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Learning more than fishing

A new program is teaching Chariho Middle School students about entomology and ecology while they develop fine motor skills and a sense of rhythm.

It’s all about fly fishing.

The program has attracted 13 seventh-graders who take classes in fly fishing and six students who have been learning to tie flies in an after-school program with John O’Meara and Bill Arzamarski, from United Fly Tyers of Rhode Island. Several members of the school staff have also said they would like to learn about the sport and the art and science that swirl through it.

“The best part will be catching a fish with a fly I made by myself,” said Zach Robinson, a seventh-grader from Richmond who participates in the after-school program. He will have a chance to catch fish on his flies April 5. A week before Opening Day of trout season, the state’s aquatic education program will open one of its trout-hatchery ponds to the Chariho program. Zach has a mean looking Woolly Bugger that should devastate trout, bass, and any other fish on the prowl for prey.

Keelan Cox, a sixth-grader from Hope Valley, fishes with his father, Greg Zenion, the middle school’s acting principal. “We have a place we call ‘the secret spot,’” Keelan said, “and we fish for trout – rainbows, if you want to get particular.”

Zenion recently bought a fly rod. He is one of several staff members who are about to join students learning about fly fishing and all that runs through it.

Posted by Tom Meade  at 1:30 PM | Permalink

Go west for ice pike

Scott Frazier and a toothy pike

Rhode Island has had virtually no safe ice this season, but western Massachusetts is cold enough for ice fishing.

Scott Frazier of North Providence traveled to Lake Pontoosuc in Pittsfield where he caught an 8-pound northern pike last weekend.

He was fishing with a large shiner in 6 to 7 feet of water.

Posted by Tom Meade  at 10:21 AM | Permalink

Mass. bass show this weekend

The Massachusetts Striped Bass Association presents its annual Sport Fishing Expo this weekend at a new location, the Sally Blair Ames Sports Complex at Stonehill College. The school is in Easton, Mass., near Exit 7A, off Rte. 495.

The event is scheduled to open Saturday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Both days will include non-stop seminars on a variety of subjects for striper anglers of all ages and experience levels.

Tickets cost $10 for an adult and $5 for a youngster 14 or younger. Parking is free.

Directions and other information about the show are available here.

Posted by Tom Meade  at 8:24 AM | Permalink

Rhode Island Sound: spring fishing is best

Anglers planning a fishing vacation should mark the calendar for last two weeks of May and the first two weeks of June.

That’s the time when slugs of 20-pound stripers pour into Rhode Island Sound and Narragansett Bay, says Peter Graeber, manager of The Saltwater Edge, in a 2008 fishing forecast.

If you’re looking for bonito and false albacore, they generally arrive around the first week of August. Last year was the best Graeber has seen for bonito and “albies.”

“They were on baby bunker, silversides, you name it – whatever was in the water,” he says. “They were coughing up squid -- everything. They were ravenous. That intensity lasted through the second week of September.”

Generally, school-size stripers arrive in Newport around April 10, Graeber says. Then, migratory menhaden arrive ahead of the big bass in May. Last season was unusual, because large schools of menhaden stayed in the Bay for an unusually long time, and the bass stayed with them. “In the Bay, there were fish all season long,” he says, “but that stretch into early June was really good. I generally start to shift toward Rhode Island Sound around that time.”

Posted by Tom Meade  at 1:57 PM | Permalink

Striper Surf Day is coming

Mark your calendar for Mar. 8 when Pat Abate will present an all-star line-up of experts for Striper Surf Day at Rivers End Tackle in Old Saybrook, Conn., less than 30 minutes from Westerly. The event is scheduled to run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

"This is another kick start to the season on the water's edge," Pat says. "We'll have a few knock-out speakers, some factory reps for you to talk to, a couple of authors, and hundreds of surf rats to lie to."

Pat describes the line-up:

Zeno Hromin will talk about choosing the right lures for the right conditions. He'll talk from about 11 a.m. to noon.

