The holidays are upon us, and I am thankful for the fish.
We are blessed in New England to have such great access to fish and fishing for sustenance and sport. And here in Rhode Island, we have some of the best fishing in the Northeast. Our striped bass, tautog, black sea bass and summer flounder fisheries are superb and arguably the best in the region.
I am also blessed to be able to take people fishing, experience and capture their joy in a photo, and then often write about it. Whether seven or 70 years old, no one catches a fish and is sad; they all have smiles on their faces.
This holiday season, I pledge again to be an advocate for the fish and the sea and to advocate to reduce climate impacts on fish and habitat.
Fishinar big success
Ørsted, owner of the Block Island Wind Farm and five other wind farms off the east coast, held its first free Fishinar Series last Wednesday on ground fishing for summer flounder, cod, tautog and black sea bass in the near offshore. Ninety-one anglers participated in the event, which was live-streamed on Zoom through District Hall Providence.
The aim of the Ørsted Fishinar series is to encourage angler input into offshore wind farm plans while relating strategies and tactics on how to catch the fish through expert charter captains and private anglers. You can see the Fishinar in its entirety on YouTube; just search for District Hall Providence.
Panelist Capt. BJ Silvia of Flippin Out Charters in Portsmouth, said, “I looked at an underwater video at the Block Island Wind Farm, saw all the mussel growth and fish feeding at the base of the pylon, then I saw a tautog feeding halfway up the vertical pylon and thought, I have to figure out a way to catching these suspended fish.”
Spear fishermen and rod and reel anglers are catching striped bass at the wind farm. “Peter Vican, Rhode Island striped bass record-holder (77 pounds, 6.4 ounces) and his fishing partner, Don Smith, were some of the first anglers to drop an eel at the wind farm for bass,” said Capt. Chris Willi of Block Island Fish Works, who lives and runs a charter and tackle business on Block Island. “We have a lot of natural structure around Block Island, and the ground fishing is good, but the wind farm added a new dimension to our fishing; each pylon is a 90-foot vertical artificial reef with enhanced structure, habitat and fish. We expect the same from other wind farms.”
“When fluke fishing, I like to fish with 20-pound test line without bait, just a jig and second stinger hook above the jig on a three-foot leader,” said Rich Hittinger, the first vice president of the RI Saltwater Anglers Association, and a Fishinar panelist. “Anglers like the structure at the base of wind farm pylons; in fact, we made a proposal to explore a pilot that adds scour protection and structure to the base of pylons.”
The second Fishinar, “Angling for Pelagic Fish,” will be held Wednesday, Dec. 9, at 7 p.m. via Zoom. Panelists include Capt. John McMurray of New York, charter captain, writer, president of the American Saltwater Guides Association and member of the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission; Capt. Charlie Donilon, Snappa Charters, shark fishing and shark cage diving expert; and Richard Pastore, RISAA member and near offshore fishing expert. Species discussed will include tuna, sharks, mahi and others. Visit https://districthallprovidence.org/calendar/ for event listing for additional information and to register for free tickets.
Still time to register for ‘Fishing the Cape Cod Canal’
East End Eddie Doherty is a Cape Cod Canal fishing expert. He also happens to be an excellent fishing author, fish advocate, speaker and Attleboro native. On Monday at 7 p.m., he will be the speaker at a RI Saltwater Anglers Association seminar, and there is still time to register.
Visit the event calendar at www.risaa.org to pre-register. RISAA members attend free, non-members will be asked to make a $10 donation to the RISAA scholarship fund in advance of the seminar by calling the RISAA office at (401) 826-2121.
Where’s the bite?
Tautog fishing is still very good. I worked on decommissioning the boat this past weekend, but managed to fish for three hours in the General Rock, North Kingstown area. I caught seven keepers to 19 inches and eight short fish; all fish were released. Manny Macedo of Lucky Bait in Warren said, “Customers fishing off Jamestown, at Elbow Ledge and Newport had difficulty catching their limit this weekend as the bite seemed to have slowed down a bit.” Dave Henault of Ocean State Tackle in Providence said, “Tautog fishing has been the best it has been in 20 years. Customers have caught quantities of fish and big ones too in the 10- and 11-pound range.” Capt. Frank Blount of the Frances Fleet said, “ When we were able to get out fishing this past week, fishing was rather good. Blackfishing has continued to see limit catches or a few fish shy every day. Pool fish on the week have been right around 10 pounds. Both jigs and the bait rigs have been producing, with more fish going to the bait rigs. When you can get a light tide and wind day, the jigs really shine. Biggest fish on the week was taken by longtime regular Sean from Connecticut with a solid 11-pound brute.”
Bluefin tuna have been spotted close to our coastal shore. Henault said, “We heard several reports of bluefin tuna sightings; 150- to 200-pound fish were seen off Newport and a 300- to 400-pound bluefin off Point Judith. Both sightings came from commercial fishermen who were fishing in the area.”
Freshwater fishing for trout has been good. Anglers are starting to turn their eye toward pike and carp as the water cools. Macedo said, “The Kickemuit River is quite cold already. Anglers are fishing there as well as ponds in Middletown.” Henault said, “The pike fishing has been OK at Stump Pond Coventry, with carp being caught in Lincoln ponds and at the Turner Reservoir.” Trout fishing has cooled, as most anglers are not targeting them now.
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November 28, 2020 at 10:45AM
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MONTI: Turkey leftovers aside, reason to be thankful for the fish - The Sun Chronicle
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