could the gulf oil spill reach the chesapeake bay?

oil from the deepwater gulf spill probably wont reach virginia waters, but what is happening in the regions that are affected has lessons for us all.

how NOT to park a jetski

ahhh...the jetskiers...

fishing blues

the blues are biting...both in the ocean and in the bay! captain ike headed out of the indian river inlet and into a school of large bluefish. i like to grill 'em with sea salt, pepper and olive oil: not greasy, just good.

maryland fishing challenge

i wish i could find
diamond jim:

he is out there somewhere.

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. 

coastal atlas

apparently tuesday was world ocean day, which i missed cuz i couldnt see through my tears after watching a minute of the news about the oil spill in the gulf....but, hey: world ocean day should be everyday...really. in honor of it, maryland governor martin o'malley launched a new 'coastal atlas mapping tool' on the dnr website. after reading through it twice, i still have no idea what its for or how i can use it: hmmm....must schedule a third look at some point.

how to fish for cow nosed ray

fly fishing captain wilkinson reports that cow nosed rays provide great fishing action! i havent seen any of them in my creek this year, but i have seen a few stingrays.

i couldn't catch anything in
last sunday's 3 foot chop:
maybe i will look for a ray if i get bored again.

kayak festival and expo

saturday is the northern neck kayak festival and expo in kilmarnock...i might take a paddle there to check it out.

paddle quickly

managed to get a good paddle in before the storms hit. wish i had my rod cuz the fish were jumpin!

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there goes a flying gefilte fish

the flying gefilte fish is a great name...seen 'em in the deli...looked creepy...never tasted one

memorable memorial day

i did a lot of boating this memorial day weekend...a little fishing...and too much socializing. here we are at smith point marina picking up friends: winding your way into this marina is a trick! we headed out of the narrow and splashy smith point jetty-which was filled with boaters hooking rock, crappy, skate and croaker- and headed toward smith point light, where we took a sharp right toward the great wicomico river. i drove up the river, past cockrell's creek and tifanny yachts, under the 200 bridge and past all the boathouses and big houses around the bend. we turned around and headed toward horn harbor for a late lunch. after dropping everybody back at sunnybank, the wife and i raced back to heathsville, quickly got cleaned up and headed to crazy crab for dinner with andi and mike. oh, i didnt catch anything this weekend: i think it was too hot for the fish.

annapolis nautical flea market

if you can take the traffic, head to annapolis for the huge nautical flea market at the navy marine corp's stadium. you might find something you need.

too hot to fish

it's too hot to fish right now, damn it!

it's too hot to be outside: sorry, fish!

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playing hook-y

a lot of people called in sick, or took off or didnt show up today because i counted about 60 boats out there on the horizon...you cant really make them out from my photo from the crappy iphone camera, but trust me: they are there, between point lookout and smith point...wish i were too.

how to catch a stingray

i dont know how to catch a stingray...i think it just happens. my neighbor with the mohawk caught one yesterday. that is not his above, but one that was caught near us, also yesterday.

oil drilling in virginia is stalled

oil drilling off of the virginia coast appears to be stalled while governor mcdonnell is forced to rethink his idea of mixing the big rigs with weapons testing...the pentagon says three-quarters of mcdonnell's proposed oil and gas lease sites are off limits to corporate greed due to military training, weapons testing, gunnery exercises and naval manuevers run mostly out of oceana. existing commercial shipping traffic in the tidewater and up the bay in baltimore also played a role in the minerals management service's postponement of hearings on the virginia lease sales. i wander if bob has the balls to decide between the d.o.d. remaining in virginia or his oily campaign contributers making record profits off of our waters. 

wooden car boat

if boats can fly, cars can certainly float...boat builder jeff bridges has hit the nail on the head with a series of custom carpentered car-boats: it's hard to beat a floating ferrari!

ghost gill nets

a lot of people never think about the effects abandoned fishing equipment has on their environment: it can be devastating...and sad. the ghost crab pot program in the chesapeake bay has helped out, but ghost gill nets are a bigger problem. the national oceanic and atmospheric administration is studying the effects of lost nets in a variety of waters, including the chesapeake bay. they found 190 different species-thousands and thousands of animals, birds and fish- caught in old salmon gill nets in pugent sound. so, watch your lines!

