NUMENON |
PONDERING CORE ESSENCE
NUMENON |
2021 has been a season of recovery... from the pandemic, the associated isolation, the generally "down" nature of 2020 and more. While virtually all of my 2021 fishing has been solo, I have gotten out a fair amount, and my recent relocation to Maine has reunited me with extended family, both boats and all my gear. I can be fishing within 15 minutes from my desk or bed; and that fishing has a lot of potential for me to unlock. I couldn't ask for more. Here, I'm just taking a breather and collecting some photos. Nothing outrageous (either good or bad) has happened in my 2021 fishing season so far, but I've had a lot of pleasant success. I've enjoyed just about every moment on the water and each and every fish I've encountered. Who knows what the second half of the season will bring; bigger stripers? Blues? Thirty-inch togue? An albie? I look forward to finding out! Enjoy! Pondering the questions of core essence and finding meaning in unexpected ways
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The entire family just spent a week or so in Maine. Folks converged from England, the Pacific Northwest, the mid-Atlantic and the Mountain West to re-unite for the first time in a couple of years or more. A new grand-niece was introduced to all for the first time, many meals were shared, and there was a fair amount of local beer and Casco Bay-side relaxation. A yellow Portland Pudgy tender ( portlandpudgy.com ) joined my fleet, and the Maritime skiff was finally moored at its very own location. Each performed their respective duties flawlessly. Nature was abundant, fishing for striped bass was better than decent, and the average fish landed (24 inches or so) was an excellent match to my light tackle. I was smart enough to pace myself, and I didn't unnecessarily burn myself out by fishing day and night. I took advantage of my easy access to the water when it made sense, and I made extra effort to invest my time in new methods, locations and techniques. I truly enjoyed my time on the water, and didn't feel as if I were trying to win an ephemeral race with access to Casco Bay stripers. With mackerel abundant for the first time in years, and these livies generally selecting for larger fish, I live-lined these baits more than I expected. My lure fishing suffered, and I was less efficient than usual. But the anticipation with each bait deployed was high, the majority of my mackerel were eaten, many of the strikes were visually dramatic, and I found success in several new areas. This was fun! Somehow, we managed to move into our new home during this same week. Since that new home is in Yarmouth, ten minutes from my mooring, I guess I'll have to get used to this. Pondering the questions of core essence and finding meaning in unexpected ways As my Maritime 1480 skiff, the amybaby22, moves to Maine for the height of the season (and perhaps longer), I wanted to take just a moment to reflect on my experiences in Barnstable, Massachusetts. Over the last couple of seasons, this might have become my favorite Bay State port. I didn't visit it much (four trips in two years; not nearly enough), but it treated me well each time. Given my lack of local experience, each trip presented new challenges and experiences. The port offers a variety of accessible habitats from estuarine to open water in Cape Cod Bay. I found my own way to fish each time. I know I've only scratched the local potential, but I've still encountered some fine fish! While I never scored a truly large striper during my limited time there, my average bass encountered was certainly fat, healthy and spunky; and probably pushing 24 inches. These fish are excellent targets on light tackle, and I caught them from the surface to 30 or more feet down. Plus, the clear water offered many additional sightings and close calls, and the port threw in several bonus bluefish of nice size, too. Perhaps because I tend to gravitate to Barnstable during a period of southerly wind, each day the skies were clear and the sun was bright. And yet, I still found feeding stripers! Because each trip here poses a new set of conditions (tide, season, water temperature, etc.), I've been open to exploring new waters and trying new techniques. On a given trip, bouncing epoxy jigs along bottom with current, ripping Ben Parker Magnum Flutter Spoons, trolling deep-diving sticks, chasing birds or simply covering water with poppers and flukes could be my answer. Of course, each of these pursuits has opportunity costs and so I've barely explored live-lining Macks, open-water trolling with big baits in deep water, sight-fishing the flats, or tube-and-worming along Sandy Neck. I know that any of these techniques could be my best answer on any given day, including my next trip. I was quick to realize (actualize?) the potential for Barnstable to offer a quality experience. I simply hit the nail on the head after my first visit: "... other than the rude boating, crowds at navigation pinch points and the rather dysfunctional ramp, this was a very high-quality experience." I've learned to manage the negatives mentioned above, leaving myself open to just the positives of this port. I am not quite sure when..., but I will be back! Pondering the questions of core essence and finding meaning in