Sea Run White Perch

I started my winter fishing Saturday night. Fishing was tough only landing two stripers the size of hatchery trout. I gave it a go again tonight. I didn't land any stripers (this is  a bad sign) but I did land one of my favorite fish... Sea Run White Perch. Certainly nothing to write home about (yes, I see the irony of that phrase) but a cool memory none the less

Festival of Trees

When Laurie came over after work, I was in the mood to do something. I didn't want to sit in my house all day and watch football. Problem was, other than go for a walk in the woods, I didn't have any ideas. To my surprise, Laurie came up with an idea for something she wanted to do fairly quickly.

Disney themed tree

She suggested we go to the "Festival of Trees" at the Easton Country Club in Easton, MA. Basically, there are a bunch of Christmas trees decorated, most are themed (such as Disney, Charlie Brown, angels, etc) They are artificial trees. The festival is indoors. The admission is seven dollars. You can buy raffle tickets to win the trees. I think the drawing is December 12. Many of the trees are "decorated" with gift certificates or toys. The tree donated by a gym had gift certificates for Whole foods and for free classes. Not to mention the "ornaments" were jump rope, water bottle and other exercise equipment.

There are about 30-40 trees ( I didn't count). You can check it out by googling the Festival of Trees at the Easton Country Club. The trees will be there a couple more weeks. Since it was indoors in the function room, when we went at 3:30 today (Sunday) it was crowded, but not unbearable. We walked around a couple times and went back to look at Laurie's favorites. It wasn't a bad way to kill an afternoon waiting for the Patriots game

Enjoying the Holidays Outside the Box

Last year I wrote a blog post giving advice for enjoying the holidays. Don't worry, I wasn't telling you that my way is the right way. On the contrary, my advice is to make the season as enjoyable as you can doing the things you enjoy and weeding out the ones you don't. If you want to read it here is the link.
http://southernnewenglandoutdoors.blogspot.com/2015/12/advice-for-enjoying-holidays.html

This year, I spent quite a bit of time looking up Christmas and Holiday things to do. I've already gone to three church bazaars. Laurie and I have a few special things planned. Unfortunately, unlike my outdoor hobbies (hiking, fishing, camping, photography), most Christmas stuff is not free. Of course some things are like light displays, but our Friday nights will be inside venues. These are a few things we are doing or have done. Maybe, something on my list will be something you may want to go to. That is the whole point of the blog, right? To inspire others.

Dec 2  Boston Pops

 Laurie and I are going to do something that has been on my bucket list for years. We are going to a Boston Pops Holiday Concert at Symphony Hall in Boston. The Pops have shows running almost every day in Dec. We got middle priced tickets. I'm really looking forward to Keith Lockhart and the Pops playing carols.

Dec 9 A Christmas Carol

There are multiple places to see the Dickens classic. I opened up a newspaper to the "Events Calander" and it had no less than four places within an hour drive. Laurie has had this on her bucket list. We are going to the show at the Stadium Theater in Woonsocket.Ticket prices are $ 21/26 The most famous showing in my area is at Trinity Rep in Providence. I like the Stadium Theater. We got third row seats for twenty six dollars. How can you go wrong?

Dec 16 Jackie

Not really holiday related but the movie Jackie about Jackie Kennedy opens on this date. We will be going to see it at the little Dedham Community Theater. I'm sure there will be hot chocolate at some point as we drive there. Since I am such a fan of JFK, this is like a present to myself.

Best Christmas Pagent Ever

The Attleboro Community Theater has multiple plays a year. Last year I took DJ's sisters to see "Yes Virginia, There is a Santa Claus" This year their December play (running Fri,Sat, Sun Dec2-18) is the "Best Christmas Pagent Ever".  We don't have tickets yet, but I will be taking Amber and Laurie. My friend Clay Groves who lives in North Conway, NH is actually in this same play at his local playhouse up north.

A Carol's Christmas and Cup of Cheer both at the Arctic Playhouse

Both of these Christmas themed events take place at the Arctic in Warwick, RI. The tickets are super cheap. A Carol's Christmas is about Charles Dickens friendship with a woman named Carol. Cup of Cheer, from what I can tell is more short skits, singing, and hot chocolate. Seems like it will be a lot of fun.

Laurie with a homemade apple pie
she made a few years ago

Baking

Laurie and I put one day aside for baking during the season. She bakes cookies for work (and us) while I make chocolate creme pies for work (and us). Although it can get a little monotonous, the thought of people appreciating them is worth it. I have other friends that make homemade candy, homemade fudge, and pecan pies.

