legal landings also included ten cod out of thirty legal, twenty-nine pollock, nine cusk, one whiting and one cunner. Forty-one dogfish were released. Drifting was the method. All terminal gear worked well.
Bob Key was high hook with the most legal fish and the most fish, period. The only thing Bob didn't do was catch a fish of 10 pounds or better. Tony Reetz (MN) won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, an 18.25 pound pollock. This is the largest fish that Tony has ever caught. The second largest fish was an 11 pound cod caught by Rachel White (NH). Bill Otto (PA) and Rich Harvey (PA) tied for the third largest fish. Bill landed a double keeper catch that included two pollock of 10 pounds each, both fish caught on the same line at the same time! Rich caught a 10 pound cod. Rich also landed the hard luck award for losing three jigs to terra firma. Happily, no one was sea sick today.
I received a generous $100.00 donation sponsoring me in my cancer fund raising drive with the Pan-Mass Challenge today. The donation was from Peter & Pat Vangsness (MA). Thank you both so much for your support and the support you have given me all season. I really appreciate this and hope to someday sit down and have a chat. All the best to you both!
At 3:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 56°F, the sky was clear, the wind was blowing out of the west at eight knots and the visibility over the ocean was excellent.
The wind was blowing out of the west until we got about five miles outside of Perkins Cove. From that point on the wind blew out of the southwest. On the fishing grounds, at first, the wind was no more than five knots. Seas weren't calm but the chops were less than a foot. The wind increased very gradually as the day progressed. By noon, the southwest wind was blowing ten to fifteen knots. Seas were chops of two to three feet. Later in the day we had fifteen knots sustained with higher gusts. It might have blowing a little harder for the ride home. Seas were probably about three to four feet at the time. The air temperature reached a high of 70°F. The tide (current) was light. The sky was cloudless. The visibility was very good in some haze. The surface water temperature reached a high of 68°F. The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 80°F (with a low of 48°F). In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high was 83°F with a low of 60°F). Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 85°F (with a low of 44°F).
The fishing, the catching and landings were very good all day. It could have been excellent in all categories had we not lost so much fishing tackle to blue sharks. The Bunny Clark lost twenty of her jigs alone, plus a few bait setups and anglers personal jigs and bait rigs. We seemed better controlling them while on anchor. Drifting was much more expensive. Still, the groundfish bite was so good it didn't seem to matter. Most legal fish landed were pollock, by far. Legal landings also included eleven cod, thirty-one haddock (we only caught twenty sub-legal haddock today), forty-four redfish, nine cusk and one white hake. We released or broke off over thirty-five blue sharks. Six dogfish were caught and released. Anchoring was the preferred boating method. As Mike Cheever (NH) agreed; all terminal gear worked well.
I would say that Bob Key (PA) was high hook again today. The largest fish he landed was an 11 pound cod. But he also had the most problems with blue sharks. In fact, he caught the head of a cod that, had the body been with it, would have won the boat pool! He also lost at least five of our jigs to blue sharks. He had such a hard time with the blue sharks that I ended up awarding him the hard luck t-shirt. It's always fun to have the opportunity to give this award to such a professional angler. And Bob is one of the best!
Mike Cheever won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, a 15.5 pound cod. Since it was the best fish of the day I took a picture of Mike holding it. This digital image appears on the left. Tim Robinson (ME) won the boat pool for the second largest fish with the second largest fish, a 15 pound cod. Tim also caught the only white hake, a 12 pounder. The third largest fish was a 14 pound cod caught by Scott Shafer (VT).
Other Anglear Highlights: Sean McIntyre (NH) was encroaching in high hook territory all day. He was probably right up near Bob as he lost just a couple less jigs - which meant more catching time! Some of the fish I weighed for him included an 8.5 pound cod, a 12 pound pollock, a 9.5 pound cod and a 9.5 pound pollock. Bill Otto (PA) caught an 8.25 pound pollock very early in the trip. But he released bigger cod that I didn't weigh. Rich Knauer (NJ) landed the largest cusk at 8 pounds. His largest landed cod weighed 9 pounds but he released ten cod from 7 pounds and over the 9 pound mark. Roma Rubinovski (BY), one of our very good employees from Barnacle Billy's, caught a double keeper catch that included an 8.75 pound pollock and a 6 pound pollock, both fish caught on the same line at the same time! Colton LeBoeuf (VT) caught two pollock that weighed 8 pounds each. And I finally got Rich Harvey (PA) to hold his rod in a professional manner. Sometimes you have to go a little further with these freshwater fishermen!
I received several donations sponsoring me in my bicycle ride with the Pan-Mass Challenge today. The anglers and their donations are a follows: Tim Robinson for $25.00, Mike Cheever for $30.00 and Scott Shafer for $20.00. Thank you all so very much for supporting me and my cause. I appreciate your kindness and generosity very much indeed!
At 5:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 65°F, the sky was clear, the wind was blowing out of the southwest at fifteen knots and the visibility over the ocean was good to very good in haze. Ashore, the wind continued to blow out of the southwest at ten to fifteen knots all morning and into the afternoon. Sometime around 2:00 PM or a little later a frontal boundary came through with rain showers and a wind shift from the northwest. Northwest winds started out at more than twenty knots but settled back into the fifteen knot category with higher gusts. The sky was sunny all morning but became a mix of sun and clouds before noon. The showers were more frequent in the later afternoon. Most showers were very brief but one shower lasted from 5:00 PM to 5:30 PM. The visibility was generally good all day. The air temperature reached a high of 83°F in Perkins Cove. The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 86°F (with a low of 56°F). In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high was 90°F with a low of 62°F). Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 87°F (with a low of 52°F).
On the fishing grounds, the wind blew out of the southwest at ten to fifteen knots or more. Seas were two to three feet all day. The air temperature was 66°F. The visibility ranged to fifteen knots in haze. The current was fairly light. The sky was clear and sunny. The surface water temperature reached a high of 62.4°F.
The fishing was good. The seas were a bit problematic (although no one got sea sick), they caught a few dogfish and the blue sharks gave them a few problems. The blue sharks were not nearly as bad as they were yesterday. The catching was good. Landings were a little bit better than good. Most legal fish landed were pollock. And many were of good size, maybe the biggest average size of the season. Legal landings also included nineteen cod, seventeen haddock and a few butter mullet. They anchored and drift fished. Drifting was the way to go.
