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Weekend Smorgabord at the Inlet

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  • Weekend Smorgabord at the Inlet

    Since the bite was good Thursday evening at the Rt. 50 bridge, and the coefficient was rated at 44 - which is very low for the inlet and makes it a breeze in a kayak, I went back out Friday evening from about 8 to midnight. I actually started at the Assateague bridge and planned to fish that for the evening, but with mossy algae on every cast and no signs of life, I quickly packed up in favor of the Rt. 50 bridge. Glad I did because the fish were thick again in the inlet. Nothing huge, but good solid action with a mix of blues averaging 18", stripers 16" - 24", and of course shad fairly steadily. It was neat seeing fish zip by me in the shadow lines as they were gorging on silversides. I stuck with the Z-Man again most of the night (still slinging the same one after two nights of blues!) and a Hopkins Shorty. The bite slowed at slack current, but I was tired by then anyway so I called it a night.

    There were a lot of people fishing from up top the bridge too making it a little chaotic at times. Not much for boat fisherman though after sunset. I also almost get pissed on from above when I was under the bridge . Not sure if they saw me down there or not as I was sort of under the bridge in the shadow line, but I wasn't happy and let them know! Wouldn't of been cool if I was 2 feet more to my right!

    I slept in Saturday morning and had to be off the water by 2:30, so I took a quick ride over to the South Jetty. The current was starting to slack at low so I flipped some rocks at the jetty on my way out to get some crabs for tog bait. Fish were around and I picked up a few short tog just poking around looking for holes. After a little while, I found a good hole that had a lot of fish. It was steady bait, drop, wait a second, and set hook they were hitting that fast! All shorts 12" - 15.5", with more around the higher end of the scale than lower. Out of the blue though a nice 19"er came out to join the feast and I had myself the biggest tog of the spring As the current picked up the bite started to slow and I headed in.
    P1030666.jpg (sorry for the legs in picture !)

    I went back out to the jetty with the wife Sunday. She paddled over and lounged on Assateague while I fished. By the time we got out the tide was already up and my bait rocks covered, so I went over to the surf and dug some fleas. The tog bite was much slower however. I'm not sure if it was the bait, fleas compared to crabs on Saturday, or the current running hard already maybe? Who knows, but it was harder to get into fish. Picked up two short tog and then missed a quick hit that felt different than a tog. I quickly re-baited and dropped back down, hooking up right away. The fight felt different too. Could it be I thought? Then I saw a sheepie coming up and I got pumped. It wasn't huge, only 17.5", but not a fish I regularly catch, so I was very happy! Next drop down was a 17" tog for dinner. It slowed back down after that and once I landed a toad I decided to pack it and lounge on the beach with the wife for a little while. I stopped by the Coastal Fisherman HQ on my way home thinking maybe I'd be lucky enough to report the first sheepshead, but found out I was a week late. Oh well, at least that means there are likely more to target out there now! And hopefully bigger!
    IMG-20140608-00038.jpg
    Brian

  • #2
    You're killing out there man. Nice going!
    ___________________________

    Hobie Fishing Team Member
    Survival Products, Salisbury, MD

    2017 Camo Hobie Outback
    2015 Olive Hobie Outback

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    • #3
      Originally posted by Slobber Bob View Post
      Since the bite was good Thursday evening at the Rt. 50 bridge, and the coefficient was rated at 44 - which is very low for the inlet and makes it a breeze in a kayak,
      Forgive my ignorance, but what is the "coefficient", and the significance of 44?
      ___________________________________

      2015 Viking Profish Reload

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      • #4
        The tidal coefficient is related to the current. A high coefficient means more current. During a full moon and a new moon there are greater tides. There may be upwards of a 3-4 ft difference between high and low tides during a full or new moon, compared to a 1.5-2.5 ft tide difference during a 1/2 moon. In order to get the increased amount of water into the same space (within the typical 6 hour tide cycle), the current moves faster.

        A coefficient around 65 is about average. If it creeps into the high 70's and 80's its moving pretty good and you would have a pretty hard time paddling or pedding against it; especially around pinch points/structure, like bridges or inlets.


        Here is the tide table and coefficients for the OC Inlet.
        ___________________________

        Hobie Fishing Team Member
        Survival Products, Salisbury, MD

        2017 Camo Hobie Outback
        2015 Olive Hobie Outback

        Comment


        • #5
          ^^Excellent explanation.

          I use the coefficient to determine where and when I can fish the inlet without having to work very hard. During high to very high coefficients, you'll likely have to wait until close to slack tide to effectively fish some of the higher current areas like the Rt. 50 bridge. There are some current breaks you can hide in, but for the most part, it's like trying to paddle up a waterfall when the current is in full swing during a high coefficient. During a low coefficient it's no problem to go out there several hours before slack tide and not have to work very hard at all to fish.
          Brian

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          • #6
            Originally posted by RavensDfense View Post
            The tidal coefficient is related to the current. A high coefficient means more current. During a full moon and a new moon there are greater tides. There may be upwards of a 3-4 ft difference between high and low tides during a full or new moon, compared to a 1.5-2.5 ft tide difference during a 1/2 moon. In order to get the increased amount of water into the same space (within the typical 6 hour tide cycle), the current moves faster.

            A coefficient around 65 is about average. If it creeps into the high 70's and 80's its moving pretty good and you would have a pretty hard time paddling or pedding against it; especially around pinch points/structure, like bridges or inlets.


            Here is the tide table and coefficients for the OC Inlet.
            Originally posted by Slobber Bob View Post
            ^^Excellent explanation.

            I use the coefficient to determine where and when I can fish the inlet without having to work very hard. During high to very high coefficients, you'll likely have to wait until close to slack tide to effectively fish some of the higher current areas like the Rt. 50 bridge. There are some current breaks you can hide in, but for the most part, it's like trying to paddle up a waterfall when the current is in full swing during a high coefficient. During a low coefficient it's no problem to go out there several hours before slack tide and not have to work very hard at all to fish.
            Thanks for the explanation. Very informative.
            ___________________________________

            2015 Viking Profish Reload

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            • #7
              Great Report and info on coefficient.

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