Bunny Clark Fishing Update
Written & Edited by Tim Tower
Monday, September 26, 2022, 6:00 AM EDT
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At 3:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 53°F, the sky was clear, the wind was light out of the north northwest and the visibility over the ocean was excellent.
When we left the gate behind us, the light northerly wind increased to about eight knots or just turning over a white cap. This turned into a light northeast wind with a one foot chop half way out. The sky was clear, cloudless in fact. The visibility remained excellent. The air temperature stayed about 64°F. It was a very comfortable ride.
On the fishing grounds, the wind blew out of the northeast. Wind speeds came up as high as ten knots but no more than that. Seas were chops of a foot or more. By the time we started to cut and run for home, the wind had hauled out of the east southeast at about eight knots. Seas remained about the same. This wind and sea state chased us to Perkins Cove. The sky remained cloudless all day. The visibility ranged to thirty miles. The air temperature reached a high of 69°F. The tide (current) was light to moderate. The surface water temperature reached a high of 68°F.
Ashore, these were the air temperatures in selected New England cities: In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high was 71°F with a low of 59°F). Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 77°F (with a low of 52°F). The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 70°F (with a low of 49°F).
The fishing was very good for once. We never got the count of dogfish up to twenty, blue sharks only accounted for ten lost rigs and the weather, sea state and conditions were more than I could ask for. The catching was very good. Landings were good or better than that. Most legal fish landed were pollock, by far. Legal landings also included twelve cod, eighteen haddock, eight cusk and twelve white hake. Released fish included seventeen dogfish, ten blue sharks,fourteen sub-legal cod, six sub-legal haddock, over seventy-two small pollock and three long horn sculpins. We drift fished the whole day; it was perfect. All terminal gear worked well but cod flies caught the most fish.
I don't know who was high hook but I suspect that it was Jim Jarvis, Sr. (MA). He continually caught fish, big and small, all day long. He lost a huge cod or hake, I'm not sure which, as we didn't see the fish. Some of his fish that I did weigh included an 8.5 pound cusk, the largest cusk of the trip, and a 9.5 pound pollock. David Abood (NH) won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, a 33 pound Maine state trophy white hake. this is the Bunny Clark's largest hake of the fishing season to date. David has fished for groundfish all his life but this is the largest hake that he has ever caught. I took a picture of David holding his Maine state trophy hake. This digital image appears on the left. He also caught the two biggest haddock of the trip. Both of these haddock were exactly 4.5 pounds each. He also caught the largest cod of the day at 15 pounds. And he caught another cod that weighed 10 pounds.
Dillon Martins (MA) won the boat pool for the second largest fish with the second largest fish, a 30 pound Maine state trophy white hake. This is the largest hake that Dillon has ever caught and the Bunny Clark's fifth largest hake of the season so far. He also caught a 26.5 pound Maine state trophy white hake, the third largest fish of the trip and the seventh largest hake of our season to date. And I weighed a 9 pound pollock for him as well.
Other Angler Highlights: Leo Lamoureux (VT) caught a 24.75 pound white hake, his biggest fish. Two other fish of his that I weighed included a 13.5 pound white hake and a 10.5 pound pollock. Mark Coleman (NY) landed a 14.5 pound white hake, his biggest fish. Randy Clark (VT) caught a 10 pound pollock and an 11 pound white hake, his two largest fish. Bryan Martins (MA) boated a 22 pound white hake, his biggest fish of the trip. He also caught the largest double of the day. This catch included a 10 pound pollock and an 11 pound pollock, both fish caught on the same line at the same time. I also weighed a 10.5 pound pollock for him. Jim Jarvis, Jr. (MA) caught a 14 pound white hake, his biggest fish. He also caught the second largest cod of the trip. It weighed 12 pounds. Stacy Ebanks (DE) caught a 10 pound cod, her best fish of the trip. Ryan Dunais (MA) boated a 9 pound pollock at the end of the fishing. Shawn Doyle (MA) attained high hurler status in short order and went on to land the hardest luck of the trip award t-shirt.
I received three donations sponsoring me on my ride with the Pan-Mass Challenge today. These donations and their donors are as follows: $50.00 from Mark Coleman who sponsored me earlier in the year, $30.00 from Stacy Ebanks and a generous $100.00 from Randy & Cherish Clark (VT) in memory of their daughter, Alexis "Lexy" Giallella. As is the way, I am very grateful for the support I get from my patrons. So thank you very much today for your thoughtfulness and generosity!
At 5:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 54°F, the sky was clear, the wind was out of the northeast at five knots or so, the bell buoy could be clearly heard and the visibility over the ocean was excellent.
On the fishing grounds, the wind was light and variable in direction at five knots or less. Seas were swells of three to four feet under a calm surface. The air temperature under the canopy top reached 77ºF. It was warmer on deck. The visibility ranged to over twenty miles. The tide (current) was moderate to strong. The sky was clear and sunny all day. The surface water temperature reached a high of 68ºF.
Ashore, these were the high and low temperatures for this day in selected cities around New England: In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high was 75ºF (with a low of 58ºF). Concord, New Hampshire's high air temperature was 82ºF (with a low of 50ºF). The high air temperature at Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine, was 78ºF (with a low of 50ºF).
The fishing conditions were rough, despite the excellent weather conditions. The dogfish were plentiful and the tide was stronger than anyone would want it to be. The catching was good to very good, excellent if you included small pollock and dogfish. Landings were good.
Most legal fish landed were haddock. Legal landings also included twenty cod, one for every passenger, four pollock, one redfish, seventeen cusk and five white hake. Released fish included over one hundred and fifty dogfish, two legal sized cod, six small cod, three sub-legal haddock, over seventy-five sub-legal pollock, three blue sharks and a small monkfish. Drifting was the method. All terminal gear worked equally well.
Ian didn't say who was high hook. It was probably too busy to tell. The now famous (to us) Marty Buskey (NY) won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, a 14 pound cod. Had they run a second boat pool he would have won that as well because he caught the second largest fish of the trip, a 13 pound cod.
The third largest fish was an 11 pound cod caught by Justin Hubley (MA).
Other Angler Highlights: Ray Garon (MA) started off the boat pool challenge with the first fish of significant weight, a 9 pound pollock. Arnav Murulidhar (MA) caught a 10 pound cod, his biggest fish. Kevin Fray (HI) landed the hard luck award for being the most sea sick of the few who were and for getting the most tangled lines. And, yes, he did keep fishing!
Scott Karlen (VT?), who is the late Ken McLaughlin's nephew, was also aboard to fish and spread Ken's ashes during the trip. Ken was one of our most prominent and most loved anglers. When he started fishing with me in the late '80s, he never went back to another New England deep sea fishing boat. Both Ian and I established a strong bond with Ken and he with us. It was a sad day when we found out that Ken would no longer be sailing with us. Scott had a quick ceremony before releasing the ashes to the sea where Ken had requested his remains be placed. I think it was a bit hard for Ian, although he would never admit it. It would have been for me.
Marty & Elise Buskey donated another $50.00 in support of my cancer fund raising efforts with Pan-Mass Challenge after today's trip was over. Marty & Elise have donated many times over the years and this year. They remain a bastion of help, generosity and good will for me and the project. Thank you, again, so very much. I really do appreciate the help and support!
