Good as new?

Here are before-and-after photos of the Bravo Three outdrive skeg we damaged when we hit the rocks at Bodkin Point back in June. I found the stainless skeg guard on-line and finally installed it this evening. It looks better than new, and may even be more functional. I haven't had the dings in the stainless duo-prop repaired yet. I talked to someone about it and he told me that it cost the same to get one machined whether there was one ding or six, so best to wait until the end of the season. Hopefully, I won't run aground again! -S

Reubin Had A Train ---

that ran from England to Spain, or from Baltimore to New York, as was the case this past weekend. Since I've never ridden on an honest-to-god passenger train, Dianne was nice enough to oblige me on her birthday trip to the Big Apple. I liked it. I'd much rather ride the rails than the friendly skies on short excursions. Manhatten was fun, and very HOT. We had a great view from our 50th floor hotel room. I looked for Paris Hilton but she never showed. Went to the Blue Note for jazz and was surprised to see one of Daniel's UT buddies (Cameron) playing in Clark Terry's Big Band. Coming back, I ran my suitcase over an old lady's foot. She chased me down and hit me. No kidding! -S

Installing a Boat Lift - Avoiding Electrolysis

We are finally getting the much anticipated boat lift installed. I've learned that there are a lot of differences between taking care of a boat in salt water as opposed to the fresh water lakes of Tennessee. The primary concern is corrosion. Since salt water is such a good conductor of electric current, a boat tied to a dock essentially becomes a floating battery. Dissimilar metals in the water will produce voltage with either a positive or negative charge. Current will pass back and forth causing electrolysis which results in severe rusting and pitting. To minimize this, salt water marine components use sacrificial anodes called zincs. The zincs are placed near the prop, outdrive, trim tabs and other components. They're designed to conduct electricity better, thus drawing the current away from other metals. Since they corrode quickly, zincs have to be replaced every couple of years, or even more often depending on the level of salinity and whether the boat stays in the water. Even with good zincs, you still get some rusting and pitting. Our solution has been to put the boat on the trailer when we don't plan to use it. But, I really like to have it on the dock for those spur-of-the-moment fishing or cruising trips. That's why we need a boat lift. It works like a float-on trailer utilizing a system of cables and pullies to lift the boat above the water. Considering the wind and waves we get, it's even more important on our dock. Unfortunately there's a big backlog of dockowners in our area who want to get lifts installed. We've been waiting since April. If things go according to plan, the lift should be installed by this weekend. I'll put up a picture when it's finished. -S

Dinks at Mountain Point

I tried tonight, but couldn't repeat last night's luck at Love Point. I gave up early and called Dianne to say I was coming in. I almost made it, idling through the No-Wake zone at the mouth of the river when I noticed a boat anchored off to the right near Mountain Point. There were two people on board and both were fighting fish. I decided they needed company. I motored around upwind and a little closer to the shallow point while watching them catch fish with almost every cast. I could see they were casting something small, but couldn't figure out what it was. I threw everything in my box before finally putting down my casting reel, picking up my spinning outfit and tying on a chartreuse rooster-tail. First cast - wham! A 3lb rockfish. I kept casting and they kept hitting. Nothing big enough to keep, but lots of fun on light spinning gear. I limped in just after dark, thankful that I finally got that halogen light up on the end of the dock. -Shawn

Something to Like at Love Point

I talked Dianne in to joining me with her camera for a dash across the Bay to Love Point this evening. Love Point is located at the northern tip of Kent Island, almost due east from the mouth of the Magothy, where the Chester River enters the Bay. I've heard that rockfish have been breaking there in recent days. There were no sign of breakers tonight, but we still had fun. This was the biggest, about 24 inches - a beautiful fish. I've tried many new kinds of trolling rigs since I started fishing here, but I've settled right back into my tried-and-true deep running crank-bait with a 3/4 or 1 ounce bucktail (fly) tied on above. With this rig you can get plenty deep without extra weight, so you can still troll with light tackle. In other words, I can still use my freshwater casting outfits. The trick is in making sure your lures are running true and straight. If they run off even a little bit, you're in for big tangle-troubles when you are fishing multiple rods. I bought a couple of bigger trolling reels a while back, and I'm still using them as well, but with the same lure and fly rig. Dianne got a few nice shots. I like the perspective of looking up at the bent rods. I'm very tempted to crack about how her best work is done while horizontal, but I would never do anything like that! -S

Why was I on the Capitol steps in a suit?

Just hanging out with my two favorite women in Washington!

Sea Ray

Yesterday, my right arm was really sore. I think I have "fisherman's elbow." I tried to talk myself out of fishing last night, thinking I needed some recovery time and especially since it looked like there could be storms later. I packed the cooler and was idling through the mouth of the Magothy at 6:30 PM. By 8:00 I had hooked up 4 Rockfish and managed to get two in the boat trolling three rods - deep running lures below 3/4 oz bucktails (flies). First fish was about 22 inches and had sores all over it. I've never seen a fish in such bad shape. I was surprised that he was still feeding and hanging with the school. It was a bad omen. The sky was starting to look a little threatening, but there was still some light left and a few other boats around, so I decided to make one last pass.

