Nice Job!
5 is not bad at all these days and they at least look some nice ones!
Love seeing that guy holding a fish and smiling!! 😎😎😎
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I fished the Miss Montauk yesterday. Pretty slow day. Difficult drifting conditions. Some anglers were skunked. A few had limits. It became a long hot day bouncing heavy sinkers in very deep water.
What instantly lifted my spirits was after mate Anthony suggested I check my fish for the pool and it turned out that my 24.5" fluke was dead even with the reining number 1. A pool fish made the drive home much more bearable.
Sometimes it's better to be lucky than good.
First MateOriginal Crew693 postsSince 2019
Fished deep today with Stephen and Capt. Mike. Ever hear the phrase "too nice?" Well, that was yesterday. Had them coming early, with Mike putting one in the box, among the big-ass shorts we are forced to throw back. Then we lost the drift, despite being right on the Moon. Funny how that works. Screaming current in the Bay, nothing offshore.
Anyway, putted around over various "drift" lines, though the drift was ridiculously slow. Once we got to lunchtime the breeze finally came up, shifted SSW and we began to catch again. Found a patch of fish and quickly put 4 more nice ones in the box, to Mike's 5lb8oz trip best. Stephen hooked some kind of shark around 50lbs and successfully got it boat side, before its tail chafed through his line.
So we ended with 5 units in the box and sufficient fillet for three very decent meals. Can't say enough about this crew - they never left the rail, expertly washed the boat at the dock and never gave the captain any s*** about the slow fishing. Can't ask for more than that! Pix attached.
Although catching keeper Fluke can often be challenging, especially this season, it never happens unless the Capt. has the skill to put you over the fish. Kudos, Pete, for my second trip in a row with a limit aboard the Leprechaun. :D
CaptainOriginal Crew1,853 postsSince 2018
Sailed with Capt. Mike and Stephen yesterday, right to my office. Sporty on the way out, but once there it was surprisingly nice. Had fish coming early, including a pair of 5.5lb units for the box. A real good start. Then the endless shorties parade started, with at least 4 measuring a true 19" - what a shame putting those back.
Once we got to the change we again had better fish - finishing up with five in the box for the three of us. Stephen was red-hot, using Fishbites GULP clones in Pink Shine, with a piece of belly sweetener.
Not gonna say I'm disappointed with the catch given this season's miserable fluking, but a few more for the box would have been nice. Still, fish this size give up very nice fillets, so we all went home with enough for a good meal.
"Luck" is when preparation meets opportunity.
I prefer fishing evolution to fishing extinction.
If ya want to clean up the water, ya gotta get the pigs out of the creek.
I prefer fishing evolution to fishing extinction.
If ya want to clean up the water, ya gotta get the pigs out of the creek.
CaptainOriginal Crew2,216 postsSince 2018
Fluke fillet sautéed in EVOO and butter with tyme, over wilted spinach and cherry tomatoes, lemon zest & juice, salt & pepper,, side is steamed and garlic-sautéed broccolini. With Egyptian-style cured olives from a gal friend who makes them just for us.
"Luck" is when preparation meets opportunity.
I prefer fishing evolution to fishing extinction.
If ya want to clean up the water, ya gotta get the pigs out of the creek.
I prefer fishing evolution to fishing extinction.
If ya want to clean up the water, ya gotta get the pigs out of the creek.
CaptainOriginal Crew2,216 postsSince 2018
Fluke and mussels poached in a homemade clam broth and white wine sauce. With a can of minced clams, garlic, onions, basil, Pepe rosso, and one plum tomato over Bucatini.
"Luck" is when preparation meets opportunity.
I prefer fishing evolution to fishing extinction.
If ya want to clean up the water, ya gotta get the pigs out of the creek.
I prefer fishing evolution to fishing extinction.
If ya want to clean up the water, ya gotta get the pigs out of the creek.
CaptainOriginal Crew2,216 postsSince 2018
Weekend Recap
Sat. - was joined by my son Brian and his g/f on the best charter boat in NJ. The 3 of caught nearly half of the 30+ keepers, happy to keep the captain's Fluke charter limit streak intact. Dana caught her PB and cooked us all a great dinner, impressive after 7 hours at the rail. 2 notes of interest
- you can never bring enuff Gulp!
- I didn't catch any keepers after 9am, boat traffic was bonkers at the reef
Labor Day - went back to the same location on my buddy's Parker and conditions were brutal, so we went inshore, 3 guys, 3 K fluke 20 to 25", 3 K Seabass, 4 hour trip.