Deb & I were still in New Jersey visiting our new grandson. The weather in New Jersey was excellent with light wind and 56ºF at 5:00 AM and light wind, sunny skies and 87ºF at 2:00 PM. It will probably be the warmest day that I will see until next summer.
On the fishing grounds with Ian and the Bunny Clark, the wind blew out of the north at less than five knots. The ocean was very calm over a rolling southeast swell measuring three to four feet. The air temperature reached a high of 76ºF under the canopy top; it was much warmer on deck in the sun. And it was sunny today. The tide (current) was moderate. The visibility ranged to over twenty miles. The surface water temperature reached a high of 68ºF.
Ashore, these were the high and low temperatures for this day in selected cities around New England: In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high was 80ºF (with a low of 66ºF). Concord, New Hampshire's high air temperature was 85ºF (with a low of 53ºF). The high air temperature at Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine, was 81ºF (with a low of 61ºF).
The fishing was fair. They still caught a lot of dogfish; not as many as yesterday but too many to fish comfortably. They were bothered by a few blue sharks. And, for my body, it was just too warm and calm. The catching was good to very good, excellent if you enjoyed catching dogfish. Landings were good.
Kyle Santor always likes the cod. This is the reason he booked a trip in September: to take advantage of the open cod season and to do it at a time when the weather is still nice. He hit the nail on the head in both categories. I believe he must have told Ian this as that is what Ian targeted. And he did a great job. They landed a cod for all sixteen people aboard plus they released twenty cod over 6 pounds. Legal landings also included six haddock, three pollock and thirteen cusk. Released fish, besides the legal sized cod, also included eight small cod, one sub-legal haddock, four blue sharks released with jewelry and thirty-one sub-legal pollock. Drifting was the method. Jigs and cod flies caught the most fish.
Kyle Santor himself was high hook with the most legal fish (including the legal sized cod that he released). Andy Cassidy (VT) won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, a 12.5 pound cod. The second largest fish was a 10.5 pound cod caught by Michael Rich (VT). Sheldon Brown (NH) caught the third and fourth largest fish, a 10 pound pollock and an 8.5 pound pollock.
Other Angler Highlights: Charlie Goodspeed (VT) landed the hard luck award for becoming the high hurler of the trip. I guess there were a couple others, spurned on, no doubt, by the larger than normal seas spun off by Hurricane Earl.
Deb & I drove back from New Jersey, arriving in Ogunquit a little after 9:00 AM. Leaving that early, there was no traffic. We were sorry to have to leave: it seemed that we just got there. But it was good to be home.
At 9:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 71°F, the sky was overcast, there was very little wind, the ocean outside the shoreline had a calm surface with large swells rolling in and on the beaches leaving much foam on the surface just outside the shore and the visibility over the ocean was fair in fog outside the shore. When I got to Perkins Cove, there was no fog. The sky stayed overcast all day with the occasional peek at the sun through the clouds. It started to rain at 4:30 PM. Just large evenly spaced drops. Not enough to dampen the roads but enough to see spots where each rain drop fell. It would stop and start but leave the same amount of water on the road. Essentially, the roads stayed dry until at least 8:00 PM. The visibility was good in haze. The air temperature reached a high of 80°F, that I saw. There was no wind all day. The ocean along the shore was calm with an underlying swell that created waves good enough for surfing. In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high was 80ºF (with a low of 69ºF). Concord, New Hampshire's high air temperature was 77ºF (with a low of 60ºF). The high air temperature at Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine, was 81ºF (with a low of 63ºF).
On the fishing grounds, the wind was out of the northwest at five knots or less. The ocean surface was smooth over rolling seas swells of three to four feet. The air temperature hung around the 72°F mark under the canopy. It wasn't hot on deck because of the cloud cover. The sky was overcast all day. The visibility ranged from ten to fifteen miles in haze. The tide (current) was moderate. The surface water temperature reached a high of 70°F.
The fishing was almost good. It could have been excellent without the dogfish. It wasn't a huge dogfish day today. But, for some, it seemed that way. These were people who haven't sailed with us lately. The catching was good to very good, excellent if you included the dogfish. Landings were good. Again, Ian caught the quota of legal cod for the boat. However, thirty percent were returned as anglers wanted to take the chance that they would catch a larger one. Most legal fish landed were pollock. Legal landings also included twelve cod, nine haddock, the pollock, one redfish, fourteen cusk and two whiting. Released fish included eight cod over 5 pounds, six sub-legal cod, forty-two small pollock and four blue sharks. Drifting was the method. Everyone used jigs and flies. No bait was used.
Ian couldn't tell me who was high hook. Brandyn Wells (VT) won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, a 17.5 pound pollock. The second largest fish was a 16 pound pollock caught by Ryan Jones (VT). Joel Gagne (VT) caught the third largest fish, a 15 pound cod.
Other Angler Highlights: Jamie Wells (VT) caught a 9 pound pollock. Dan Coatois (MA) caught a 12.5 pound pollock. Ross Kleinman (VT) landed the hard luck award t-shirt for being the most sea sick. There were one or two others. Must be the slow rolling swells.
Bernie Gage (VT) was aboard today. I can't imagine that he wasn't high hook but one wouldn't know unless one was there. He did give me a parting gift though, a $50.00 donation to help with my cancer fund raising cycling event with the Pan-Mass Challenge. Bernie has always contributed. Thank you so much for your thoughtfulness, Bernie. I appreciate this very much!
At 5:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 67°F, the sky was mostly overcast with a partial moon shinning through the clouds high in the western sky, the wind was blowing at about five knots out of the southwest and the visibility over the ocean was very good.
I couldn't believe how warm it was for mid September to be leaving Perkins Cove at 7:00 AM with the air temperature at nearly 70°F. As we left the gate in our wake, the light southwest wind remained at about five to eight knots. Seas were chops of a foot or more over long rolling sea swells of six to eight feet every eleven or twelve seconds. The visibility was very good and it was a very comfortable ride.
On the fishing grounds, the wind blew out of the southwest at ten knots, more or less. The seas remained at six to eight feet for most of the morning. Less in the afternoon. The air temperature reached a high of 72°F. But it was warm on deck. It would have been too much had the wind died. The tide (current) was moderate to strong. The sky was sunny and mostly clear. The visibility ranged to fifteen miles or less in haze. The surface water temperature reached a high of 68°F.
Ashore, these were the air temperatures in selected New England cities: 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 62°F). The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 79°F (with a low of 62°F).
The fishing was good, no better or worse. We had dogfish but not many. We had blue sharks but they only took a couple jigs. And we had the stronger current that gave us more tangles than the few dogfish that were caught. The catching was very good. Landings were good to very good. Most legal fish landed were pollock; it was a great day for pollock. Legal landings also included four cod, seven haddock, twenty redfish, the pollock, a cusk, a bluefin tuna, eleven white hake, a monkfish, six red hake and thirty-five mackerel. Released fish included forty-nine dogfish, two blue sharks (with jewelry), two sub-legal haddock, eleven sub-legal pollock, two mackerel and a red hake. We drift fished for most of the day. We anchored once. All terminal gear worked well.