"Crazy" Alberto Knie, so named for his fishing style, will talk about advanced surfcasting for trophy bass. He'll be on from 1 p.m. to whenever.

Adam Romagna will be here to show his antique striped bass lures and to talk about your old lures.

Craig Cantelmo from VanStaal will show you the inner workings of a VS and you can also leave your VS reels with him for factory service.

Herb Reed from Lunker City will be demonstrating his new 12" Slug-Go., and Steve McKenna will be showing you how to rig a Slug-Go.

John Skinner will be signing his new book on surfcasting A Season on the Edge

Tink Nelson from Pradco will be showing the latest Bombers and Red Fins and demonstrating how to load the Red Fin.

J. N-Ski will be here demonstrate his plugs.

Jordan Paulo from Shimano will show some new reels for saltwater including a manual pick-up Spheros.

"We'll have a demonstration on how to rig eels," Pat says, "and we're rolling out the grill and serving some manly offerings. There will be some great sales and deals. Most of all its a great day with friends."

This Saturday, the store is offering a free seminar on Making Bucktail Jigs with “Q”Kresser. He will demonstrate how to mold, color coat and tie one of the most time-tested and effective lures for striped bass, blues, fluke and sea bass. It starts at noon.

The store's address is 440 Boston Post Road in Old Saybrook. For driving directions, click here.

Posted by Tom Meade  at 8:44 AM | Permalink

Another RISAA double header

Capt. Jack Riley will lead off a double-header fishing seminar with a program on catching bluefin tuna at the next meeting of the Rhode Island Saltwater Anglers Association (RISAA), Feb. 25 at 7 p.m.

For the past 25 summers Captain Jack has been a commercial, sport, or charterboat fisherman out of Harwichport on Cape Cod. Earlier, he fished the offshore waters south of Nantucket, Martha's Vineyard, Block Island, and Montauk out of Point Judith.

His seminar will feature tactics for finding and landing school bluefin.

The next seminar, “Sinkers, Jigs & Rigs: Making Your Own” will feature a trio of speakers, Dave Fewster, Steve Medeiros and Capt. Steve Travisono.

Making your own sinkers and jigs is an enjoyable winter pastime, says Steve Medeiros. "This seminar will show you all the basics to get started, including equipment needed and where to purchase it; how to get scrap lead; how to pour lead; how to paint jigs and how to tie your own bucktail jigs," he writes.

"Dozens of projected images will show you the step-by-step process involved, so that you can make your own."

The seminars are held at the West Valley Inn on Blossom Street in West Warwick and are open to everyone. A $10 donation to the RISAA Marine Fisheries Scholarship Fund is requested from nonmembers.

For more information and directions visit RISAA’s web site here.

Posted by Tom Meade  at 8:48 AM | Permalink

Southern fish magnet comes north

"We will be fishing more with Popping Corks this season, especially in the early part of the season," writes Jim White, skipper of the charter boat White Ghost, in his February newsletter.

"If you aren’t aware of this method of fishing, you will be surprised at how effective it is on stripers and weakfish. It has long been an effective technique down south for southern weakfish, redfish, snook, snappers and more.

"Last season we were surprised at how many small weakfish we caught in the early part of the season," Jim writes. "The Lindy Popping Cork and the D.O.A. Clacker Rig fished with a plastic shrimp behind it turned out to be very effective."

Several years ago during a cinderworm emergence on Point Judith Pond, I watched Roger Lema catch one fish after another on a small, pink plastic grubtail behind a popping cork. It worked like a striper magnet.

"The nice part about using one of these rigs is that it’s like being a kid all over again," writes Jim. "The visual experience of it is simply awesome."

Posted by Tom Meade  at 11:54 AM | Permalink

The eagles have landed

The largest winter gathering of eagles on the east coast is arriving on the shores of the Connecticut River near the town of Essex, about 30 minutes south of Westerly. Yesterday, three young bald eagles were soaring over Hamburg Cove, a popular fishing area near Lyme.