Christmas Displays

At least twice we will go to LaSalette to see the huge display of lights and drink hot chocolate.

Christmas Movies

When Laurie comes over on Christmas Eve we watch a favorite Christmas movie. This year we are watching one we have not seen in thirty years a Walt Disney classic "Babes in Toyland" starring Tommy Kirk and Annette Funicello. Instead of watching one we know every line to, this time I'm looking forward to it.



Other Fun Christmas things we have done in the past

Old Sturbridge Village Christmas by Candlelight

Carolers at Sturbridge Village

During December Old Sturbridge Village is not open the standard 9-5 hours. Instead it opens up Friday-Sunday in the evening for Christmas by Candlelight. We went last year and had a blast. I got to eat chestnuts roasted on an  open fire and spicy ginger candy. There are multiple things going on each hour from poetry readings, concerts to horse drawn carriage rides. We had a great time. You can check out their website   https://www.osv.org/event/christmas-by-candlelight
or my blog post from the day
http://southernnewenglandoutdoors.blogspot.com/2015/12/old-sturbridge-village-christmas-by.html

Jordan's Furniture Enchanted Village

The Jordan's in Avon becomes a Winter Wonderland during the holidays. There is an Enchanted Village which are classic scenes from years of old with old tyme statues. There is also a Laser Light Show set to music. There is an indoor skating rink that is not made of ice and lastly a Polar Express ride that is in 4 D. It is a good time, but it is crowded.

Holiday Pops

This year I'm going to see Keith and the pops, but last year I went to another Pops concert at the Stadium Theater. Same idea I'm sure Christmas songs. I really liked it.

So there you have it, my Christmas Season along with other ideas from the past. of course, the holiday ideas are endless. Some people like going to The Nutcracker the opera is DEFINITELY not my thing. There are multiple playhouses in many cities. I chose the ones I'm going to because they are close, inexpensive, and I like the venues. Food is a big part of the holidays, hot chocolate, baked goods, and eggnog have a place. Hopefully I've given at least one person some new ideas. Be creative, the season is awesome no matter what holiday you celebrate, go enjoy it. You know what happens after the holiday season?

January- A big pile of SUCK!

Outdoor Things I am Thankful For 2016

Pure Joy

Every year for Thanksgiving I do a post of things I am thankful for that have happened over the last
year. It is a fun way to look back at memories I have made. The list is always outdoor related. This year I did more hiking than I have done in a decade. Also, this was by far the best year I have had fishing in saltwater in years.
So without further ado...

1. I am thankful that blues and stripers stayed around in the Providence area all summer. It made work days that much better knowing I could catch stripers and blues almost every night.

2. I am thankful I got to go on a vacation this year. Laurie and I had so much fun. South Dakota (specifically the Badlands and Custer State Park) have so many large mammals. That area is special.

3. I am very thankful the buffalo that was walking towards us on the trail in Wind Cave NP did not charge. This is also true for the other half dozen big males that we had no choice but be too close to. This was probably the only time in 2016 I was in any actual danger.

4. I am thankful for the number of times I got to New Hampshire this year. I hiked nine 4000 footers along with many smaller hikes. I could go on and on about New Hampshire but the best way I can describe it is: I always know I love New Hampshire but until I am there I forget how much I miss it.

5. I am thankful to have Laurie and Dave as best friends.

6. I am thankful for days off from work in May. This year I fished after work, but birded on days off. Usually I'd be fishing in the evening anyway.

7. I am thankful Eric keeps inviting me on his boat even though I can almost never go. The reason for this is, I know my days off weeks in advance, I always have some crazy adventure planned. Eric can't plan boat trips until a day or two before the trip because they are weather (wind and wave) dependent. I still appreciate the invites

8. I am thankful for the one week of albies in September. I caught nine on my best day. Love them.

This pronghorn was running straight at me on a
South Dakota trail oblivious to my presence. When I realized it
was going to keep running I made a noise. It stopped instantly.
It stared at me for over a minute then bounded left off the trail.
That's a memory!!!

9.  I am thankful for small theaters with cheap ticket prices.

10.  I am thankful for Plum Island and Charlestown Mudflats, two of my favorite places to go birding.

11. I am thankful for the number of birds I've seen this year. I destroyed my old record and saw a bunch of lifers.

12. I am thankful for how good fall fishing was at the ocean this year. My best day was 78 fish! I only stopped because my thumbs were bleeding from catching so many, it was painful. But I had multiple twenty fish days. This was by far the best fall I have ever had.