Matt Luce (ME) was high hook with the most legal fish. He also lost the most jigs with a count of three, one to a blue shark. Gabe Daigle (ME) won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, a 95 pound bluefin tuna, our second largest tuna of the season so far. We weren't on the spot for two minutes when he hooked up. I thought it was a shark at first. But then it took a screaming run. So I told him that it would probably better to fight it until we could see what it was before I tried to break it off. So I passed the rod up to Gabe in the bow as that was where the fish was heading. Then I went back to working the cockpit. That is until I realized that his line was going aft again. So I helped him bring his rod to the stern where he worked it around until he was fishing off the windward side. We he got the fish to the leader I saw a flash that could only mean one thing; he had a small bluefin! It wasn't long from then until Jon Calivas and I put the fish in the boat. This was Gabe's first tuna. And he was stoked. I took a picture of he and Jon Calivas holding the bluefin. This digital image appears on the left.
The second largest fish was a 16 pound pollock caught by Ed Brozo (MA). He caught this fish as part of a double with another pollock of 11 pounds, both fish caught on the same line at the same time. This is the Bunny Clark's second largest double of the fishing season to date. Ed also caught a double that included an 11.5 pound pollock and a 12.5 pound pollock, a tie for the Bunny Clark's fourth largest double of the 2022 fishing season to date. Ray Landis (MO) caught the third largest fish, a 15.5 pound pollock.
Other Angler Highlights: Kevin Liddy (MA) started off the boat pool with the first fish I could weigh, a 7 pound cod. Shannon Monahan (ME) caught the next fish, a 12 pound pollock. She also caught a pollock that weighed 11.5 pounds and a 7 pound cod. Chopper Sawyer (ME) caught an 11 pound pollock, his biggest fish. Donald Hands (ME) caught a 15 pound pollock. Glenn Brozo (MA) caught a double that included a 10.25 pound pollock and an 11 pound pollock. This was the first double of the day. Barry Ano (NY) also got a great double but they got placed in the fillet bin before I got a chance to weigh them. Peter Grant (ME) lost a halibut. We never got to see it but the signature on the sounding machine had it dead to rights from my interpretation. And it acted just exactly like one. I felt terrible when one of the other anglers sawed him off with this angler's Spectra line. Peter's two best fish were an 11.5 pound pollock and a 14 pound pollock. John Ford (PA) caught a 12 pound pollock right off the bat. He caught others over 10 pounds but I was too busy to weigh them. Although, I did weigh another of his pollock that weighed 10.5 pounds.
Butch Christiansen (CT) caught a 14 pound pollock, his biggest fish. Garrett Adams (ME) caught an 11 pound pollock. Dawna Landis (MO) caught the last fish of the trip, an 8 pound pollock. Pete Kleckowski (NY) landed the hard luck award for feeling out of place in the health department. He never did the obvious but his condition prevented him from feeling good enough to fish. Such is the way of the mal de mer.
I received three donations sponsoring me in the Pan-Mass Challenge, a cycling event for cancer research today. The donors and their donations are as follows: Steve Clark (VT) for a generous $200.00, Ed Brozo for $30 and Barry Ano for $50. Thank you all so very much for the support cancer patients need and for cancer research to move forward. I do so appreciate your help!
At 3:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 64°F, I couldn't see the sky for the fog, there was no wind in Perkins Cove and the visibility over the ocean was poor in black thick fog and darkness.
We had to navigate through the fog in the dark to get down the channel to the outer cove and out through the gate. It was a nice calm morning to do it and certainly no sea to bother us in the process. We carried the fog until about the ten mile mark. From then on, we had plenty of visibility with which to navigate. The ocean was glassy with no wind and a mostly clear sky. And we saw a beautiful sunrise. The air temperature hung around 70°F for most of the ride out.
On the fishing grounds, the clouds moved in along with a southeast wind. The wind was light with wind speeds that never got to eight knots. Nor did we really see any white caps. The sky was overcast for most of the morning with very light showers and mist. I would call it more of a drizzle than a rain. During the early afternoon, the sky remained overcast but the rain and drizzle stopped. The wind backed off during the afternoon and came more out of the east southeast. Wind speeds might have been three knots or more with a chop that was so much less than a foot. The visibility ranged from a quarter of a mile in fog and haze to fifteen miles. The tide (current) was moderate or a bit more than that. The air temperature under the canopy top reached 70°F. The surface water temperature reached a high of 69.7°F.
Ashore, these were the air temperatures in selected New England cities: In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high air temperature was 74°F (with a low of 67°F). The Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 73°F (with a low of 63°F). The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 71°F (with a low of 63°F).
The fishing was very good. We had few dogfish, the blue sharks were more than I like to see but much less than most marathon trips and the weather turned out to be much better than predicted. The catching was very good. Landings were good. Most legal fish landed were cusk, by far, the most cusk I have seen on a trip this season to date. Legal landings also included four cod, thirty-four haddock, nine pollock, three or four red hake, two redfish and twenty-one white hake.Released fish included five sub-legal cod, eight sub-legal haddock, thirty-two sub-legal pollock, two cusk, ten or more blue sharks with jewelry, a red hake and a potential halibut. We anchored once, drift fished the rest. All terminal gear worked well.
I believe that Dave Pineo (MA) was high hook with the most legal fish. The key to his success, I believe, was that he was a good fisherman (of course) but he didn't break off or seem to get bothered too much by blue sharks. Regardless, he had good action all day and on every spot. He caught all the species today but his biggest fish was a 24.5 pound white hake. With this fish he won the boat pool for the second largest fish with the second largest fish of the trip. His second largest fish was a 19 pound white hake.
Olivia Maxam (NY) won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, a 38 pound Maine state trophy white hake. She has fished on the Bunny Clark for many years but has never caught a hake that big. This is also the largest hake that we have seen this year so far. I took a picture of Olivia holding this hake in the bow pulpit where she hooked and fought the fish. This digital image appears on the right. She caught other fish but nothing over 10 pounds.
The third largest fish was a 22 pound white hake caught by Mark LaRocca (NY). Mark did better than most with quite a few cusk, a couple haddock, another hake of 15 pounds and an 18 pound white hake. He comes from a commercial fishing family in Long Island, New York and always has some great stories to tell.
Other Angler Highlights: John Ford (PA) caught a 14.5 pound white hake, a 12 pound white hake and two white hake heads that belonged to hake over 15 pounds! And, yes, he put up with some blue sharks attacks. Charles Gerke (TX) landed an 11 pound white hake, a 20.5 pound white and a 24.25 pound white hake, his three largest fish. He caught a few other fish as well. Cutter Maxam (NY) landed a 19 pound white hake, his best fish. Barry Ano (NY) landed the hard luck award for being involved in, by far, the most tangles. As nice a person as Barry is, he owned the tangles today!
I received several donations sponsoring me in the Pan-Mass Challenge today, a cycling event where I try to get as many donations as I can to fund cancer research with the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, Massachusetts. I support a team that is involved in genetic profiling, a cutting age technology that is helping to illuminate new ways of curing cancer by isolating the gene that creates the cancer. The donors and donations I received today are as follows: John Ford for $50.00, Cutter Maxam for $5.00, Olivia Maxam for $20.00 and Barry Ano for $20.00. Thank you all so very much for this support. Not only is the money important but your thoughtfulness comes to the forefront to me, probably the most.
