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Merrimack River Report >
"Out Side??"
"Out Side??"
Mar 13, 2015
It does not seem like that long ago when we would visit our grand daughter and at 18 months all she seemed to do was go to the sliding glass door and say "out side??" Well life has come full circle and now all I want to do is go outside! After this years snow fall totals anywhere outside, just to walk around in the yard or in the back fields would be nice. I still love winter but it is now Spring! Not only is it Spring (well Meteorological Spring- calendar spring is still a few days away) but the marina re-opens in 9 weeks! I know it is still a while away but it was 30 weeks when I put the boat to bed, now we are in single digits!! To make it even better, I will probably have the boat in the water at least a week sooner searching for those hold over schoolies. The only thing better than catching my first schoolie of the year is calling my buddy Pete, who is still teaching, and tell him about it! Sorry Pete, well, sort of.......
As may know by now the regulations for retention of Striped Bass have changed for the foreseeable future. We are now allowed one fish per person at 28"s or greater. In all fairness the stocks are down and I would rather see pro-action instead of re-action and shutting the fishery down completely like they did a few years back. There was some talk about allowing the for hire (charter boat) industry to retain 2 per person but they would have had to be 33"s. I just could not see telling a 13 year old that he or she could not keep that prize even thought they could have if they were fishing off the beach! Or any of the bigger "13 year olds" in my boat for that matter.
So now is the time of pre-fishing rituals. Time to finish cleaning that gear that you swore you would clean last fall. Dig though your 3/8 oz jigs to see if they are not so rusty they need to be replaced. Re-supply your favorite soft plastic secret schoolie gear or go down to Surfland and browse through the new gear and talk with other diseased fishermen. Also don't forget to buy your new 6/0 & 7/0 inline circle hooks & tie them on 30# fluorocarbon leaders. You do not want to be tieing hooks to leaders in a boat during the big bite. That quick knot could be a bad knot & your dream fish could get away!
Well, I'm off to the cellar to play with gear.
Good fishing
Capt. Scott
PS. Another good thing about this time of year is that people are planning their summer fun. Maybe this is the year for going on a charter to learn a few tricks or to finally catch that keeper. Or just to prove to your buddies who is the better fisher man. If this interests you, I'll keep score! Please give me a call.
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