Hook, Line & Sinker...

With a predicted high of 60+ degrees today, it was a no-brainer for me--I was going fishing, even though they were calling for breezy conditions. One look at the muddy water in West Neck was all it took for me to run to Albright's in search of cleaner water.

I initially headed to the back of Albright's, but the water there was worse than West Neck, so I came back and started working my way toward the mouth of the creek. There were stretches of muddy water here, too, but they were interspersed with some stretches that weren't too bad. From 10 to about 1:30, I swung and missed on three fish that picked up my SwimSenko. I also missed a couple fish that hit my chatterbait.

At 1:30, I was rounding a 90-degree bend, when another fish smacked my chatterbait. It turned out to be about a 12-inch striper. On the next cast, I boated a largemouth that would have gone about 2 lbs. I didn't weigh either fish because I forgot my camera today. Then, as fast as I boated those two fish, the action died again. At 2:45, I had had enough and headed for the dock.

Totally unproductive lures today included a Bandit Footloose, Bandit 100 and Mann's Baby 1-Minus.

The water temp when I launched this morning was about 47.5, and it had moved up to 50.5 by the time I quit.

Charlie was standing on the catwalk when I came in and told me that he's planning a trip tomorrow, so I'll likely post a report on his action sometime tomorrow evening.

As Charlie told me yesterday, he went fishing today (2/28/13). He put in at Ashville Bridge Creek. "It was cold, windy, high water, and muddy," said Charlie, adding, "I should have stayed home." His day yielded one medium pickerel and one bass, a 2-5, as best he can recall before checking his video.

Introducing the New West Neck Marina Manager

You'll be seeing a lot of this man, starting Saturday, March 2. That's the day West Neck Marina reopens under its new manager, Steve Winfree (right).

This 1978 graduate of Kellam High School and 48-year resident of Tidewater Virginia is no stranger to running a business. He's the owner and operator of Freestyle Pools, Spas & Waterfalls in Chesapeake. He also owns Blackwater Trading Post and, with the help of his 23-year-old son, manages the day-to-day operations of that Virginia Beach facility.

And, in the very near future, he will be giving name recognition to what already is a thriving catering business out of the Trading Post. Blackwater Catering, as it soon will be known, currently boasts sales of about 250 pounds of barbecue, 100 pounds of brisket, 30 pounds of ribs, and 30 pounds of pork tenderloin each week. Along with that, he sells all kinds of salads and other side dishes.

Under the new Blackwater Catering umbrella, however, Steve plans to branch out into other areas. One such area will be weddings. Steve told me that he already has booked three weddings for this summer.

When asked if he plans to bring his catering skills and products to West Neck Marina, Steve quickly assured me he does. The menu will include all the items mentioned so far, plus tuna and chicken-salad sandwiches, subs, and sausage and other kinds of breakfast biscuits.

Another change coming to West Neck Marina in the near future is some kids' fishing tournaments. Steve said he also plans to host birthday bank-fishing parties for the young set, including food, as well as cane poles for those who don't already have their own equipment.

And that's not all, either. Steve confirmed for me today that he will continue the tradition of all his predecessors at West Neck and host a cookout following the second day of the annual Dewey Mullins Memorial Bass Classic.

That, my friends, is a bird's-eye look at the new West Neck Marina manager and what he has in store for all of us. Steve has made it abundantly clear that he wants folks to think of this facility as "family friendly." I, for one, am going to do my best to help further that worthy goal.

Hook, Line & Sinker...

Charlie made it to the water today with his kayak, but like most other anglers I've been hearing from in the last few days, he had less than a stellar outing. He went to Oakum Creek, where the water was too low for him to launch at the dock. Instead, he had to put in from the bank--a very muddy bank, at that. Said Charlie, "I sank to my ankles but made it OK."

He had to paddle about a hundred yards before finding fairly clear water. His tally for the day was an estimated 6 pickerel (he hadn't had time to check his video yet when he sent me an email) and a lone bass--about 12 inches long--that he caught on a crankbait. He also tried a Senko but didn't find any takers.

"The sun never came out as predicted," Charlie lamented, "so the water remained in the 48-to-50-degree range." He's hoping for better conditions when he tries it again Thursday or Friday.

It likely will be sometime tomorrow afternoon or evening before Charlie will have the video of his day posted. Check it out at http://vbfishguide.blogspot.com/.

Results of a Tough Day on the Water

(From left) Steve Bailey, Brian Skeens, Sid Ryan, Ken Kipler, Richard "Woody" Woods, Roger Armentrout, and Kevin Love. Not pictured but also a participant today is Jared Allbritten.