This weekend, the Connecticut Audubon Society and the Connecticut River Museum in Essex are celebrating the arrival of golden and bald eagles with their annual Eagle Festival on the banks of the river.

To get there from Rhode Island, take Rte. 95 to Exit 69 in Old Saybrook to Rte. 9 north toward Hartford. Take Exit 3 in Essex. Turn left at bottom of ramp. Take a right at the first traffic light. Proceed to the first stop sign and follow the sign to downtown Essex. Bear right onto Main Street.

All the festival details are available here.

Posted by Tom Meade  at 7:13 AM | Permalink

Look to eastern Long Island Sound for stripers

STONINGTON, Conn. – Anglers will continue to find trophy striped bass in the waters from Watch Hill, Rhode Island to the mouth of the Connecticut River this season, two experts predict. There will be fewer trophy fish, however, if recent trends continue in eastern Long Island Sound.

Look for the best bites inside and off the mouth of the Thames River, say Don Michaud of King Cove Outfitters in Stonington and Pat Abate of Rivers End Tackle in Old Saybrook. Abate also recommends the Connecticut River for catching stripers, and Michaud predicts that the Mystic River and mouth of the Pawcatuck River – Little Narragansett Bay – will continue to provide plenty of bass.

Menhaden will be the bait of choice again, starting around the first of May, when migratory menhaden appeared last year, the experts agree, and soft plastic shad imitations, like the Storm Wild Eye, probably will be among the most popular artificial lures. Deep-diving plugs and jigs are becoming more popular as tube-and-worm-rig sales slip slightly.

Posted by Tom Meade  at 6:05 AM | Permalink

Fluke cuts are coming

Coastal fishing regulators have established a coast-wide limit for summer flounder. Now it’s up to state regulators to establish a recreational-fishing season and limits on fluke for 2008. Rhode Island faces a 52-percent cut.

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, meeting in Virginia last week, decided to limit the recreational summer-flounder catch to 2.05 million fish this year. Members from each of the coastal states used guidelines to each of the states that would meet the overall goal.

Each state has some flexibility in stabling its own rules within the guidelines. If a state fails to conform to the guidelines, its anglers automatically will be limited to a a two fish possession limit at a 20-inch minimum size with an open season from July 4 to Sept. 1.

In Rhode Island, the Department of Environmental Management will hold a public hearing Feb. 26 on proposed amendments to the state’s marine fisheries regulations. The hearing will take place at 6 p.m. at the University of Rhode Island’s Narragansett Bay Campus Corless Auditorium on South Ferry Road in Narragansett.

Posted by Tom Meade  at 1:50 PM | Permalink

Scientists say stripers are well

Scientists who study striped bass have good news for government officials who regulate fishing for stripers.

Conservation measures are working.

A benchmark striper study, recently endorsed by an independent panel of scientists advising the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, concluded that striped bass are not overfished, and overfishing in not occurring. The assessment estimates that the striper population remains at a high level. The population of spawning female fish weighs an estimated 55 million pounds, well above the target of 38.6 million pounds.

The commission includes representatives from each of the coastal states; they are meeting this week in Alexandria, Va. Among their findings on striped bass:

Recreational fishermen took nearly three times more bass than commercial fishermen in 2006.

The total striped bass harvest (commercial and recreational) was estimated at 3.82 million fish, a 46 percent increase from 2002 when new regulations were enacted.

The commercial harvest of 1.05 million fish was dominated by Maryland's commercial fisheries, which made up 62 percent of the total commercial landings by number in 2006.

Recreational fishermen took 2.77 million fish.

Commercial discard deaths in 2006 were estimated at 216,753 fish.

Recreational discard deaths were estimated at 2.07 million fish.

Combined, the number of stripers killed intentionally and unintentionally by recreational fishermen accounted for 79 percent of the bass killed in 2006.

