Fall is here...and it feels like it for a change!

Sept 25, 2000:

    Well, fall is certainly here and it's starting off with a nice NE blow which is proper I figure...it'll shake things up, out with old, in with the new...and you just can't beat upper 50 degree nights for comfort! In all the craziness, I never got a page up on Friday...much as I wanted to! Thursday we headed back to where we had seen the sand eels and caught a few fat bass the night before. Only we ended up with the skunk...my first skunking that I can remember in a real long while! Hey, it happens! Actually, we didn't get skunked...we each landed world record, mounting size star gazers...both an honest 5#'s...mine slammed a rigged eel...got the squid hook even! Charlie's fell for the Delta Sword. So it wasn't a real skunking...just a skunking for what we were after! Friday night we heeded our lesson from the prior night...in the flat, low water, check out around the rock piles. Charlie hooked a real nice fish only to have it bust up his leader and steal his teaser...that was the firs unicorn of the evening. He landed a short moments later. Then inside 10 minutes, I landed 2 around 32" and a 25" (about 10#, 12#, and 5# for the pounds crowd ;-) That was it...all in a row...not another hit for 2 more hours even after covering all the areas nearby where this activity occurred! That's odd for sure, 5 fish hooked between us in about 15 minutes or so....and then not another one! Well, not really no more, I did manage to get the bonus striper on my official last cast along the beach as we were departing...another fat 32" fish. Always take a last cast....and always announce it loudly, sometimes the fish are so glad to see ya leave they'll send ya off with a bite! Strange thing Thursday night, I had 3 fish on a small olive/yellow hackle deceiver....one on a rigged green Felmlee eel...and one fish on an all white epoxy sand eel...not one fish on any of the 6 or 7 plugs I threw. This was really odd to me as the beach was loaded in spearing and mullet...you'd think the bass would be interested in mullet like wood and plastic...they weren't. They just love to keep us guessing sometimes!

    Saturday night Carole and I went to a friend of hers house for a fantastic dinner and to hang out for a few hours. Thanks to Joanne and Bud for the hospitality, what a unique and gorgeous house! And Bud can really cook!!! I won't soon forget the brazed vegetables and the melt in your mouth fillet mignon....all I can say is I nearly needed help getting into the car! ;-) After we got home my lovely wife went to sleep...it was time to keep the unicorns honest again! Paul, Charlie, and I headed first north of the Fling area only to let Paul catch one little striper while I released a nice, fat fluke. We spent considerable time where we thought the bass would certainly be...but they weren't...they weren't anywhere nearby either! Them dogs, they do this kinda stunt to keep ya on yer toes! A drive down into the heart of the Fling area was decided to be the plan of attack. Within a few minutes in this area, I released a fat short as did Paul...Charlie was having leader issues and was re-rigging. Then we kinda split up...Paul headed south...Charlie headed north...and I kinda stayed put to decide which way to head. I plucked another short outta the same boot prints...it clobbered one of my new favorite plugs...it's a beauty, a 4 1/2" Delta Sword in chartreuse! It's a wonderful sand eel imitation in action, shape, and length...in the ultra visible lime green over bright chartreuse yellow. Before the night was over, I hooked 5 fish on it and landed 4 of them...including the pool winner of about 10-11#'s. I did have a bigger pool winner right up on the dry sand, just heading down to set it free when it decided to save me the trouble! It looked to be in the 13-15# bracket as it lay there...but I never got to touch it, it left on the next wave! Oh well, it was gonna go back anyway. That fish ate a ball jig creeped along with the northward pull of the surf....WHAM! Actually caught me off guard, none of us had had a hit in a while when that one clobbered the jig. Paul had gone home by now, two unicorns safely released...I did see him drooling over the hot green little plug I was removing from these critters...I better put on aside for him ;-) Anyway, we all got some bites, all had some fish, and all enjoyed the night in the suds. Pretty soon, the fish will start really begging to be caught in the daylight...I absolutely dread those days, too many hammerheads with binoculars who won't even wet a line till they see a bent rod...but all ya can do is try to fish where they can't see ya! Yup, I'd rather catch a few less fish in a place that requires them to get outta their lazy-butt-mobiles and actually walk down to the water to "spy". This keeps about 80% of them from bothering you, it's amazing just how lazy many of the "fall only" guys with rods are! Use this to your advantage...whenever you can, make sure there's something keeping you outta sight from the boardwalk or road...we can only hope that this'll convince many of these guys that there's really nothing going on! ;-) I'll still hunt the nights but will start soon adding a little daylight to the repertoire soon...much as I don't like it, it's necessary and can be enjoyable in the right places. It's fall guys...early fall...but at least it's no longer summer! The mullet are quite thick right now, every beach I've looked at with my light in the night has had a showing of mullet on it...some beaches are packed with the little silver bullets...and the fish know this!