I also realized that I received another donation to the Pan-Mass Challenge in my behalf from a very special person from years ago; Lynn Welsch (NM). The donation was for $500.00. I discovered the donation when I realized that my donation total was shy of the total that the PMC was showing that I raised. The donation is "In Memory of my dear friend, Jo Diggs". Lynn lost her friend to cancer on Saturday. Thank you so much, Lynn. I really do appreciate your support, thoughtfulness and generosity. It was an extremely nice surprise!
At 5:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 63°F, the sky was cloudless, the wind was blowing out of the west at fifteen knots and the visibility over the ocean was excellent. Ashore, the wind blew out of the west or west northwest at twenty knots, more or less, for most of the day, backing off a bit during the late afternoon and early evening. The sky was clear all day, nearly cloudless. The visibility was excellent. The air temperature reached a high of 79°F. In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high air temperature was 80°F (with a low of 63°F). The Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 80°F (with a low of 56°F). The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 79°F (with a low of 60°F).
On the fishing grounds, the wind blew out of the west at ten to fifteen knots with higher gusts. Seas were chops of two to three feet. The air temperature reached a high of 72°F. The visibility ranged to over twenty miles. The tide (current) was strong. The sky was clear and sunny for the trip. The surface water temperature reached a high of 66°F.
The fishing was fair. The tide was so strong that neither anchoring nor drifting gave relief. With the dogfish, even though there weren't as many today, they lost jigs. The weather wasn't the best either. So it wasn't your father's choice of a fishing day today. The catching was good to very good, mostly because of the extra numbers of legal sized cod. Landings were good.
Most legal sized fish caught were cod. Many were released after the boat's quota was caught. Legal landings also included five haddock, eleven pollock, three redfish, thirty cusk, three white hake and thirty-five mackerel. Released fish included over forty dogfish, twenty short cod, four sub-legal haddock, sixty sub-legal pollock and a mackerel or two. The drift fished and anchored. Jigs and cod flies caught the most fish.
Ian didn't write down who was high hook. I certainly don't have a clue. John Gardner won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, an 11 pound cod. He also caught the largest cusk at 8 pounds. The second largest fish was a 10 pound cod caught by Jeff Bailey. He also caught an 8.5 pound cod that Ian had weighed earlier. Rich Mallott caught the third largest fish, a 9.5 pound cod.
Other Angler Highlights: Ollie Bruyere caught the first and last fish of the trip. Anthony Hubbard landed the hard luck award for getting a touch of the mal de mer and for losing two jigs.
I received a very generous $500.00 donation from Dick Howard & Karen Brockney (MA) as another sponsor for my drive to solve the cancer riddle with the Pan-Mass Challenge today. Thank you so much, Dick & Karen. I hope to see you at Barnacle Billy's at some point this week. Much appreciated!
At 5:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 61°F, the sky was cloudless, the wind was blowing out of the northwest at twenty knots or more and the visibility over the ocean was excellent. Ashore, the sky was clear with scattered smaller clouds, mostly in the afternoon; the sky stayed cloudless for most of the morning. The wind blew out of the northwest at twenty knots, more or less, all day. It blew up to twenty-five knots sustained in the afternoon but seemed to drop after sunset. The visibility was excellent. The highest air temperature that I saw in Perkins Cove was 68°F. In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high air temperature was 72°F (with a low of 57°F). The Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 67°F (with a low of 42°F). The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 67°F (with a low of 46°F).
On the fishing grounds, the wind blew out of the north northwest at ten to twenty knots with higher gusts, particularly near the end of the trip. Seas were chops of two to four feet. The air temperature reached a high of 68°F. The visibility ranged to over twenty miles. The tide was moderate to strong. The sky was clear and sunny. The surface water temperature reached a high of 64°F.
The fishing was challenging. It was hard for me to qualify today's fishing conditions. They had few dogfish but the sea state was not conducive to a good bite. Nor was it easy to fish. And they did have a strong current. The catching was very good. Landings were good or better than that. Most legal fish landed were pollock. Legal landings also included seven cod, eight haddock, fourteen cusk, a whiting and fifteen hake. However, the hake they found were all good size, a definite plus! Released fish included thirty dogfish, seven legal sized cod, ten small cod, five sub-legal haddock, fifty sub-legal pollock and a blue shark. They drift fished all day. Jigs and cod flies caught all the fish.
Jeff Corey (MA) won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, a 32 pound Maine state trophy white hake. This is a tie for the Bunny Clark's third largest hake of the season to date. Captain Ian took a picture of Jeff holding his big hake. This digital image appears on the left. He also caught an 11 pound white hake. Phillipe Bouchat (QC) won the boat pool for the second largest fish with the second largest fish, a 26.5 pound Maine state trophy white hake. The third largest fish was a 25 pound Maine state trophy white hake caught by Dave Heighton (NY). Dave also caught a 12 pound pollock and a 22 pound white hake.
Other Angler Highlights: Arshao Shah (QC) started off the boat pool by catching a 10 pound pollock. Paul Pearson (NH) caught a 14 pound cod, the largest cod of the trip, a 10 pound pollock, an 11 pound pollock and a 16 pound white hake. Vince Bonner (NY) caught the largest pollock at 16 pounds. Vince also caught a 12 pound pollock. Jim Smith (NY) caught a 13 pound pollock. Jonathan "Griff" Griffin (MA) landed a 13 pound white hake, a 13.5 pound white hake and a 20 pound white hake. Ken Claus (ON) caught a seventeen pound white hake.
Jeff Corey did me a solid today by donating $50.00, sponsoring me in my cancer fund raising project with the Pan-Mass Challenge. Jeff has donated many times before. Thanks so much, Jeff. A generous donation that is much appreciated!
At 5:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 50°F, the sky was very clear, the wind was blowing out of the west at ten knots and the visibility over the ocean was excellent. Ashore, the wind was light from the west all day. A gradual backing into the northwest was evident late in the afternoon. Wind speeds from the northwest were a bit over ten knots late. The visibility was excellent all day. The sky was cloudless in the morning and mostly clear in the afternoon. The highest air temperature that I saw was 71°F. In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high air temperature was 73°F (with a low of 55°F). The Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 71°F (with a low of 40°F). The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 68°F (with a low of 44°F).
On the fishing grounds, the wind blew out of the northwest at ten knots to start and then diminished to about five knots. Seas were chops of two to three feet at first and then diminished to a foot or so. Ian didn't give me an air temperature but wrote that it was warm. The visibility ranged to over twenty miles. The tide was moderate. The sky was clear and sunny. The surface water temperature reached a high of 68°F.
The fishing was good today. There weren't too many dogfish, the sea conditions weren't perfect but were fine and the tide made it good for drifting. The catching was very good. Landings were good to very good. Most legal fish caught were cod followed by pollock. Many legal sized cod were released and every angler was able to keep one. Legal landings also included twenty-one haddock, twenty cusk, five white hake and several mackerel. Released fish included a blue shark, the large number of legal cod, fifteen sub-legal cod, twelve sub-legal haddock, over a hundred sub-legal pollock and a mackerel. Drifting was the method. Jigs and cod flies caught the most fish.
Jonathan "Griff" Griffin (MA) 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, a 23 pound cod. This is the largest cod that has been caught on the Bunny Clark this season so far. Captain Ian took a picture of Griff holding his nice cod. This digital image appears on the right. Griff also caught a 10.5 pound cod that Ian weighed. The second largest fish was a 15 pound cod that Arnie Ulrich (NJ) caught. Jon Schwartz (VT) landed the third largest fish, a 14 pound cod.
