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Date: October 9, 2023 Body of Water: Casco Bay - Maine Boat: amybaby22 With: Alone Target: Striped Bass Time: 9:30 AM - 1:45 PM Moon Phase: New moon minus five days; waning crescent moon Tide: Low tide at 2:18 PM Conditions: Clear sunshine, persistent southwesterly wind increasing to over 10 mph, about 55 degrees. Water temperatures 57 - 58 degrees F (+/-) Tropical storm Philippe must have scattered the mackerel, because it took 45 minutes for me to land a dozen off Clapboard - East. These came in singles and doubles, and I never got a frenzied school beneath the boat. Still, I had plenty of bait to start the day. I thought Cow Island deserved a shot, even if I'd missed the highest part of the tide. If it didn't work out, I could easily slide over to Crow. As I approached Cow and prepared to deploy a bait, I noticed what I thought to be mackerel about 10 or 15 feet down. After my first pass along Cow went unnoticed, I returned for a second pass through the choicest spot. But first, I dropped my Sabiki and instantly hooked up. Soon enough, I had another dozen or so live macks in the well. Even though conditions at Cow seemed prime (nice current to the east and wind and swell into the face of the rocks), I raised nothing and so motored over to Crow. I'd fished the north and then the west sides of Crow with nothing to show, when finally a bass showed itself. At Crow's southwest corner, this bass chased my mack as if in slow motion, finally crashing the bait on top, but somehow missing. I loitered here for a bit with a fresh bait before moving on. Having now fished all the way around Crow without a true bite, I decided to return to the southwest corner before leaving the area. I managed to finesse my bait right along the rocks plunging into deeper water and got bit! Finally, I was connected to a striper! It was just another 23-incher, but the day's goal had been completed. After another pass, I moved to Clapboard's west end. After an unsuccessful pass, I relocated to the Falmouth shoreline to end the day (and possibly, the saltwater boating season) with a Spot-Lock and chunk session. I was in position with chum bits flowing by 12:30 PM, with the best part of Quadrant II ahead of me. I had time to build the bite before making a decision on when to pull the plug; on both the day and the season. "Spot-Lock and Chunk" has been a very reliable technique for me in the second half of 2023, and I was surprised that I hadn't;y made contact with a bass by 1 PM. I decided to stay and stick it out, as opposed to relocating, based on the tide. I was even more surprised when I still hadn't a touch by 1:30. With the wind building, I decided to call it at 1:45 PM, unless something good had developed. All the while, I was dead-drifting my bait while introducing a steady rain of mackerel bits. At 1:45, I started cleaning the boat, storing extra macks for potential future use, and generally putting things away. Meanwhile, I left two baits resting on the bottom with the reels in free-spool. Everything was stowed and I was reaching for the last rod when the line jumped and raced away. I wound down and got tight to this last-second fish! What a way to end the season! But the bass was dogging towards a mooring and I put some additional pressure on it to turn it away. My line parted at the leader! Ugh; what a way to end the season! I returned to the ramp, a bit befuddled about what I thought about this turn of events. I can say, 18 hours later, that it's just another story to add to a fine 2023 season and overall experience. What do I have to say about this? While I didn't exactly execute well on my last few trips, I can certainly say that I tried to squeeze what I could out of the season's end. There are still some stripers to be caught; just not too many in my local waters. I can choose to trailer elsewhere, or I can move inland and target some trout in fresh water. And the landing's float is still in, and I kept some mackerel for cut bait... so another striped bass encounter is at least still possible, if I so choose. Pondering the questions of core essence and finding meaning in unexpected ways
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