I’m not a fan of going down a rabbit hole, jumping off a cliff, or entering a quagmire. I have, though, chased yesterday’s fish.
Such was the case last weekend.
The annual Martha’s Vineyard Surfcasters Association’s in-house shark tournament started Thursday, and ran through Sunday night. The catch and release tournament focuses on catching sharks, so the dates are selected after the sharks show up.
My awesome mom turned 80 last Thursday, so I was off-Island for the first night. Let me say clearly, I wouldn’t have wanted to be anywhere else than at my mom’s party celebrating her. That said, I missed a great night of fishing.
The tournament officially began at 1 pm. Julie Tummino landed the first shark around 1:15 pm. Her shark was 48 inches long, “and fun reeling in such a beautiful animal,” said Julie.
The game was on. And I do mean game. There’s more joking, teasing, and laughter on the beach than there is catching. There’s also a good-natured competitive edge. Baits were carefully selected. Lines were cast, checked, rebaited, and recast. Reels went off, hopes soared. Before the night was over, seven additional sharks were landed.
Matt Brewer clinched the lead with a 68-inch brown shark. Everyone was happy for Matt, whether they were on the beach or reading the post on Facebook. Matt is a great fisherman. He fishes often and fishes well. He’s also one of the most fun and funniest people you will ever meet.
Matt needed that sense of humor at last year’s shark tournament. During a lull in fishing last year, we all decided to sit, eat, and enjoy the company and sunshine. Hooks were baited and in the water, of course, but it had been a hot minute since that last line had a nibble on it heftier than a crab stealing lunch.
Matt had prepared his famous corn dip on his grill, and he was kindly walking down the line of seated surfcasters and friends, passing out deliciousness. About two dozen people down from his sand spike, Matt’s rod bent and peeled. Shouts rang out. Matt took off. Then halted, probably in shock, after a friend picked up his rod.
A collective groan spoke the truth every competitor knew — once a fish is on your line, whoever touches the rod first owns the fish. Matt’s friend, who wasn’t entered in the tournament, went on to land the biggest shark. Matt would have won with that shark.
On Thursday night, Matt went home in the lead, with all of us wanting him to win and also wanting to win ourselves.
I got home on Friday, met my friend Kathy, and stopped into Coop’s Bait and Tackle on my way to Chappy. Coop had been out the previous night. He’d caught sharks. And, best news of all, he’d landed a 17-pound bluefish.
The blues had all but disappeared from shore the past couple of weeks. I hoped Coop’s news was a sign of good fish to come.
Kathy and I arrived on the beach and joined the crew already fishing. The sharks hadn’t arrived yet. We spent many hours, and went through a decent amount of bait. No blues. No sharks. Good friends. Good day.
On Saturday, I wanted to spend a little time in my vegetable garden. This is my favorite time of year. Not only is the weather warm, but I’m harvesting all my food from the land and sea. Perfection!
My friend Midge Jacobs got to my house around 1 pm, and we headed to Chappy. Another beautiful day. We left around 8 pm. No fish had been caught. I heard later that Ralph Peckham landed a 42-inch shark before the night was over.
One shark in two days. Zero bluefish. It’s not that we didn’t land fish, it’s that the fish weren’t there. I’m certain they got the invitation. They were there on Thursday. But fish, in general, have been known to show up, visit for a few minutes, and then leave before the party’s over, even if they’re the guest of honor.
I packed a cooler full of water on Sunday, determined to stay on Chappy until I caught a fish. I arrived to hear that Matt Brewer and his family had just left. Matt didn’t catch a bigger shark, but his cousin Luke Brewer landed a 15.2-pound bluefish, putting Luke in first place for the MVSA in-house Derby. “It’s the biggest bluefish I ever caught from the surf,” said Luke, who was bottom-fishing for sharks.
I was thrilled for Luke, disappointed to hear he was the only one who caught a blue, but hopeful that where there is one blue, there could be more. Brenda Gerosa-Beal and I spent a fair bit of time casting our favorite lures — a blue Deadly Dick for Brenda, and a Diamond Jig for me. Not so much as a hit.
We all had lines in the water waiting on the sharks to arrive, but they kept us waiting. As the sun began to descend, MVSA president Donald Scarpone said he was moving down the beach. Some people left, but Donald, Neil Coppola, Ralph Peckham, Julie and Sal Tummino, and I relocated.
I had brought some squid from my spring harvest, and decided to give that a try. I got a lot of nibbles, and all six squid were consumed, probably by sea bass or scup. Felt them, but never saw them.
I watched the sun set over the grasses, enjoying the splendor of oranges and pinks painted across the sky. Donald offered me a piece of bluefish. I had two mackerel left, but figured it couldn’t hurt. I checked my bait twice in 30 minutes, replaced the bluefish once, and watched the glory of a red buck moon rising.
“Two more casts,” Donald called over to me.
I changed my bait to a small whole mackerel, cast, and I started packing.
Suddenly — six-plus hours and three days later — my line peeled. I picked up the rod, flipped the baitrunner, called over to Donald and Neil in case my shark headed their way, and waited. The reel stopped spinning. The shark had dropped the bait.
As I was retrieving, Julie hooked up. She landed a beautiful 54-inch brown shark.
We all decided to hang out for a while longer.
I had one large mackerel to use. I cut it in half, baited my hook, and cast. I picked up my Kindle and sat in the dark, reading Kristin Hannah’s “The Women.” I’d read a page when my reel began to click.
One click, two clicks, five clicks, ZING!
I grabbed my rod. This shark was on and running. Once again I called to Donald and Neil. They walked over, as did Ralph. When we spotted the shark, the guys got ready for the release. I pulled him a couple of feet out of the water. Donald and Neil measured him (54 inches) while I held the line, and Ralph held his tail. Donald pulled the hook out in one swift release, and Neil took two pictures before I returned him to the water.
It was close to 10 pm. Donald called it a night. He, Neil, and I left Ralph, Julie, and Sal with less than two hours to beat Matt. Honestly, Julie and Sal were leaving on Tuesday, and they were getting in every possible minute fishing until they returned in September.
I found out Monday morning that Sal landed the last shark of the tournament, a 52-inch brown shark. “My absolute favorite part of the summer is all the awesome people we have met. It has changed our lives for the better. My favorite part of shark fishing is when my wife gets a shark on. She gets so excited. It seems like all her [health] problems are gone for that short period of time,” said Sal, who boasted how proud he is of Julie.
Julie agreed with Sal that the people they spend time with on Chappy are the best part of their summer rental. “I’ve been coming since 1965. Sal came to M.V. to work for a summer in 1978. I brought him back when we got together in 1990,” said Julie, who won the tournament last year.
I hope to see you on the beach with friends and fish.