Other Angler Highlights: Grant Mitchel (VT) landed a 10.5 pound cod, his best fish. Bill Kolczewski (MA) caught a 9.5 pound pollock. This may have been the largest pollock of the trip. Tim Rozan (ME) had one of those "Leicester City Games" where he was, by far, the most tangled. Even Ian had to stop working the deck to help with one of his tangles on the bow. But, alas, Tim was upstaged by Jack Marks (VT) as far as securing the hard luck award today. Jack got a treble hook from a jig through his cheek! So Jack ended up winning the award instead!
I received two donations sponsoring me in the Pan-Mass Challenge today. One was a $50.00 donation from Andrew Marks (VT). The other was a generous $100.00 donation from Griff. Thank you both very much for your support, thoughtfulness and generosity. It means a lot to me but it means more to the researchers I fund and the those who will benefit from this research!
At 5:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 47°F, the sky was clear with a half moon shining directly overhead, the wind was light out of the northeast and the visibility over the ocean was excellent. The wind blew lightly out of the northwest for most of the morning. Wind speeds could have been as much as ten knots. Before half the morning was out, the wind was half that in velocity. It was calm for a short period and then hauled out of the south southwest in the afternoon. The highest air temperature that I saw was 68°F. The visibility was excellent. The sky was clear with few clouds all day. In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high air temperature was 66°F (with a low of 52°F). The Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 71°F (with a low of 37°F). The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 68°F (with a low of 42°F).
On the fishing grounds, the wind blew out of the northwest at ten knots to start, much less as the day progressed. Seas went from a one to two foot chop to calm. There was no ocean swell. The air temperature reached a high of 67°F under the canopy top. It was warmer on deck when the wind dropped. The visibility ranged to over twenty miles. The tide (current) was moderate. The sky was clear and sunny the whole time. The surface water temperature reached a high of 61°F.
The fishing was very good to excellent all day. There were few dogfish, no blue sharks, the drift was perfect and the weather was superb. The catching was good. Landings were good. There were only three anglers today. So there was plenty of room. Legal landings included three cod, five haddock, four pollock, two redfish and two cusk. Released fish included six dogfish, eight cod of legal size, eight sub-legal cod, three sub-legal haddock and twenty-one sub-legal pollock. They drift fished all day. It was all jigs and cod flies today. No bait was used.
They ran no boat pool today. Nor did they care who was high hook. In fact, it was pretty even on fish landed per person anyway. Brian Pointer caught the largest fish of the trip, an 8 pound cod. The second largest fish came as a double from angler Frank Marced. His catch included a 7 pound cod and a 6 pound pollock, both fish caught on the same line at the same time. Andy Davis caught the third largest fish, a 6.5 pound cod.
Other Angler Highlights: Andy Davis landed the hard luck award for landing the smallest of the three big fish of the trip. Obviously, no one angler had any hard luck on this trip. Plus, the weather was exceptional.
At 5:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 57°F, the sky was hazyish/clear with a half moon trying to make it to the overhead position from the east, the wind was blowing out of the southwest at fifteen knots and the visibility over the ocean was excellent. Ashore, oddly, the wind dropped as the day progressed. By noon, we had light southwest wind. The sky was hazy clear in the morning with plenty of muted blue sky. This haze, or thin cloud cover, continued to increase until we had overcast skies right around 3:00 PM. At 4:15 PM, we had light rain in Perkins Cove. It didn't last. In fact, it seemed over by 5:30 PM. The roads were dry at that time. It didn't rain very much anyway. The air temperature rose to a value over 80°F. But that was the highest air temperature that I witnessed. I heard that the air temperature was 84°F in places. The visibility, excellent in the morning, dropped to good in the afternoon. We had humid conditions with much haze. We did not have any fog. In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high air temperature was 84°F (with a low of 60°F). The Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 81°F (with a low of 48°F). The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 77°F (with a low of 53°F).
On the fishing grounds, the wind blew out of the southwest at nearly fifteen knots to start. Seas were chops of two feet or more. But the wind started dropping as soon as they started fishing. Seas were chops of one to two feet by mid morning and about a foot after that. Wind speeds were about five knots. The air temperature was warm but Ian didn't give me the air temperature. The visibility ranged from ten to fifteen miles. The tide (current) was strong. The sky was sunny the whole time they were fishing, clouding up on the ride back to Perkins Cove. The surface water temperature reached a high of 61°F.
The fishing was good, no better than that. There weren't too many dogfish but there were many more than on yesterday's trip. The tide was awful. They couldn't anchor because it was so strong. When drifting, the lines trailed out in the direction the boat was drifting! That's only happened to me a couple of times. The catching was very good to excellent. Landings were very good. Most legal fish landed were pollock, by far. Legal landings also included sixteen cod, fifteen haddock, three redfish, twenty-one cusk, eleven white hake and one small monkfish. Released fish included forty dogfish, six legal cod, twelve sub-legal cod, four sub-legal haddock and about forty sub-legal pollock. They drift fished for the trip from five different spots. All terminal gear worked well but jigs and flies caught the most pollock and cod.
Roger Hopkins (RI) 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, a 13 pound pollock. He also caught the second largest fish of the trip, a 12.5 pound pollock. The third largest fish was an 11.5 pound pollock caught by Art Rivers (NY).
Other Angler Highlights: Jessie Johnson (ME) started off the boat pool with a 9 pound pollock, the first fish that Ian weighed. Gary Francoeur (NH) caught the largest white hake at 10 pounds. His largest pollock weighed 8 pounds. I expected great things out of Tony Martins (RI). But I looked all over Ian's sheet after the trip and there was not a single mention. I'm wondering now if he wouldn't let Ian weigh any of his big fish? Was Tony entered in the boat pool? Saga to be continued! Brandan LaPensee (ME) attained high hurler status and landed the hard luck award t-shirt for his unlucky condition.
At 5:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 57°F, the sky was overcast, the roads were a bit damp as it was misting, the wind was blowing out of the northeast at nearly fifteen knots and the visibility over the ocean was at least very good. The sky stayed overcast all day. No need for sunglasses at any time today. The wind blew out of the east northeast at ten knots or less. The highest air temperature that I saw in Perkins Cove was 60°F. The visibility was very good to excellent in the morning but that progressively decreased from 2:00 PM until about 5:30 PM. At the later time the visibility dropped to fair to good in precipitation light rain and fog. The rain started lightly at 4:45 PM but became steadier as the night wore on. It never was a hard rain. In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high air temperature was 72°F (with a low of 59°F). The Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 64°F (with a low of 55°F). The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 58°F (with a low of 52°F).
On the fishing grounds, the wind blew out of the east at ten to five knots. Seas were chop/swells of one to three feet. The wind increased when they were back almost to Perkins Cove. At that time it was about twelve knots. The visibility on the grounds ranged to over twenty miles. The tide (current) was moderate. The sky was overcast. The air temperature value high for the day was 62°F. The surface water temperature reached a high of 61°F.
