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Date: August 20, 2023 Body of Water: Casco Bay - Maine Boat: Shorefishing from MLA float and then amybaby22 With: Alone Target: Striped Bass Time: 6 AM - Noon Moon Phase: New plus four days; waxing crescent moon Tide: Low tide at 8:15 AM Conditions: Mostly clear, light southwesterly wind, about 60 - 75 degrees. Water temperatures 63 - 65 degrees F (+/-) The goal for the day (other than safety, appreciation, and enjoyment) was obvious; Catch Five Stripers to get No. 200 for 2023. I started from the float, where the bass had no interest in mackerel chunks, but still some taste for juicy blood-worms. In about 90 minutes, I landed three to 32 inches (always a fine fish on light tackle from shore), enjoyed most of the fun from a couple others before the hook pulled, and flat-out missed a couple of bites. I left the dock aboard amybaby22 at about 7:30 AM and pointed her east. My plan was to try a couple of known big-fish spots with a tube-and-worm before making any audibles for the rest of the day. Both Littlejohn and Chebeague Islands failed to produce any action, despite some promising marks. My experience with the tube-and-worm continued its hot-and-cold nature. After unsuccessfully exploring a color- and current-line with an Al Gag's swim-bait, I decided to try Green Island Ledge for mackerel. The water here was downright dirty from the Royal River, and I wouldn't have stayed long, except I did catch a nice mackerel almost instantly. But after 20 minutes of effort, that was it, and so I moved over to the Green Islands to bump-troll my single bait along their edges. The only excitement here was identifying a pair of American Oystercatchers, so I moved over to Moshier Island, recalling long-ago advice to always explore the southwest tip of these glacial islands. As I approached, I noticed a bit of current-induced rippling of the water, more than enough for me to deploy my lonely live bait and drift through. The listless bait suddenly awakened and got popped but not eaten. After a couple of other splashy attempts, the bass lost interest and my bait keeled over, dead. I quickly deployed the Minn-Kota for a spot-lock session in about 15 feet of water, with the current conveying my baits right into this new-to-me Hot Zone. I had the single dead freshie and a few frozen mackerel from the day before. The choice tail sections were set aside, and all else was minced for a slow but steady trickle of chum. It took about 15 minutes for the first bass to show itself. My free-lined chunk zipped off suddenly and I wound down on a nice one! After a tough battle on light tackle from the stationary boatit, I finally landed a fat 30-incher. I was one bass away from the day's goal. Having landed No. 199, I resumed my quest for No. 200. Once again, it took about 15 minutes for the next bass to appear. This one took my bait from the far reaches of my drift. It was a modest 23-incher, but I was still very happy with it! I was running out of bait and thinking about my next move when my youngest daughter called. We chatted for quite a while. My steady drizzle of chum had been interrupted, and I didn't really have enough to get it going again. Instead, I cleaned up, organized a bit, and called it an early end for the day. The 18-minute run back to the anchorage kept me cool, and I still had all afternoon ahead of me! What do I have to say about this? Mission accomplished, and with some nice fish participating along the way to boot! But the best part of the day might have been the call from M! I managed to stumble in the boat and smashed a couple of guides on my too-fine light-tackle chunking rod. I bent these back into shape for the short term, but I will certainly have to replace them this winter. If there's any good from that situation, it's that I might have convinced myself to purchase another rod of this same series and to retire this one for chunking duty only. Pondering the questions of core essence and finding meaning in unexpected ways
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