another fishing world championship

i have been in myrtle beach at the remnants of their bike week: looking forward to fishing soon. tidal fish's hyper angler, julie ball, reports that despite this weekend's eastern shore fourth annual black drum world championship, these fish are few and far between lately. some drums have been hooked at quinby, near hog island, in the shallows off the eastern shore barrier islands, and near buoy 13 on chowder and clams. a few fish are over 46 inches and action will pick up soon, she reports.

jamestown day

today is jamestown day, the 403rd anniversary of the first permanent english colony in america, jamestowne. there is a lot going on at the celebration-family type fun-but i am going to see the replica sailing ships that brought the settlers ashore. the 2006 version of the godspeed is shown above-not in the james river, btw-, and the susan constant is shown below, moored in the james river.

okoumefest

the 12th annual small-boat festival, okoumefest, starts today through saturday in annapolis. all small boats are welcome, but the festival showcases light weight wooden boats made from okoume marine grade plywood, the finest plywood now available for boat construction. those are some beautiful boats!

flying boat

i could have used this crazy flying boat this weekend with all the chop on the bay...then again, the 45kph winds might have taken it in a completely new direction: down!

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!

MSSA Spring Rockfish Tournament

i was a little under the weather this weekend and did not take the boat out or go fishing...hopefully, this weekend.  i could see all of the boats fishing out on the bay, though... there were a lot of sailboats, too, as it was really breezy. still no word on who won the 27th annual mssa spring rockfish tournament: guess they're waiting for certifications. this thirty pounder was caught early friday morning of the competition.

seafood+oil=disaster, eventually

as winds push the british petroleum deepwater horizon oil spill toward land, countless wildlfe, sealife and industry will be covered in it's toxic sludge and will die, thanks to a failed flow shut-off mechanism...that is in addition to the 11 missing oil rig workers lost in the huge explosion. yesterday, louisiana officials shut down all fishing and seafood harvesting indefinately, further stressing an all-ready ailing region. but, who wants to eat oysters or fish filled with crude oil? well, i am sure the profits of the third largest oil company-who have a horrendous safety and environmental record, btw-are more important than the folks and critters who inhabit the gulf of mexico. great job, assholes.

harbor seal spotted in chesapeake bay

my pal jetski brian shot this photo of a harbor seal chilling near the chesapeake bay bridge tunnel islands recently...looks like brian woke him up! i didnt know any seals were around here: very cool!

rock fishing

i dont think im going to enter the largest rockfish tournament in the country on friday. the weather  is supposed to be great though, so i do hope to drop the boat in at some point. great photo of fresh fish from governmentality's photostream on flickr.

the jellyfish are here!

little rain and above average temperatures have brought in an early crop of jellies. fresh water creates a natural barrier against the gelatinous sea creatures, so i hope it rains a lot on days i am not fishing.

supersonic earth day

today is earth day and the navy introduced  a partially bio-fueled version of it's gas hog f/a-18 super hornet called the green hornet. the twin engine jet made its test flight to break the sound barrier today from pax river naval air station filled with 50% bio fuel derived from crushed seeds. the hornet could see my house from there.

trolling for rockfish

i usually troll for rock by myself early in the morning, or late in the afternoon. but this weekend-opening weekend for trophy rock and flounder-the water and the wind were brutal! i put my boat in where the potomac feeds into the bay, and 40 mile an hour wind gusts combined with a high tide to produce relentless 3 foot surf. i was worried about getting back  in on the boat ramp, so i took the kayak out...it was a tough paddle. 

largest rockfish tournament in the country

the 27th annual championship on the chesapeake- april 30-may 2, is the largest rockfish tournament in the country: did not know that. last year 560 boats carried 3,000 anglers, the trophy fish weighed 47.2 pounds, and over $180,000 in prize money was handed out: this year the total payout will be $200,000! you can register on line and attend one of many captain's meetings held at various spots throughout the maryland bay. last year, i caught a 54"-the haters say it was 44"...wonder how much it weighed?

