I woke up Tuesday morning in shock. My bedroom thermostat read 55°. All the windows were open wide, as was the slider. The wind blustered in to confirm that it was officially September. I dressed in pants, a long-sleeve tech, a sweatshirt, a windbreaker, and a hat before heading out for some sunrise fishing. The morning before, I was in shorts.
Personally, and as much as I LOVE the Martha’s Vineyard Striped Bass and Bluefish Derby, I am never, and I do mean never, ready for summer to draw to a close.
As I drove through first light to a current hot spot for bonito, it was too early for children to be at bus stops, but I knew they would be up soon, getting ready for the first day of school.
Time for ABCs, reading, writing, arithmetic, and days filled with learning.
On the beach, we’re always reading — reading the water, that is. We’re looking for anxious bait, for swirls and fins, for birds feeding, and for fish blitzing.
It adds up that arithmetic and fishing go hand in hand. Almost every fisherman I know calculates how many hours he or she can fish, how much money can be spent on tackle, and how many fish have been caught, how much the fish weigh, and, for Derby purposes, how many inches a fish measures.
After all that reading and math, we need to write where we were, what we caught, the time of day in our fishing journals. Journals are a map, a history book that records what happened not only to remember, but to help us predict where and when the fish might show up again.
Ask any fishermen, especially those entering the Derby, if they know their ABC’s. We are all about A is for albie, B is for bonito, bass, and bluefish, and C is for our local seas.
With the dawn of September, I’m hoping to work on my ABCs daily. I saw a few albies landed this week, heard there were some smaller blues hooked from shore, and saw and caught lots of bass. The most-used “B” this past week was bonito. When someone asks, “Where are the bonito?” The answer is simple: Everywhere. From Menemsha to State Beach to Edgartown Harbor to Chappy to Vineyard Haven, people are catching plenty of bonito from shore, and even more from the boat.
The shore bonito are still running small, under four pounds, and most of us are releasing them to grow bigger. I’ve heard of nice six- and seven-pounders caught on the boat. Bonito is one of my favorites, and I’m looking forward to catching a dinner keeper, almost as much as I’m dreaming of a Derby winner.
While in line for Porto Pizza, I was asked specifically where I was fishing and what time. I’ll be honest, that information isn’t for general or public knowledge. Most fishermen share info with select friends, but not with everybody. With the Martha’s Vineyard Striped Bass and Bluefish Derby less than two weeks away, technically 11 days, 8 hours, and 31 minutes, let’s talk about fishing spots.
First, a good fishing spot is sacred. Second, there are well-known Island locations that are shareable. Third, when we talk about location, we also must keep one fact in mind: Fish are fish. One day they’re swimming all around Eastville, and you can’t cast fast enough. You go back the next day, and zero fish. A friend texts and says he’s at Edgartown Harbor and already caught four albies. You text back that you’ll meet him there in the morning. Sure enough, the next morning you spend four hours casting into quiet waters, and see only two fish landed. An hour later you hear from friends on East Beach asking where you are, because the blues and albies have been blitzing for three hours and show no signs of stopping.
All of that happened to me last year. Every one of those spots I mentioned can be productive. I just can’t tell you when.
I wish I knew each morning where the fish were going to be all day as I climb into the Jeep and head to the beach.
I just don’t know.
While I can’t tell you where the fish will be tonight or tomorrow, I can tell you the only way to catch fish is to get a line in the water.
I hope to see you on the beach, and that we’re practicing our ABCs.