    The Gibb's bottles and darters are now up on the site! Actually, they've been up for a bit now, but you'd need to check the page to know this! Matter of fact, you gotta check the update page every single day in order to really keep up with what's going on around here...changes nearly every single day! I've got a huge pile of new photo pages to put up, my apologies to those of you who've been patiently waiting for me to do your photo page, things are understandably crazy around here and your pages will be up very soon!

     Just updated the page with locations and a more thorough tackle recommendation...somehow, I let the tackle recommendations remain there that I listed for the Spring Fling!  Also, I put up the new ! Good one DP, I'm still laughing at this one! ;-)

   The Hab's Needlefish page is now up!  Check out the needlefish, I've never seen anything like them before....and they are just in time, we've actually got a great amount of sandeels in our sand for the first time in many, many years! It's gonna be some fall folks, get yer gear and be prepared!

      Let's get registered for the as soon as you are certain you can attend! Accurate numbers will help in all facets of preparing for the Fling! Much as the rest of you, this is my busiest time of the year, fishing wise that is! I'll be taking an entire week of at some point very soon...prior to the Fling, it would be nice to be able to have a fairly accurate number of Flingers. No, it's not really that important that you register right now, but the sooner the better! I've got some more info for the Fling pages as to the locations we're planning to fish, but first I gotta get up the Hab's Needlefish and Gibb's bottles and darters....soon, very soon my friends! ;-)

Sincerely,

Tim Surgent

Shufflin' the deck

Sept 26, 2000:

     Wow, from hot and sweaty weather to grab yer jacket weather...now that's beautiful! Highs today around 55 degrees....the winds are really whipping up the surf, the Long Island Buoy has the waves at 12.1 feet right now and the wind from 30-40kts outta the NE...it's a storm! The fishing will benefit from this heave in the next couple days...but for now, it's pretty much gonna shut it down. I say pretty much cause there's still lots to fish for inside, non ocean waters...rivers, bays, canals, inlets....lots of life inside and they'll all be enjoying this storm. Also, even though the waves are humongous, a 12 foot wave around here breaks so far offshore, all you get from the jetties to the beach is nice rolling foam. If it's not full of weeds and sand, it'll be full of bass and mullet. There can be some excellent fishing in this nasty stuff as the bass do somersaults and cartwheels in the foam chasing the silver bullets around. Be careful....be very careful if you go out, these kinds of waves can really do a number on the water depth at the surf line. You can be standing in ankle deep foam one minute....then suddenly your 25 feet from the water on dry land...and just as suddenly, you're up to your waist in water that will easily knock you down as it recedes. Be very careful if you go! I'd actually prefer to be on the very shore end of a jetty in this kind of heave...and not anywhere near high tide! On the lee side of a tall jetty at the lower tides, you may very well be treated to a show of the stripers flipping their tails outta the water and chasing bait all over the beach...you are almost equally likely to find nothing by spinach soup on many beaches. If you really got the hankerin' to go fishing and the suds look like thin soup, check in the bays - Raritan and Barnegat for starters! The fish in there don't even suspect the oceans a sandy/weedy mess, they'll feed all day long on days like this...and you can usually find a spot to get the wind behind you...which is nice when it's gusting to 40kts! ;-) There's still fishing to be done if you just can't stand the thought of missing a day or two. 