Conclusion - they're still around, as long as the Caribbean tropical storms stay away , Sept should be awesome. Some of the known offshore muster spots are still barren and they're still in the rivers in numbers. Hopefully we can get a few more weeks of Fluking in 🤞
Once in a while you can get shown the light
In the strangest of places if you look at it right
In the strangest of places if you look at it right
First MateOriginal Crew286 postsSince 2018
Labor Day Offshore Fluke
Whelp, I can't speak to the inshore conditions, but Capt. Mike, Stephen and I got our behinds handed to us offshore yesterday morning. Not bad running out, but once we got off around 4 miles and lost the N breeze lee, man it was nasty. A totally blown forecast, (10mph or less), with a super-close 3'+ and a 15-20mph steady wind. Very uncomfortable, to say the least.
Even so, we did start catching, once we put out the sock and I adjusted the drift line. Mike put the first fish in the box and I followed with one of my own. Stephen lost a pair of what had to be VERY nice fish right in a row - pulling against a very fast drift while going up and down will often have decent fish shake loose, if not hooked securely in the throat. Not much you can do about that. Just reel slow and say a silent prayer.
Anyway, the breeze backed off around 11:00, with us segueing down from 8's to much more manageable 4/5 oz sinkers and jigs, and strangely enough, the fishing dropped off as well. They got very picky, with many light hits and some significant "drive by" wallops that resulted in nothing. They appeared to want no part of the Incoming. Still, we ended the day with 6 in the box to 4.5 pounds, not horrible, given the crummy season and the day's tough conditions.
"Luck" is when preparation meets opportunity.
I prefer fishing evolution to fishing extinction.
If ya want to clean up the water, ya gotta get the pigs out of the creek.
I prefer fishing evolution to fishing extinction.
If ya want to clean up the water, ya gotta get the pigs out of the creek.
CaptainOriginal Crew2,216 postsSince 2018
Labor Day Offshore Fluke
Whelp, I can't speak to the inshore conditions, but Capt. Mike, Stephen and I got our behinds handed to us offshore yesterday morning. Not bad running out, but once we got off around 4 miles and lost the N breeze lee, man it was nasty. A totally blown forecast, (10mph or less), with a super-close 3'+ and a 15-20mph steady wind. Very uncomfortable, to say the least.
Even so, we did start catching, once we put out the sock and I adjusted the drift line. Mike put the first fish in the box and I followed with one of my own. Stephen lost a pair of what had to be VERY nice fish right in a row - pulling against a very fast drift while going up and down will often have decent fish shake loose, if not hooked securely in the throat. Not much you can do about that. Just reel slow and say a silent prayer.
Anyway, the breeze backed off around 11:00, with us segueing down from 8's to much more manageable 4/5 oz sinkers and jigs, and strangely enough, the fishing dropped off as well. They got very picky, with many light hits and some significant "drive by" wallops that resulted in nothing. They appeared to want no part of the Incoming. Still, we ended the day with 6 in the box to 4.5 pounds, not horrible, given the crummy season and the day's tough conditions.
Thanks, again, Pete for a good trip under challenging conditions.
CaptainOriginal Crew1,853 postsSince 2018
Thanks, again, Pete for a good trip under challenging conditions.
Thanks, again, Pete for a good trip under challenging conditions.
Took advantage of yesterday’s brief weather window to try one last shot at Montauk Fluke for this season with a 3-man crew of Chef Nader, Neil, and Tom. Conditions on the ride out were flat and thankfully most of the day was quite fishable with the threat of small craft warnings hovering on all the forecasts.
Started on my favorite south side drop and found a bunch of small Sea Bass with just a single keeper among the group. We did manage 2 keeper Fluke at 19.5 and 20” before the dogfish moved in and ended our efforts there.
Slid further south to another reliable drop and at least we escaped the really annoying sharks and started to pull some Fluke. A lot of shorts to start but every once in a while, a nice keeper found the box. First Neil puts a 21” fish in the box. Then Tom comes up with a double header of keeper Sea Bass. As the wind started to build the bite remained steady with only a single dogfish annoying us and many more short Sea Bass and Fluke. Finally, the Chef recovers from a long drought and quickly puts his 3 fish limit in the box with Fluke of 5.2, 4.5, and 3# respectively. We did manage to cull a few more Sea Bass for the box but that was it as the majority of the late bite was mainly short biscuits and a few more short Fluke to end the day. So final tally wound up being 6 keeper Fluke, 5 keeper Sea Bass, and a handful of nice sized Scup to cap off what has been an extremely challenging Fluke season for almost everyone.
Ride home was a bit sporty in the 25kt SW breeze but the Albin handled it in style as she always does. Many thanks to a solid crew who hung in there on a pretty slow fishing day for the east end.
CaptainOriginal Crew1,853 postsSince 2018
Nice job Capt!
Thanks, Matt, The Chef finally regained his momentum!!
CaptainOriginal Crew1,853 postsSince 2018
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