What are you doing different in 2021

[BoatGuy]

Snow on the ground. I am thinking about spring and fishing in the Long Island Sound. Since fluke were scarce, I will try the usual spots. Then I’ll have to be prepared to think a bit different.

• For me, I used Google Earth to look for holes and structure. This was brought up by Crabman (Thanks!)
• I have a sharpie friend. He ties his fluke rigs a bit different than me. I may tie some new ones with his configuration.
• Move the boat more often. Gas is expensive and I get cheap.
• Try different teasers. There are so many. Wide bodies, gummy, rubber (Red Gill) and tiny teasers. I am finding that small teasers get more attention than the bigger teasers.
• Colors: I use the green (chartreuse), Pink and White. If I am out with others, we all take a different color. Any new hot colors to try?

These tend to be more geared to fluke. 2020 was not a great year.

So, what are you doing different in 2021?

 

[captmike28]

Exploring on a regular basis and learning mew grounds or different techniques are often the difference between the average fisherman and the ones who consistently put together impressive catches.

Regarding Fluke, while there is no denying that those Gulp 6" worms take an awful lot of big fish and I swear by them too. However, over the years I have also taken many large Fluke on a good teaser. Just so I don't get into too much of a rut, I am going to try to go back to using a few more teasers this coming season. About a week ago, on this board in a thread called "Cabin Fever Setting In" I saw one of the most realistic Spearing Teasers I have ever seen. So, I have ordered a few and will try them on a spinning rod with a round Fluke jig, also something I have not done much of in the past.

Back to finding new holes, spending some of the winter downtime studying your charts or Google earth images, or any really sharp Bathymetric images of the bottom in the area you fish routinely has got to yield at least a couple of good spots to try. I often do that when looking for new Sea Bass holes that don't get as much pressure as the well known locations. Another new twist I plan to add this year on the Sea Bass hunt is to move away a bit from diamond jigs and try those nice "flat fall" Lucanus jigs. People seem to rave about them being deadly for big Sea Bass and I can't wait to give it a try!

Good thread, Boat Guy. Maybe we can all learn a bit from one another by sharing some new approaches!

 

[Rodprof]

If you are a regular party boat fisherman than talk to the mate. They are usually tuned in to what is currently the hot color, bait or rig. If you have your own boat then don't be afraid of mixing it up and experimenting with different color teasers and baits if tried and true rigs are not producing. Keep records of the spots you have fished successfully and time of the tide they bit on. Also take time to explore for new areas to fish away from the fleet. After sixty plus years of fishing these things have consistently produced results. I can't emphasize enough the need to keep detailed records.

 

[BoatGuy]

Back to finding new holes, spending some of the winter downtime studying your charts or Google earth images, or any really sharp Bathymetric images of the bottom in the area you fish routinely has got to yield at least a couple of good spots to try.

I have a question to all about Google Earth. Does anyone know how old the images are?

Structure changes a lot over time. Winter storms will move things around. I am not sure how old the picture is.

 

[BoatGuy]

• I have a sharpie friend. He ties his fluke rigs a bit different than me. I may tie some new ones with his configuration.

Following up on this, I usually use a SPRO bucktail with a teaser about 14" up.

My friend used the “Tangle free” rig most of the year with lots of success. The only difference is that he uses a silver ball instead of a sinker. In general he find the silver balls work really well with Fluke. BTW: He fishes the south shore. I fish the north shore.

I’m going to make up some I am going to make some “Tangle free” rig and “Popcorn” rigs as well to see how they work.

 

[Roccus7]

On the bottom right, you should see the CURRENT date of the photo, which is usually the most recent. If you want to scroll through dates, look on the very bottom left corner of the screen, you'll see a year. This IS NOT the date of what you see, but another date, usually the OLDEST image. In the case below it's 1985.


If you click on that date, the screen will update, changing to that date, but they'll be a timescale slide in the upper left side which you can adjust to the most recent date and it tells you the exact date of the photo. It's handy in that you can watch how things have changed with time...

 

[BoatGuy]

Thank you. I do not see a date. Here is a screen shot. Are you using Google Earth or Google Earth Pro?