Eight anglers showed up to fish today's tournament No. 7 of the Goody's 2012-13 season on the Northwest River. There was just one problem: The bass wouldn't cooperate. Nary a fish was brought to the scales at weigh-in, so John will roll over all of today's entry fees into the March 2nd contest, the last tournament of the season.

John said the payout at this season-ender will include the following: biggest bass of the day, biggest bass of the season (the pot currently stands at $92), $20 to the angler weighing in the heaviest bowfin, and $20 to the angler weighing in the heaviest pickerel.

A big turnout is expected at the March 2nd tournament, which will go down rain or shine. The hours will be 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.

If you have any questions, call John at 427-0659.

Tourney Date Changed

I just received an email from John Goodman, saying he has changed this weekend's Big Bass Tournament at Bob's Fishing Hole to Sunday, Feb. 24, given the current weather forecast for Saturday. The hours still are set for 8 to 2. Make plans now to participate.

West Neck Marina News

I made a trip out there today for multiple reasons. Primarily, Skip and I were meeting our friend, Charlie, to give him some samples of different fishing lines. Why?--you ask. Simple: Charlie is getting ready to do a serious study of fishing-line visibility underwater. He's already dabbled in this area, but now he's preparing to take it to a new level. Skip and I hardly can wait to find out the results.

I arrived on the scene early and went straight to my boat shed to check my onboard battery charger. To my dismay, I learned there was no power in my shed. When I walked down to the store, I saw that the overhead light was on there, so I knew it was time for me to call David (the owner) and find out if he knew he had a problem. As it turned out, he didn't have a clue.

About the same time he arrived, handyman Andy also showed up with his "juice" tester. In no time, they had traced the problem to a couple of big fuses, for which David had gone looking for replacements before I left to come home. Before letting him get in his vehicle, though, I had an opportunity to discuss a number of issues with him and picked up some info I feel may be of interest to a number of folks. That info is the main reason for this blog post.

To start with, I asked a couple of questions. I first asked if it might be possible to get a light installed in the ramp area to help those folks who launch boats at 0-dark-30, and David said yes. I next asked if he minded my putting a collection container in the marina store for donations to the American Cancer Society in Dewey Mullins' name, and David said OK to that idea, too. At that point, he asked me a couple questions about this year's tourneys, and then he started sharing some info, which I found interesting.

For openers, he said his brother (Steve, I've heard, is his name) has agreed to lease the marina from him. He went on to explain that his brother has been in the construction and catering businesses for a number of years. And once he takes over, he plans to fix some things up there at the marina and begin offering something more substantial than the packaged snacks usually available. David said there isn't enough space to turn the store into a restaurant but hinted that the operation somewhat might resemble a mini-take-out affair. The brother, I'm also told, plans to run some tourneys for kids there at the marina. And, continuing the tradition that started with Bill Brown, and continued through all of Dewey's years of leadership, a cookout will cap the end of the annual Dewey Mullins Memorial Bass Tourney Series.

After explaining all that, David started to walk away, en route to going for the new fuses, but then stopped suddenly and added some additional insight. He told me to count on a donation from him and Teresa (his wife) in the amount of $325 for each of the first two tournaments this year. He told me to use it as additional prize money for those tournaments, which perhaps will serve as added incentive for even bigger participation this year than we had in 2012.

I don't mind telling you that I walked away as one happy camper from that conversation.

Before I headed my van out the marina's exit and in the direction of home, however, I just had to make a trip to the ramp area and lay my eyes on "Dewey's trick" brick that Charlie first told me about the other day. Here's a photo of it, just as Charlie left it the other day after helping the two fellas who dropped their trailer off the end of the ramp. I gotta be honest with you--I'm just a bit surprised that some young 'un hasn't found this brick and used it for something other than the intended use before now. In any event, I wanted to see the "real deal" and thought maybe my blog readers would enjoy seeing it, as well.

Another Tourney This Saturday, Feb. 23

Tournament No. 7 is scheduled at Bob's Fishing Hole on the Northwest River from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. this coming Saturday. Registration closes promptly at 7:50 a.m. Entry fee is $10 per angler. You may fish alone or with a partner. Tournaments only will be cancelled by a majority vote of those present before scheduled blast off. Roger Armentrout owns the big-fish title so far this season with a 5.49-lb. bass.

More Than He Bargained For

When Charlie went to West Neck Marina today to check the water-level gauge and take a couple of pictures, he ended up with all that and a little more. The first "extra" was this fella who had launched his boat in only 2.3 feet of water at the end of the ramp from his tandem trailer being pulled by a blue pickup. I'm surprised he was lucky or crafty (whichever one, I'm not sure) enough to pull off such a feat.