I asked about high hook but it was too hard to tell. And no one kept track - that I was aware of. Jeff Bailey (NY) won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, a 19 pound pollock. He caught this fish as part of a double keeper catch with another pollock of 14 pounds, both fish caught on the same line at the same time. Officially, this is the largest double of the Bunny Clark fishing season so far. I say "officially" because we did have a double on a July marathon trip we couldn't land (for legal reasons) that included an 8 pound pollock and a halibut that was 45 pounds plus caught by Jared's eleven year old son, Luke. The halibut was laying on the surface for a while as I tried to figure out how I could get the halibut aboard without killing it and get a picture too! In the process, the halibut got off the line and swam to bottom. C'est la vie! Jeff also caught a 15 pound pollock and a 14.5 pound pollock.
The second largest fish title was shared between Paul Demers (OR) and Kim Demers (NY). They each caught a pollock that weighed 17.5 pounds. Kim also caught a pollock that weighed 14.5 pounds. Paul landed the largest cod of the day at 12 pounds.
Other Angler Highlights: Mike Kotash (NY) caught the second largest cod at 11 pounds. His largest fish was a 13.5 pound pollock. Jerry Olmstead (NY) caught a 17 pound pollock, his largest fish. Jerry also had two other big pollock, a 13 pounder and a 14 pounder. Bob Williams (NY) landed a 15 pound pollock, his best. Lance Rudiger (NY) boated the fourth "official" largest double of the Bunny Clark fishing season today. His double included a 16.5 pound pollock and an 11 pound pollock. He also caught a 12 pound pollock and a 13.5 pound pollock. Andrew Bruyere (NY) landed a 12.5 pound pollock, his biggest fish. Andrew is normally a high hook guy. And he could have been today. I just don't know that for sure. Bill Leary (NY) caught a 16.75 pound pollock and a 12.5 pound pollock, his two largest fish. Dan Liscum (NY) boated a 16.5 pound pollock. John Gardner (NY) rounded up the day with a 13.5 pound pollock, just about the last good fish to be caught today. Tom Bruyere (NY) remained particularly silent in deed today, unusual for him. I can tell you he wasn't silent this morning when it came to abusing me! Mike Irvine (NY) landed the hard luck award for most tangled lines.
Captain Ian Keniston and I hosted the Fran Sweenor (all New York state) marathon trip charter today. At 3:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 55°F, the sky was clear with a big round moon over head, the wind was blowing out of the northwest at twelve knots and the visibility over the ocean was excellent. I was told that the weather ashore today was much like it was offshore. The high temperature in Perkins Cove was 70°F. The northeast wind was done by noon. But passenger carrying vessels still had an uncomfortable ride along the shore with the left over seas.
We had ten knots of northeast wind when we left the gate at Perkins Cove. The wind increased on the ride to the fishing grounds. Seas were about two feet in chops. On the grounds, the wind increased again. At the height of the wind we were seeing twenty knots. Seas were three to four feet in chops. By mid morning the wind started to drop. By noon, there was hardly any wind at all. Seas were still about three feet but only as left over chops or short seas from a stronger wind further offshore. By 2:30 PM, the wind had hauled out of the southeast. Light southeast winds pushed us all the way back to Perkins Cove. The air temperature reached a high of 67°F. The tide (current) started out strong, went moderate after a couple of hours and was light from 11:00 AM until it was time to go home. The sky was cloudless. The visibility was a minimum of thirty-five miles. The surface water temperature reached a high of 63.8°F. The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 69°F (with a low of 48°F). In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high was 66°F with a low of 57°F). Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 74°F (with a low of 42°F).
The fishing was very good overall. What tangles we had were manageable, the blue sharks weren't savage, there were a minimal number of dogfish caught, the tide was light and the seas and weather was comfortable enough. We did have a couple of anglers who would argue about the good fishing. But they spent most of their time in the Hotel Bunny Clark! The catching was good to very good. Landings were good at best. Most legal fish landed were pollock, by far. We had very few legal haddock. In fact, we had released thirty-six sub-legal haddock before we caught our first legal haddock! The legal haddock count ended up at ten while the released sub-legal haddock count was fifty-two. Legal landings also included seventeen cod, thirty cusk, one cunner, one monkfish, one white hake and six whiting. We released fifty dogfish and lost only a couple of rigs to blue sharks. The majority of our day was spent drift fishing. But I did try the sea anchor once and we anchored twice. The sea anchor was worthless. The two other disciplines worked equally well. All terminal gear worked equally well.
I couldn't tell you who was high hook with the most legal fish. Pat Sweenor (NY) was probably the most productive. Pat also won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, a 25 pound Maine state trophy pollock. This is the Bunny Clark's largest pollock of the fishing season to date. I took a picture of Pat with his trophy. This digital image appears on the left. Pat also caught the second largest monkfish of the year at 7.25 pounds. That isn't large for a monkfish but we haven't caught a monkfish over 10 pounds this season yet. Rodney Sharp (NY) won the boat pool for the second largest fish with the second largest fish, a 19.5 pound pollock. Rodney also tied for the third largest fish of the trip with a 19 pound pollock shortly after he caught the larger one. Rodney also caught a 15 pound pollock. I took a picture of Rodney with his two big fish. The digital image appears, right. The fish would have looked bigger had Rodney been a little guy. He's also a good guy to have on your side! Eric Sweenor (NY) tied with for the third largest fish. Eric's was also a 19 pound pollock.
Other Anglear Highlights: Tiny White (NY) caught one of the first fish I could weight this morning, an 8 pound pollock. Bob Dattler (NY) caught a 9 pound pollock shortly afterward. Bob's largest fish of the day was a 12 pound pollock. Harry Maslak (NY) landed a 13 pound pollock and a 13 pound cod, his two best fish. Tyler Vann's (NY) biggest fish was a 10 pound pollock. Fran Sweenor, Sr. (NY) caught at least twelve legal fish today. He caught the two largest haddock of the trip and his two largest fish were a pollock of 10.5 pounds and another of 12 pounds. Stuffy House (NY) caught the fifth largest fish of the trip, a 17.5 pound pollock. The largest cod weighed 16 pounds and was caught by Ben Dattler (NY). Cliff Steinauer (NY) landed the best double keeper catch. His catch included a 15 pound pollock and an 8.5 pound pollock, both caught on the same line at the same time. I also weighed a 10 pound pollock for Cliff. Dale Dattler (NY) caught a 13 pound pollock, his best. Tripper Vann (NY) boated a 12 pound cod, his largest fish. Keith House (NY) landed the hard luck award for attaining high hurler status and for not catching a single legal fish! Ouch!
I received several donations of sponsorship for my cancer fund raising efforts with the Pan-Mass Challenge today. The individuals and their donations appear as follows: Rodney Sharp for $5.00, Stuffy House for $5.00 and Cliff Steinauer for a generous $50.00. Thank you so very much for your support. I really appreciate it but many will appreciate it more than you might know - without knowing who actually helped!
