Fluke, Bonito, Spanish Mackerel, and Spot
In shop news, we received our first order of the Van Staal VSX2 reels. A few bail-less VS150X2 arrived. We have called everyone on the list for a non-gold VS150X2. (If you are on the list for a Gold Reel or any size other than 150 bail-less, we will call when those arrive. Don't call the shop) There are a few left for those who didn’t get on the list. We also have one black VS151X2 in the shop, ie a lefty 150. If you want it shipped, contact us here.
Blackcloud Bob and Connor have finished a round of custom St Croix Legend rods in custom colors. Come in and check them out. I'll post a picture, but it really does not do that workmanship justice.
We have restocked the online store with DNG dividers, for those who were waiting for their return.
The fishing has been good, but we are starting to see signs of the fall transition. The fluke are still the star of the show, but the fishing in the surf has slowed down a little bit. It might be from the wind switch we just experienced, it might be from them starting to move to deeper water. Stay Tuned...
Fishing for fluke in boats has remained very good on the nearshore reef and wrecks. Bucktails and Gulp! are still the number one way to target them, but those who insist on using natural bait are finding mackerel strips are taking some nice sized fluke.
The small bluefish have been in and out of the wash and off the beach all weekend. Small metals and epoxy jigs have been taking them. Mixed in with them are Spanish mackerel and small bonito. No reports of false albacore yet, but their arrival seems imminent with the amount of bait that is around now.
On the bayside, the snappers are around, but the biggest story are the spot. Even the anglers catching blowfish are getting more spot than puffers. Small bits of squid, clam or Fish Bites for the spot and puffers.
The report on crabbing is that it remains good, but to put together a good catch you will need to cull through lots of small crabs. Bunker is the best bait.
Here are some notable recent catches:
Stanley Gola with his personal best fluke, a 9.8 pound specimen caught on custom ODM 7' FrontierX Boat Rod "Light" built by Blackcloud Bob with an S&S Bucktails 3oz Ragging Rattler.
James Budish was out in his boat off IBSP on Saturday and founds tons of small blues, some small bonito and a few nice Spanish mackerel feeding on small baitfish. This one fell for an epoxy jig.
The bonito also made it into the surf. @anthony_barritta got into them over the weekend.
Our own Jenni was out on a boat Monday morning and got into some nice fluke on bucktails and Gulp!.
For those not following along, Ray is currently on (another) vacation. He has gone camping again. He checks in with the shop periodically, mostly when he is near a cell tower. News from the campground is Ray Jr won the “most fish caught” in the fishing tournament held at the campground (Congrats Ray Jr!), showing that fishing success is apparently hereditary. Also, Uncle Sean won biggest fish in that tournament, showing that a Smida will outfish a Kerico any chance he gets. Here is a video of Sean and Ray celebrating, doing the dance of Ray's people.