Just as I was about to troll across the shelf at Pohickory Point, I hooked up again. Right away I realized this was the heaviest fish I've ever felt. I hooked him on my lightest rig with 14lb test line. Thirty minutes later, I was still fighting even though it was now obvious that there was a hellacious storm coming. Unable to gain line in what was now a very strong wind, I had to back the boat into the building waves. They crashed over the transom causing a continuous heavy spray. Deep down, I knew it was a ray, but I was still holding out hope for that world record Rockfish, or well, anything else! With rain now falling, I knew I should turn loose, especially with lightning cracking all around. I just couldn't!

Even though I fished commercially for a couple of years down in Tennessee and caught some huge catfish, I hadn't felt anything this big before. I never yelled and hollered so continuously and loudly with no one around to hear! Forgetting to pay attention, I got too close to Sandy Pt Light, only realizing it when both my other reels started screaming, hopelessly hung up in the traps. I yelled even louder while slicing through both lines with one whack of my filet knife.

I'm not sure who really won the battle. I did in fact get the winged beast to the side of the boat, but there was no hope of getting him over in the blinding wind and rain. I got a real good look at him before cutting the line. He looked to me to be about as wide as an F-150 hood. The dash back home was one to remember. With 50 mph gusts coming straight down the Bay, my little Sea Ray 250 Express was really bouncing, but the wide open big block Merc and Bravo 3 outdrive really scoots and kept me on top of the waves until the bimini blew off right between first two channel markers at the mouth of the Magothy. I wrestled it into the boat and managed to turn back into the teeth of the storm. It was dark now, but Dianne had turned on our string of white deck lights, so I could more easily find the house. She saw me coming and came out on the dock, but there was no hope of tying up in the storm. I turned back and headed for my neighbor Bret's more sheltered dock inside Lake Placid.

Finally making it inside the house, I was soaked, sore, a little scared, and still pumping with adrenalin. I learned a few lessons last night, realize I did some dumb stuff, but dern, I never felt so alive! I've also never been more determined never to do anything like that again! -S

Boating Accidents

The Chesapeake Bay is crowded in the summer. In places, way too crowded. One of those places is the Magothy River near Gibson & Dobbins Islands - where we live. It's fine thorugh the week, but on weekends, hundreds of boats anchor and party behind the islands. I've crusied through a couple of times, but I usually find somewhere else to go. Sunday night after I came in from fishing the Choptank I got out my electric filet knife and was preparing our dinner on the dock when I noticed a boat with flashing blue lights screaming through the No Wake Zone at the mouth of the river. Soon several other police boats joined them near Dobbins Island, about a mile across the river. I watched for a while with my binoculars but couldn't tell what was going on except that I noticed one boat being towed away and the police boats still circling. I thought it must have been a drowning. Yesterday the newspapers told the story: A man and a woman were thrown from their respective boats last night after the two Sea Rays hit each other on the Magothy River, (click for the full story). There was another accident, this one fatal, up north of us as well, and I've heard of many more this summer. I feel safer motoring around the huge ships in the Inner Harbor than dodging the weekend nuts in the river. -S

Choptank

My buddy Dave Wolf picked me up yesterday morning to try out his new Twin Vee fishing boat. Dave has family over on Maryland's Eastern Shore and is comfortable fishing that side of the Bay. We put in at the ramp in Easton and motored out near the mouth of the Choptank River where we anchored on a ledge near Buoy 10. We tied on top-and-bottom-rigs baited with squid and soon started bringing in some Spots, Croakers, and surprisinly, a few Bluefish. I haven't caught Blues before. They are strong fighters and flop like crazy once they're in the boat. I caught a little one and was struggling to put it in the cooler when I slung my hand into a knife that I had stupidly left open on the deck. The point hit a vein and I bled profusely for a while before finally getting it to clot. It cost me a visit to the doctor today, but didn't intefere too badly with the rest of our trip. After growing tired of bottom fishing, we followed some big schools of bait around but didn't find any larger fish beneath them. Then, Dave showed me some other popular fishing and cruising places on the Choptank. The Eastern Shore is much less populated than our side of the Bay. There are many quaint and picturesque fishing villages and a laid-back atmosphere that I really like. I can see why Dave likes it over there. I'm hoping Dianne will join me for an overnight cruise down that way soon. -S

Eels

Last night, I hung a light off the end of the dock. I heard that rockfish come in to lighted docks in the summer, so I eventually plan to put up something bigger, like a street light. But last night, I just plugged in a light bulb barely above the water to see what would happen. As expected, the bugs attracted lots of small fish. I noticed a few small crabs swimming circles under the light, and the perch soon came along to see what the excitement was about. When the rockfish move into the river, if they haven't already, I don't see how they can resist the brightly lit smorgasboard. I didn't fish for them last night, instead just throwing out a lazy piece of shrimp while talking to Dianne who joined me on the dock with a magazine and her camera. -- It only took about 10 seconds after baiting and casting for the line to start dancing. To my surprise, I soon started catching eels on my shrimp baits. Until now, I've never caught an eel before. These eels don't look as fearsome as some I've seen, but it still didn't take long before I was frustrated with them interfering with my fishing. I did some research and found that these American Eels actually begin their life in the Sargasso Sea near the Bahamas. They drift as larvae into the Bay, then eat and grow for a few years before traveling back to the tropics to mate and die. Even though they are harvested commercially as a delicacy to be shipped to Europe and Asia (and here in the US - the same ones on the combo in the sushi bars) I won't be eating any of these. They just look too nasty to prepare. I wonder if catching eels is a summertime thing, or a result of the lighted dock? -S

If I Had A Rocket Launcher.....