13. On the same lines I am thankful for the Gorilla Bluefish that made Narragansett home for a month. I met many of them. I caught at least ten blues this year that were larger than my previous personal best. Fishing was that good.

14. I am thankful my kid has such a sense of adventure. Although my brain wishes he was finishing up college instead of tramping the American West, my heart says I wish I was him.

15. I am thankful for snowshoes.

16. Mounts Garfiled, Avalon, Isolation, Sugarloaf, Welch Dickey, South Kinsman views. Also Lonesome Lake and the big ledge on North Kinsman are special places

17. All the deer at Sachuest. If you want to take your kid to see guaranteed deer take them to Sachuest National Wildlife Refuge an hour before dark. A bad day is ten and they are not afraid of you.

18. I am thankful for non chain restaurants. This year on our few times we went out to eat Laurie and I went to greasy spoons like Iggys and KC's Burger Joint. Other places include The Lodge in Lincoln and Spumonis in South Attleboro. See future reviews.

19. I am thankful for the big beaches at Napatree and Race Point. One of my yearly highlights was
seeing whales off shore from the Race. Its one thing to see them paying sixty dollars to be with two hundred people on a boat, but it is much more wild to see them from a wind swept shore in March by yourself with the whales 150 yards out. Pure Magic

20. I say it every year but I am proud to live in the greatest country in the world. I'm glad the election is over. The politicians on both sides suck but I still believe the average American is a good person. I think our diverse landscape is the most amazing on Earth. Despite our terrible options for president  I am still proud to call this great country home

Arctic Playhouse

This weekend I went to the Arctic Playhouse and saw the play "Matt and Ben". The play was about how Matt Damon and Ben Affleck came up with the screenplay for Good Will Hunting. It was extremely funny. The play was co-written by Mindy Kaling from "The Office 'and "The Mindy Project". Cost was fifteen dollars and the play two person play lasted just over an hour. Matt and Ben were actually played by women, it was interesting.

Unfortunately, the play was only for this weekend. I admit, it does you no good for me to write a review of a play/concert/ or one time sporting event after it is over. That said, I was really impressed by the little playhouse. The Arctic is in Warwick about 3.5 miles from I-295. I couldn't give you directions because Laurie googled it, and I just turned when she told me to turn.

The Arctic is a small theater. There was probably only 40 seats total. It is a small room with a stage. I absolutely love small settings like that. We were only fifteen feet from the stage and the worst seat in the house is probably only twenty five feet.

The set was "Ben Afflecks" apartment

Just past where you buy the tickets were cups of free popcorn and cookies. Laurie also asked if we could buy drinks and we got a couple tiny waters also free. There is a donation box next to the food where we put a couple dollars in. The cookies and popcorn made the cozy atmosphere even better.
There are other upcoming performances related to the holiday season. This is the website to their events page. Laurie and I are planning on going to Cup of Cheer in December.  http://www.thearcticplayhouse.com/shows-events/

I really enjoy seeing plays. However I'm not a fan of paying huge ticket prices for PPAC and Broadway type shows. I loved that the tickets were so affordable. The actors were acting for the joy of it. If you want to take in a play in an intimate setting, I highly recommend you check out the Arctic. A bonus would be, if you are hungry Boneheads Wing Bar is right next door with at least 40 flavors of wings.

A Day in Hyannis

JFK Museum

I signed up for a winter birding boat trip out of Hyannis that was scheduled to go out today Nov 19. On the ship's itinerary was to leave at 7 am. I really didn't want to get up at 5 am, drive 90 minutes, take Dramamine, enjoy an eight hour boat trip, then drive home.

So I rented a hotel only a mile away from the port.  I went on Kayak.com. Happily, the motels down the Cape are pretty cheap this time of year. We stayed at the Yarmouth Resort. Although the rooms were a bit old (still had a box television) it was fine with me. There was an indoor pool and a hot tub, which sealed the deal on why I chose this motel.

Laurie would not have enjoyed the pelagic birding. However since I was going down anyway, I asked her if she'd like to go down the Cape on Friday. When we checked out, she could go home and I'd be on the boat. I didn't need to ask twice. She was more than happy to take a day out of work.

Bobby, Ted, Jack

I am not one to spend the day just sitting by the pool, so I looked up area attractions and off we went. Since I was going on the boat Saturday and Laurie home, we took two cars. We met at the Herring Run at the Cape Cod Canal. I got to the Big Ditch a half hour before her. I was hoping to run into a late season blitz. I tried fishing at the Maritime Academy and the Herring Run. I didn't have any luck. On the bright side, their were Common Eiders on the shoreline, the closest I have ever been to them.