pollen and spore count

i went out to hook up the truck to the boat trailer and found everything enshrouded in a thick layer of pollen...maybe i should get a mask.

octopus attacks paparazzi

octopus appear to be too smart to eat.

national saltwater angler registry

i don't know if i did this or not, but as of the first of this year, all recreational fishermen (in my area) must register with the new national saltwater angler registry. the registry is part of the marine recreational information program and is administered by noaa fisheries service to collect and distribute data on all things related to fishing and fishermen, both nationally and locally. the information collected through angler surveys will aid policy makers and government officials in making-or not making-decisions concerning the health of the chesapeake bay...specifically, fishing creel amounts, recreational areas, reserve and preserve locations, as well as data about the amounts and types of fish and fishermen. its the law and i hate breaking the law, so i guess i will do it.

super low tide

this week we have had several super low tides. i could barely get my kayak in and out of the creek. hopefully this weekend will be deeper as i would love to put the big boat in and do some spring rock fishing: trophy season begins this saturday!

damn, it's hot!

last year at (about) this time, we had snow: not today, though.

@tacos el gringo

must be sunday
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big fish face

bob caught a big fish while on vacation. he sent me these great photos but gave me no info...i think it's a tarpon.

looking forward

now that the storms have blown through,

we have had two warm days.

i am hoping this weekend will be the same.

rainbow

storms are ending.

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@ tacos el gringo

 fresh!

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storm watch

i get alerts on my i-phone when anything bad happens or is going to happen. right now, its a flood alert for the potomac river, and that is not good! all of the sand, salt, garbage, asphalt scrapings, car drippings, kitty litter, dog crap, and varied rubbish from the last few months of wintery hell will be washing down the sewers to the creeks and rivers, and finally into whatever water you live near. polluted stormwater overflows into our water supply. here are three ideas from the audubon naturalist society we can all do to try and reduce the toxic stew.

1. fix leaky cars

2. choose organic fertilizers, but don't apply them if your yard is frozen or before the big rain storm. 

3. use CMA-calcium magnesium acetate- for future de-icing ventures

here are ten other very easy household ideas to help our local waterways and reduce your carbon footprint.

the winter watermen are at it again

the winter watermen in maryland are busy in this off-season collecting abandoned "ghost" crab pots from the bottom of the chesapeake bay. last year's program in virginia was a great success.

largest spring rockfish tournament announced

mark rockfish trophy season by entering the maryland saltwater sportfishermen's association (MSSA) 27th annual spring tournament "championship on the chesapeake": you could win $200,000...or i could. the event takes place the first weekend of may and is said to be the largest spring rockfish tournament in the country. see you on the bay!

today's paddle

today the temperature went up to 60°...so i took a paddle with the wife.

first nice day in months.

safe boating course

last year virginia past a law requiring boaters to pass their safe boating class by some date...after dealing with random legal issues recently, i thought it best i educate myself on the laws of the bay and get certified as soon as possible. because the angry fisherman is not likely to sit in a confined lecture hall, i found this boating certification on-line class: you dont pay for unless you pass. sounds like me. the wife is doing it, too.

water tower or light house?

well, yeah: it is a water tower...posing as a light house here in cape charles, virginia.

angry fisherman is exonerated

during a fishing excursion this past december i was cited by the virginia marine police for possession of illegal size rock fish: three fish exactly. according to my fishing license issued by the potomac river fisheries commission, i was good to go at kiptopeake state park ...unfortunately, they have different regulations. the judge told me i was guilty, but he was finding me innocent because i should have been able to rely on the jurisdictions to provide accurate information...and they didnt, so i won.

alligator gar

although this happened five years ago, somebody sent me this photo today. two bow fisherman in texas bagged (?) this 8'-2", 244-lb alligator gar on sam rayburn lake. yowsa! The current world record for the largest Alligator Gar caught on rod and reel is 279 lb. The largest taken by bowfishing is 365 lb.

here is a photo from 1910 of a 10-foot long one.

apparently, people do eat this prehistoric beast.

chincoteague, virginia

fishing boat done for day at chincoteague.