how to catch a rockfish

apparently it is as easy as dropping my line...this week! after a long, hot summer, the fall striper action has been sweet. now these arent trophy fish, more eating fish. i cut out the filets and the wife grilled them with olive oil and salt and pepper: delicious!
(that's a blue above, which were also running heavy.)

health of the bay

how healthy is the bay? i don't know....but v.i.m.s. does. catch a ride on the alliance to find out the facts.

oyster bar

oysters are making a come-back in the bay-i have seen their resurrection myself- so learn about oysters today and consider becoming an oyster farmer this summer.

chesapeake bay rockfish head chowder

the quick fire challenge on top chef tonight involved using fish 'trash' to make a delicious dish...if you want to do the same challenge at home, check out this recipe for chesapeake bay rockfish head chowder featured on npr the other day.

see food

i fished sunday as long as i could stand the heat near the channel marker...for the second time this month, i almost got thrown in the water by a cabin cruiser flying by about 20 feet from me...i guess he just wanted to put his wake in my boat: it was about 5 foot high, btw. what a jerk. i didnt catch any fish, either. so i headed to captain faunce's for my fill.

where to catch tiger musky

a know a lot people who like to fish in the upper potomac and/or tidal basin for trout...i never heard of a muskellunge up there, but here is a dnr biologist with 36" tiger musky last week! i always thought they were a mid-western/great lakes type of fish, but apparently dnr stocked these sterile hybrids back on 2006. 

oyster poacher busted

although oyster season closed march 31, poaching in maryland waters continues...as do the arrests.  a waterman was charged april 28 with poaching oysters, nearly a month after the March 31 close of the maryland season.

ben harrison marshall, 34 of newcomb was charged by maryland natural resources police (nrp) with taking oysters during closed season and operating a power dredge in an area reserved for hand tongs.

marshall was  observed by an nrp office on a commercial work boat power dredging for oysters in the ted avon river, near the bellevue public landing in talbot county. when marshall was questioned by the officer after coming to shore, he stated that he had been perch fishing, although no fish or fishing poles were found on the vessel.  upon inspection, the officer found five and a half bushels of oysters hidden under clothing in the cabin of the boat.

marshall's charges carry a fine of $320 for operating a power dredge in an area reserved for handtongs and $125 for taking oysters for commercial purposes during closed season.that's a pretty light-weight fine: he is lucky!

@ tacos el gringo

 fresh!

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taco stop

a quick taco stop: I really wanted fish tacos... but what about tongue? or tripe!

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st. mary's oyster festival

i had planned on getting the proline from the shop and driving it today across the potomac today or riding my new busa to the st.mary's oyster festival, but the flu combined with a nasty storm has made both impossible. think i will stay in and watch the speed channel...and nap.

record muskie caught!

i only know about muskie fishing from my ifishing iphone app and i know they get large, but damn: that is a big one! this michigan-state record muskie was caught last week near traverse city. they look a little toothy! can you eat them?

crabbing in october?

every year i can mark the advent of fall when i don't see crab pots anymore: this year most were pulled up by mid-september. no crabs=no summer, or so i thought! saw this pod on current tv (even though it is a couple of years old) and thought it was interesting and great: i like the size of those crabs!

how to eat soft shell crabs

the wife is a great cook! last night she made soft shell crabs for dinner, and thought they looked so good, she snapped a photo. nice work!

raw oysters

the oysters i caught(?) last weekend were finally eaten today and they were delicious! i did not rinse them after capture and i kept them in an open plastic baggie: super fresh!

chesapeake bay oysters on the rebound?

a recent article in the new york times revealed that oysters in the chesapeake bay are coming back! the virginia institute of marine science in partnership with the army corp of engineers created large experimental reefs at the mouth of the great wicomico river five years ago. today, these areas are home to more than 180 million native oysters! i am surprised these beds are doing so well, considering how polluted that river is, but this is great. a few weekends ago we drove the pro-line down there to get some crabs at cockrell's creek and saw all of markers designating these new beds: kind of difficult navigating the entrance to the river from the bay. worth it!

how do you cook a carp?

this 260-pound world record carp was caught in thailand. he tried to make his escape by slapping the fishermen with its tail! now that's a fish!

small mouth bass bonanza!

the angry fisherman is pissed again: no fishing this week! john took both boys out to catch something for mother's day dinner. they caught about 30 fish, mostly small mouth, a few large mouth and one rock. john says they will continue to fish the creeks entering the potomac until the water clears and is about 4'-6"deep: the main river was running about 6' this weekend near the pump station. if you ever need information about the river, including quality, temperature and depths, check the united states geological survey's water data interface.