Laurie walked down to the the water and got me then we drove to Hyannis. Our first fun destination was the JFK Museum. JFK is by far my favorite presidential hero. I couldn't wait to go into the museum. I knew their wasn't any memorabilia, just photographs and videos.

The downstairs to the museum is another museum, the Cape Cod Baseball League Hall of Fame. Since I go to a few games during the year of America's premier college summer league, I knew it would be interesting. Like the real Hall in Cooperstown, there are plaques. There was quite a bit of memorabilia such as signed bats and balls. Photos of various teams throughout the years. It is a bit of information overload. I only read the plaques of players I had heard of. A ten dollar admission will get you into both museums.

If you listen to sports radio you are
familiar with Angry Lou

After we got out of the museums, we went to Veterans Memorial Park. There is a monument dedicated to JFK and another for the Korean War Veterans. We stayed there for a few minutes.

We drove back to the municipal parking lot behind the JFK Museum where we left Laurie's car and parked mine. We got lunch at "the Little Sandwich Shop". We got a small burger and split a BBQ chicken quesadilla.  It was good. Then we walked up the street where Laurie got a coffee at a cupcake shop and we had a cupcake for desert. If there was one down side to Hyannis, apparently heroin is an epidemic. This was in the public bathroom behind the JFK Museum.

I am fairly certain diabetics are not shooting
insulin in the public bathroom

At this point it was 2 pm and we were running out of things to do. We drove over to the motel and asked it we could check in early. That wasn't a problem. After we brought in our bag of clothes we went for a swim. The pool was nice as was the hot tub. We killed as much time as we could until supper time.

At supper time we went to a restaurant Laurie had picked out called Longfellow Pub. The place is very small. Half of it is a bar while the other half of maybe eight tables is a dining area. I liked the small atmosphere. Supposedly they have the best prime rib on the Cape. The King cut with salad and rice was $17. which I think is reasonable for prime rib. That is what I ordered. It was very good. The best prime rib I have ever had was at the Lodge in Lincoln, RI, so if that was a 10, then this one was a close 9. I was full and it was flavorful. Laurie got steak tips that were cooked in a Teriyaki sauce.

There wasn't anyone in the pool either time
we went for a swim. A bonus of going during the
off season.

We went for another swim and went to bed. However we stayed up later than I originally planned. Why you ask? Because my pelagic boat trip got cancelled due to the high winds and big waves.Even the rain date of Sunday was cancelled. I'm glad I had a fun Friday because if I booked the motel and only just went down for the night, that would have sucked.

Korean War Memorial

Godspeed, Dominick

DJ on the North Rim. Age 14, Year 2010

Tonight my son sets out on at least a six month grand adventure. Both he and his girlfriend Soni got jobs at the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. He will be a server and she will work in retail. The truth is, the job is irrelevant. He wants to explore and have  big adventures. Living at the Grand Canyon for six months is a great opportunity for him.

All parents want their kids to be successful and make a lot of money. We all want our kids to go to college or learn a trade. It was hard for me to come to terms with, but that is not what he wants out of life. He  is only 21, so maybe that will change someday. Right now, he wants to go from national park to national park. I give him all the credit in the world to have the balls to just go.

I took him on a huge vacation out west when he was 14. We visited many of the west's most majestic scenery. When I got home it was a difficult transition. The trip made me appreciate the little things more. It made me think how far a bird migrates, how tough it is for a small striper to survive. The trip made me really grateful the White Mountains in New Hampshire are only three hours away.
Although the Whites can not match the vertical of the Tetons or the wildness of the Beartooth Wilderness, for me they are wild enough. When I need to get away, I can in New Hampshire.

For DJ, the trip had the opposite effect. Suddenly everything around here was too small. He still likes New Hampshire, but it isn't big enough for him. Suddenly, seeing a red tailed hawk wasn't enough after seeing elk and bighorn sheep and grizzlies.

I do not blame him for this. He was a kid and we saw so many amazing things from the Rocky Mountains to Joshua Trees in the Mojave Desert. So for the last few years he has felt a bit out of place. This isn't where he wants to be. He wants wide open spaces. He wants to be too close to large mammals. He wants to stand at the edge of a cliff and see a hundred miles without civilization.