The fishing was fair to good, mostly because the dogfish got in the way of catching the good fish. The fishing conditions, other than the dogfish, was good. It was just the dogfish that brought the ratings down a couple categories. The catching was good to very good, excellent if you included the dogfish. Landings were good. Most legal fish landed today were haddock, for once. Forty percent of the haddock caught today were sub-legal. Legal landings also included twenty-one cod, twenty pollock, eighteen cusk, two white hake, a whiting and sixty or more mackerel. Released fish included one hundred and twenty-two dogfish, twenty cod of legal size, fourteen sub-legal cod, the short haddock, forty-one sub-legal pollock, a blue shark and two barndoor skates. Drifting was the method. All terminal gear worked equally well.
Ian couldn't tell me whom was high hook with the most legal fish. Will Buesser (NH) won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, an 18 pound barndoor skate. This is the second largest barndoor skate of the Bunny Clark fishing season so far. Eddie Keichen (NH) caught the second largest fish, also a barndoor skate. But he never got it in the boat to get a weight. He lost it right next to the boat. It would have been the third largest barndoor skate at least. It looked to be equally as large as Will's fish. Ah, we will never know. Eddie also caught the largest cod of the day at 10.5 pounds. Officially, the second largest fish was a 13 pound pollock caught by Robert Clark (VT). He also caught the second largest pollock of the trip at 11 pounds.
Other Angler Highlights: Theresa Connelley (NH) reached high hurler status and won the hardest luck of the trip award. Ouch!
At 3:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 56°F, the sky was overcast, the roads were wet with misting very light rain, there was a trace of wind out of the north and the visibility over the ocean was at least very good.
After about two nautical miles east of the gate, it became a slog to the offshore grounds. After five miles I had to back the throttle back a tad. The wind was out of the northeast at ten or fifteen knots but we had a two foot chop with a long swell that ranged from five to eight feet at times. It was a confused sea at best. But it seemed to take us forever to get to where I was going. The air temperature was in the 50s. The visibility was very good. And we only had a half a boat of patrons. So everyone could find a moderately comfortable dry spot on the boat.
On the fishing grounds, we had the same sea state. The wind was out of the northeast at ten to fifteen knots with two foot chops over sea swells from east of six to eight feet. The big seas dissipated so that, by noon, they were about three feet. By that time, also, the wind had backed out of the north. Wind speeds started out the same but diminished as the day progressed. By the time we had the nose pointed toward home we had eight knots of northerly wind with a one foot chops over a two foot swell. The air temperature reached a high of 58°F. The tide ranged from very strong in the morning to light in the afternoon. The visibility ranged to thirty miles. The sky was overcast all day with light rain during the last drift of the day. We had some clearing skies about half way home; a blue sky was sun. The surface water temperature reached a high of 60°F.
Ashore, these were the air temperatures in selected New England cities: In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high air temperature was 62°F (with a low of 58°F). The Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 62°F (with a low of 54°F). The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 59°F (with a low of 52°F).
The fishing was very good, the catching was very good and landings were good overall. We had two spots were we caught just about nothing. And we had one spot that was lights out excellent. Most legal fish landed were pollock. Legal landings also included ten cod, sixteen haddock, fifteen redfish, seven cusk, eight mackerel and sixteen white hake. Released fish included twenty-eight dogfish, eighteen legal sized cod to 9 pounds, forty-two sub-legal cod, thirteen sub-legal pollock, one blue shark, two mackerel and three sub-legal redfish. We drift fished, motor drifted and anchored. We caught our most cod on anchor and our most pollock on the drift. All terminal gear worked well but cod flies caught the most pollock.
Robbie Smith (ME) was the fisherman of the trip. He was high hook with the most legal fish, he caught the most dogfish, by far, and he won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, a 37.5 pound Maine state trophy white hake. This is his largest hake ever and the Bunny Clark's second largest hake of the season so far. This is the third time in as many trips that he has been the fisherman of the trip. I took a picture of Robbie holding his big hake beside Ron Covey (VT) who was holding his own 25 pound Maine state trophy white hake. This digital image appears on the left. Ron went on to catch the largest cod of the trip at 11.5 pounds, a 23 pound white hake and a 24 pound white hake. Robbie actually started with the lead in the pool after a he boated an 11 pound pollock about ten minutes into the trip. One of his cod weighed 8.5 pounds. And he caught another white hake that weighed 20 pounds. It was a great day to be Robbie Smith - again!
David Sampson (MA) won the boat pool for the second largest fish with the second largest fish, a 32.5 pound Maine state trophy white hake. This is the Bunny Clark's fourth largest hake of the fishing season to date. His largest pollock weighed 12 pounds. The third largest fish was a 30.5 pound Maine state trophy white hake caught by my good cycling buddy, John Jerrim (GA). John is up on vacation in Wells for a couple of weeks and decided on going fishing with me. He has dragged my sorry ass home on the bike a number of occasions when my legs were cramping so badly that I couldn't make it home without drafting off him. This is John's largest fish ever and a tie for the Bunny Clark's eighth largest hake of the season so far. He also caught a 22 pound white hake. His largest pollock weighed 13 pounds.
Other Angler Highlights: David Abood (NH) caught the largest haddock we have seen in a while. It weighed 5 pounds. He was the first person to catch a fish I could weigh, a pollock that was 8.75 pounds. His largest fish was a 14 pound pollock. He broke his jig off twice and twice he got it back. He walked off the boat with the jig in his tackle box. Kurt Gilmore (MA) caught the largest pollock I have seen in a couple years, a Maine state trophy of 28 pounds! He made my week with that fish. I took a picture with my iPhone of him holding his prize. This digital image appears on the right. I also weighed a 10.5 pound pollock and a 13.5 pound pollock that he caught.
Rick Schwartz (NH) landed the largest cusk of the trip at 10 pounds. He had another that weighed 8.5 pounds as well. His largest fish was a 15.5 pound pollock but he also caught a 14 pound white hake and the second largest cod at 10.5 pounds. He caught a half dozen legal sized cod on the same spot! Don Spencer (VT) caught a 25.5 pound Maine state trophy white hake, his biggest fish in years. Bill Otto (PA) landed a 15.25 pound white hake, his largest fish of the trip. He also landed the hard luck award for losing two jigs, tangling a bit and landing the least number of fish! Ouch and double ouch!
I received two donations sponsoring me on my ride with the Pan-Mass Challenge today. One donation was a generous $100.00 from David Abood before we even left the dock to head out fishing. The other was a $30.00 gift from Ron Covey. Thank you both so very much for your help, generosity and support. It means a great deal to me. But I truly believe we are heading in the right direction with cancer research. Great having you both aboard today!
At 5:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 54°F, the sky was overcast with the light of a crescent moon visible through the clouds over the eastern horizon, the wind was light out of the northwest and the visibility over the ocean was excellent. By 6:00 AM, the sky was mostly clear. By 7:00 AM, sky was overcast again. By 9:00 AM, it was sunny and stayed sunny for the rest of the morning and into the afternoon. After another overcast period at 2:00 PM, the sky cleared and was sunny for the rest of the day/evening. The wind blew lightly out of the northwest, died out to nothing and then hauled out of the southwest. But the southwest wind was so light as to be no wind at all. The highest air temperature that I saw was 68°F. The visibility was excellent. In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high air temperature was 69°F (with a low of 57°F). The Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 67°F (with a low of 54°F). The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 67°F (with a low of 48°F).
On the fishing grounds, the wind blew out of the northwest to start. It was light. The ocean went calm before hauling out of the southwest after noon. Wind speeds at most were five knots. The ocean was calm all day. The visibility ranged to over twenty miles. The sky was clear and sunny all day. The tide (current) was moderate to strong. The air temperature was warm - Ian didn't give me an exact value. The surface water temperature reached a high of 60°F.
