Sailfishing in February

I don't know about you but at this time of year I start to get cabin fever and start thinking about fishing.
Every February Janet and I head south to the Keys for a week to soak in some sun and relax.

We have stayed from Key West to Key Largo and I have fished all over the Keys but the best fishing this time of the year is in Key Largo. The edge of the reef is only three miles off shore and that is where the Sailfish are.
I've caught fifteen sails over the years my biggest being 120lbs and lost just as many and the thrill of seeing those fish sail though the air over and over again is just a beautiful sight.

I found this Captain 8 years ago at the Marina next to the Holiday Inn on Rt. 1 in Key Largo and he had this fast 36ft Contender with two 275hp Merc's on it. Capt. Beaver is alittle rough around the edges as most of the captains down there are, I don't know why that is,maybe from dealing with the public or maybe because only hardcore fisherman make the huge investment of doing business in the fishing capital of the world. and don't like dealing with rookie fisherman.

The prices of the charters vary from captain to captain depending if you want a half day or full day. I would suggest if your goal is to catch a Sailfish go for the full day trip. My captain charge's 750.00 for a full day which isn't that bad compared to the captains down the road in Marathon that have beautiful 42 footers with flying bridges and charge 1500.00 for a full day. Sometimes you can deal with them or even split a trip with other fisherman that can't afford the whole boat.

Just a word of advice if your a newcomer to sailfishing....the rougher the seas the greater success of catching sails. As I said earlier the reef is 3 miles offshore and that is where the sails feed, and with rough seas the baitfish get stirred  up. I've fished from them a couple of ways, with outriggers trolling live bait and flying kites.

I have had success with the kites but it's alot of work because you have to keep adjusting the kite line to keep the baits in the water. The live baits we have used are ballyhoo and goggleyes which we net 1st thing in the morning .

I hope you have the opportunity to do this type of fishing, There's nothing like heading toward the reef with all your baits and seeing free jumping Sailfish waiting for you at the reef.

Cod Fish Regulations

There as been alot of talk about how many Cod  we will be able to take this year.
Cod fisherman received some good news when the National Marine Fishers Service (NMFS) issued proposed regulations to implement measures in Amendment 13 to the Northeast Multispecies (groundfish) Fishery Management Plan.
The preferred alternative for recreational fishing was just about all sportsmen could ask for. The Cod min. is to drop from 23 to 22 inches,while the min. size for Haddock drops from 22 to 19 inches. Winter Flounder min. in Fed. waters remains at 12 inches, though that doesn't affect local fisheries which are in state waters where the min. remains at 11 inches.
The recreational daily limit for Cod remains at 10 per person, though there is no limit on party and charter boats fishing south and west of Cape Cod.

Whaleback is closed to Cod fishing during the spawn in the month of May.

East Pawtucketville Neighborhood Meeting

I attended the 2nd meeting of the East Pawtucketville Neighborhood Group this evening. It was well attended with about 30 residents and representative's of the Lowell Police, UMass Lowell Police, Rep. Tom Golden,CC Joe Mendona, Mike Demaris and Henri Marchand from the City Managers Office. The issue's raised this evening were parties and noise from students from UMass. Part of the problem is that these apartments are owned by absentee landlords. This was a issue during the last campaign not only about noise but maintaining the property's as to not bring down the value of the homes in the city's neighborhoods. I suggested during the campaign that if these landlords cannot maintain there properties we should find a way to force them to hire a property management company and work with inspectional services to insure the these apartments are also up to code.
Paul Marion from Umass Public Relations Office said the goal of the university is to house the students and plan to build a 350 bed dorm off Aiken St. across from the ballpark. He also said that students living on campus have a better experience and do better in school..and it's also good from business.
This neighborhood group is just starting out and the residents have real concerns about their quality of life.

Capt. Stupid sinks cruise ship

I was watching City Life this morning before heading out to work and they were discussing the sinking of the cruise ship because John has and likes to cruise. I have never gone on a cruise but I know of many people that have and they tell me there's nothing like it. Let me first say I don't have any interest of being aboard a ship with 4000 people and then hitting a port where every ripoff artist on the island is waiting to prey on me and my money.

The cruise ships of today have the latest computerized navigation equipment available. There is no wheel to steer just a computer and a joystick. Capt. Stupid decided to override his course to impress someone on shore and as a result put the lives of 4000 souls in danger. I'm sorry that there was unneeded loss of life and the loss of that ship, I found it shocking the first time I saw the footage on TV. I can only imagine the terror as that ship started to list to the starboard side, and to top it all Capt. Stupid abandoned ship before the passengers and left a unsupervised crew to deal with the passengers.This was not the Titanic,woman and children first while the band played.

If this were the early 1800s Capt. Stupid would be hanging from the yardarm..   

About 300 dolphins at risk of stranding safely guided out of Wellfleet harbor; two dolphins dead

About 300 doPublish Postlphins at risk of stranding safely guided out of Wellfleet harbor; two dolphins dead.

I've always wondered why these intelligent and beautiful animals strand themselves. I've heard that in some pods a sick leader of the pod may lead them in or false currents created by tides in shallow coastlines like the cape may cause them to beach themselves,but I'm happy that there are organisations that come out to guide them back to sea.
I've had the pleasure to see them many times while fishing, they come up and breach and sometimes come up to the boat to see whats up,and its always a treat to see them up close.
Last summer I was doing a burial at sea off the coast of Boars Head and the family were saying their final goodbyes to their Mother,as the oldest Daugherty placed the first handful of ashes in the water a dolphin swam under the boat and though her Mothers ashes. I still get goosebumps when I think of it too.     

Thank you Paul Marion

I'd like to thank Paul Marion for coming up with a great name for my blog. I love it while my wife Janet shakes her head. It's not the first time I've seen her do that.  Thanks again Paul..

Thanks to Dick Howe Here I Go

I never thought in a million years I would start blogging but here I go. As most of you know I've been involved for many years in the city as a neighborhood activist and life long resident of the city of Lowell. I have run for public office twice and participated in many of the discussions on many of the the blogs in the city.

My blog will touch on the topics of the the day ( as I get used to this format ) and fishing reports as my charter season gets closer. I hope you will stop by from time to time to check it out and offer your ideas and comments.