That's the title of a Bruce Cockburn song I've been singing to myself lately while trying to troll with the two skinny rod holders on the transom of the Sea Ray. They just aren't up to the task of handling the big rods and heavy baits needed for trolling in the Bay. I looked at the stainless 1:3 converters Bass Pro and Boater's World sells, but they cost over $125.00 each. Tonight I stopped by Home Depot and picked up 18 bucks worth of PVC pipe. What do you think? -S

Getting back to normal

The Bay is finally getting back to normal after the pre-July 4 floods and storms. I took a couple of friends out fishing yesterday. We had the best luck for rockfish trolling umbrella rigs between the lighthouses (Baltimore & Sandy Point) in about 35 ft of water. Nothing big enough to brag about. We also caught a few nice sized perch in the Magothy which we fried up for dinner last night. I'm glad to see that the crabs are back too. I'm catching some big males off the dock. I think this week's full moon with keep them active. The water is still a little dingy and there is lots of junk floating around from the floods up in Pennsylvania, but things are starting to get better. -S

St. Michaels

One of the places I've most wanted to explore by boat is St. Michaels over on Maryland's Eastern Shore. It's a quaint little waterfront village situated on a peninsula between Tilghman Island and Easton. About 25 miles by water, we chose a route that cruised us across the Bay, around the upper side of Kent Island, down through the Kent Narrows, then up the Miles River. I studied the charts carefully and only had to stop a couple of times to refresh my memory. It paid to be careful because there are some areas of thin water. St. Michaels was colonized in the late 1600s and features lots of historic homes, churches and cemeteries. Now it's something of a boating resort area with many bed and breakfasts, restaurants, and gift shops. It's accessable by car, but certainly not convienent. Although St. Michaels claims to represent the "Southern" side of Maryland, it reminds me more of the little oceanside villages in Maine. We arrived in the heat of the afternoon so decided to have a late lunch, then visit some of the downtown shops. Unfortunately, the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum was closed for the July 4 holiday. After a few hours exploring, we decided to cruise back toward home. Our plan was to take a different route back, returning down the Miles River, turning South around Hambleton Point, then back North up the main channel of the Bay. However, we had no sooner started out of the harbor when the marine-band radio lit up with word of a severe thunderstorm heading east from Annapolis with 70 mile per hour winds! I decided to keep to the more sheltered Kent Narrows route. We nearly made it to the Narrows before the rain started and hid out under a side channel of the low drawbridge to wait out the lightning and strong winds. The current coming under the bridge was strong, but the wind was pushing in the opposite direction so I was able to keep the boat steady beneath the narrow arch without ever touching. After the storm we bounced out across the 3 footers, crossing the main channel in time for more fireworks last night. -S

Celebration of a Busy Day!

We just returned to the Bay after visiting Dianne's family in Michigan and Ohio. At 5:30 this morning we were 30 miles West of Toledo. After a drive to Detroit, a surprisingly stressless flight to Baltimore, and a full (unstressless) day of work, I came home to repair a broken door and porch light. Apparently we had some strong storms while we were away. It now appears that we've lost about half of the garden to last week's flooding. After cleaning up, mowing, weeding and sweeping, I decided to finish the evening refining my quest for the perfect margarita. I'm very close! After the sun went down, we were surprised by a nice fireworks show coming from across the river, somewhere Northeast over and beyond Gibson Island. The fireworks were far enough away so that it took about 8 seconds for the sounds of the explosions to reach us after we saw the blasts. It was nice way to end the very busy day, sitting out on the front deck enjoying the reflections in the water.

The Perfect Margarita*
2 oz Cuervo Especial Tequilla
1 oz Grand Mariner
Juice of 2 limes
Splash of orange juice (very small splash)
1 Fruit Fly (optional)
Combine with cracked ice in drink shaker. Pour into salted-rim tumbler while frothy. Sip around edge until salt is gone, then pour back into shaker and re-salt tumbler.
*so far -S

Rockfish? Where?

So here I am in what is supposed to be the best area for striper fishing in the country, and my phone buzzes with this picture message from my 19 year old son, Cory. He and my brother Creig are live-lining skip-jack herring down below Nickajack Dam on the Tennessee River near Chattanooga, and turning up trophy rockfish. Meanwhile, dear ol' dad hasn't got a bite! -S