The fishing was very good to excellent. The only reason I didn't go to straight excellent was because of the strong current at one point. There were few dogfish, the weather was perfect for sailing humans on the high seas and the fishing conditions were great. The catching was very good. Landings were good to very good. Most legal fish landed were haddock, our best haddock day for a week. The haddock cull was about twenty percent sub-legal. Legal landings also included the full bag limit of cod (everybody aboard kept one), twenty-three pollock, thirty-four cusk and two white hake. Released fish included ten dogfish (the only angler using bait caught six himself), fifty cod of legal size, twenty-five sub-legal cod, the short haddock, forty-five sub-legal pollock and a mackerel. No blue sharks bothered today. They drift fished the whole day. Jigs and cod flies caught the most fish.
Dan Kelley (ME) was high hook with the most legal fish by far. He caught a pile of legal sized cod. His largest fish was an 11 pound pollock, the fourth largest fish of the trip. Peter Griffin (NY) won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, a 15 pound cod. It was the last fish caught on the boat today. When I saw him in the parking lot, Peter told me that you never know; "Don't ever give up!" No truer words were ever spoken! The second largest fish was a 13.5 pound pollock. This fish was caught in a tangle but no one could tell Ian who's fish it was. In fact, I don't know who took the fish (or fillets) home! Bill Otto (PA) caught the third largest fish, a 13 pound cod.
Other Angler Highlights: Ally Fuehrer (ME) caught a 10.5 pound pollock, her biggest fish. Her largest cod weighed 8.5 pounds. And she released six legal sized cod. Dale Blanton (NH) landed the hard luck award for losing three jigs.
At 3:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 60°F, the sky was overcast, the wind was light out of the southwest ashore but over fifteen knots at the Portland Lightship and the visibility over the ocean was very good at least.
When we poked out nose out through the gate in the dark it didn't seem too bad for a ride offshore. And, in fact, most of the way out it wasn't "too bad". But it was also the direction that we were going that allowed us a moderately comfortable ride. With a beam sea it was okay. The visibility wasn't great but there was no fog. And the air temperature hung around 62°F which, for this time of year, is very comfortable. We also made good time to the fishing grounds.
But that is where the good times ended. On the fishing grounds, it was rough. I would have said choppy but it was more like a four to six foot sea with a southwest wind that was blowing a sustained twenty-five knots with higher gusts for at least two hours. I never dropped below twenty knots for the time we were on the offshore grounds. I could not get the anchor to set in anything over sixty fathoms. This has never happened to me - ever. The current was so strong along with the wind that even twenty boat lengths ahead of the spot I could not get the anchor to set. And we certainly couldn't drift. We were having the occasional light rain when we first arrived. So it wasn't too bad when I was trying to cement myself to a spot. But when went to shallower water the rain came. This too wasn't so bad as I finally able to anchor up and fish. And we started to do okay. But then a second event happened that I have never seen before on the offshore grounds. Thunder and lightning.
It didn't seem bad at first but after fifteen minutes, the few fish we were catching (and I mean few) shut right off. That and the fact that I had looked on the radar to see that nothing like this was happening twenty miles inside of us. And, in the back of my mind, I was thinking that I was out there with no other boats around me in a fully electronic engine in a boat that has been hit by lightning two times before when I had a regular diesel engine with expensive consequences, if I got hit with lightning here, would I lose the engine if the electricity went through a fully bonded system? It would seem so. My decision was made when a lightning bolt came down only a few boat lengths away. At that time, the rain was coming down so hard that you could not see any distance at all. It could have been foggy and we would have seen more. The lightning had totally shut the fish off, there was nothing like this inside of us, the lightship was reporting much better sea conditions and I was not comfortable being where I was. So we made the hour and a half trek back inside. And I'm glad I did.
Indeed, the weather was much better. We still had the rain but the seas were diminished by at least two feet and there was no lightning. We still couldn't anchor or drift. So I put out the sea anchor. This gave us the perfect drift and the good fishing that I had wanted and needed earlier. The only problem was that, instead of the six or seven hours of fishing, we got three hours. But it was a very good three hours with constant action.
The wind hauled out of the north just as we were about to call it a day, maybe fifteen minutes earlier than that. At first the seas were confused but not as confused as they would have been had the same conditions that we saw outside had persisted where we ended the day. But it didn't take long for the northerly wind to take over and drop the seas down. Ten miles from Perkins Cove, headed in, there was a half a foot northerly chop, sunny clear skies and excellent visibility, a huge departure from a few hours before. The highest air temperature that I saw on the fishing grounds was 64°F. The visibility, of course, was crap for most of the day in precipitation. And the surface water temperature reached a high of 61°F.
Ashore, these were the air temperatures in selected New England cities: In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high air temperature was 70°F (with a low of 55°F). The Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 65°F (with a low of 51°F). The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 66°F (with a low of 50°F).
So the fishing for the first part of the trip was awful, the second part very good. The catching was very good. Landings would have been very good if we could have kept every legal cod we caught. And that species was, by far, the most prevalent fish that was caught. It was also the most cod I have seen in a trip three fall periods. Since we can only keep one cod per person, the bulk of our fishing centered on what cod we were going to keep. So we settled on cod over twenty-five inches but held up for the biggest fish in the last fifteen minutes of the day and were rewarded for it. Legal landings also included ten haddock, twenty-one pollock (of smaller average size than we have been seeing) and fifteen cusk. Released fish included fifty two dogfish, probably forty-five sub-legal cod on top of the legal ones returned and about twenty-six sub-legal pollock. Jigs and cod flies caught the most fish.
Rick Gurney (MA) was the fisherman of the day. He was part of the Lighthouse Fishing Club contingent, who had their own boat pool between the twelve of them. Rick was high hook with the most legal fish including all the legal cod that he let go. And he won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish and won the boat pool for the second largest fish with the largest fish. I say this because both fish were cod and both fish were 12 pounds each. He also won the first two Club pools. On top of that he caught a beautiful 5 pound haddock. Ben Barzousky (MA) caught the third largest fish, a 10.5 pound pollock. With this fish Ben also won the Club pool for the third largest fish. Some of Ben's other fish that I weighed included an 8.5 pound cod and a 9 pound pollock. Ben also lost the largest fish of the day. I don't know what it was but I suspect it was a big cod from the way it took line and the "head shakes" it performed.
Other Angler Highlights: Gloria Gennari (MA) caught a 6.5 pound cod that I weighed, her first of the larger cod that she caught. I didn't weigh another fish of hers but she was one of the biggest fish contributors to the fillet pool for the LFC. I can't say for certain that she was second hook but if she wasn't she was damn close. She is an excellent fisherman. Al Hanson (MA) caught a 5 pound haddock that I weighed. One of his cod that I weighed was 8 pounds. And he caught the first decent pollock of the day at 7 pounds. Mike Kruszyna (MA) caught a 9 pound cod. Keith Hersom (ME) landed the hard luck award t-shirt for being the sole hurler of the trip. He did fish for a bit but not a long bit.