At 5:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 49°F, the sky was clear with a full round moon over the trees in the west, the wind was blowing out of the northwest at twelve knots and the visibility over the ocean was excellent. The wind continued to blow lightly out of the northwest until sunrise when the wind hauled out of the southwest. We had light southwest wind for most of the rest of the morning. Around noon, the wind hauled out of the south. The wind increased quickly to fifteen and twenty knots. This kept up until I went to bed. The air temperature was on the cool side all day. I never saw the mercury climb any higher than 67°F. But I think the wind off the water was to blame for that. The sky was fairly clear all day with a bright sun. The visibility was very good. The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 70°F (with a low of 44°F). In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high was 70°F with a low of 54°F). Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 79°F (with a low of 39°F).
On the fishing grounds, the wind blew out of the west at five to ten knots to start. Seas were one foot chops. Later, the wind hauled out of the southwest and blew up to fifteen knots or more. Seas were two to three feet, chops. The air temperature reached a high of 65°F. The sky was clear and sunny. The visibility ranged to twenty miles or more. The tide (current) was strong. The surface water temperature reached a high of 63°F.
The fishing was fairly good. I say "fairly" because the strong tide didn't let it get any better. Current creates tangles. The weather produced a good chop in the afternoon. And there were about thirty-five dogfish caught that didn't help matters. The catching was excellent. There were many fish caught, mostly sub-legal fish. But the landings were good to very good. So there were a good number of smaller sized legal fish caught as well. So, much action on a day that was a bit tough to fish. And about twenty percent more legal fish than we caught on the marathon trip yesterday. Most legal fish landed were pollock, by far. Legal landings also included forty haddock (the cull was two to one, legal to sub-legal fish - a switch!), twenty-one cod and fourteen cusk. They drift fished a bit but most of the day was spent on the hook. All terminal gear worked well.
Norm Herrick (MA/ME), the cod king, was high hook with the most legal fish. And, true to form, his largest fish was a cod that weighed 9.5 pounds. This fish was the third largest fish of the trip and the second largest cod. Dave Lemieux (MA) won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, an 11 pound pollock. The second largest fish was a cod that weighed 10 pounds, caught by Dave Schaefer (NJ).
Other Angler Highlights: Paul Dvoretsky (ME) landed the hard luck award for the most tangled lines.
At 5:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 55°F, the sky was fairly clear with streaks of thin cloud cover, the wind was blowing out of the southwest at twelve knots and the visibility over the ocean was good to very good in haze. Ashore, the wind blew out of the southwest at ten to fifteen knots for most of the morning. Near noon, the wind hauled out of the south. The southerly wind blew up and over twenty knots along the shore, very similar to what the wind did yesterday. The air temperature was a little bit warmer in Ogunquit today reaching a high of 70°F in Perkins Cove. Strangely, the air temperature was 70°F at 9:30 PM! The air temperature dropped after sunset and warmed again by the time I just mentioned. The sky was clear all day. The visibility was good in haze along the shore. The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 70°F (with a low of 53°F). In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high was 78°F with a low of 55°F). Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 81°F (with a low of 48°F).
On the fishing grounds, the wind blew out of the south at ten to fifteen knots. Seas were two to three feet in chops the whole time while fishing. The air temperature reached a high of 64°F. The tide (current) was strong. The visibility stayed at ten miles in haze. The sky was clear and sunny. The surface water temperature reached a high value of 62.1°F.
The fishing conditions were fair. The current was very strong, the dogfish were everywhere and ravenous and the seas made it a combination that was trying and challenging. Still, the tangles were much less than expected. The catching was good. Actually, the catching was better than good if you included the over one hundred and fifty dogfish that were released! Landings were fair to good. Most legal fish landed were pollock, by far. Legal landings also included five cod, fourteen haddock and ten big mackerel. They were forced to anchor because of the current. They tried a drift but it was just too fast. Everyone used bait and cod flies. No jigs were used today.
Py Brodeur (QC) won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, a 13.5 pound pollock. The second largest fish was an 11.5 pound cod caught by Job Johnson (ME). Devon Cuthbertson (ME) landed the third largest fish, an 11 pound pollock. Devon also caught a pollock that weighed 10 pounds.
Other Angler Highlights: Matt Van Order (VT) caught a 10 pound pollock. Manuel Hall (MA) was the high hurler today. And we give special credit to the high hurlers of the day by presenting them with the hard luck award t-shirt.
At 5:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 65°F, the sky was mostly cloudy, the wind was blowing out of the south at ten knots and the visibility over the ocean was good in haze. By 6:30 AM, it was raining lightly. It was over in five minutes, just enough time to get the roads wet. It looked like intermittent light rain showers to follow. We did have a couple more small light rain showers. But the rain was done for the day after 11:00 AM. The sky remained mostly overcast for the rest of the day. The wind increased to fifteen knots or so from the south and then died out. There was very little wind after 10:00 AM and on into the night. Most of the day the visibility was good. We had no fog along the shore. The high air temperature in Ogunquit was 77°F. The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 77°F (with a low of 63°F). In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high was 82°F with a low of 66°F). Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 78°F (with a low of 65°F).
On the fishing grounds, the wind blew out of the south at fifteen to ten knots, to begin. Seas were chops of two to three feet. At the same time they had light rain with some fog and haze and a visibility of about a mile. As the afternoon approached, the rain stopped, the wind hauled out of the southwest and dropped to five knots or less leaving them with a two foot chop/swell, left over from the windier morning. The air temperature reached a high of 67°F. The visibility ranged to ten miles, max. The tide (current) was strong all day. The surface water temperature reached a high of 62°F.
The fishing was good overall. It was a bit tough in the morning with the tide, seas and the dogfish. It was better in the afternoon when the wind let go. The catching was very good. Landings were fair in the morning but very good after the slow spell, good overall. Most legal fish landed were pollock in the 6 to 8 pound class, by far. Legal landings also included a few bigger pollock, thirteen haddock, thirteen market sized cod, a cusk and two whiting. Released fish included twice as many sub-legal haddock, two barndoor skates (a tie for the most we have ever seen in a day) and ten other legal sized cod to 7 pounds. Ian mixed up the day with anchoring and drifting. No bait was used today, all jigs and cod flies.
