Jul 12
29
Bill Snead with one of the 3 tuna caught
I met Dewayne and Jim on conquest beach today. We were also met by Chris, Jim, Jason, Curt, Kevin, Joel. and of course Kristen, I had Alan with me. Everyone met, we had a quick rundown of what Dewayne was hoping to accomplish. We were all geared for lighter shark fishing, not pulling in monsters just yet, today was a meet and greet, get some details worked out, and go from there. We have permits to catch, remove from the surf, and tag 25 sand tiger sharks. I know some folks that will be there tomorrow at 5 a.m., whom are geared up with off shore equipment, exactly what we need for the larger sand tiger sharks. I also am very aware, we have better chances at night catching these “toothy units”, but I wanted to meet everyone, and get a feel for what they are prepared to deal with to catch sand tiger sharks from the surf. We will definitely be night fishing this week, probably tomorrow night. Another researcher, Chelsea, met us there later in the day. I hope I didn’t miss anyone, if I did please let me know. So, we had a nice time on the beach today trying to catch sharks, never works out that way. Hard to catch what your after some days, it is fishing.
Curt and Alan identifying the shark species as a sandbar, and preparing for a clean release.
Curt caught a kingfish when he arrived, and immediately used it for bait. Yes it was a keeper, we were also given some fresh bluefish and mullet for our efforts by a neighbor he knew what we were doing. Thank you sir, I am sorry I didn’t have time to chat, I hope to see you again. We had bluefish, bunker, mullet, and kingfish soaking. I had a bottom rig with a 4 foot leader 125lb mono, and a 6 ounce tongue weight. Kristen was using an orange float rig with 5 ounces. Curt had a 4 ounce sinker with only a foot of leader. Jason had a rig like mine. Jason hooked up a huge ray first, and it took 42 minutes until it broke off. Curt got the pat on the back for the first shark of the day, but it was a sandbar. Then he hit another one soon after his first. I hit something huge that ran like a mad dog, and then snapped me off. I can tell you exactly when it ran too, when the helicopter flew by, no more that a 100 feet off the water, thanks for that by the way. All the sharks we saw this afternoon prompted us to try early tomorrow morning, we are meeting at 5 a.m. fishing until 10-ish, and then coming back at 5 p.m. for night fishing. My sleep schedule is going to be interesting this week, I should be in bed right now. Everyone whom has asked to help is more than welcome, just keep in mind we are trying to keep the “teams” to a certain number for efficiency. The researchers are logging a lot of details while we catch these sharks. They will be measured, tagged, sexed, and a small genetic sample will be taken from a fin. I will never ever, turn down serious eager help, so bring it. Everyone whom has emailed me just come out when you can, and I will post the schedule each night, day, or morning. Like I said, my schedule is about to get weird.
Blues breaking and birds working the water
The boys have been fishing the Delaware Bay the last few days and she has come to life ….. Fishing Synopsis … last few days … game on … “goner” Seatrout/Weakfish are not gone anymore … have seen at least 150 of these units in the last 2 days … most are small, but there is a keeper mixed in … Great seed for the future … I hope, if the draggers don’t get them this fall … lots of Silver Bullets too, just showed up here … mostly small so far … most are keepers though … and the coolest thing are the Blue Units … pushing bait to the surface … gulls and terns diving, wheeling and eating the remnants of the Blues rampage, 1 foot long fish … great eating size … The DE Bay is alive finally … smaller summertime fish … a Crowner and Blow Hole unit also, constant, fun action … the dead sea is alive and well … really nice to see … check out this rare pic of surface action in the undead DE Bay ….. Kevin Blouch ….. I really need to get out with you boys soon, maybe after shark week and a nap.
Frank Payton found this Hogchoker at South Bowers beach.
Frank Payton posted a picture today, and asked for an ID. Everyone online has agreed it is a Hogchoker, or American Sole. Due to the lack of pectoral fins, and the mouth on the right side. Gary Basheore wrote in … “ Tyler was catching a lot of these, he called them sandwich flounder because fit perfectly between two pieces of bread.” There are many names for this fish I am finding, even fresh water flounder, probably due to their spawning habits. Jason Snead’s dad popped some nice fish offshore last night. Yes, he was out front riding out that storm, and it was a rough ride (not his exact words, they were a little more explicit). Apparently a few boats rode that storm out, not knowing it was going to hit. It happens, and we are glad everyone is safe. We have had a few accidents on the water this week, yesterday Kenny told me … ” Charter boat, the #1 Hooker, had a hole problem, from limited info, I heard … 2 boats assisted. The boat went down and 8 were rescued.” I have not had the time to follow up on this in detail. Just wanted to post this since everyone keeps asking. Be safe and smart out there.
Fish On!!
Rich King
