what is your definition of EPIC FISHING? is the term over-used?

[seamonkey]

In the montauk thead dark was talking about epic fishing as not being just a 3 hour blitz. I was not fishing a lot 15 or 20 years ago when some of you guys got into those crazy bites that lasted all day. So what do you classify as epic, just curious.

[7deadlyplugs]

A 3 hour blitz is not epic fishing. Thats a blip on the radar screen. If the fish are on sandeels and you are bailing them all night with jigs and tins, and they are mostly keepers, to me that would begin to qualify as epic. I have only had nights like that 4 times in my life, and I remember each one of them.

[surfstix1963]

Epic used to be all day sometimes or night it didn't happen all the time but when it did you usually left the fish biting because you couldn't bring another in if you wanted to your arms would be numb and fatigued not saying always bass either blues can wear you down real quick. the bad part about epic is alot of fish get killed by careless C&R just to get out and bang another.When people are ripping the jaws out of blues and kicking them back in the water or just plain leaving them to die it hits a nerve with me I really feel like doing the same to them so they know what it feels like actually I would like to stick that blues chompers on their face so as to remind them not to do it again.Epic is a term you will not see used much anymore other than fishing reports.

[Monty]

Wow, I never have experienced what is described above with Bass.
I had Blue Fish to myself that were between 30 and 40 inches for two hours. Would hook up at a maximum of 5 casts between fish. For me, that was epic Blue fishing....and lots of fun (they kicked my *ss).
Had sand eels pushed over a sand bar by 25 to 36 inch Bass and for 1 hour it was almost every cast a bass was on (I don't consider that Epic).
Was fishing the Beaverkill River with my father one morning. We each had 40-50 trout (C and R) on Dry Flies, that I considered Epic.
It almost sounds like Epic fishing does not involve a lot of skill. Takes experience and thought in being at the place when it happens, but when you are into it is it that there are so many big fish around you can't miss?
How much skill is involved in an Epic Fishing Experience?

Surfstix I agree with you 100%, some people deserve to have a Blue Fish give them a kiss right in their stupid, inconsiderate lips. :kiss: feel the love!

[surfstix1963]

Not much skill required other than keeping your line and fish from crossing the guy 5 ft. away from you lol if he wasn't a jerk things usually worked out if its blues and bass there is some skill to try and get beneath the blues and get the bass other than that not much skill needed I haven't had too many epic blitzes but I have been into some of them its pretty crazy I'm sure some of the others on here have had more encounters than me oh and I'll say it again bass are not shy of wire leaders its the last thing they are thinking of in a blitz.

[JustEd]

Epic....................................... 3 miles long, 300 to 500 yards wide, lasting for 2 to 3 days. Travelling with the tide up and down the beach.
That was the end of Cape Cod mid september through October 35 years ago. Comm guys would put up 1,000 pounds at market in 2 days or less.
Plug would hit the water and instantainiously you were on. You could be standing in front of 20 pounders while the guys 100 yards away were getting 30's
Epic has not been truly seen since the Moratorium.
Epic takes no skill.

[Doublerunner]

Epic, to me, are those times that create memories that are vivid in your mind no matter how old they are. And are of the variety that they don't happen very often

[DarkSkies]

Thanks for starting this, seamonkey. :HappyWave:
I knew there was a thread here on that topic, but couldn't quite remember where.

I just posted a few words about using the search feature in the main forum S&A helpful hints thread.
http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/showthread.php?6186-Stripers-and-Anglers-Helpful-hints!/page2


Some of us have been having b/c conversations in the last few weeks.....
It seems, as was said in this thread, that there is a disconnect...between what is considered "Epic" fishing today.....

And what most of us used to consider 10 or 20 years ago......

I'll list a few examples to give an idea of what we are talking about here...

1. "I had a GREAT night last night. I got 4 stripers, one was a keeper. It was EPIC!!"

2. "Fantastic fishing today guys, we were on my boat and ran into blitzing fish, had them for over an hour, it was EPIC!"

3. "Wow it was amazing. We were on the beach. Bass came in and were crashing the peanut bunker. I caught 6. EPIC fishing for sure!"

4. Just had the greatest day ever. Was like National Geographic out there. Birds all over. We set out from ** Marina and chased birds and fish all over the bay. Ended up with 20 bass to 20 lbs. It was the most amazing fishing day of my life, of EPIC proportions!"

5. Man I was out fishing ** in the back last night. Lock and load fishing. Me and my buds each got almost 10 stripers apiece, all 20-26". The most EPIC night we have seen so far! Got em on the incoming. Totally dead after that"







The above are all real life examples, culled from recent conversations with fishermen this fall. I tried to put up a cross-section of some of the conversations so they are fair and balanced. I hope folks will understand the reason behind me taking the time to illustrate some of these conversations, and what I'm trying to convey here, without being critical of others.

With the old-timers.....
Who remember not just minutes or blitzes that lasted an hour

Who remember not just a day of sustained action....but days and days, during a spring or fall run, where the fish were in your are for weeks at a time.......you could catch em in the morning.....go to work,come back at lunch and catch some more......and then come back after dinner....and catch them again.......

Who remember night after night....of catching fish in the 20lb class....after you discovered a pattern....and would follow that pattern until the bait and fish left....