unexpected ways Saturday, May 22, 2021 offered a bit of a roller coaster experience. I expected good fishing, but things got off to a surprisingly slow start. My pick of inshore fish were small, and I left these only to find vast emptiness. Despite the persistent wind, I resorted to exploring choppy Vineyard Sound to find some quality stripers. I did, too, by focusing on subtle observations and interpreting the huge amount of information available to me via the Garmin GPS/Sonar unit. The fish were on the up-current side of an incipient rip, and my first pass through the sweet spot with my Rapala deep diver connected with a solid drag-puller! It wasn't the 25-pounder I'd hoped for, but at a chunky 25 inches, this was my biggest striper of the year! On my first pass with a new-to-me-here technique! I promptly knocked the bass off the lure with the net; there would be no pictures of this one. And when I looked up, a guide boat had slid into the sweet spot, and now sat there, stemming the tide. Over the next half hour or so, I saw his fly-rodding clients land a half dozen or more fish. I recognized the onset of sea sickness. Instead of fighting it, I yielded to it; got it over and done with (or so I hoped.) Mung now made trolling virtually impossible (I was lucky to have gotten that first pass in), and attempting to stem the tide while casting worsened my illness. It robbed me of my sea legs, too. I was ineffective and downright feeble; I knew I had to retreat inshore. But first, there was that business of being sick again! Returning via the main Waquoit outlet, I hit a few spots to see if any bass were home. I continued my inshore struggles. I finally returned to where I'd started at least six hours before. The tide had literally turned, and a small seam had formed with the ebb. My first cast with a small swim-bait was lightly touched. The next was confidently eaten. For the next hour or so, I entertained myself with these small (18 inches and less) bass. On what I thought would be my last drift, I switched baits to a pink fluke, if only to show any remaining bass something different and to gain some experience/confidence with this color. My first and only bite on the pink fluke was my best striper of this young season, a very respectable inshore fish of 28 inches! Against the odds on this pretty tough day, I'd caught my first "Keeper" of the season; my earliest ever (calendar-wise) and inshore, to boot. I stayed a bit longer and caught another bass or two after switching back to a white fluke. A tough bite had been countered by landing 17 stripers. Sickness made my offshore find that much sweeter. Persevering through some slow times yielded a surprisingly nice fish. Pondering the questions of core essence and finding meaning in unexpected ways May 7, 2021 12:30 PM Waquoit Bay, Falmouth/Mashpee Massachusetts Here's my earliest-ever saltwater striper, a 16-incher that I fooled with a small swimbait in about seven feet of water: I had to work hard for this fish. I'll maintain that size doesn't matter for the first of the season. Still, this guy and two others of similar stature were fun enough on my light tackle, and three small (No, tiny!) stripers really can make for a fine, successful day! There's plenty of season ahead in which to catch some slightly bigger ones! Pondering the questions of core essence and finding meaning in unexpected ways After almost 35 years in The Great Lakes State (Michigan), in late 2019 I moved back "home" to New England. Born, raised and schooled here, I'd taken my nascent fishing skills out west in 1985. Now, I had the opportunity to bring my full-grown passion for fishing and accumulated experience to bear on New England's fish in both fresh and salt water! The landscape looked different and more promising to me upon my return. First and foremost, I now had more resources available to me than I'd had as a teenager; but I also had new perspectives on geography and the opportunities available to me. It had taken several decades, but the colloquialism of my Rhode Island youth had given way to a broader view of possibility. It's now okay to choose to travel three or four hours each way for a day's fishing; even longer for a weekend. It's reasonable to hold licenses from multiple states. It's acceptable to "Go Big", try something new, and come home skunked. And it's easier to be aware of all this, simply because of the internet! The resources seemed to have improved in my absence, too. Clean air and water regulations have been effective, in the main, in restoring and protecting the environment. Public access to many waters has been enhanced. Five-pound largemouth bass are legitimately possible as opposed to being an object of dreams. Black sea bass and scup have been recognized as sporting fish, and appear to be more available and much larger than I recall. Northern pike have extended their range. Quality catches in pleasant settings are no longer a simple matter of luck, but can be planned for and executed. And now there are stripers! Numbers may be down compared to a decade or two ago, and their presence should not ever again be taken for granted, but stripers are way more numerous and accessible than they were when I left. In fact, I had never encountered one before I left New England in 1985. Big, gator blues were