Maryland recreational fisheries harvested 24 percent of total recreational landings in number, followed by Virginia (22 percent), New Jersey (18 percent), Massachusetts (12 percent), and New York (11 percent).

Based on advice from scientists, regulators from the coastal states recommended maintaining the status quo in fishing limits this season.

More information about the commission's work is online here

Posted by Tom Meade  at 1:02 PM | Permalink

RFA heading here

The Recreational Fishing Alliance (RFA), a political powerhouse, is establishing a branch in Rhode Island. James A. Donofrio, executive director of the group, drove from the RFA’s headquarters in New Jersey to meet with local organizers in East Greenwich last week.

“What Rhode Island needs is leadership on federal [fishing] issues,” he said. “There’s been a void there.”

The RFA has about 5,000 individual members, Donofrio said. Though affiliated fishing groups, the RFA represents about 120,000 anglers.

Locally, the Rhode Island Saltwater Anglers Association has taken stands on state and some federal fishing issues. Last year, local group allied with Save The Bay in an attempt to stop purse seining, a method of fishing for menhaden in the Bay. For several years, Ark Bait, a purse seiner based in Fall River, has been catching menhaden to sell as bait for lobstermen and recreational fishermen. The attempted ban foundered during a summer when an overwhelming number of menhaden entered the Bay.

Donofrio disagrees with the stand taken by Save The Bay and the Rhode Island Saltwater Anglers Association. He prefers regulations similar to the rules in New Jersey where Ark Bait also purse-seines for menhaden.

Essentially, a purse-seiner encircles a school of fish in a net that is drawn up like a pouch or a purse. In Rhode Island, the fish are then pumped from the net through a tube, into the boat. In New Jersey, the trapped fish must be lifted in baskets, by hand, to the boat. The manual method takes more time, but the bait boats – including Ark – abide by the rules. “The bait boats can’t do any damage to the stocks that way,” Donofrio said.

Posted by Tom Meade  at 11:12 AM | Permalink

Light-tackle, surf fishing show

The Saltwater Edge has scheduled its annual show for next Saturday with an all-star line-up of fishing experts. They're not professional seminar presenters. They're hard-core fishermen, like "Iron" Mike Everin.

"This year's show figures to be the best one yet with a continuously growing list of invited characters and personalities from within the industry," writes Peter Graeber, manager of The Saltwater Edge."Expect all your favorite regulars as well as many new names and seminars."

Admission is free, but everyone is asked to buy raffle tickets. "Our Conservation Raffle, thanks to the generosity of both those who attend and those who donate prizes, has raised over $17,000 since its inception for a variety of fisheries and coastal access advocacy groups," Peter says. "This year’s raffle will be a little different as the proceeds will go directly to help support the family of our good friend John Haberek who passed away on September 23, 2007." John made Hab's Custom Plugs.

"Raffle prizes should be even more impressive this year," Peter writes. "Many plug builders, fly tyers, and manufacturers are crafting some beautiful one-off items in light of the worthy cause."

The show will open in the Viking Hotel from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. For all the details, go to:

www.saltwateredge.com/forums/saltwater-fishing-forum/1603-february-9th-9th-annual-swe-fishing-show.html

Posted by Tom Meade  at 1:33 PM | Permalink

Catching a winter cod

Captain Mike at the Frances Fleet reports that it was a successful week on the cod grounds.

Last weekend, the boat sailed with only a few people on each trip. On Saturday's trip high hook was six cod, and the largest fish weighed around 15 pounds. Hake were not as plentiful as the previous week, but there were still a few around. The fish have all been located in about 130 feet of water, southeast of Block Island.

The boats are scheduled to sail four days a week at 5 a.m. Call first to se sure the weather is acceptable. The number in Galilee is 783-4988. More information is available online at www.francesfleet.com/

Posted by Tom Meade  at 9:29 AM | Permalink