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Date: August 5, 2023 Body of Water: Casco Bay - Maine Boat: amybaby22 With: Alone Target: Striped Bass Time: 7:30 AM - 2:45 PM Moon Phase: Full plus four days, waning gibbous moon Tide: Low tide at 8:30 AM, High tide at 2:48 PM Conditions: Thin fog giving way to clear and bright conditions with light winds; 60 - 75 degrees. Water temperatures have dropped considerably, 58 - 64 degrees (+/-) depending on tide and location. Expecting a tough bait condition, I decided to just keep moving until I found some. I also had the fly rod available, to catch the early incoming flood over shallow water, if I hadn't yet found anything more favorable. I ended up covering more Bay than ever, extending from French Island out to Red Marker 2 outside Hussey Sound before finding my bites along familiar Peaks Island during the last half of the incoming tide. After unsuccessful bait stops at Clapboard Island (E), Basket Island markers and the channel between Chebeague and Littlejohn Islands, I swung into the shallows between Littlejohn and the mainland to scout for fly-fishing targets. I got a solid and productive hour of casting practice in while I slowly searched shallow edges for signs of fish. I saw none, but a fellow fly-caster in a kayak hooked up in slightly deeper water, so I guess a few fish were available. Nevertheless, this approach is inefficient in my boat (I don't have the vantage point to see into the water very well), and I will need to either concentrate my fly-fishing on blitzes or structure; or simply accept the peaceful process itself as opposed to pushing myself to produce fish. By 10 AM, I was back on the prowl and heading east. I looked for bait at Green Island Ledge, both ends of the Green Islands and the east end of French Island without any sign of bait. Pushing further into the bay was not working, so I reversed course and headed back towards the mouth of Hussey Sound, but taking an "outer" route via all new-to-me water. On the "out" side of Chebeague, I checked every marker for bait as I now headed west. Threading the needle between Hope and Cliff Islands, and still without any sign of fin-fish bait, I decided to return to my pollock-producing navigation aid, Red No. 2 outside of Hussey. That turned out to be the correct call for the day. I arrived just as the tidal current really started ripping. Having already marked my bottom-oriented targets on the sonar, I deployed Spot-Lock and dropped a 3-ounce jig and Sabiki. The bite was fast and productive; and included several biting mackerel as well as the expected pollock. Soon enough, I had 15 or so pollock and eight or nine macks in the well, and I was off to Peak Island, where I could see some attractive whitewash along the rocks. I ended up using only the mackerel and releasing the pollock. The macks alone produced enough action for me, including stripers of 25, 28 and 31 inches, as well as a smallish bluefish of two or three pounds. I missed several opportunities, too, from simple pulled hooks to baits being "popped" off the hook by sudden strikes. All of this was along my familiar stretch of Peaks Island, and if there was a theme to any success, it was keeping the live baits as close to rocks, moving water and foam as possible. I finished my day with a pass along Crow and Cow Islands as the tide peaked, but found no active fish at either location. What do I have to say about this? It was a good day to choose such explorations. It was nice and calm, and the morning's thin, early fog made my fly-fishing option theoretically viable. There is so much good-looking water to explore! Points on both Green Islands and French Island looked worthy. The boulder field along Littlejohn looks like it might hold promise at higher tides, I found several promising points along Chebegue, and the ocean swell revealed lots of whitewashed stretches along Long Island. Spot-lock for the win, again! I made quick work of making bait in the heavy tidal current, all while safely and comfortably avoiding the red can! Working the boat so close to the rocks, especially in any wash, is intense and draining. But I still get a thrill out of every chase and strike! Pondering the questions of core essence and finding meaning in unexpected ways
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