I am sad to report that fishing is s-l-o-w ! Well, it's hard to be sad when I am fishing, even if I'm not catching anything.
I finally got Donna in a kayak yesterday morning. She enjoyed the scenery, but says she likes the beach better. We didn't fish, just paddled and enjoyed the wildlife, and harvested a few clams and mussels which I had for lunch. This was a first for me. I love these shellfish, but have never harvested them myself. I have to say that the mussels were delishious, but the clams were gritty. If anyone can tell me how to prepare the clams, send instructions.
Donna and I went fishing in the surf yesterday, and caught a couple of small pompano and one small whiting. No keepers. I did get two really big bites on sand fleas (mole crabs) but didn't hook up either time. My 10 foot baitcaster surf rod doubled over and by the time I got to it, nothing. I changed the #4 2x long shank hook to a 2/o circle hook, but got no more bites.
The local old timers tell me that we need a couple of days of hard (15 to 20 mph) NE winds to drive the fish in. Checking my notes from last year, I am finding that it was pretty much the same as this year. The fish didn't really start the fall bite until around the middle of October. I am hearing that the spots are biting in Morehead, which is what was in my October 1 notes from last year. So we are right on schedule.
I have heard a rumor that 21 spanish were caught from Surf City Pier a few days ago at about 5 in the afternoon. Several pluggers pulled in the spanish during a feeding frenzy that lasted about an hour. I have not been able to confirm this with pier employees, but it sounds like someone has some serious fun if this rumor is indeed true!
Weather Conditions at NEW RIVER MCAS as of 7:00 a.m. (ET): temperature 50° F; windchill 50° F; relative humidity 96%; wind, north 0 mph; pressure 30.27 inches; visibility 7 miles; ceiling unlimited; clear.
Tide schedule today;
Time Tide Height Tide
4:47 a.m. EDT 3.19 feet High Tide
11:29 a.m. EDT 0.47 feet Low Tide
5:14 p.m. EDT 3.70 feet High Tide
12:15 a.m. EDT 0.34 feet Low Tide
5:47 a.m. EDT 3.54 feet High Tide
Until next time....
Tight Lines!
Johnny
