CHSP and Ocean City Inlet, Nov 19, 2014

[ComeOnFish]

I went to Cape Henlopen State Park (CHSP), DE for tautog fishing. It was a cold day. The air temp was 27 F in the morning, 31 F at noon, and 35 F at 04:20 pm. The air temp wasn't a problem at all. It was the water temp. The water temp dropped a lot for 10 days. The water temp was 42 F at the launch, 44F at the Inner Wall, and 48F at the Outer Wall at best.

There was only one boat at the Outer Wall. No bites at all, we experienced.

I got tumbled around when I launched the kayak again after a pit stop. The fishing net was broken, baits were gone, and the lunch was ruined.

I went to Ocean City Inlet after getting green crab and coffee. The water temp was 44F-48F between 02:00PM and 04:30PM. According to a boater, the water temp was 42 F in the morning, Also he said that the biting was very good on the last Sunday in 48F water, He said he caught about 30 tautogs. But today he got skunked.

Now I remember why I made my rule that is "No CHSP after the mid November" . It was the sudden water temp drop in the mid November, way below 50F.

Fishing Log:

[coastal_dan]

Bummer on the skunk! Crappy to see water temps so low...I was really hoping they wouldn't drop so rapidly. Was your pole safe after that "uh-oh"? Glad you are well, looked a little rough around the Cape Point.

[ComeOnFish]

Bummer on the skunk! Crappy to see water temps so low...I was really hoping they wouldn't drop so rapidly. Was your pole safe after that "uh-oh"? Glad you are well, looked a little rough around the Cape Point.

It was a shallow water accident. The first thing I looked for was the helmet cam (the brand new GOPro 4 on it). The helmet floats (Styrofoam inserts) .
On rod was on the rod holder and the other was on the rod holder on the cooler. Luckily, both rods were OK.

BTW the waters in OC Inlet and CHSP were very stained.

One of the reasons I went to OC inlet was that I wanted rinse off sand off the gears (especially in the holes for the seat). the garden hoses have been solid frozen for days so that I don't have water outside the house. I rinsed everything at the boat ramp at the inlet. Tomorrow I will be ready for CBBT.
Joe

[tufnik]

You're one tough yaker to fish in that cold. My hats off to you. Thanks for the report. Gonna get them at CBBT!

[Goody]

Glad everything turned out ok. You didn'take a dunk did you? What kind of dry suit are you wearing?

Mobile

[ComeOnFish]

Glad everything turned out ok. You didn'take a dunk did you? What kind of dry suit are you wearing?

Mobile

I got tumbled and pushed by the waves.
I don't wear a dry top. I wear a thin UnderArmor long sleeve shirt, Bare 3mm wetsuit jacket, and fleece shirt, and splash proof jacket. I had an issue with dry top. I didn't like when veins popped up on my head when my neck was pressed.

I wore waist-high wader. Almost no water comes in usually. I was dunked many times in cold water the coldest water was 34F. There was no initial shock on my body for 2-3 minutes. After the reentry, I am fine depending on the wind speed.

I found that fleece hood and shirt/jacket could be worn again after wrinkled it. They still keeps me warm.

I am not quite concerned with cold water. 34 F or 55 F won't make difference if I can't reenter the kayak.
I am more concerned with air temp. Air temp 27-35 F and regular wet gloves combination was too much to me. Since I wore Glacier Glove ICE BAY Fishing Glove, I didn't have finger and hand issues in 27F degree air temp. I don't fish when air temp stays below 27- 28 F because lines get frozen on the reels. I carry two pair of gloves. My Ice Bay gloves leaks a lot because of punctures caused by fish and hooks. Even though my hands were wet, the gloves kept my hands warm throughout the winter.

Because I carry two sets of clothing, I can try one more time after get back to my truck.

Joe

[Romo]

Man you guys are crazy! I hung my yak on the wall a month ago. Way to get out there though

[PaddleHard]

Hey Joe.... Glad to hear your ok, can't wait to get back fishing. Hopefully soon when it's not that cold anymore. Can't wait to see all you guys out there.

[Slobber Bob]

That water was very dirty looking in the OC Inlet. It's usually not that bad. It's also hard to tell from the camera angle how close to the jetty you were. We usually fish pretty close to it, like the boat in the video is.

For what is worth, I togged the OC Inlet this past Saturday. I got out late (9:30ish) and fished until sunset. They bit good the first hour and a half I was out and I got 2 keepers out of a dozen fish. Then they just completely shutdown and nobody trying for them got a bite for hours! A little before sunset they started biting again but it wasn't a real hot bite - just a slow steady pick.

So they are still biting in OC but it's has certainly slowed down.

[dson05]

Joe,

I was out there earlier in the morning. I launched from the other parking lot by the tower because of the wind. The shorter paddle convinced me it was better to launch there. The water temp on my reading was around 44 as well. I left and fished IR inlet. I got a few bites at slack tide but no takers. I will be trying CHSP or IRI Thanksgiving morning. havn't decided if I want to kayak or fish the inlet from the jetty yet. I fished the surf Friday night and caught a lot of doggies in the 3 - 4 foot range then I fished the inlet for abou 20 minutes on the jetty and caught 2 togs' (one 17.5" and the other a 10") almost instantly. Within the first 10 mins. Then the last 10 minute was untying tangles after the guy next to me tried to cast into the hole I was fishing. Haha.

If anyone interested I will be in Delaware starting Wednesday night fishing the surf then either the inlet on the jetty or on my yak at CHSP.

Danny

[coastal_dan]

I'll be down from Friday afternoonish until Sunday night. I'd like to get out in the 'yak for sure, hoping to find some deeper holes for my final Togs of the season.

[ComeOnFish]

Joe,

I was out there earlier in the morning. I launched from the other parking lot by the tower because of the wind. The shorter paddle convinced me it was better to launch there. The water temp on my reading was around 44 as well. I left and fished IR inlet. I got a few bites at slack tide but no takers. I will be trying CHSP or IRI Thanksgiving morning. havn't decided if I want to kayak or fish the inlet from the jetty yet. I fished the surf Friday night and caught a lot of doggies in the 3 - 4 foot range then I fished the inlet for abou 20 minutes on the jetty and caught 2 togs' (one 17.5" and the other a 10") almost instantly. Within the first 10 mins. Then the last 10 minute was untying tangles after the guy next to me tried to cast into the hole I was fishing. Haha.

If anyone interested I will be in Delaware starting Wednesday night fishing the surf then either the inlet on the jetty or on my yak at CHSP.

Danny

Why didn't I think about the parking lot next to the tower. Was the water usually deep during the low tide?

I haven't fished IR Inlet. I went there a few times in the past and looked at the current. The currents were no joke. Perhaps I was there without pre-studying the area.

I will be out of town during Thanks-giving day weekend. Perhaps I will learn from you about IR Inlet.

Joe

[dson05]

Why didn't I think about the parking lot next to the tower. Was the water usually deep during the low tide?

I haven't fished IR Inlet. I went there a few times in the past and looked at the current. The currents were no joke. Perhaps I was there without pre-studying the area.

I will be out of town during Thanks-giving day weekend. Perhaps I will learn from you about IR Inlet.

Joe

The Parking lot by the tower is .5 mile shorter of a paddle so its good on crazy windy days, but getting the kayak too the beach and back to your car is a serious pain. The sand is soft and the slope is steep. A lot of work to get up the hill.