The Martha’s Vineyard Rod and Gun Club fly-tying program will be held every Monday night at The Anchors, Council on Aging, in Edgartown, while the clubhouse on the shore of Sengekontacket Pond is being rebuilt.
The Monday night fly-tying session had been on hold this winter because the clubhouse was unusable. It was suggested that the The Anchors might be a good temporary winter site and director Laurie Schreiber agreed.
Tomorrow, flyfishermen from around the Island and beyond will gather for the 18th annual Martha’s Vineyard Rod and Gun Club flyrod catch and release tournament. Registration is at the regional high school cafeteria from noon to 3 p.m. Entry fee is $35. Fishing begins at 7 p.m. and continues until 2 a.m. Sunday.
In years past as many as 200 fishermen have participated in the one-night contest and caught and released hundreds of striped bass.
Summer weather finally kicked in this week, with temperatures in the 80s. The ocean is still cool, and that is having a positive impact on fishing.
Ed (Bonito Eddie) Lepore called this week to say he had been out looking for bonito without result. And he knows of others who are equally frustrated. “The water is too cool, so the fish are late,” Mr. Lepore said.
A fisheries petition that began on the Vineyard last summer to throttle back the commercial season for black sea bass and scup is gaining favor among state fisheries managers.
The petition from Island recreational and commercial fishermen asks the state to end the spring commercial season for black sea bass and scup and postpone the opening until later in the summer and early fall. The action would not affect recreational fishing for both species.
New legislation will be filed in the state house this month making way for a state recreational saltwater fishing license. State Representative Tim Madden said he plans to cosponsor the legislation and that is a good idea for all local fishermen.
“The federal government is mandating that there be a recreational saltwater license. This one, a state version is better, because it keeps the money here,” Mr. Madden said.
A 361-pound porbeagle shark was the winning fish in the weekend’s 23rd annual Monster Shark Tournament in Oak Bluffs. The fish was caught by the crew of a Marshfield fishing boat called Karen Jean II. The captain of the vessel was David Dion of Galveston, Tex.; the boat owner was John Anderson of Marshfield and crewman was William Murphy of New Bedford.
Editor’s Note: The following letter was sent to Paul Diodati, director of the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries. The letter was also signed by Chuck Hodgkinson, Emmett Carroll, Jennifer Clark, Jonathan Mayhew, Virginia Jones and Tom Osmers.
Regarding the request for consideration of a tending requirement on bottom tending or sink gill nets in Massachusetts state waters: All nets must come in with the boat and not be left at sea when the boat is at port.
Bait fish that were once plentiful in the waters around the Cape and Islands have grown scarce. And recreational fishermen want Congress to step in to help do something about it.
Menhaden, also called bunker, have all but disappeared. Atlantic mackerel had a weak showing this spring. Even squid are down; the commonwealth has extended the spring fishing season into June to help commercial draggers meet the state quota, but the bigger question is what happened to the squid?
Fishing season has finally hit its stride. And if they can keep from getting lost in the fog, anglers are finding dinner. There are reports of bonito. Striped bass are still around, although in deeper water. Somebody caught a nice bluefish in Nantucket Sound on Wednesday morning. Someone else was seen toting five gallon buckets full of black sea bass.
A small but spirited group of fishermen met this week to discuss forming an advocacy organization.
The meeting was held Wednesday at the county administration building; 16 people attended. The idea of forming a formal fishermen’s association comes at a time when federal regulators are clamping down on fishing permits and a new bill has been filed in the state legislature to ban commercial fishing for striped bass.