the saltwater sportfish of my youth. True to their mysterious and nomadic ways, large bluefish are currently locally scarce and unpredictable. That's a current loss compared to 35 years ago, but there's at least hope that this is part of a natural cycle and that big bluefish will be part of the future. So, I arrived back "home" (albeit now as a resident of The Bay State) to a better place, and armed with the knowledge, equipment and motivation to make my 2020 Fishing Season truly epic. From trout to false albacore, I had big plans for 2020. And then, of course, everything changed with the arrival of Coronavirus. This is my first Pandemic, and so I doubt that I've done everything exactly correctly or with complete grace. But, I've managed to keep myself healthy and employed, as has my family circle. So, I am lucky, and in The Pandemic Sense of Things, very well off! But the situation has put various crimps in my plans and dreams, including my 2020 fishing. I never launched my Lund freshwater boat; she remains in extended hibernation on her trailer. Other than casting for stocked trout, I didn't even fish in freshwater in 2020. In my opinion, a freshwater season without bass is not even a season. I'll not write further of my season's freshwater exploits; let's just say I am thankful that I had access to the salt in 2020. While I didn't moor my Maritime saltwater skiff in Maine, as planned, I was able to responsibly access her on a frequent-enough basis without interacting with others outside my bubble. From May through October, I was able to explore a good chunk of Cape Cod and Maine's Casco Bay with her. This 14-foot platform became something like a therapist's couch for me in 2020. With frequent visits to her, I was able to effectively (?) deal with the other aspects of my life. But this is about the fishing and the gifts it bestowed upon me in 2020. There were many, and just about all of them involved stripers or their pursuit. The sunrises, sunsets and solitude might have been enough solace by themselves; but the fishing was pretty darn good, too. While I landed no monstrously large fish in 2020 (my biggest striped bass measured in at 37 inches; I am still seeking a verified 40-incher), I did set a few Personal Bests along the way. But these were either incidental or accidental, and so were more or less just part of the enjoyment, and not meaningful in the long run. Still, it's fun to recognize your largest Hickory Shad, Sea Robin and sea-run Brown Trout. Each fish should be appreciated for what it has to offer, and these provided exclamation points on three different sessions that might otherwise have been forgotten. I visited several new ports and navigated many new waters. I pushed my Casco Bay explorations further east and north, found some new bait stops, productive rocks, and I placed piles of new waypoints on the new Garmin GPS. I live-lined, tube-and-wormed and raised fish on topwater baits from more new spots on Casco Bay than I had accumulated in the previous, mostly shore-bound, 19 years. I was fortunate to spend the July 4th Weekend and a week's respite from work here, not only exploring, but catching! I was doubly fortunate to not only land a beautiful sea-run brown on a small Kastmaster intended for mackerel, but to also catch, photograph and release a 2020 Striper Cup-winning striper on this same bait. I was triply fortunate to have done so from my retirement property! I've got a lot to look forward to, here! On the Cape, I added Upper Buzzards Bay, Sandwich, Barnstable, the entirety of Waquoit Bay's watershed and some of the Vineyard Sound shoals to my list of familiar waters. I was able to employ tactics both trusted and new. The stripers just about always found me, and in the newness of it all, I learned from just about each one. I am more prepared for future seasons than ever before, and if I choose to be the only person in the fleet utilizing Ben Parker Magnum Flutter Spoons, so be it! The best part of the Pandemic for me has been telecommuting. And if one is telecommuting, why not choose to do so from a rented house on the shores of Waquoit Bay? We did so for a week in September, during which I was blessed with the best, consistent topwater action of the year, as well as my rediscovery of fluke-style baits. Despite the persistent and powerful wind, the fishing and on-the-water experience was so good that week, I almost didn't mind having to work during the day! I expect to do the same in 2021, and possibly beyond! Almost 200 stripers came over the Maritime's gunwales, and another couple dozen or so were landed from shore. Of course, I missed and flubbed many other opportunities, but I don't think I lost any truly large stripers. Additionally, a bunch of sea bass, scup and blues, and even a few fluke visited me, too. I experienced no real on-the-water problems, and sometimes I was even able to forget about my lack of freshwater opportunities or the other, real problems posed by 2020. As I write this in January of 2021, the Coronavirus situation remains dark. I don't know what to realistically expect for 2021. I don't know what I can plan for, I don't even know if I dare dream about certain things. But I do know that I will (at least and likely) find safe harbor with my skiff, my light tackle and the striped bass of New England's coastal waters. This comfort is enough, for now. It's good to be home. Pondering the questions of core essence and finding meaning in unexpected ways Happy New Year! In no particular order, may I offer my modest Fishing Goals for 2021: 1. 