    The best part of a storm like this in late September is when it's gone! There will likely be a screaming NW wind to clear this system out...and that'll flatten the water out within 36 hours if it continues to blow NW. Look for fish as soon as it starts to flatten...but they usually won't be the big ones. What I've seen as well as heard is that the 3rd day after the blow ends is the time for the LARGE fellers to hit the suds. I've seen this enough times to say it, it's generally the third day. So if it calms down some tomorrow, then expect the bigger ones to bite on Friday-Sunday...just in time for the weekend. No doubt, some lucky guy will make his first fall trip this weekend, soak a clam somewhere along IBSP and wrangle a 40 sumthin' onto the sand...and we'll all scratch our heads, fishing hard 8 months a year and not finding a 40 sumthin! That's the way it works though, we've all seen it happen...call it what you will. I think it's the fish god's singling out the next individual to be consumed by striper fishing...it all starts with that first unexpected LARGE...after that, it's nothing but sleepless nights and wondering all the time when's your shot at the next LARGE gonna come? ;-) It's a delicious feeling.... 

    The Gibb's bottles and darters are now up on the site! Actually, they've been up for a bit now, but you'd need to check the page to know this! Matter of fact, you gotta check the update page every single day in order to really keep up with what's going on around here...changes nearly every single day! I've got a huge pile of new photo pages to put up, my apologies to those of you who've been patiently waiting for me to do your photo page, things are understandably crazy around here and your pages will be up very soon!

     Just updated the page with locations and a more thorough tackle recommendation...somehow, I let the tackle recommendations remain there that I listed for the Spring Fling!  Also, I put up the new ! Good one DP, I'm still laughing at this one! ;-)

Sincerely,

Tim Surgent

Surf's all better!

Sept 28, 2000:

    Greetings folks...things are getting kinda crazy here....as I was writing this page this morning, my dial up connection was lost (yea, unfortunately, in this area, modems are the only choice for internet connection....you'd think we live in the stick or something, but we don't ;-) Upon trying to redial, all three numbers I have were busy...now for you AOL'ers, that's not unusual...by my ISP hasn't had a busy signal in the past 5 years I've been with them...at least not more than one redial. My computer redialed the numbers for HOURS before finally getting a connection! <grrrrrrrrrrrrrr> So, then I had a few hours of emails to catch up...and then the phone rang off the hook...and then Tony from Lex Lures stopped by just in time to catch me on the phone with Hab's Plugs! Geeesh, what next! ;) 

