The day before we arrived, there were 60 fish pods of Bonito destroying bait in the cove we were parked in. The bait was there, but today was an exercise in frustration. The wind was outrageous. The forecast said 15 to 25 but it was more like 35 sustained. Bonito like clean, clear water and the tide was pushing out, approaching dead low and getting dirty fast. It was apparent that the fish had headed somewhere more suitable to their predatory nature and it was our job to find them. Jeremy knows the Rhode Island coast like the back of his hand and has been chasing Tuna species long enough to know what areas they prefer, according to tides and water conditions. We motored up and down the coast for hours, sacrificing our bodies getting beat up bad by the surf. Every once and awhile we would spot them, make a drastic change in direction and be in them. The problem was they were only showing half-heartedly. They would stay up on the bait for a brief time, usually just out of reach from the boat and going down quickly. Then they would pop up again further away as they terrorized giant balls of baitfish. On the second morning the wind had laid down and we found ourselves smack in the middle of a decent number of them. Jeremy would watch them feed get a pulse on them, fire up the motor and drop us right in their path, a hundred yards away. We watched them work the bait up the slick towards the boat, the anticipation was out of this world, I was shaking from head to toe. I had at least a handful of shots at them before they decided to pull the disappearing act again. Meanwhile, giant pods of Bluefish were erupting all along the coast. There were literally thousands of them, the birds were going crazy and bait was flying everywhere. When you are trying to get a Bonito on the boat the Blues can be quite a nuisance and distraction but it was driving me crazy. I told Jeremy it would be cool to redeem myself and throw a few casts into the mix. So he motored us out ahead of the blitz and put us into the perfect position, with the wind behind my right shoulder. The waves were ridiculous; I had a tough time steadying myself to even be able to get the cast off. After several attempts and repositioning the boat I was finally able to get in the game and lace one up! It felt great after getting beat up by the Bonito for a few days. I’m not going to throw in the towel though; I’ll be back out for a shot at those Albies in a few weeks. Thanks again, looking forward to chasing the hard tails real soon!
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- Guide & Fisherman
- Guiding: Choosing Your Guide And Choosing Your Customer
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- More Roughfish: Bullheads, Whitefish, Goldeye, Burbot & Drum
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- Rough Fish Species: The Suckers
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- Striped Bass
- Striped Bass: Fishing Rocky Shorelines
- Striped Bass: Fishing The Beaches
- Striped Bass: Fishing The Flats
- Striped Bass: Fishing The Reefs
- Striped Bass: Fishing Tidal Rivers
- Striped Bass: Flatwing Swing
- Striped Bass: Fly Line Options & Choices
- Striped Bass: Gear, The Nuts & Bolts
- Striped Bass: Migration Patterns
- Striped Bass: What They Eat
- The Art Of Escape
- Fly Fishing: A Natural Drug
- Fly Fishing: A Validation Of Freedom
- Fly Fishing: Don’t Fight The Current
- Fly Fishing: It Is What It Is
- Fly Fishing: Socialization For Asocial Individuals
- Fly Fishing: The Allure Of The Fish
- Fly Fishing: The Art Of Escape
- Fly Fishing: The Simplicity Of It All
- Fly Fishing: Time Flies
- Fly Fishing: Times You Remember & Try To Forget
whippa .. nice work brotha … if you can get it done in those conditions you can get it done anywhere … we had the shots at the bonito and you had one taker .. but, the elements were conspiring against us … personally, i was built for that kind of fly fishing … since i was as young as i can remember i have been chasing down fish like that .. sometimes on jetties, sometimes on beaches and sometimes on boats … it drives me nuts when guys are whining “oh god, this is so tough .. the wind ..the seas .. blah,blah, blah ..” i love it … the harder the better … that’s all part of fishin’ … i love full throttle, chasing down fish, running countless miles in search of fish, battling the elements and all the things that conspire against us … guys who are looking for perfect weather, a nice boat ride and some easy sunday fly fishing wouldn’t like it on the bow of my boat .. that’s for sure .. shoot man, having longlined in the gulf stream a couple hundred miles off shore for 30 days at a whack with 10-15 foot seas and howling winds … that’s tough … anything inshore for 1 day of fly fishing and at night your feet are back on land … that’s just fun … you rocked it bro! you fished the conditions you were dealt … and got it done … end of story … doesn’t surprise me really, coming from steelhead country you know about hard core elements .. wind in your face, sleet smashing you in the face, frozen hands and line and big water … deal with it and get it done! my kind of fly fishing … sure, i too love the glassy seas and no wind days with lots of fish that are “easy” to catch … who doesn’t … but, if that’s all we were willing to fish …we wouldn’t fish much … your welcome on the bow of my boat any time!
Nice work Whippa!! Casting a fly line inland with wind is a PITA as is. I can only imagine how tough the wind is when it is blowing that hard over open ocean waters. Especially when getting bounced all over the place in a small craft. Great vid as always.
Dave, great to see you out with us on the salt. As you saw…those bluefish didn’t really care about that wind in the morning, and you immediatly put your game face on and forgot about it also. It was great to see you get it done the hard way….and i look forward to being there to take the pictures of your first albie/bonito this year…..then we have steelhead….it’s gonna be a great year brother!
Austin,
Its always a pleasure to fish with you. Had a great time…..looking forward to hitting the salt with you soon. Steel are on the way, I’ll save a few drifts for ya!
Nice work, bro!
Glad you were able to persevere in those conditions. I guess you have to pay your dues for those bonito, just like you have paid your dues for steel. Sweet vid, too. Austin did a great job capturing the moment while J-Bone was chewing your ear to get it done.
What a rush…Those fish got in my head so bad I am still obsessing over them. That is one of the most exhillerating moments of my fly fishing career. Chasing them down and being in the mix with those fish right off the bow is incredible, a totally different perspective than standing around on the beach waiting for it to happen. Tighten up the screws on the rail and keep “the seagull” running full tilt. It got a little hairy out there at times but all part of the experience! I’ll be back down in a couple weeks when the bruises heal. Thanks again
That was some crazy conditions but you dealt with them well. Congrats on a hard fought fish!
Way to get it done Whip. That is a bruiser of a blue. Wind in your face, heavy swells with Jeremy and Austin yelling sounds like a usual outing. Look forward to fishing with you guys in the fall.
sweet video. I was out there sunday, monday and tuesday, and line management was edfinitely an issue.
Well done despite with the big wind. One thing that fishing reminds me again and again is that one has to deal with what mother nature delivers and then adapt. Looks like you guys did just that. I imagine that you must have been beat at the end of the day from the sun, wind and waves.
There’s nothing wrong with catching bluefish like that.
Whip,
Nice post, and great video…
It can be hard enough delivering a clean cast when you’re amped up and fish are busting in your face. Add waves breaking over the bow and line snarling winds and most folks would have turned for home or never gone out. I’m not surprised the three of you stayed on track and boated some nice fish.
Those hardtales have elluded me too
but those albies should be on their way…
nice man i wish i was there send me some pics of the flies you used if possible thanks