200 Stripers for the season 2. Share a fresh fish meal with Uncle M 3. Catch my biggest ever striper 4. Catch a false albacore! 5. Catch a 6-pound "bass" (green, brown or sea-) 6. Catch a 20-inch trout! 7. Successfully fish new water 8. Successfully implement a new technique 9. Somebody new in the boat 10. Launch Numenon *** 200 Stripers for the season This is my new benchmark for a season of chasing stripers. Given enough time on the water, it's doable. Plus, if I've landed 200 stripers, I have certainly experienced many more strikes, splashes, follows and misses. I'll probably have enjoyed a lot of by-catch along the way. And, I know I'll have had a lot of fun! Share a fresh fish meal with Uncle M It won't be the meal so much as the preparation, execution and success that it represents. Plus, with a cooler full of ice on board, maybe a few gyotaku specimens will find their way home and get me going on that again, too. Catch my biggest ever striper This is a standing goal for every trip. But it's more realistic over the course of the entire season. If I catch it while actually hunting big fish, that will be even better. Catch a false albacore! There's no magic to this; it's a matter of patience and opportunity. But, I will gladly accept a little good luck, too. If I stumble into good fishing for other species along the way, I am fine with that. Catch a 6-pound "bass" (green, brown or sea-) Any of these is truly an outstanding fish. I'd like to think that I might chase freshwater bass on some quality water this season, but if I am unable to do so, the idea of landing a giant sea bass is an appealing alternative. Catch a 20-inch trout! Whether caught through the ice, from the sea, casting or trolling, any 20-inch trout is a beautiful, worthy goal. Successfully fish new water Kaizen! The pursuit of continuous improvement and growth in my collected fishing endeavors is one reason why I like it so much. A quality experience on unfamiliar water pulls it all together and validates the effort; but it also unlocks unknown potential for the future. This positive feedback loop can be a powerful agent of beneficial change. Successfully implement a new technique This is always a worthwhile goal for the same arguments as presented above. Plus, it might involve fun new stuff or shiney new things, for which I am sometimes a bit of a sucker. In many ways it offers a chance to practice my model of Anticipation! Participation! and Elaboration! repeatedly, so whatever success I might encounter, I can enjoy it many times over. Somebody new in the boat Too much of my New England fishing has been solitary. I enjoy the freedom and flexibility of this, and I likely fish best alone, but I miss my Michigan friends and hosting others on my boat(s). It's always nice to share a good experience, and it can be a nice reminder to see familiar things through new eyes. Launch Numenon She has been patiently resting on her trailer in Maine, waiting for things to settle down. There's a lot of potential for her up there, so I hope she's ready to go when we have the chance! *** Of course, I am reserving the right to amend or append; I already have a number of ideas rattling around in the back of my subconscious. Regardless, here's to an Excellent 2021! Pondering the questions of core essence and finding meaning in unexpected ways This is borrowed from the "fishing side" of my blog, above and posted at the December 12, 2020 entry at www.numenonfunfishing.com/numenonfunfishing. I don't like to double-dip content, but it's as useful here as it is there, and it's as powerful a way to wrap up my 2020 Fishing Season Experience as any. See you in 2021! Pondering the questions of core essence and finding meaning in unexpected ways Back in January, I shared my Fishing Goals for 2020: 1. Catch a legal-sized striper (28 inches) from amybaby22 2. Share a fresh fish meal with Uncle M 3. Catch my biggest ever striper 4. Catch a false albacore! 5. Catch a 6-pound "bass" (green, brown or sea-) 6. Catch a 16-inch trout! How'd I do? 1. Catch a legal-sized striper (28 inches) from amybaby22 Success! While only about 2% of my stripers stretched beyond 28 inches this season, three of these were slung over amybaby22's gunwales, including two on the penultimate trip of the season. Birds, bait, bass, light tackle and clear, shallow water add up to fun! And if the bass can be more sizable as opposed to less, I think that's better! 2. Share a fresh fish meal with Uncle M I could claim that the whole COVID-thing interfered with this goal. Perhaps M's preference for bass over scup or sea bass made this less likely. Or, perhaps it was my unpreparedness on the day I encountered multiple keeper bass; I found myself with no cooler and no ice. In lieu of fresh fish, we had to settle for sharing a couple of socially-distanced, land-based meals. Oh well, I will simply carry this goal forward to 2021. I'm okay with the delay regardless, since I don't really care too much for fish as my entree of choice. 