Sometimes I like to get away from my regular routine as captain and fish with friends recreationally. Recently, I found myself fishing out of Oregon Inlet with Billy Maxwell on his boat “Tuna Fever”. We caught an abundance of fish and were able to even release a few as well. While in the area, others joined me in discussing migration patterns of various fish and the changes in recent years.
For decades, we could almost predict when and where the fish would be any given week as they headed north from Hatteras to Virginia Beach to the Chesapeake Bay. Water temperatures would generally follow a set calendar, allowing me to speak with authority on transiting fish. After much deliberation while consuming our favorite libations, we all agreed that weather changes over the past decade have influenced fish migration and it’s now not always consistent with time of month or water temperature.
For instance, red drum have always had a strong showing at Oregon Inlet when the water temperatures reached 62 degrees. They were being caught off Hatteras in mid-May but didn’t show in the Outer Banks until water levels reached the mid-60’s. At the same time, redfish were being landed in the Cape Charles area of the bay and large schools were being sighted as far north as Smith Point Light. So how can masses of the same species in the northern reaches precede those in the south? It becomes clear that instinctive timing and water temperatures are both factors in migration. We also concluded that the biomass is much larger than in years past and it was likely that mild winters encourage many fish to winter closer, while others continue to travel further south.
A fish story
I have fished all my life, been a charter captain since 1987 and have contributed hundreds of fishing articles over the years. I feel like the more knowledge I accumulate about fish, the more I have to learn. Being a student of fishing often requires an education in meteorology, biology and among my friends and colleagues, homeschooling in “B.S.” On that point, this is how a conversation began on which baits were preferred for various fish…
My friend Terry, who has a doctorate in “B.S.”, began a story about backwater fishing explaining how he was bass fishing one morning and quickly ran out of worms. Wanting to continue catching fish, he happened to see a cottonmouth snake with a frog in its mouth and knew that frogs were good bass bait. Knowing that the snake couldn’t bite him with a frog in its mouth, he quickly grabbed it behind its head and removed the frog to use for bait. Now the dilemma was how to release the snake without getting bit. Being a quick thinker, he reached down, grabbed his flask of bourbon and poured a small amount in the snakes mouth. It’s eyes rolled back, it went limp and was released without incident. He proceeded to fish with that frog. A short time later, he felt a nudge on his foot and it was that same snake… with two more frogs!
What’s biting locally
As we enter June, cobia will be the first sizeable catches anglers are able to keep. These tasty monsters will continue to cruise our waters deep into the summer months. Bluefish have already moved into the Northern Neck region. There appears to be a larger number of 2-5 pound blues in the bay this season. This fishery has increased over the past few years. By mid-month, we should see the first wave of Spanish mackerel running through our area. These species will give anglers options after they boat their two-fish cobia limit.
Bottom fishing will fill in with croaker, spot, whiting and some flounder in June. The bay and rivers should both be rich in offerings.
Inshore, small boat anglers continue to find speckled trout mixed with puppy drum in skinny waters of creeks and grassy flats. Several local creeks offered trout throughout the winter months.
This month we find opportunities to not only showcase our fishing prowess, but also expand on our stories and add to our “B.S.” degrees.
Fishing is the glue to keeps friends and family close.
Until next time….Fair winds.
