Bay Bridge Perching

[bignose]

I decided to forego my usual electric canoe fishing on Saturday, and decided that today my "kayak" would be my 17' Center Console. I tried launching from Sandy Point, but it was a no go because they had no power. This turned out to be a blessing as it almost certainly kept the numbers of rec boaters down. Plan B involved launching at Leo Jame's marina in Martin cove.
The perch fishing under the bridge, East Side, in about 15 feet of water, was spectacular.
Since the intent was to fill a cooler with fish, we were using cut peelers on a hi-low rig. Many double headers and many of these fish were 2 pound plus "blackbacks" that looked more like LM Bass then WP's! I caught a few on curly tail jigs, but live bait was real deal. Anchored in the shade under the bridge, the heat was tolerable.
There was at least one kayaker in a grey Hobie outback working across on the Southern span, but I couldn't see how well he was doing.
We had a few tiny striper and two oyster toads as a by catch.
All in all a great day on the water.
The only issue was finding out the hard way that I had parked my trailer over a hornet's nest that had gotten blown down, and they were none too happy about it. I'll live, just a little tender and bumpy.

[moc]

Good job, white perch are very tastey fish. I caught a mess a Bellevue on Sat. I will have to try the Bay Bridge sometime soon.

[J.A. Veil]

Way to go Stu. I didn't think you ever used the center console any more. Those perch sound like monsters. Remember, if any of your perch are 13" or longer, you can get a citation for them and also get an entry into the Maryland Fishing Challenge (there will be drawings for prizes at the Maryland Seafood Festival later this year). You have to take either your fish or a photo of your fish to a participating tackle shop.

Sorry to hear about your "Sting Operation".

[bignose]

Hey John,
We cleaned the fish as soon as we got back in. No time to get them measured, our goal was to get some fish in the box. Hanging around Captain Doug and working on the Charter Boat has turned me into a meat fisherman. These were the biggest perch that I have ever seen. Thick, too.
We didn't have electricity at the dock, so we needed to get out of dodge fast. These perch were big enough to filet, but not without the electric knife. Scrape em, gut em, and cut the heads off to feed the local crabs.....Find someplace cool to recover.

I took out the CC because there's no way I'm taking the canoe out on the open Bay, and Captain Doug wanted to leave the big boat at the dock. He wouldn't fit in the canoe, anyway! And I can run the CC on 2-3 gallons of gas, where the big boat would burn 10-15 gallons. I'm still not sure if i'm going to keep it or sell it, but since it's there, why not?

Those damn hornets were pissed. I'm now going into itch mode! Just call me Lumpy!
One interesting scientific fact: Hornets, unlike Wasps and Bees, can sting you multiple times because their stinger is smooth and they don't stick in their victims. They will also chase you!