3. Catch my biggest ever striper Success! But with an asterisk! I was fortunate to catch one "big" bass this season. While I have caught a couple of longer stripers from Lake Lanier, they were skinny, and I doubt that they weighed as much as my 37-incher from Maine this season. This was certainly my biggest ever striper on a sand-worm, and tied for my longest, documented striper from the salt. This goal is perennial, though, and so will also be carried over to 2021 and beyond. 4. Catch a false albacore! What can I say? For the third straight year, I struck out. On three separate occasions, I was very briefly "in range" of these funny fish, and I am not convinced that any saw my lures. Wind was certainly a factor against me in their pursuit, and I was unexpectedly distracted by the quality of the bass fishing that coincided with most of my Albie Season efforts. This, too, will be carried forward to 2021, and I know this will just happen at some point. If I need to, I could always choose to target them on a trip to Florida or North Carolina, where they seem to be less finicky, if less appreciated. 5. Catch a 6-pound "bass" (green, brown or sea-) Another perennial goal in which I fell short; my move to Massachusetts and the State of Things in 2020 conspired against me. I never even made a cast at freshwater bass, and I spent little time targeting sea bass. I did find some really nice ones (not 6-pounders, though) on a rip-and-shoal in Vineyard Sound, and their known presence in such habitat makes them a viable target for me for a longer portion of the season. I'll just have to keep trying. 6. Catch a 16-inch trout! Surprising, Salty Success! This was the first goal I achieved in 2020, when I landed four lakers beyond this mark through the ice of Newfound Lake, New Hampshire. While I caught a few stunningly beautiful trout in local Massachusetts ponds in the spring, none reached this arbitrary mark. The surprise fish of the season, though, smashed this goal when a salty brown ate my Kastmaster spoon in Casco Bay. While I can't rely on that ever happening again, I did hear a half-dozen reports or so of similar mid-summer catches from the region. So, maybe? Regardless, on the hopeful assumption that perhaps there will be more opportunities to ice fish or troll in 2021, I expect to "up" my expectations to "20 inches" in the future. I also shared this in my January post: "I don't see how a season could not be viewed as a success if it includes the accomplishment of just about any subset of these goals!" What a prescient statement! Of course, I did not foresee the pandemic, but having scored a decently solid 0.500 for the season, I have to admit that it was full and satisfying; with the caveat that there will hopefully be better opportunities and fuller seasons ahead! Beyond These Goals I was able to experience and enjoy many new places, techniques and species this season, while continuing to hone some of what I think I "know". The season offered a nice balance of comfort, discovery and excitement. So, by category, let me at least acknowledge the following: New Places
New Techniques
New Species
And Finally Success! In that same January post, I voiced my intent to share some quality time with each of my girls. While our shared time was limited and our experiences were more modest than originally envisioned, I am thankful to know that this most important goal was fully achieved. The rest of all this; simply icing on the cake! Pondering the questions of core essence and finding meaning in unexpected ways Most would admit; 2020 was quite the year! It was my first year "back" in New England, and things didn't go according to my plan, or anybody else's plan, either. However, I could socially distance from others while on the ice, in my waders, or on the deck of my skiff, the amybaby22. We'd all been given lemons. I tried to make as much lemonade as possible. My fishing year unfolded slowly, with iffy ice conditions (at best) and an uncertain and unproductive start to my pursuit of stocked trout. Having not fished at all in the last few months of 2019, I was getting truly antsy by the time I finally landed a few trout at late ice (February) and in local ponds in April. Striped bass occupied most of my thoughts and effort. From May through October I fished for little else. While "keepers" between 28 and 35 inches were pretty darn scarce for me, I caught a lot of really nice fish on light tackle. These included my biggest striper in seven years (37 inches), a surprising saltwater brown trout, and an array of other by-catch including bluefish, menhaden, hickory shad, scup, sea bass, sea robins, flounder and mackerel. With no real issues encountered for the season, the occasional company of a loved one, and a bunch of beautiful sunrises observed, I'd have to call it a successful season... despite the underlying circumstances. And, as of today, November 8, the amybaby22 still is available to serve; and an unseasonably nice stretch of weather lies ahead. I choose the right to amend and amend to this post should anything good happen in the remaining days of 2020. Enjoy! Pondering the questions of core essence and finding meaning in unexpected ways |
Steve LachanceVia Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Michigan and now, back to New England! Archives
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