Tim Rozan (ME) and Roger Kiesman (ME) tied for high hook with the most legal fish. Roger probably put more legal fish in the boat but Tim made up for that with six legal sized cod, five of which he had to release. Tim's two best fish were a 10 pound pollock and an 11 pound pollock. Roger tied for the third largest fish of the trip and the largest pollock of the trip. His pollock weighed 13.5 pounds. Chris LeBlanc (MA) won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, an 18.5 pound barndoor skate. The barndoor skate is considered an endangered species so it was weighed and quickly released. Andrew Warren (NH) caught the second largest fish, a 14.5 pound barndoor skate. This fish was weighed, a picture taken and then released alive. The digital image with Andrew holding it appears on the leftt. The shot was taken by Ian Keniston. This makes a total of four barndoor skates we have caught this season. The 18.5 pounder is the second largest skate caught this season. Andrew also caught a pollock that weighed 12.5 pounds. Mike Myra (MA) tied with Roger for the third largest fish with a pollock that also weighed 13.5 pounds. As mentioned, those were the two largest pollock of the day.
Other Angler Highlights: Karl Kiesman (ME) landed a 13 pound pollock, his biggest fish. Tim Warren (NH) boated a pollock that weighed 10 pounds. Larry Lantiegne (MA) caught an 11 pound pollock, his largest fish. I didn't realize this until after I wrote what I did above. But Andrew Warren also landed the hard luck award. He was high hurler as well. He doesn't look that white in the picture does he?
I received two "extra" generous donations sponsoring me in the Pan-Mass Challenge, a cycling event to raise money to fight cancer. This through the Jimmy Fund (the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts). I say extra generous because the same two individuals donated the same amount to the cause, through me, earlier in the spring. These wonderful people were (and still are) Betsy McLaughlin (NY) for a gift of $500.00 and Sue King (NY) for a gift of $200.00. Thank you both so much for your support and help. It means a great deal to me and, as I keep repeating, more to those who will probably never know of your generosity.
At 5:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 69°F, the sky was overcast, it was raining, there was no wind and the visibility over the ocean was fair to good in precipitation, haze and fog. At 4:00 AM we had an intense display of thunder and lightning with torrential rain. This lasted for about a half an hour. After that, the rain settled into a steady light flow from the sky. The rain stopped at 9:00 AM. And, for the rest of the day, we were pretty much rain free. During the later part of the afternoon, the clouds dropped down lower, it became misty and smelled like rain. After 5:00 PM, the rain came down again. The rain was light but persistent. We had intermittent rain into the night. The visibility over the ocean decreased as well. We had some fog and much haze. Althought the high temperature only made it to the 73°F mark, it was humid and felt much warmer. The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 73°F (with a low of 65°F). In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high was 74°F with a low of 67°F). Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 74°F (with a low of 67°F).
I spent most of the day at the restaurant. The two hours in the morning usually reserved for cycling was spent working on one of my bicycle wheels and working in the office here at home. My concussion symptoms have been lingering and persistent. So I haven't dared get on the bike quite yet. I get dizzy at times. I know what triggers it. So I haven't been doing those things that do. Fishing on the boat is okay; I have no symptoms there. And I'm glad for that.
At 3:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 67°F, the sky was unreadable, there was no wind and the visibility over the ocean was poor in black thick fog along the coast.
There was zero wind when we headed down the channel out of Perkins Cove. There was also no visibility; the Cove was enshrouded in dense black fog. I had to navigate from the bridge to the gate via electronics alone. In fact, after the bridge, I never saw another thing until I saw the green can buoy at the entrance of the harbor. And the only reason I saw that was because we passed within ten feet of it. We had a flat calm ocean and black thick fog all the way to the fishing grounds. On the grounds, there was zero wind to start, a light northeast breeze, zero wind again, light southeast wind (around noon) and a ten knot southwest wind (after 2:00 PM). We carried ten knots of south southwest wind from the grounds all the way to Perkins Cove. Seas on the ride home were a foot or more in chops. The air temperature reached a high of 67°F. The tide (current) started out strong, went moderate after a couple of hours and stayed that way until the end of the fishing. The sky was mostly cloudy but I believe that was just the influence of the fog. The visibility ranged from three boat lengths (early morning) to twenty miles (on the ride home) or more. The surface water temperature reached a high of 64.5°F. The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 76°F (with a low of 64°F). In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high was 75°F with a low of 67°F). Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 86°F (with a low of 62°F).
I heard that the air temperature in Ogunquit got up as high as 77°F.
The fishing was good overall, very good if you like dogfish. And there were plenty of dogs, the most I have seen this year to date. I estimated a total of one hundred or more released. Most were smallish whips with very sharp spines! The catching was fair to good in the morning, excellent in the afternoon. Landings were good overall. Most legal fish landed were pollock, by far. Had we been able to keep unlimited cod over twenty-four inches, the cod landings would have been just a little under the landings of pollock. We released many cod in the 7 pound range. Legal landings also included ten cod, one monkfish, two redfish, ten haddock, three cusk, one white hake, one mackerel, one dogfish and four whiting. The haddock cull was five sub-legal fish to one keeper. We released our second largest barndoor skate of the season so far. We drifted fished mostly but did try anchoring with variable success. Cod flies caught the most fish.
Dave Sampson (MA) was high hook with the most legal fish, the most dogfish and, probably, the most sub-legal haddock. He was a fishing machine. His largest fish was a 22.75 pound pollock, the third largest pollock of the Bunny Clark fishing season to date. It was also the second largest fish of the trip. And with this fish he won the boat pool for the second largest fish. Some of his other good fish included a 17.5 pound pollock, a 16 pound pollock and a pollock that weighed 11.25 pounds. Kurt Gilmore (MA) won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, a 23.5 pound pollock. This is the Bunny Clark's second largest pollock of the fishing season so far. This fish was actually part of a double keeper catch but the other fish, whatever it was, broke the jig off below the big pollock that was caught on the fly above. This double took so much line I thought it was a halibut. And the fish on the jig may have been! I took a picture of Kurt and his pollock. This digital image appears on the right. Why is it that, lately, the biggest guys catch the biggest fish? Kurt also caught the Bunny Clark's fifth barndoor skate of the season today as well. It weighed 19 pounds and was released quickly right after the weighing. This is the Bunny Clark's second largest barndoor skate this season to date. Some of Kurt's other good fish included a 10 pound pollock, a 14 pound pollock and a 17 pound pollock. The third largest fish was a 21.5 pound cod caught by Chris Albert (ME). This is a tie (with two other anglers) for the second largest cod of the Bunny Clark fishing season so far. I took a picture with Chris holding his prize cod. This digital image appears on the left. He caught this fish just after sunrise. Some of his other good fish included the second largest cod at 9 pounds and a 13 pound pollock.