[DarkSkies]

The recent conversations with some of the old timers I know, have given me a sense, that a lot of the newer anglers out there....haven't had the experiences that a lot of veteran anglers have had.....they therefore don't have that perspective.....

Hence the reason for adding "EPIC" to any trip where more than a few were caught....

I've mentioned this before....the tendency to accept something that isn't that great....because the memory of how things were...tends to fade over time...

Instead of being angry or concerned about things gradually going downhill....
Or asking ourselves "Why" fish might be concentrated in one area, but conspicuously absent from others....

We, collectively, tend to focus on those fish in the middle......and discount those other experiences....to the point where we selectively remember only the good bites....and that becomes our new baseline, for what "fantastic" and"epic" is.....







I hope my thoughts were clear here....and was wondering if anyone has any other thoughts to add....whether you agree or disagree.....thanks.....:HappyWave:

[DarkSkies]

Some additional thoughts I had for today.....

Do you run to Sandy Hook?
Do you run to Island Beach?
Do you run to LBI?
Do you run to Perth Amboy?
Monmouth beach? Seaside, Belmar, or any of the beaches in between?

(honestly, I think "running" to a beach is one of the least productive ways to fish, but that's just me) :)

Fish have been caught in any of those general areas in the last month...
The chief gripe, is that the bite that is very hot today, will often evaporate into thin air tomorrow.....:huh:
Or, in many cases, that bite evaporates after an hour, with some Charter Boats or tackle shops continuing to hype it, even though folks traveling there after it's posted, won't see any fish at all.

It becomes very frustrating for the new guy. Reading some of the reports out there.....the novice angler might think that the fish are "all over".

The truth is....if you have a whole day to fish...and can cover at least 20 miles of ocean and bay beaches...you will see that is not true....Fish are being caught from a handful of places....Any numbers or sizes of fish, are coming from the same handful of places. Even then, that handful of places is very inconsistent.

Many folks I know will not post reports, or only generally, because of the selfishness and rudeness out there....
And there are several nice fish that have been caught recently that will never end up being reported or part of an internet or facebook report. :)

But....... if anyone tells you....the fish are "all over" now......I can guarantee you:

1. they're not scouting 20 miles of beach at a time to find them.
2. but rather going from text messages sent to them by friends....in the few choice spots that are holding a few fish, and are accessible to the general public......
3. They are selectively remembering what it's like, as opposed to 10-15 years ago.

Food for thought, people......:learn:

[porgy75]

You're right on. I fished in the shrewsbury river last night jigging shads and bucktails with my uncle on his boat. We got two short stripers on shads and that was it. Lately striper fishing has been so bad for me I would be jumping up and down if I caught 5 stripers in one night. I can't imagine catching 20 or 30 like you guys used to do.
How long ago was that?

[seamonkey]

Read this on the net. It seems a lot of the older guys got to experience this. Epic then- for days. As opposed to epic now- for minutes or an hour or so.

"I fish IBSP and north 2->3 days a week Sept to Thanksgiving. Then I'll pick rats until it gets too cold. One evening we had a nice pick of 26->30 inch fish. I got 3 a buddy got 5 and another buddy 1. Two other guys next to us did the same. That was the entire season for me. My buddy fished maybe 10 other days. He picked one 18->20 inch fish a few times and a couple blues. Boats had a better shot and did OK.
I've been at it since I was 20. I'm also 67 now. In the 80s & 90s there were blitzes every 3->4 days. Most lasted between 1 to 4 hours. Some lasted almost all day. The beaches were litered with bait that beached itself. On Columbus day we would drive to Sandy Hook and almoat always catch Albacore. Lots of them.
The Epic NJ bass blitzes this fall lasted between 5 to 30 minutes. I would guess there were about 5 of them. I haven't seen a bluefish blitz for about 10 years.
What's left of those NJ stripers are entering Del area now. Hopefully they'll come close for you."

[jigfreak]

Okay I got one for epic, this was posted on the interweb-
Managed to land and release 5 nice bass in 2 hours with many other misses. to someone who has struck out this fall it felt epic to me! I think I skipped back to my car!

So for some guys who don't catch a lot and most of their trips end in skunks, maybe this is the new Epic?

[buckethead]

When you had 25 fish in the 20-pound class and up in the night that was considered a good nightn No one cared about catching a bunch of schoolies and no one talked or raved about that, beause if you put your time in you were catching much bigger fish.
If you ever got 5 fish and told the guys at the tackle shop it was epic they would laugh. You wouldn't have any credibility. Back then things were very different. We didn't even have words like Epic. as you said I think times have really changed.

[finchaser]

What BH said^^^:clapping::HappyWave:

Epic in this era is a member of the cell phone crew catching a fish on there own with out a blitz

[SharkHart]

Epic means long. people use it like something else, but im sure ive done it too.


BLITZ on tackle shop facebook group has mutated to basically a fish was caught, they blitzed!!

[fishinmission78]

yes I agree. Somebody has fishing action for 15 minutes and they call it a blitz. Totally clueless

[hookedonbass]

Its when you catch so many fish in an afternoon or night that your hands are tired and cramping up. That is epic!

[7deadlyplugs]

yes if I had a trip like that I would definitely call it that. That's a lot more accurate than catching fish and calling it Epic