So, he applied to many of the national parks and landed himself a job as a waiter. He got his car fixed up and did a lot of packing. His girlfriend only found out a few days ago she got the job. They took off this evening after the after work traffic subsided. It was a difficult goodbye. Although we don't always get along, it doesn't mean we don't love each other.

I am alone the next six months at least. He will be making his way across the country for the next few days. Then he will get a dorm on the South Rim of the Grandest Canyon on earth. He will have a couple days off a week to explore the canyon and parts of Arizona. It is an opportunity that most of us, myself included, would be to scared to take. I admire his willingness to leave everything he knows in a quest to find adventure.

Godspeed DJ, I love you,

Dad

Church Bazzars

It has been a goal of mine all year to go to a Holiday Fair at a church. I really don't have a reason why this was on my 2016 Bucket List, I am definitely not religious but I did want to go to one. A couple months back, I was at work and a flier shows up asking for a donation to the Church Fair at a Catholic Church in Seekonk. I wrote down the date (which was today)

I got to stop at the fair at Our Lady Queen of Martyrs Church for a few minutes. My main focus was baked goods and maybe buy a homemade ornament. The fair was low on ornaments but high on baked goods. I bought some cookies and brownie bites.

There were many baskets being raffled off. They were all different themed from sports to Italian

Food. Some had lottery tickets, others had gift certificates. I bought three raffle tickets and tried my luck. I could only stay for a few minutes but enjoyed my quick time there.

Later in the day

Driving from store to store on Monday in front of a  church on Nate Whipple Highway there was a sign for another holiday fair also for today. So I made a point to go there quickly.

This fair had a small room full of used books. I actually found two travel books to buy. I also bought a couple more cookies.

All in all, I got what I wanted. I bought some homemade baked goods and got to cross something off of my 2016 bucket list.                                                                              

Crazy Good Day Fishing

 I have started my winter projects after work since it gets dark so early. However, any day that I got out of work early enough to make a trip to the ocean worth it, I've gone. I went fishing Wednesday after work. Fishing has been so good that catching ten schoolies and a few hickory shad is just an okay day. It seems like every time I go down I run into fantastic fishing somewhere. I may not catch fish at my first or second spot, but finding large concentrations of feeding fish  has been easy. Yes, I have been spoiled by the easy fishing.

Well yesterday, I was like the rich kid in a toy store. I walked into the largest blitz I have ever witnessed. For five hours straight I watched stripers of all sizes bust up huge schools of peanut bunker. The bunker was in schools the size of football fields.  Some of the stripers were as small as stocked trout, but there were some keepers in the mix. Among the thousands of stripers there were a few blues mixed in. I saw a guy reel in a half a schoolie that a big blue cut in half. Also my buddy Dave got a large blue, which was the only one I saw caught.

  I caught so many fish that the "bass thumb" we all hope for actually started bleeding from lipping so many fish. Dave was smart, he has caught so many fish this week and his hands so raw from it, he wore gloves.

The stripers were feasting on peanut bunker that ranged from an inch and a half to four inches. My goto lure was a three inch Cocahoe on a 1/2 ounce jighead. Others were using four inch Cocahoes and Storm Wildeyes. I saw others using metal and fly fishing, but they did not catch many fish. The white Cocahoe and the perfectly shaped Wildeyes were a deadly combination.

Since the weather is going to be stable the next few days, I suspect the terrific November fishing will continue. This has been by far the best November I have ever had. Usually I'm happy to catch a few fish on a trip to the ocean. Not this year, twenty fish days have come easy and days with four times that amount have become the norm. I hope it continues!

Winter Projects

   Every fall I put a list together of projects I want to do over the winter. Many of the projects are
replacing gear that I have lost throughout the year. Usually these projects are to make new leaders, flies, and poppers.

   First I do an inventory of everything I regularly have to replace. I start with my carp gear and see how many leaders I have left followed by baiting needles. Then I move to the more complicated striper and surf equipment.  I make my own leaders, poppers, bucktail jigs, casting eggs and albie deceivers. I also go through the lures I use regularly and put a list together of what I need to replace at the store. Things on the list include Zoom Flukes, Cocahoes, and jigheads,

   Next I go through my trout gear. I see what flies need replacing along with any lures that I may have lost. Lastly, I check on important odds and ends such as pliers, bug spray, camping fuel, and sunscreen. I put a list together of exactly what I need to buy during the upcoming winter.

   I enjoy the projects. I get great satisfaction out of catching fish on a popper or bucktail jig I made. I get no more satisfaction than catching an albie on a fly I made attached to a wooden egg that I wired and painted with a leader I made.