Other Anglear Highlights: Jim Fitzgerald (ME) caught the first fish I could weigh, a 12 pound pollock. His largest fish came at the end of the trip, a 15.5 pound pollock. Jeff Johansmeyer (MA) caught the largest whiting at 2 pounds. He caught a double keeper catch early in the trip that included a 5 pound pollock and an 11 pound pollock, both fish caught on the same line at the same time. Tina Cromwell (ME) caught the fourth largest fish of the trip, a 21.25 pound pollock. This pollock is the Bunny Clark's seventh largest this season to date. Tina also caught the largest double of the day. Her double included a 13 pound pollock and an 8 pound pollock. She also caught an 18 pound pollock. McKenzie Albert (ME) landed a 16 pound pollock, her largest fish. She also caught an 11 pound pollock and the only monkfish. Dustin Martin (ME) caught an 18 pound pollock and a 10.5 pound pollock, his two best fish. Larry Lee (MN) caught a 10.5 pound pollock and a cod that weighed 8.5 pounds. And Tina landed the hard luck award for being the sole hurler and for losing a jig.
I was also honored to have Melissa Kelly (ME) aboard today. She owns Primo restaurant in Rockland (and two other places around the country). We were lucky to have her as her restaurant isn't open on Tim Tuesdays! She just called it Tuesdays - so much for me being the important guy! But it was really a treat talking to her. She knows many world renowned chefs, some of whom I have been lucky enough to know with my restaurant connections. But more than that she is a self made business woman of the highest caliber. When I got home I made a few calls and was even more impressed. She is thin enough to be a distance runner. When I asked if she was an endurance athlete her reply was that she ran around a lot but it wasn't running marathons! And now I see why. Her largest fish today was a 9 pound pollock. But she caught many more groundfish to take home with her. And she was very interested to see how dogfish tasted. So Ian filleted one for Melissa. Having her aboard made the day a little extra special for me. It also made me want to take a trip to Rockland at some point!
I received a very generous $90.00 donation sponsoring me in my bicycle ride with the Pan-Mass Challenge today. This from Kurt Gilmore in Memory of James O'Neil, Kurt's wife's uncle who passed away recently with the disease. Thank you, Kurt, so very much for your support and generosity. This means so very much to others and toward finding a cure. And that is what I truly believe.
Captain Jared Keniston and Sean Devich ran the extreme day trip today. At 5:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 66°F, the sky was mostly clear, there was no wind and the visibility over the ocean was very good. Ashore, the visibility stayed good to very good all day. We did have some haze. And it was a bit humid, warmer than normal for the last day of summer. The high air temperature reached 81°F in Perkins Cove. It might have gone a degree or two higher. It felt like it but I didn't see it. The wind at sunrise was out of the west at ten knots or better. That wind didn't reach off more than a couple of miles and it didn't last either. By 10:00 AM, the wind was light and variable in direction. The ocean along the shore was calm. And it stayed that way all day. The sky was mostly sunny, overall, with some periods of more clouds than blue sky. The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 83°F (with a low of 59°F). In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high was 83°F with a low of 69°F). Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 83°F (with a low of 54°F).
On the fishing grounds, the wind blew out of the northwest at five knots. The ocean's surface was calm with a light ripple of wind all day. There was a long rolling sea swell of about a foot and a half high, maybe higher, under the surface. The sky was clear and sunny all day. The air temperature reached a high of 70°F. The tide (current) was strong. The visibility ranged to over fifteen miles in some haze. The surface water temperature reached a high of 65.1°F.
The fishing was very good with a few less dogfish than we caught yesterday. Seventy dogfish was the official count. The catching was very good as well with many small fish, dogfish and legal fish. Landings came under the category of "good" overall. Most legal fish landed were pollock followed closely by haddock, a much different day than we had yesterday (but a different area as well). Legal landings also included twenty-five cusk, nine cod, two monkfish, ten whiting and three mackerel. They released another barndoor skate. The haddock cull was two to one, sub-legal fish to landed fish. Drifting was the method. Jigs and cod flies caught the most fish by far.
Ray Westermann (MA) was high hook with the most legal fish. He landed the largest cod at 12 pounds. His largest fish, a 15 pound pollock, was the third largest fish of the trip. John Baker (ME) won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, a 22 pound barndoor skate. This is our sixth barndoor skate of the season and the second largest barndoor skate of the Bunny Clark season to date. Jared took a picture of John with his prize skate. This digital image appears on the right. The second largest fish was a 16.5 pound pollock caught by Scott Davis (ME). Scott also caught a 14 pound pollock.
Other Angler Highlights: Alen Silver (FL) caught the largest cusk at 9 pounds. Michelle Breden (NH) landed the hard luck award for catching the most dogfish!
At 3:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 63°F, the sky was clear, there was no wind and the visibility over the ocean was very good.
We had a very light northwest breeze for the ride to the fishing grounds. This meant a flat calm ride with wind ripples on the surface. On the fishing grounds, the wind was either non-existent or light and variable in direction. The ocean was as flat as a table all day with no detectable sea swell. The air temperature reached a high of 78.6°F in the shade. In the sun, it was almost too hot to fish. . The tide (current) started out strong, went moderate after a couple of hours and then died on the last spot. The sky was mostly sunny with a few high clouds. The visibility was very good or at least thirty miles.It was still a bit hazy but only as it colored the shore line from that distance. The surface water temperature reached a high of 67.3°F. The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 80°F (with a low of 56°F). In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high was 79°F with a low of 61°F). Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 85°F (with a low of 50°F). The high air temperature in Perkins Cove today, I was told, was 80°F.
The fishing, catching and landings were very good overall. The weather was perfect. Dogfish weren't much of a problem. We did lose a few rigs to blue sharks but they did not influence our fishing or the manner in which I ran the trip. And, for such a calm day, the bite was very good. Most legal fish landed were pollock, by far. Legal landings also included thirty-eight haddock (the cull was two and a half sub-legal fish for every keeper), twelve cod, five redfish, twenty-three cusk, one monkfish, one white hake, five whiting and seven butter mullets. We released one wolffish and thirty-seven dogfish. Drifting was the method. All terminal gear worked well.
As I mentioned earlier, we had blue sharks around the boat at times.This was sporadic. After noon, a thresher shark started swimming around the bow. Now I have seen thresher sharks on fishing lines, finning away from the boat and jumping out of water going from one place to another. But I have never been on the boat, looked down from the bow and seen a sixteen or seventeen foot thresher shark swimming around like a blue shark just under the surface. The shark was actively pursuing the groundfish that were being brought up from the bottom on fishing lines - just like a blue shark! At one point it chased a cod to the surface, the cod fell off the hook and the thresher grabbed the cod in it's jaws and jumped completely out of the water about three feet from the bow pulpit! Never have I seen anything like this. After the jump we never saw that shark again.