 

[BoatGuy]

That is tiny. Here is a bigger "bottom right"

 

[Roccus7]

Pro, but I think you’re on a cell phone & I’m on a computer. Even before I used Pro, the dates were there, especially if you go to the very left bottom and click on the year to get the timeline menu.

Not sure if it’s a Pro only feature, seem to remember the date function being on the non-Pro version.

 

[captmike28]

If you are a regular party boat fisherman than talk to the mate. They are usually tuned in to what is currently the hot color, bait or rig. If you have your own boat then don't be afraid of mixing it up and experimenting with different color teasers and baits if tried and true rigs are not producing. Keep records of the spots you have fished successfully and time of the tide they bit on. Also take time to explore for new areas to fish away from the fleet. After sixty plus years of fishing these things have consistently produced results. I can't emphasize enough the need to keep detailed records.

Sage advice from a guy who has tons of experience, has delivered many seminars himself over the years, and builds really gorgeous custom rods! I would pay close attention to the details he cites.

 

[BoatGuy]

If you are a regular party boat fisherman than talk to the mate. They are usually tuned in to what is currently the hot color, bait or rig. If you have your own boat then don't be afraid of mixing it up and experimenting with different color teasers and baits if tried and true rigs are not producing. Keep records of the spots you have fished successfully and time of the tide they bit on. Also take time to explore for new areas to fish away from the fleet. After sixty plus years of fishing these things have consistently produced results. I can't emphasize enough the need to keep detailed records.

Good point about keeping records. Does anyone have a good way to do it??? I tried this: Amazon.com: VaygWay Car Note Pad Holder-Memo Pad Clip Pen Clipboard- Mount Dashboard Suction Flexible Neck- Office Paper Notebook Writing
I have lost a few pads in the wind.

 

[Roccus7]

Good point about keeping records. Does anyone have a good way to do it??? I tried this: Amazon.com: VaygWay Car Note Pad Holder-Memo Pad Clip Pen Clipboard- Mount Dashboard Suction Flexible Neck- Office Paper Notebook Writing
I have lost a few pads in the wind.

Use a dry marker white clipboard instead of paper. That's standard issue on HMS Roccus7...

When you hit the dock, photo the clipboard and then transpose to your computer. I use an Excel spreadsheet for my personal log and also add the pertinent data to the Maine Volunteer Angler Log which I hand in so they can add the data to MRIP, the ASMFC "approved" recreational database. I am a bit "vague" about my location, using a very generalized description.

 

[Leprechaun]

Ya' know, I've been thinking about this thread all weekend, and have been coming up a bit blank. I mean I'm well satisfied with my technique and overall boat handling out on the grounds. Already have more drops that any one human could fish in many months of daily trips. I really do like my tackle choices for the coming season. My boat electronics could stand an upgrade here or there, but meh, they'll hang in there another season. So this is really a tough question to answer.

If I had to pick something to do differently, I guess it would have to be trying to get out on the water more often than I did in 2020. Last season was a bit of a downer, with me twisting and turning, trying (and pretty much failing) to earn a living - while 80% of my accounts were in lockdown. No salesman can be happy about that. I had more cancelled sales last year than in total over the previous 25.

Yep, not a real successful year for me, business-wise. It does appear that this year is already shaping up to be considerably better, and so this will open up a bit of a more relaxed attitude on my part. More relaxed = more time (and interest) in sailing more often. So, I will make a point of getting off the dock as many times as my schedule and the weather permit.

Oh, and maybe finding a better class of people to fish with. Yep, that's one I can certainly work towards . . . (Mike, George, Chef, etc. = )

 

[Rodprof]

Lep, I can't agree more. Last year was also a downer for me. I fished far less last year compared to past seasons. The East End season started out slow with the cold spring rain and wind. Coupled with the Covid restrictions it was a real bummer. Also, the Covid restrictions really cut back on my rod building.

On the bright side the sea bass and black fishing were spectacular from late summer through the fall. While we continued to be plagued by bad weather, on the days we could get out the fishing was great. I was even treated to a day of spectacular shallow water jigging for tog. What a blast. I have a few orders I am working on a several builds for myself. All my Blackhole Challenger personal rods were sold to customers and I have to replace them for the coming season.

 

[captmike28]

Make sure you have those shallow water rods built for yourself by fall, Al. We will be putting the hurt on those shallow water Tog!!