Following the Night Tides......Do You have What it Takes?

[fishgutz]

No need to apologize for late reports, totally understood. Thank you for sharing them anyway. Wish the bigmouths fishing the CCC would do the same. I won't be catching stripers until late April when the herring are around. So this is a good temporary fix for me.

[DarkSkies]

Thanks for the kind words people. They are appreciated. I'll pick up where I left off.

4-12-16 Tue PM trip
Repeated tactics from previous nights. Still caught fish, but action not as robust. Worked twice as hard for a lot less fish. No missed hits. Fish caught on big swimmers.
Managed to land 5 to 11#, all released.

Factors that may have affected the night's action:
1. A lot less bunker around.
2. Water temps dropped just a bit.

[storminsteve]

Nicely done thanks for sharing.

[DarkSkies]

Thanks for the kind words, people. **Remember all these reports were from last year......I'm posting them just to give the new guys out there a sense of my thought process, and the time I put in, if I thought the fish were active.......


4/13 Wed PM
Tried the same tactics and presentations, found a very slow pick.
Managed to land 2 to 8#, released.



4/14 Thu PM.
Not happy with the dismal results from the previous trip, went out earlier, before sunset, to try to get some fish with poppers. I felt water was too cold, standard rules for throwing poppers is the water has to be mid-50s.
The other morning I saw a guy get one bass, after tossing a popper for about 45 minutes, so was eager to try.
2 hours, only managed 2 short fish.
Tried an area I haven't yet tried this year, away from the crowds. Just grateful it worked out, and I can go back there when the bait loads up.

[buckethead]

I admire your persistence, Dark.

[DarkSkies]

Thanks for the kind words folks. Still posting these, albeit delayed, in hopes of showing some of the new people out there....the persistence it takes...and the learning process...if anyone is still interested in learning and failing...and learning...to learn and understand patterns.....and catch fish...on your own....the old fashioned way.....(which used to be the only way)...it still works for me and a few other old-timers I know.....

[DarkSkies]

4/15 Fri PM
Great trip. Took Pebbles out there with low expectations, turned out to be a great trip. Clipped on a NB bottle darter for her to throw....she was casting her Finchaser rod..made for easy casting of that larger plug......
We casted for about an hour with no activity at all. She kept asking me.....Are you SURE the fish are here??....lots of guys casting....no one is catching!.....I grumpily told her to keep casting ...as the incoming tide and conditions were just coming together......

All of a sudden it turned on ....like someone turned on a light switch...at 2am in the morning...
She got her PB bass, 27#, caught and reeled in herself with some coaching from me.
(She also got another larger bass, around 20#.)

It was quality over quantity. Between the 2 of us we managed 8 bass to 27#.
My largest was high teens. Smallest fish was about 7#.

The nicest part of the evening is Pebbles out-fished everyone who was there in that spot. The "sharpies" were drooling all over themselves so as not to ask "what" exact swimmer she was throwing,. Afterwards, when one of them let us use his genuine boga to weigh the fish, we saw it was close to my original eyeball estimates....#27....a very nice and fat fish.

Since it was her PB, we kept that one to show her kids, and released the rest.
Great night, made even better by "the one girl"...... out-catching all the guys on that beach., including me!
Very proud of my sweetheart.



She's holding the pics of her largest..which she kept to show her sons........Released the others..in the teens and 20's...a good night for us......and memorable night together..... because she listened to me to stay persistent....and it paid off.

** Disclaimer....Once she got into the routine of catching.. I told her to keep on doing what had worked for her......She outfished in numbers and size, all the other guys on the beach that night....(including me)....
Just goes to show you don't have to be Pro-Staff, with 1000s in gear, to catch nice size fish......


**Fishing lesson 101.23 -- it's not the Gear that catches the fish, it's the fisherman/woman using it.

[cowherder]

.She outfished in numbers and size, all the other guys on the beach that night....(including me)....
Just goes to show you don't have to be Pro-Staff, with 1000s in gear, to catch nice size fish......


**Fishing lesson 101.23 -- it's not the Gear that catches the fish, it's the fisherman/woman using it.

Love it! Congrats to Pebbles, seems she kicked *** that night!

[storminsteve]

Beautiful catch story. Even better that she beat the prostaffers rofl. I hate those guys they think their s*h*i*t don't stink. Congrats to your girl and thanks for the share.

[finchaser]

Way to go Pebbles and once again you put it to the GOOGAN

[hookset]

WTG ds and pebbles, nice catch!

[williehookem]

Congrats and good going!

[Rip-Plugger]

wow,Pebs kicked some *** out there.
good work lady!
I ain't scared of you though,,mix it up with me in some current and you'll be washing dishes!,,,,,,,,

[dogfish]

Good job Pebbles & DS. Let me know when you want to make the drive up here. Be glad to fish a tide with you 2, far away from the Canal.