I believe that Fred Kunz (NH) was high hook with the most legal fish. I'm not one hundred percent on this but he would be the first to get my vote today. There were others who were close like Wobby Barnes (MA), Ray Westermann (MA) and Jon Griffin (MA). Some of Fred's fish included two pollock of 10 pounds each, a 12 pound pollock and a 13 pound pollock. His largest fish, a 14 pound pollock, was caught as a double keeper catch with another pollock of 8 pounds, both fish caught on the same line at the same time. It was Fred's cod that enticed the thresher shark to jump.
Chuck Lennon (MA) won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, a 20 pound pollock. That was Chuck's biggest fish by far. Quentin Tonelli (ME) won the boat pool for the second largest fish with the second largest fish, a 19.75 pound pollock. Quentin also landed a 15 pound pollock and a 3 pound monkfish. There was a tie for the third largest fish. Ray Westermann and Dan Grabowski (MA) both caught an 18.5 pound pollock each. Some of Ray's other good fish included a 17 pound pollock, a 14 pound pollock and a 16 pound pollock. Dan also caught another pollock of 18 pounds and a pollock that weighed 11 pounds.
Other Anglear Highlights: Mike Dellert (MA) boated the first fish I could weigh, a 9 pound pollock. He never caught a bigger fish than that for the rest of the day. Jon Griffin caught a 12.25 pound pollock and a 12 pound pollock, his two best fish. Wobby Barnes boated the best double of the day. His double included an 18 pound pollock and a 7 pound pollock. Some of his other good pollock included a 15 pounder, a 17 pounder, a 10 pound pollock and a 12.25 pound pollock. Keith Dayon (ME) landed two pollock of 11 pounds each and a 17 pound pollock, his three best fish. Rob Veras (ME) caught the only triple keeper catch. His triple included a 13 pound pollock, a 12.25 pound pollock and a 6 pound pollock, all caught on the same line at the same time. He never fished a triple setup again. Some of Rob's other good fish included a 14 pound pollock and a double keeper catch that included a 12 pound pollock and an 8 pound pollock. Jeff Bolio (MA) caught a 12 pound pollock. However, his biggest fish was half eaten by a blue shark. The part of the fish that was left weighed 10.5 pounds! The fish, whole, was probably somewhere in the high teens for weight. Bill Wallace (ME) wouldn't have lost a jig all day had he not broken one off on an errant cast! His three best pollock weighed 14.25 pounds, 14.5 pounds and 13 pounds. Wade Colby (ME) landed a 10 pound pollock, a 17.5 pound pollock and a 13 pound pollock, his three best fish. Adam Theriault (ME) boated a 15 pound pollock. Scott Stephan (ME) caught the largest cod, a 13 pounder. He also landed the hard luck award for the most tangled lines!
I received donations sponsoring me in my bicycle ride with the Pan-Mass Challenge today. One was a $25.00 donation from Chuck Lennon. The other was a $20.00 gift from Dan Grabowski. Thank you both very much for your support. I certainly appreciate it. Although the ride is over, my fund raising efforts for the year don't stop until the end of December. So if you would like to donate to the cause, I would certainly appreciate it. All the best to you both and to everyone who has or will help!
At 5:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 65°F, the sky was mostly clear, the wind was light from the west and the visibility over the ocean was excellent. At 9:20 AM, the sky opened up and the rain came pouring down. That didn't last but a few minutes with lingering light rain to follow. The day was mostly rain free. We did have periods of rain later in the morning and through the afternoon. The rain was all done by 5:00 PM. The sky remained overcast throughout. The air temperature only reached a high of 70°F in Perkins Cove. I heard that the high in Portsmouth, New Hampshire was 75°F. The wind was very light out of the southwest starting at dawn. The wind remained the same, light and southwest, for most of the day. At 4:00 PM, the wind hauled out of the northeast, the air temperature dropped ten degrees and the wind speed increased. By 6:00 PM, the flags were straight out and the ambient wind speed was about fifteen knots or better. The wind increased slightly into the night. The visibility was very good today. The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 74°F (with a low of 49°F). In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high was 82°F with a low of 56°F). Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 75°F (with a low of 57°F).
On the fishing grounds, the wind blew out of the southwest at fifteen to five knots before hauling out of the northwest at five knots. Seas were one to two foot chops at first leaving only a rolling two foot short swell after noon. With an hour left to go on the ride back to Perkins Cove, the wind hauled out of the northeast. The air temperature got up to a high of 66°F in the shade. The visibility ranged to about twenty miles. The tide (current) was strong in the morning but moderate after that. The sky was overcast all day with intermittent light rain showers. The surface water temperature reached a high of 63°F.
The fishing and catching was very good today. There were few dogfish or blue sharks, the current wasn't terrible and the weather was very good. Landings were good. Most legal fish landed were pollock, by far. Legal landings also included fourteen cod, twenty-two haddock (the cull was almost one to one, sub-legal to keeper fish) and four cusk. Twenty-two dogfish were released. Drifting was the method. The jig/fly combination worked the best.
Jon "Griff" Griffin (MA) was the fisherman of the day. Any one of five anglers were high hook. Griff was one, Ray Westermann (MA), Zach Latimer (VT), Brian Tufts (VT) and Norm Herrick (MA/ME) were the high hook candidates. Griff also won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, a 12.25 pound pollock. Brian Hagedorn (NY) caught the second largest fish, an 11 pound cod. The third largest fish was a 10 pound cod caught by Zach Latimer.
Other Angler Highlights: Tom Staples (PA) managed to drive a hook up into his finger quite a ways. Jared had to do some surgery to get the hook out. But Tom did continue fishing. And Tom also landed the hard luck award for the situation he got himself into!
I received two more donations sponsoring me in my bicycle ride with the Pan-Mass Challenge today. I received a generous donation of $43.00 from Steve Fortier (ME - The Village Sweep) and I was given $25.00 from Ian Wood (PA). Thank you both very much for your gifts. I very much appreciate your support of this project!
At 5:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 51°F, the sky was cloudless, the wind was light from the northeast and the visibility over the ocean was excellent. Ashore, he air temperature seemed to warm up slowly this morning. By 9:30 AM, the air temperature was only 58°F. It was 63°F at 2:00 PM. I don't know what the high air temperature in Ogunquit was today but Portsmouth, New Hampshire, thirteen miles away as the crow flies had 69°F as a high. The sky remained mostly clear all day. The wind blew out of the north. But we never had much wind. The visibility remained excellent. The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 67°F (with a low of 43°F). In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high was 67°F with a low of 54°F). Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 68°F (with a low of 39°F).
