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Date: August 29, 2021 Body of Water: Casco Bay - Falmouth, Maine Moon Phase: Full Moon plus 7 days; waning gibbous moon Tides: High Tide at 4:39 AM; Low Tide at 10:36 AM Boat: amybaby22 With: Alone Target: Striped Bass Time: 6:30 AM - Noon Conditions: About 65 degrees; cloudy; southerly winds in excess of 10 mph; water was about 66 degrees +/- I did all the right things with Henri approaching. I pulled the boats onto dry land, and with the storm past, I took advantage and changed her oil and scrubbed her bottom. But, by the time she reached the float from Town Landing on Saturday, she was overheated and sputtering. I let her (and myself) cool off overnight. She started like a champ on Sunday morning. But she wasn't right; rough at idle and underpowered. I think she's either fouled or simply protecting herself, but my efforts for the day (and continuing until I get her serviced) were seriously hamstrung. Staying within a reasonable radius of the mooring and concentrating on Clapboard Island, I was able to make bait in fits and starts. The macs came in singles and rare doubles, and none too fast. In the end, I caught enough to keep me occupied for several hours and have some shots at some nice bass. Most of my effort was at Clapboard's east end (near where I was making bait). When my usual spot did not produce, I crept around the corner and expanded my area of attention. Here, a sunken wreck and a steep drop into 60 feet of water held a good number of active bass. I enjoyed many topwater hits and swings and misses. I caught three here, and all were nice fish at 27, 27 and 25 inches. Plus, I got worn off by another and had several other hit-and-runs. With only a couple of mackerel left, I ran to the island's western end. My first mackerel got crushed and spat; it was no longer alive. Oh well, I hooked it up through both jaws, cast it high to land with a resounding "plop" and free-lined it. On my second cast over a favorite spot, my line pulled off and I landed my last bass of the day, a hungry 22-incher with a big appetite. This new technique can work! What do I have to say about this? I've beaten myself up enough over whatever I did to induce the temporary overheating condition. I'll just cross my fingers and hope she protected herself enough to limit the damage and expense. Mostly, I feel stupid; but also frustrated at not being able to make the most of my available time. I guess, however, that this is all part of boat ownership, although I do my very best to avoid these parts! I ended the day by taking a loaded misstep and falling off the dinghy right by the dock. I recovered everything I dropped almost immediately. Except for the GoPro, that is. Not for the first time, I salvaged the camera off the seabed. She works fine, though, and now I have a little story to tell. And, this provided a real-life test of my auto-inflating life jacket. She passed! Pondering the questions of core essence and finding meaning in unexpected ways
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