I received several donations sponsoring me in my cancer research project with the Pan-Mass Challenge today. Those donors and their donations included Bill Kelson (MA) for $30.00, Al & Dawn Hanson (MA) for a generous $71.00, Jody Goff (MA) for $25.00 and George Sweet (MA) for $25.00. Thank you all so very much for your thoughtfulness, generosity and your encouragement. The fact that you keep telling me that you appreciate what I am doing, means a lot to me and I greatly appreciate your help in completing this task.
At 5:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 47°F, the sky was clear, the wind was blowing out of the northwest at twenty knots (more or less) and the visibility over the ocean was excellent. The wind blew out of the northwest all day at about twenty knots. There were some higher gusts and some below twenty knots. It was doable fishing weather but it would have been a beat to windward and a choppy ride. The air temperature did get up to 61°F. But it really didn't feel that cool until late afternoon, when the temperature dropped. We had some girls from Turkey (J1 students) in takeout at Barnacle Billy's who were complaining of the cold which heightened my awareness of it. But it wasn't particularly cold. I never did look at the air temperature at that time. The sky was clear all day. The visibility remained excellent. In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high air temperature was 61°F (with a low of 50°F). The Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 57°F (with a low of 46°F). The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 59°F (with a low of 46°F).
Yesterday's trip took the starch right out of me. I was tired all day. Not sore; probably because I exercise so much. But I was beat. It didn't effect my performance. But I did go home for a nap in the afternoon and was out like a light for over an hour.
I open up the restaurants on Fridays. So I was there at 5:30 AM after working on the Bunny Clark stuff before that. Sometimes I go down earlier. And sometimes our baker, Heather Betz, opens both buildings for me. Heather was down there at 4:00 AM and always sends me a text to prepare me for coming down while I'm working at home. That is always very helpful. And I go back and forth from the house and the Cove, mainly so I can post this report around 6:00 AM. I was hosing down the street after the departure of the garbage when Matt Pedersen showed up to take over the restaurant duties and allow me to go home.
The rest of the day was spent catching up on the things that would have been done on Tuesday and Thursday had I been there. The working day ended for me at 8:15 PM. I was glad to get home.
At 5:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 47°F, the sky was clear, the wind was blowing out of the northwest at thirty knots (more or less) and the visibility over the ocean was excellent. The wind blew again today but not nearly as hard as they predicted or I expected. Winds were out of the west northwest at twenty-five knots with higher gusts to start but backed off in the afternoon to twenty and twenty-five knots. By 5:00 PM, the wind was blowing out of the west at fifteen to twenty knots and only ten knots by 6:00 PM. The night was wind free. The sky was clear and sunny all day. The air temperature got up to a high of 67°F in Perkins Cove. The visibility was excellent all day. In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high air temperature was 69°F (with a low of 48°F). The Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 66°F (with a low of 40°F). The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 66°F (with a low of 45°F).
Except for the boat not being out, it was a typical Saturday for me at the restaurant. It was busy as the weather was excellent with a nice air temperature, a clear warm fall day.
Eric & Caroline Chase (ME) donated a generous $100.00 to sponsor me in the Pan-Mass Challenge today. They have helped me support cancer research for a couple of years now but have a more personal interest this year. Thank you both so much for your generosity and thoughtfulness. I do so appreciate it!
At 5:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 48°F, the sky was clear, the wind was so light from the southwest as to not have any wind and the visibility over the ocean was excellent. The wind did increase out of the southwest. It might have reached the ten knot mark after noon. But it never blew any more than that along the shore. And southwest wind is funny. It frequently blows southwest along the shore when the wind direction is southerly offshore. The sky was sunny all morning and into the afternoon but became overcast. We had intermittent rain from 4:00 PM on into the late afternoon and night. The highest air temperature that I saw was 67°F. In Boston, Massachusetts (Logan International Airport) the high air temperature was 70°F (with a low of 51°F). The Concord, New Hampshire's high temperature was 66°F (with a low of 37°F). The high air temperature at the Portland International Jetport, Portland, Maine was 65°F (with a low of 39°F).
On the fishing grounds, the wind blew out of the southwest at five to ten knots. Seas were calm to a foot in chops. They also had an underlying two foot swell from the east. The air temperature reached a high of 66°F. The visibility ranged to over twenty miles. The tide (current) was moderate. The sky was mostly overcast in the afternoon but mostly clear and sunny in the morning. It rained on the ride back to Perkins Cove. The surface water temperature reached a high of 58°F.
The fishing was nearly excellent. The drift was great, there were just a few dogfish and the weather was very nice. The catching was very good. Landings were good. Most legal sized fish caught were cod, by far. Legal landings specifically included sixteen cod, twenty-five haddock, twenty-three pollock, twenty-three cusk, two white hake and well over thirty mackerel. Released fish included eighteen dogfish, forty-one cod of 5 pounds or more, twenty sub-legal cod, three sub-legal haddock, over fifty sub-legal pollock, two bluefin tuna and two mackerel. Drifting was the method. No bait was used today, just jigs and cod flies.
Ian didn't tell me who was high hook. Seth House won the boat pool for the largest fish with the largest fish, a 14 pound Maine state trophy cusk. This is the Bunny Clark's sixth largest cusk of the season so far. Ian took a picture of Seth holding his trophy. This digital image appears on the left. Stuffy House won the boat pool for the second largest fish with the second largest fish, an 11 pound cod. Stuffy also caught a ten pound pollock. The third largest fish was a 10.5 pound cod caught by Noah Cooper.
Other Angler Highlights: Bob Burke landed the hard luck award for losing a tuna that could have been landed (because of it's size) but ended up breaking it off when the fish took off and brought the line up near the bow. This after twenty minutes. I'm not sure exactly what happened, whether it hit the boat or the extra strain of the line rubbing up against the boat broke the fish off. Regardless, Bob ended up with the shirt! There were two tuna lost today. The other was lost by Stuffy House after a much shorter time fighting it. Stuffy's fish could have been bigger. But the fight was so short that this could not be determined.
At 5:00 AM EDT the air temperature was 60°F, the sky was overcast, there was zero wind and the visibility over the ocean was very good to excellent. More later.
I learned today (August 30, 2022) that the 2022 Gulf of Maine fishery regulations have been approved. As of September 1, 2022, you will be able to keep a cod a person per trip with a minimum legal length of twenty-two inches until October 7, 2022. Plus, the bag limit on haddock will now be twenty per person.
We have several future trips that have openings. The extreme day trip of Wednesday, September 28, has fifteen spots available (we will sail with five), the extreme day trip of Friday, September 30, has five spots available, the extreme day trip of Monday, October 3, has one spot available, the Tim Tuesday marathon trip on October 4 has fifteen fishing spots available, the extreme day trip of Wednesday, October 5, has nine fishing spots available, the marathon trip of Thursday, October 6 (the last day we can keep cod) has fifteen fishing spots available and the extreme day trip of Friday, October 7, has eighteen fishing spots available. We are catching cod more often than we have in two years. And we are also seeing less dogfish in most places, particularly offshore. And the blue sharks are few. You can book online or call 207-646-2214. Be there or be square!
I have decided to keep the fuel surcharge at $15.00 until I get a feeling as to where fuel prices are going to settle in at or if prices rise. I've always put in the literature and online that we would have to ask for a fuel surcharge if the prices went too high. But we have never had to ask for one until this season. I'm hoping it goes away but I'm very ambivalent about future of fuel pricing.
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