On the fishing grounds, the wind blew out of the northeast at fifteen knots or more in the morning. Seas were chops of the four feet or so. Winds and seas decreased as the day progressed. They had less than ten knots when the left the fishing grounds with chops of less than two feet. The sky was clear all day. The tide (current) was strong. The visibility was unlimited. The surface water temperature reached a high of 62°F.
The fishing was fairly good. It was certainly challenging with the wind, the larger than expected seas and the strong current. The catching was good. There were quite a few sub-legal fish along with the dogfish and fish that were kept. Landings were fair. Legal fish landed included seventeen pollock, fifteen haddock, two cod, a cusk and a monkfish. They anchored for most of the day but the tangles were many with the current. They drift fished at the end with less tangles but no improvement in the fishing. Cod flies caught the most fish.
Anthony Palumbo (MA) was high hook with the most legal fish. His two largest fish included a 10 pound pollock and a pollock that weighed 12 pounds. Hank Small (NH) won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, a 14 pound pollock. The second largest fish was a 13.5 pound pollock caught by Dan Harpin (MA). Scott Hubbard (NY) landed the third largest fish, a 13 pound pollock.
Other Angler Highlights: Joe Palumbo (MA) caught a 10 pound pollock, his largest fish. Jeremy Hammond (NY) was the high hurler today. He landed the hard luck award for his condition.
As for myself, I enjoyed three complete days without concussion symptoms. So, late morning, I rode my bike for twenty-one miles. I felt fine. I worked all night at the restaurants. And I felt good all night. So I plan to ride with the Maine Coast Cycling Club tomorrow morning.
At 4:30 AM EDT the air temperature was 47°F, the sky was cloudless, the wind was blowing out of the northwest at ten knots and the visibility over the ocean was excellent. By 6:30 AM, the air temperature had dropped to a value of 43°F. The air temperature bottomed out at 42°F before rising again. The wind blew out of the northwest at fifteen knots or more in the early part of the morning after sunrise. By late morning, the wind had subsided to ten knots or less. The wind dropped out of the scene after noon leaving the ocean flat calm along the shore. Later afternoon saw the wind pick up out of the west. The sky was clear all day with few clouds. The air temperature rose to a value of 65°F, at least. The visibility was excellent. The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 64°F (with a low of 42°F). In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high was 66°F with a low of 49°F). Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 65°F (with a low of 33°F).
On the fishing grounds, the wind blew out of the north at twenty to twenty-five knots. Seas were five to six feet in chops. The wind diminished as the morning progressed. By noon, the wind was blowing out of the northwest at ten knots with seas of two feet or so (with the left over from the mornings blow). The wind was very light at the end of the fishing. The air temperature reached a high of 60°F. The tide went from moderate to very light. The visibility was excellent, twenty-five miles or more. The surface water temperature reached a high of 62°F.
The fishing was tough with the seas to begin but very good to excellent after noon. The catching was very good. Landings were good to very good. Most legal fish landed were pollock, by far. Legal landings also included fifteen cod, twenty-five haddock, three monkfish and two cusk. Only two dogfish were caught all day. They started the day by anchoring but drift fished after that. All terminal gear worked well.
Rick Gurney (MA) was high hook with the most legal fish. His largest fish was a 16.5 pound pollock, the second largest fish of the trip, and the Club pool winning fish for the second largest fish. Some of Rick's other good fish included two pollock of 12 pounds each and another pollock that weighed 13 pounds. Ben Barzousky (MA) won the Club pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, a 21 pound pollock. This is the Bunny Clark's eighth largest pollock of the fishing season to date. Ben also caught an 11 pound pollock. Bill Bolotin (MA) won the Club pool for the third largest fish with the third largest fish, a 15.5 pound pollock.
Other Angler Highlights: Al Hanson (MA) landed a 10.5 pound pollock, his largest fish. Gloria Gennari (MA) caught a pollock that weighed 11.5 pounds, her largest fish. She also caught an 8 pound monkfish, a tie for the Bunny Clark's largest monkfish of the fishing season so far. Phil Wicker (FL) boated a 10 pound pollock, his best. Jim Therrien (VT) landed a 12 pound pollock, his best. Bryant Martin (MA) also caught a 12 pound pollock. Dick Carpenter (MA) landed a 7 pound monkfish, the Bunny Clark's fourth largest monk of the season to date. Gerry Garner (MA) boated a 13 pound pollock, his largest fish of the trip. He also landed the hard luck award for losing two jigs and being involved in the most tangles!
The Pan-Mass Challenge was the recipient of another financial gift today. Al & Dawn Hanson (MA) sponsored me again in this cycling event to raise money for cancer research with a $65.00 donation. They have donated for the last ten years with a monetary amount equal in dollars to my age in years. Thank you so very much for the donation and the reminder! I really appreciate your help.
At 5:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 42°F, the sky was clear, the wind was light out of the northwest and the visibility over the ocean was excellent. By 8:30 AM, the air temperature had already risen to 48°F. And the air temperature continued to rise to 65°F or, maybe, more. But 65°F was the highest air temperature that I saw. The wind blew out of the northwest, light, during most of the morning. The wind let go around noon or maybe later. Early afternoon, the wind hauled out of the south southwest and blew up to ten knots or less. The sky was sunny all day with few clouds. The visibility was excellent. The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 65°F (with a low of 39°F). In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high was 64°F with a low of 48°F). Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 68°F (with a low of 32°F).
On the fishing grounds, the wind blew out of the northwest at five knots or so in the morning. By noon, the wind had let go altogether. Later, the wind hauled out of the southwest and blew up to five knots. The ocean was calm all day. The air temperature reached a high of 58°F, the lowest high air temperature we have seen in months on the fishing grounds. The tide (current) was strong. The visibility ranged to over twenty miles. The surface water temperture reached a high of 62°F.
The fishing was very good, even with the strong tide. The ocean was flat calm so the Bunny Clark was a stable fishing platform. There were few dogfish. The catching, too, was very good. However, most fish were sub-legal. Landings were fair to good. Most legal fish landed were pollock, by far. Most were smaller than normal legal fish. Legal landings also included fourteen haddock, ten cod, seven cusk, a redfish, three mackerel and one whiting. Only three dogfish were released. They anchored once but didn't do well with the current. They drift fished the rest of the day even though it was fast. Everyone used jigs and cod flies. No bait was used today.
