Hey guys this video nails it COLD! AWESOME!!!!
Now that's what I'm talkin about! I hear you rockhopper and monty that is an awesome video and you can't get more hardcore than that. Thanks for sharing.
That video is great. Pure adrenaline.
Mee too Monty. It really gets you pumped watching that. I think it's safe to say those guys are hardcore to the max.
The Brotherhood of Surf fishing......
Something I wrote today.......
Thought....
You can join the Elks, the Knights, the Masons, for $$... or a check.
You can buy into many organizations with a check.
You can join the an interner fishing forum for free....
Surf Fishing Brotherhood?
You can't buy into it with $$....
You can't fake a diploma...
You can't join by reading....
The only school..is the school of hard knocks......
And the only payment is...
Paying your dues with perseverance...
Putting time on the water....
Sweat, blood, and the stench of stale sweat and wet funky waders..
Sleeping in your vehicle to maybe stretch the bite to two different tides....
And Keeping Your Mouth Shut...
1. On nights when someone shows you a special spot of theirs,,,,you do not come back the next night with "just 2" of your buddies....or a Go Pro camera and post it all over the Internet, if it is a small spot that can't handle the traffic.....
2. On nights when only you and maybe a few other dedicated surf nuts are fishing, and you happen to find 20 or 30 bass each, all teens or bigger.,,,,,you have self control to keep it to yourself....and you go back and exploit that pattern, until it is over....then you might talk about it.....
Are you willing to get skunked night after night in the same place, until you learn the tide and feeding patterns for that area?
Once you learn your area, are you willing to travel to areas that you have not fished before, taking your knowledge, and bringing it to the next level?
Are you are willing to exist on crappy Quik Chek and Wa Wa food and coffee while you are out there on nights no normal folks want to fish?
Are you willing to get your morning shave and hobo showering done in a gas station, Quik chek, or Wawa bathroom, so you can get to work on time after having fished all night?
Above all, when a guy who seems to have more experience than you, offers you a tidbit or 2 of advice,.... will you sop it up like it was your last meal.. WITH APPRECIATION....even if the words seem a little harsh...and then try to build on that knowledge, so that when you are lucky enough to get some knowledge again, maybe you can provide some fishing intel to return the favor?
Once you understand the meanings of some of the questions above..by having been in those situations...
You could qualify for that brotherhood......but you cannot buy into it, you have to earn your way into it........and as mentioned, the raw ingredients are time on the water, and learning one trip at a time.....
That was a typical trip for me earlier this year ...
Dark I fished the same area 4 out of the 5 days this past vacation (today was the last day), caught a handful of short stripers, but really learned a lot about the area. About a mile plus was the walk. Structure along the way was repeated. I "only" was able to fish 2 1/2 hours in the dark each outing, can't wait to stretch it out to 5 1/2 hours of "in the dark" fishing the area. Can take my time and fish each piece of structure harder.
Time on the water is irreplaceable.
White Water Monty 2.00 (WWM)
Future Long Islander (ASAP)
I posted this earlier somewhere else....thought I would post it here.......
"How I have forgotten how beautiful it is out front at night with you, the surf and nobody around. It is such an inner peace."
XXXfreshwater, your words here really got to me.
This is one of the things that drives me out there.
Obviously, I'm looking for a trophy bass every time, but we all know that ain't gonna happen as much as we would like....
The point here, is that on these forums, for most guys it's all about the numbers and weight - small bluefish, schoolie bass, these "insignificant" catches....get discounted at times....because they're not a slob, or a cow, or caught with your Lami'VS surf combo and weren't impressive enough to dump half your spool with the first run....
I think....at times...we ALL lose sight of "What brings us out there...." as you so eloquently put it......
That inner peace.....
I, for one....couldn't live without it....
Fishing feeds my soul.....there is nothing else that can compare, in my world, to a quiet night out there....when no one is out because there are no internet reports.....and the solitude.....and a few fish if you're lucky.....is priceless........
Fast forward 2 years......
Monty is a new man....braving different environments and situations.......on his Nomadic Quest to tell us all to Eff ourselves and leave him alone....
Looking back....on where you were then....and where you are now......any comments there, banana-head?
Hell yeah, I'm a banana head for not heading to LI sooner.
So far I find lots of solitude and a lot nicer water to fish. Lots of fun. Just wait until I get some real white water out there.....I will be over come with (WWJ) White Water Jubilation.
And with all the driving I am doing I think my driving skills are at an all time peak (only side swiped one tree while driving down a trail). And 1 ticket for illegal right turn.......Otherwise all the driving has been fine, except for lots of NY drivers driving to slow in the left lane. Also the tolls are ridiculous. And parking near the water is impossible without a permit. And some permits are crazy expensive. Otherwise its GREAT. Would be nicer if people kept their headlights off while riding the beach. People I have bumped into out on LI have been very nice (sometimes too nice). But mostly very, very good people.
I'm really liking LI
White Water Monty 2.00 (WWM)
Future Long Islander (ASAP)
I posted this earlier....lots of stuff going on in my life and it has been a very long time since I've been out there...too long......
Getting out there the other night....I had these thoughts...and thought I would share them here.....
simply going out there...breathing the salt air in.....fishing the night tides....scouting for bait....the anticipation of the fish....rather than actual numbers to brag about....was the chief draw pulling one out there? I fished in perfect conditions the other night...was the only fool giving it a shot...where I was.....scouting and casting, walking.....the quiet solitude of the trip....was invigorating......Though I didn't catch any fish.....it was the connection with nature and the outdoors....casting a line, getting back into the swing of things...walking the flats....finding a few winter spearing....getting excited when I found some more....finding some clear water to fish in....trying to formulate a plan of when to fish next....based on what I saw that night....feeling the tidal flow as the cold clean water ran through my weathered hands once more....
At one time....(back in the dinosaur days)......the trip itself used to be the draw.......not the internet chatter that "you should get out there now because it's ON!!!!"
Sometimes it's not just the catching that we need.....but the trip itself.....
"Many men go fishing all their lives without knowing that it is not fish they are after." -Henry David Thoreau.
Was just going over the threads and read this one. LOL I would say any fish are definitely a bonus especially lately because they are here one day and gone the next.