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Date: August 27, 2022 Body of Water: Casco Bay - Falmouth, Maine Moon Phase: New Moon Boat: amybaby22 and shore fishing (PM) With: Alone (AM), with A (PM) Target: Striped Bass Time: 8:30 AM - 1 PM and 4:30 PM - 6:15 PM Conditions: Low tides at 6:00 AM and 6:03 PM. Starting cloudy, but clearing by late morning; NE wind in AM, switching to SW for PM. About 60 -75 degrees. Water temperatures 61 - 64 degrees (+/-) in Hussey Sound and about 70 degrees (+/-) at float in PM. The plan was simple. Make quick bait, liveline a few macks, and save the rest for an evening session off the float with A. This was easier said than done; macks were scarce again. I'd headed starlight for Hussey, thinking the flood tide would have the mackerel active. If they were active, I couldn't find them. After an hour or so of trying every obvious current seam and historically productive area, I finically decided to take advantage of the gray skies and the couple of baits I had. I'd noticed some considerable white water against some rocks guarding a small cove on Peaks Island. I headed over there, and it looked like it offered everything a bass would need. I deployed a lively mack, and soon there-after, right in an eddy adjacent to a foam line extending from these rocks, I was treated to an active surface chase. After multiple detonations, the bass finally grabbed my mack. It was a good fish that revealed the potential for this new-to-me spot. I netted another "keeper" (released, of course) at 29 inches. I'd exhausted my bait here, but I was fortunate to finally find a pod of active macks. These were just down-current of the submerged ledge extending off the west end of College Island. It only took a few strings of 3 to 6 baits per string to fill the well with mackerel ranging in size from small/candy to magnum. It was now bright and clear, and passes along Crow, Cow and Clapboard Islands enticed no bites. I hauled my bait back to the dock for use later in the day, and went home for some rest. A and I returned to the landing float for the best part of Quadrant II. Our bait was waiting for us, and I quickly deployed a live mackerel beneath a float, just like the good old days! Almost immediately, the mackerel was attacked and harassed, although never eaten. I changed this tired, stunned and medium-large bait out for a new, smaller lively mack, and we enjoyed almost constant action for the next 75 minutes or so. We ended up going 6 for 7 legitimate runs, with fish sequentially diminishing in size. Starting at 30 inches, but then diminishing to perhaps 20 inches, the catch included solid fish at 29, 27 and 25 inches as well as the pair of youngsters. Strangely enough, at 5:30 and approaching slack, I predicted "Big Fish Time" and switched. to larger macks; only to have these pounced on by the smaller fish. Oh well, I can't always be right! What do I have to say about this? Most of my Maine striper experience has been boatless, shore-fishing from this same landing float. The pinnacle of my local sport has always been live-lining a mackerel here. I used to routinely "make bait" right from the float and deploy them one at a time. Those mackerel seem to have vanished, but my new twist of bringing the bait and live-well to the float for a relaxed session was a good call. I fought several of the fish with a deli sandwich or beer in hand, A was good company, and the quality of the fishing did not suffer. This will become a more frequent tool from my bag of tricks. To juxtapose this with quickly identifying the conditions for a verified, productive new spot makes for a pretty complete and satisfying day! Finally, here's a Fun Fact: "Crow" Island is reportedly named after the cormorant, formerly known as the Sea Crow. At least, according to a tour ferry that passed by as I fished here. I'll accept this as fact, as cormorants are usually present here and a quick Google Search does "verify" that "sea crows" refer to cormorants, at least in part. Pondering the questions of core essence and finding meaning in unexpected ways
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