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Back in the saddle, St. Jerome's & Piney Point, 9/19-9/21
After 3+ weeks of revising and revising, I finally handed my dissertation to my committee on the 19th. Now, I just have to wait until my defense when they'll rip me a new one. 
To celebrate handing it off, I spent the past couple days catching up on lost time.
On Monday, I launched at Buzz's Marina around 3pm and fished until 8, which was from the end of ebb to almost the end of flood. Water temperature was 68*, and salinity was 9, which was surprisingly low.
Mike said that they caught a bunch of little specks near the creek mouth a few days before, so I spent a good bit of time looking for bigger ones. I picked up 2 around 10" on a 3" chartreuse Gulp grub on a 1/4oz head (I think). They were released boatside. I jigged the snot out of the creek mouth looking for flounder and stripers with a Gulp jerk shad on a Spro bucktail. There were lots of big marks on the fish finder, and I missed a couple good hits but didn't connect with anything. Mike and Christy showed up in their skiff, and Mike immediately caught a little striper not far from where I had been drifting. Go figure. Christy later hooked into a 18-20" speck that Mike "released" boatside. She was fired up about that.
I headed toward Point No Point looking for some topwater action. I picked up a couple small blues on a needlefish jig, but no stripers on topwater or a Bomber minnow. I headed back in when the mosquitoes found me. No decent pictures that day.
I caught up on yardwork for most of Tuesday. I swung by Buzz's to drop something off for Mike, and Christy said he was out fishing. I thought about launching my yak since I had it with me but decided to have dinner with my wife instead. Later, I heard Mike had one of his best days ever with stripers up to 30" and big blues, too. Oh well.
Tuesday evening, I launched at Piney Point after dinner around 6pm and fished until 8pm, which was just before max ebb to just after. Water temperature was 72*, and salinity was 10--it was funny that it was saltier than in the Bay.
I jigged under the bridge with the needlefish jig and picked up a couple small blues. I trolled a Bomber minnow under the bridge to my topwater spot and picked up a barely legal striper. I was stoked because it was only the 2nd or 3rd legal striper I caught all year. I let it go since it was close to the minimum size. I didn't have any luck at my usual spot, but I did have a big blow up closer to the bridge. The fish missed the plug by a good bit, I managed not to jerk the popper away, but the fish didn't come back. The only pic was of the sunset:
Dad joined me on Wednesday, but we got a late start because Rt 234 is washed out at Allen's Fresh, so he had to detour. We went back to Piney Point, and launched at around 1pm and fished until a bit after 3, which was just before and just after max ebb. We started by jigging the needlefish jigs under the bridge. I hooked up with an 18" striper on one of the first drifts. It was close to the minimum and a bit skinny, so I let it go. It fought hard, though. A little bit later, I landed a 24-incher, which I think might be the biggest striper I've ever jigged up:
I thought I'd share a pic with a facial gesture other than my usual deadpan. I was mid-conversation with Dad.
I picked up a couple small bluefish, and Dad missed some bites. The current died and the wind picked up, so we went for a quick paddle up the creek before it started to rain:
There were a lot of eagles around, which I hadn't noticed before. Very cool.
I went back to Piney Point after dinner and started jigging under the bridge. I picked up another 18-incher that was completely covered in sores, which is the first time I've seen that there. Right around sunset, I landed a 22-inch striper on a Stillwater Smack-it at the usual spot. That's only the second legal fish I've landed on topwater this year. Hopefully, things are finally getting back to normal.
Man, I look like the grim reaper in that pic. My hat is my hood, and my rod is my scythe. I had a few more swirls from smaller fish before the rain really picked up and I called it night.
The currents at by St. Jerome's and Piney Point have been really weak the past few days. I think the action could've been even better with more water moving. Anyhow, I'm hoping I can get back to fishing at least once a week now...
To celebrate handing it off, I spent the past couple days catching up on lost time. On Monday, I launched at Buzz's Marina around 3pm and fished until 8, which was from the end of ebb to almost the end of flood. Water temperature was 68*, and salinity was 9, which was surprisingly low.
Mike said that they caught a bunch of little specks near the creek mouth a few days before, so I spent a good bit of time looking for bigger ones. I picked up 2 around 10" on a 3" chartreuse Gulp grub on a 1/4oz head (I think). They were released boatside. I jigged the snot out of the creek mouth looking for flounder and stripers with a Gulp jerk shad on a Spro bucktail. There were lots of big marks on the fish finder, and I missed a couple good hits but didn't connect with anything. Mike and Christy showed up in their skiff, and Mike immediately caught a little striper not far from where I had been drifting. Go figure. Christy later hooked into a 18-20" speck that Mike "released" boatside. She was fired up about that.
I headed toward Point No Point looking for some topwater action. I picked up a couple small blues on a needlefish jig, but no stripers on topwater or a Bomber minnow. I headed back in when the mosquitoes found me. No decent pictures that day.
I caught up on yardwork for most of Tuesday. I swung by Buzz's to drop something off for Mike, and Christy said he was out fishing. I thought about launching my yak since I had it with me but decided to have dinner with my wife instead. Later, I heard Mike had one of his best days ever with stripers up to 30" and big blues, too. Oh well.
Tuesday evening, I launched at Piney Point after dinner around 6pm and fished until 8pm, which was just before max ebb to just after. Water temperature was 72*, and salinity was 10--it was funny that it was saltier than in the Bay.
I jigged under the bridge with the needlefish jig and picked up a couple small blues. I trolled a Bomber minnow under the bridge to my topwater spot and picked up a barely legal striper. I was stoked because it was only the 2nd or 3rd legal striper I caught all year. I let it go since it was close to the minimum size. I didn't have any luck at my usual spot, but I did have a big blow up closer to the bridge. The fish missed the plug by a good bit, I managed not to jerk the popper away, but the fish didn't come back. The only pic was of the sunset:
Dad joined me on Wednesday, but we got a late start because Rt 234 is washed out at Allen's Fresh, so he had to detour. We went back to Piney Point, and launched at around 1pm and fished until a bit after 3, which was just before and just after max ebb. We started by jigging the needlefish jigs under the bridge. I hooked up with an 18" striper on one of the first drifts. It was close to the minimum and a bit skinny, so I let it go. It fought hard, though. A little bit later, I landed a 24-incher, which I think might be the biggest striper I've ever jigged up:
I thought I'd share a pic with a facial gesture other than my usual deadpan. I was mid-conversation with Dad.
I picked up a couple small bluefish, and Dad missed some bites. The current died and the wind picked up, so we went for a quick paddle up the creek before it started to rain:
There were a lot of eagles around, which I hadn't noticed before. Very cool.
I went back to Piney Point after dinner and started jigging under the bridge. I picked up another 18-incher that was completely covered in sores, which is the first time I've seen that there. Right around sunset, I landed a 22-inch striper on a Stillwater Smack-it at the usual spot. That's only the second legal fish I've landed on topwater this year. Hopefully, things are finally getting back to normal.
Man, I look like the grim reaper in that pic. My hat is my hood, and my rod is my scythe. I had a few more swirls from smaller fish before the rain really picked up and I called it night.
The currents at by St. Jerome's and Piney Point have been really weak the past few days. I think the action could've been even better with more water moving. Anyhow, I'm hoping I can get back to fishing at least once a week now...
However, it's my wife's grandmother's 90th birthday, and you don't get to go to many of those parties. I'm looking forward to catching up with you guys.
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