    So, how's the fishing? Well, I was a bit concerned after the 10 foot plus seas we had day before last...but I had to know so we went last night. Charlie whupped up on my tired butt...I landed one lonely unicorn, he had 4...and a weakfish just to rub it in! ;-) I decided that I gotta eat lunch and dinner and stop working at least an hour or two before fishing...the competition's getting ferocious and being tired and nutrition deprived isn't the best way to stay sharp. Yea, it's only fishing...but it's more enjoyable when you're not sleeping on your feet after finally stuffing your face from not having any lunch. Today, I'm gonna eat lunch around 2pm...then a nice dinner around 8pm...and I won't go fishing till about 10pm...I outta be in my normal form by then and won't let that dastardly Charlie do that again ;-) Back to the fishing... The water was remarkably beautiful after such an evil, nasty blow...a mere 24hrs later and it was all healed and cleaned up...no sea weed, no dirty tinge to it, just perfect. Even the mullet were there to bump into my legs in the dark....I think my boots must smell like female mullet, they never bump into Charlie's legs....just mine. Go figure. Anyway, the fish were in their normal haunts doing their normal thing...but the really odd thing was they were apparently only interested in the rainbow trout (Ghost Trout) MegaBait...I never had a hit on the old reliable 5" Mambo in any of the 5 colors in my bag...not a sniff on either color Delta Sword....nothing on anything else. I scraped out my lone critter on a dark shad MegaBait...my trout MB was in the truck and I didn't feel like walking back to get it.....see above note about lack of food and rest ;) Strangest thing...we were fishing in Rick7's backyard....and Rick's been singing the praises of that danged rainbow trout MegaBait even before I had that color here....he's the reason I now carry that color...so I guess it's his fault Charlie whupped up on me!?! Alright Rick, now yer in for it! ;-) I'm now pondering the consequences of such an obvious preference for a color MegaBait I don't ever keep in my bag...a man can only burden himself with so many plugs in a small bag for walking the surf...the rainbow trout looking lure never makes the final cut. It's always in the truck but never in the bag...now I'll go and stick it in the bag and the bass will never eat it again! At least that's how I'll perceive it to be...and for that reason, my reverse psychology, that lure will probably not make the final cut next time. This used to be simple, a couple plugs, some teasers and leader and go fishing....now it's like solving some obtuse theorem that left Einstein scratching his head hundreds of years ago. 

    I've been getting word of some very good fishing in my entire range of adventures, from IBSP all the way north...so I'm guessing that you could likely hit your favorite spot and find some fish hanging there...just make sure you don't bring Charlie! ;-)

    Howdy Paul Naj, hope your new job is treating you well and things are all that you expected! I'll save some unicorns for ya when ya get a chance to go, lemme know!

Sincerely,

Tim Surgent

Turnabout's fair play ;-)

Sept 29, 2000:

    Happy Friday the e-mail said as my buddy RichG (a.k.a. "Hardy") inquired about the latest of the happenings surf-side here...he always makes me smile ;-) Seems Team Laurel and Hardy will be out in full force this afternoon...both made an early escape from work at noon today and by now, should be loose in the suds somewhere. I encouraged them not to fear the NE winds but to embrace them instead...it's those 15kt onshore winds that get things groovin' around these parts! The bait's been here for a good long while and each time the ocean gets a little bumpy, the fish respond and show approval with somersaults and back flips as they stuff their faces with mullet, sand eels, spearing, peanut bunker and whatever else will fit...including plugs, flies, poppers, and jigs! I haven't been out fishing in the daylight in any manner for a few weeks...the last dead calm afternoon I beat the sunset to the beach...it was just like I remembered the daytime fishing....dead. After a couple hours of throwing flies and only landing fluke, Charlie and headed back to the truck and I jeered "Yup, just like I remember it." I don't get excited about any daytime action till at least mid November...yes, there will hundreds of unicorns caught by thousands of anglers before then but I won't bother till hundreds of unicorns are caught by a couple anglers...then I'll get excited about it! ;-)

    So, yesterday I told tales of woe as Charlie put his second consecutive beatin' on me with the striper count. Yup, two trips...one trip he had me 4 to 2....the one I spoke about yesterday he had me 4 to 1...an embarrassment to myself! I couldn't hook myself that night...I'm blaming it on lack of food and need for sleep...two things that never used to bother me, I guess I'm starting to feel it these days. Anyway, last night I took care of this mini-streak he was on...but he had it comin'! ;-) Finally tally when the smoke cleared from our couple hours out I had 7 bass, two of them between 32"-34"...and one fat 30" weakfish....and Charlie, likely just feeling guilty about whuppin' up on me two trips prior held himself to just 3 bass...you gotta like friends like that! ;-)

   Hope all of you are enjoying this most glorious time of year, the weathers changing, the fish are moving, our northern brethren are enjoying the peak of their season as we patiently watch our action building. Everything looks like this could easily be an extremely good fall and hope anyone with an inclination to do so can get out and fish some this weekend. Be safe and get them rods bent!

Sincerely,

Tim Surgent