Anyway, as Charlie was heading to his truck to leave, another pickup arrived and was going to launch a boat, so he stayed around to watch how it was done. This boat just had hit the water when Charlie suddenly heard a "clunk" and quickly noticed that the trailer no longer was visible. It took only a moment to confirm his suspicions: This unlucky chap had dropped his trailer off the end of the ramp. He was spinning his truck tires ever so hard, but nothing was moving.

At this point, Charlie walked over to show the driver and his buddy the "Dewey trick" for getting their trailer back on the ramp. They were more than ready to try anything.

Charlie grabbed the face brick (sample at left) that Dewey always kept next to the ramp and threaded the brick onto some rope. After tying it in place, the buddy got on one catwalk, and Charlie got on the other. They then swung the brick out behind the trailer, let it sink, and after a couple tries, dragged it under the trailer and lifted. It was amazing how light the trailer felt underwater. As it came up, the driver rolled up the ramp, and everything was cool.

Under his breath, Charlie uttered a "Thank you, Dewey." He then replaced the brick for the next unlucky guy who finds the end of the ramp the hard way.

Incidentally, if Dave and/or Jason happen to read this blog post, please drop us an email and let us know how the fishing was today.

In Case You're Interested...

We held our annual planning session yesterday and adopted the 2013 fishing schedule, as well as our rules and regs for the year. Anyone interested in receiving an electronic copy of either or both simply needs to email me with a request. If you'd like to be added to my email distribution list for future tourney-related info, just say so in the same request, and it will be done. Send all your requests to: kenneth34@cox.net.

Hook, Line & Sinker...

The first report I received this afternoon was from Charlie Bruggemann, who launched at West Landing Marina this morning and maneuvered his kayak across the North Landing River to Godfrey Creek. He was hoping to find clear water at the end of the creek and did but only managed to catch three dinks and a small pickerel. All the fish fell for a Storm Sub Wart that Charlie had modified by adding feathers and crystal flash to the rear treble.

The next report came from Chris Fretard, who, like me, launched at West Neck Marina. He told me that, from 2 to 5:30 p.m., he boated a 1-lb. bass and a 2-lb. pickerel, both on a Texas-rigged worm. He fished north of the bridge, all the way back to Indian River Road, because the water was clearer.

Even before launching this morning, I knew I was headed south in pursuit of clear water. After Tuesday's skunk in muddy West Neck, I wasn't about to take a chance on a repeat performance. My destination of choice was the back of Albright's Creek--just enough of a run to air out my Yamaha a little bit.

As I nudged the trolling motor around the bend into the stretch that would take me to the tree line, the water cleared up dramatically, and I didn't go very far at all before I boated this 1-lb. bass on a Mann's Baby 1-Minus in red craw. It was nice knowing I would escape a second skunk in a row, and for a brief period, I thought I might even go on to have a decent day.

When I had fished another half hour without a second hit on the 1-Minus, I started digging in my tacklebox and kept digging the rest of the day. I tried spinnerbaits, chatterbaits, various crankbaits, jerkbaits, and even a few topwaters--all to no avail, other than for feeling a couple of taps that felt like bream.

As Charlie remarked in his email, "I sure would like to know what's putting them off their feed."

Just in is a report from Eddie Sapp, who, unlike everyone else I've talked to for several days now, had a darn good day today, compared to all these other reports. He said the day "started a bit slow but finished red hot for mid-February."

 

Eddie said he fished from about 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and caught 12 to 14 bass. He estimated his best five at a total weight of 9 to 10 lbs. Most of his fish came on soft plastics, with a couple on a crankbait. He said the water temp ranged from 49 to 54 degrees, which is similar to what I found.

 

I also learned from Eddie that he ran across Jared Allbritten on the water today, and Jared said his day was about like Eddie's. Jared did tell him he lost a nice kicker, though, because of a bad hookset. Both caught all their fish in West Neck.

 

If I'm reading Eddie's report right, it would seem that most of his fish came later in the day. I'm guessing they may have been turning on about the same time I quit, which was 2:30. However, I wasn't fishing any soft plastics like Eddie was. Reckon I need to add them to the mix my next trip, and if that fails, perhaps I just should empty out the tacklebox.

Hook, Line & Sinker...

Charlie Bruggemann and I came off the water at the same time this afternoon (about 2:45), so I got his results on the spot. The only thing I can report is that Charlie dodged a second skunk in a row by catching a 6-to-8-inch bass at the last minute.