Larry Hamn (MI) was high hook with the most legal fish. He met "J.D." Daley, one of my captains on the Bunny Clark and former captain of the Sonny W. out of Kennebunkport (a great deep sea fishing boat in the "old days"), at Hanneford supermarket. Don't ask me how this came about. I talked to Larry after he returned from today's trip. Nice guy. Jim Sanford (NY) won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, a 13 pound pollock. He also caught a pollock that weighed 10 pounds. The second largest fish was a 12.5 pound pollock caught by Phil Ashe (NY). Garry Golden (NY), a great old customer of mine, caught the third largest fish, an 11.5 pound pollock.
Other Angler Highlights: Jacob Ashe (NY) landed the hard luck award for being sea sick. However, he made a valient recovery and ended up fishing for the rest of the day. Still, he was the sole hurler so he had the shirt locked!
At 3:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 58°F, the sky was overcast, the wind was blowing out of the southwest at ten knots and the visibility over the ocean was very good in some haze. Ashore, I heard the rain stopped at 10:00 AM and that the sun came out at 1:00 PM. The air temperature in Ogunquit reached a high of 74°F, so I was told. The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 71°F (with a low of 54°F). In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high was 72°F with a low of 59°F). Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 74°F (with a low of 50°F).
It was an uncomfortable ride to the fishing grounds. Seas were about three feet in chops after a south southwest wind that had been blowing over fifteen knots. I don't believe we had ten knots on the way out but the left over chops made it seem like twenty. And our course put the seas a quarter off the starboard bow. On the grounds, we had about five knots of southwest wind to start. Seas were two to three feet. The seas diminished all day. The wind was light and variable until it let go altogether on the ride home. There wasn't a breath of wind on the way back in. The surface of the water was glassy over a short rolling two foot swell. The air temperature reached a high of 65°F in the shade. We had cloudy skies for the first three hours of fishing and rain for the first hour or so. After 8:00 AM, we never saw another drop of rain. By noon the sky became partly cloudy, mostly sunny after 3:00 PM. The tide (current) was moderate all morning, too light after noon. There was hardly any drift at all for the last three hours of the fishing. The visibility was excellent after the rain with very little haze. The surface water temperature reached a high of 61.2°F. The fishing was very good to excellent. Lines tended perfectly, we had no dogfish until 2:30 PM and the weather conditions were very nice. The fishing would have been excellent except for the few blue shark attacks that created a seven jig deficit. The catching was very good. Landings were the Bunny Clark text book definition of good. Most legal fish landed were pollock, by far. Legal landings also included six cod (we released five other legal cod that we could have kept), twenty-one haddock (the haddock cull was three to one sub-legal to legal fish), one mackerel, one whiting, one pee-wee monkfish, three butter mullet, five redfish and eleven cusk. There were fifteen dogfish that were released. We anchored on one deep spot in the afternoon. The rest of our fishing was completed on the drift. Only jigs and cod flies were used today. We never tried the bait fishing. Cod flies caught the most fish.
Dave Woehrle (PA) was the fisherman of the day. He shared high hook (the angler with the most legal fish) status with Jim Feeney (MA) and he won the boat pools for the largest fish and the second largest fish, with the two largest fish of the trip. Those fish were a 16 pound pollock and a 15.75 pound pollock. Dave also caught the most fish over 10 pounds, by far. Some of the fish that I weighed for him included a 14 pound pollock, two pollock of 12 pounds each, two pollock of 11 pounds each, a 12.5 pound pollock and an 11.5 pound pollock. He also landed his one legal cod and caught several haddock and smaller legal pollock besides. It was a great day to be Dave Woehrle!
Barry Adams (ME) caught the third largest fish of the trip, a 14.25 pound pollock. He caught this as part of a double keeper catch with another pollock of 13 pounds, both fish caught on the same line at the same time! It was the largest double of the trip. And it was also, officially, the fourth largest double of the Bunny Clark fishing season to date. He also landed a pollock that weighed 12.5 pounds and the hard luck award for losing the most jigs, two! Actually, Don Spencer (VT) lost two jigs as well but Don caught more fish so I gave it to Barry!
Other Anglear Highlights: Ray Charles (ME) caught a 14 pound pollock, his largest fish. I also weighed a 10.5 pound pollock for him. Ed Werner (PA) lost the largest fish of the trip. I believe it was a big cod. But we never got to see anything except the signature on the sounding machine before it dropped off the line. He had it almost to the boat. His two best fish were a 12.5 pound pollock and a 12 pound pollock. Jim Feeney landed a 12.25 pound pollock and a 13 pound pollock, his two largest fish. I weighed a 10.25 pound pollock and two pollock of 14 pounds each for Don Spencer. Bill Otto (PA) boated a 14 pound pollock and a 12 pound pollock, his two best. Oddly enough, Larry Kabat (NH) could only muster up a 10.5 pound pollock as his largest fish. I think the fact that he was fishing in a slightly different spot than normal made a little bit of a negative difference. I'm sure he, himself, would never admit this. Russ Watson (ME) caught a 13.5 pound pollock, his best fish. Joe Werner (MD) landed a 12 pound pollock, his biggest fish.
I received $50.00 from Chris & Pat Savarie (NY) sponsoring me in my Pan-Mass Challenge cycling event for cancer research and care. This enclosed in a nice letter to me which I thoroughly enjoyed reading. Thanks so much for the kind words and your help in the fund raising. I appreciate the whole package very much!
At 5:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 58°F, the sky was overcast, the wind was blowing out of the east northeast at fifteen plus knots and the visibility over the ocean was very good. More later.
We have several fishing spots available in near future upcoming fishing trips. These trips and vacancies appear as follows: There are five fishing places available on the Thursday, September 29, marathon trip, we have six spots available on the Friday, September 30, extreme day trip, the last day that we can keep cod for the 2016 fishing season, there are sixteen fishing places available on the Saturday, October 1, full day trip, there are fourteen fishing spots available on the Monday, October 3, extreme day trip, we have fourteen fishing places available, there are thirteen openings for the Tim Tuesday, October 4, marathon trip, there are twelve spots open for the Wednesday, October 5, extreme day trip, there are fourteen fishing spots available on the Thursday, October 6, marathon trip and we have fifteen fishing places available on the Friday, October 7, extreme day trip. The fishing has been better, the fish have been bigger and things are moving in a positive direction as we head into the fall. The weather has been stable and calmer than normal as of late. To book a spot on the Bunny Clark you can call 207-646-2214.
Click the icon to view a complimentary copy of the 2016 Guestletter.