   Sometimes I get a little ahead of myself and start the projects in the fall. So I set November 1 as the earliest day I can start making the stuff. Since these are winter projects designed to keep me busy throughout the winter, it does me no good to have them finished by October.

   Here is a list of things I plan on doing over the winter. Of course, you  have your own style of fishing. I'm just putting it out there to maybe give some ideas of things to keep busy.

1. Put a list of all the equipment I need to replace. Inventory bucktail jigs, homemade poppers, leaders, albie deceivers, first aid and camping gear. (This is done)

2. Make 10 bucktail jigs in sizes 3/8 and 1/2 ounce.

3. I barely watch tv. Sometimes I'll go weeks without turning on a baseball game in the summer. During the winter I sign up for Netflix DVD and put a queue together of movies I want to watch. I will watch a couple DVDs a week. I cancel Netflix every March.

4. Make albie deceivers.

5. Make leaders for surf rod, carp hair rigs, and fly/casting bubble.

6. Make a couple poppers. I wouldn't have had to do this, but the huge blues last week took off with a couple of my poppers.

7. I broke a rod this year. I take the guides off my broken rods and saved them.

8. Make a half dozen wooden eggs.

9. Put together a photo album from 2016. I get my pictures printed from Shutterfly. I used to get them from Snapfish. The quality is just as good and Snapfish is cheaper, but the website is impossible to use since it was "upgraded."

10. I save all my issues of On the Water Magazine. At the end of the year I write in a notebook my favorite articles in each issue. This way if I want to reread an article about Cape Cod Trout, I just look in the notebook and find it in my Table of Contents instead of opening up fifty back issues. I only write down the articles I'm interested in. I'll never care about swordfishing the Canyons, but want to read everything I can about Narragansett. This whole project sounds long, but only takes an hour.

11.   Plan daytrips I want to do the following year. Yes I get that ahead. I don't need to know what I'm doing every week, but I do put together a "bucket list" for the year.

12. Study a bird ID book. I'll force myself to pick a group of birds (like shorebirds) and try to remember key marks. Who knows how much of this I retain, but I try.

   I'll probably think of a few more ideas. I enjoy doing these things. When I get bored making my eighteenth bucktail jig in a row, I'll stop and finish another day.  There is no pressure to do these things. I think the reward is worth it though.

If you want to make your own bucktail jigs I did a post about it. You can follow the link below. It is as cheap to buy premade jigheads as it is to mold lead (and buy the mold) so I buy them prepainted.

http://southernnewenglandoutdoors.blogspot.com/2012/11/httpwww.html

Huge Blues

Before today, I have only caught five blues that were real gators that I was sure were over 10-11 pounds in my life. Two of them were this year. One in August and another last week that was probably the biggest of my life (until today).

Today I walked into some hot bluefish action. In the first place I went, I caught ten blues and I'd say the average size was fifteen pounds! I got a couple "small" ones that were about ten pounds, but the rest were true giants. I'm sure two of the biggest were closer to twenty pounds than to fifteen! The blues were on adult menhaden. I was using lures and the old stand by popper was quite effective. After I lost my two poppers, I switched to the Rebel Jumping minnow. The hits kept coming.

While I was catching these fish, so were a  lot of other guys. For a couple hours, at any one point at least one of the guys behind me would have a fish on. There were actively feeding fish slamming the menhaden, but I got most of my fish when they were not showing. ALWAYS MAKE SOME CASTS!

At high tide (11am) the fish stopped hitting. I went to another spot. I had to work for it, but hooked into another gator on a Jointed Redfin.  Later on I hit the avenues in 'gansett. Again, I had to work for them but I found fish. I hooked three more huge blues. At this point I was looking for bass and hooked the fish on a wooden egg/ jig combo.

Later in the day, I went back to my original spot. No one was fishing this stretch of shoreline when I got there. I walked out to a point where I could see nervous water. Within five casts I hooked into another huge blue. While I was fighting it my friend Dave showed up. He landed a very nice keeper bass. I had the lucky spot, I ended up getting seven more.

Once I started catching fish all the guys that were standing around started casting. They started landing fish. Who knows how many they would have caught if they would have been fishing the whole time?

After the fishing slowed Dave and I went to another spot. We landed about ten schoolies a piece on Cocahoes. Finally well after dark we went to a backwater spot. I caught five or six stripers and five hickory shad. Dave put on a clinic on how to catch fish on every cast. He easily caught twenty five (or more) combined shad and stripers. It was a great way to end an absolutely fabulous day fishing