Tuesday afternoon @ Solomons

[thill]

Greetings, all.

Things have been so busy that I have not had my boat out since early July, but I was able to play "guide" for a couple of friends last week.

First trip with "Bucky", out of Breezy point, we crossed the bay, and immediately found a bazillion birds. First drop, BLAM! ZZZZZZ!!!!! Bluefish! These were 3-7 pound fish. But they were moving fast, and with the waves and birds breaking up, it was impossible to stay on top of them for long.

Moved closer to the channel edge, and the fishfinder lit up. Dropped jigs down and had a steady pick of 20" class blues and rockfish.

Next trip, next day, the weather was MUCH better. Went to same spot, for a repeat of the day before. This time, there were a number of boats in the area, (Probably some of you guys) and there were plenty for everyone.

I pulled the guys out of the crowd and took them to one of my old super-secret hotspots. It's probably been close to 10 years since I was there, but the fish were still there in a big way. Ended the day with quality fish up to about 30". (didn't measure or photo) Very happy that all my old spots seem to still hold fish!

Final trip, I went with TonyG on a short trip out of Solomons. We found fish everywhere we stopped, including a bunch of 18-22" fish busting water at the mouth of the pax. Ran across the bay up into the Honga, and found small fish. On the way back across, ran into a big, sweet smelling oil slick on the edge of the channel - STOP THE BOAT!!!!!!

Dropped a jig and... BLAM! ZZZZZZ!!!! UH-OH! GET THE NET!

These were nice fish, (for summer) mid 30's range. A very nice surprise.

Popped three of them before they vanished, and we continued on our way. Here is a phone-pic of TonyG with a 34 incher:


The summer breakers were still at the mouth of the Pax, and we played with them until it got dark. A great time, especially for such a short trip.

What a beautiful day! It was nice to finally be back on the water again.

-TH