I, on the other hand, recorded my first fishless day of the current year. I felt only two bumps all day, saw two fish break water at the mouths of coves, and saw one other fish making a wake as he chased something across the mouth of another cove. Because of what I saw, I concentrated a lot of effort with different baits at the entrance to each cove but never felt the first fish in those areas.

As Charlie has been reporting for days now, the water was super muddy. The visibility couldn't have been more than 4 to 6 inches. The water temp at the ramp when I launched about 10 o'clock was 49 degrees. When I came back in at 2:45, it had warmed up to 53.

The water level this morning was at the 4-foot mark. This afternoon, it had dropped to 3.6 feet and still was going out when I left the marina to come home.

I suspect fishing will remain slow until the water starts getting back to its regular color. With more rain on the way, it's hard to tell when that will happen.

As I came in this afternoon, there were three fellas sitting in lawn chairs on the catwalks, with lines in the water, and a fourth one was standing at the point, with two lines out as well. I reckon that's what is to be expected without any management on the premises. I only can hope the situation returns to normal once a new manager is on the scene.

West Neck Water Level Report

When Skip Schaible stopped by the marina on his way home from church today, he snapped this picture, which shows the water level at 2.7 feet. At 3:15, when I stopped by for a look, the miserably muddy water was touching the 3-foot mark. I watched a kayaker load his craft, then observed that the water was about 2 feet above the joint in the ramp (on the high side), and climbed back in my van to come home.

Skip told me there was a guy at the ramp during his visit who looked like he had backed his trailer too far and had gone off the end of the concrete. He said the guy was in the water when he first got there, and a couple other fellas were helping him. Skip said the guy in the water eventually hopped into his boat--a Tracker. The trailer still was there when Skip rode back by later, so the guy must have solved his problem and gone on fishing--with or without a change of dry clothes.

The bird in this photo that Skip also took at West Neck is what we believe to be an American eagle. It's not at all unusual to find these creatures in the area of the marina. They're part of the reason I so enjoy spending time at West Neck.

Hook, Line & Sinker...

I received an email from Charlie Bruggemann that I didn't figure I'd ever get. When an angler with his track record suffers a skunk, you know it's a bad day. As Charlie put it, "The bass got even with me today."

He decided to launch at Old Pungo Ferry Road today because he could see unstained water across the river in the oxbow yesterday when he stopped there. The water was rising fast today, though--about 4 inches while he was out. As a result, muddy water was pushed into those areas that were clear yesterday.

He was happy with the 44-degree water temp he found when he started and even happier when he found some 54-degree water at the back of some bays by 1400. However, when the day ended, he hadn't even had a tap. His only excitement today was when some jet skiers buzzed him in the oxbow.

"It takes all kinds," said Charlie. "Maybe next week will see things improve."

Another Tourney in the Record Books

Claiming the big--and only--bass honors today at Bob's Fishing Hole on the Northwest River was Cathy Brandt, with a fish that tipped the scales at 1.47 lbs. As reported by John Goodman, five boats and seven anglers showed up for today's bone-chilling contest. "The air temp was cold, and those gusty northerly winds made for a very tough day," he said.

Congratulations to Cathy on today's win. As John noted, however, nary an angler weighed in a pickerel to claim the $20 bill he had offered up for the day's largest pickerel brought to the scales.

The next Goody's tournament is slated for Feb. 23rd at Bob's.

John thanked James for hosting today's event, those anglers who braved the inclement weather, and, of course, the devoted weigh master, Ronnie McLaughlin.

West Neck Water Level Report

At 12:30 today, Charlie Bruggemann found the water at 2.3 feet, which is ever so slightly better than the 5 p.m. reading Justin Reese got yesterday. Charlie said while he was at West Neck he bumped into a guy from Chesapeake with a fiberglass Tracker who just was launching. He said the fella's trailer still was in the parking lot two hours later as he was heading home. Charlie handed him one of his cards while they were talking and also told him about my blog, so perhaps the fella will get in touch with one of us and let us know how he did today. If he does, I'll post an update to this blog item.

Charlie noted that the low water at West Neck still is muddy, with only 8 to 10 inches of visibility. He also passed me the following reports from additional sites he visited while out and about today:

Oakum Creek (Munden Point Park) - low, muddy, visibility 6 inches, floating trash.
Old Pungo Ferry Road - low, muddy, visibility 8 inches, but looking across to the oxbow, the water appeared cleaner coming from Albright's Creek.
Princess Anne Wildlife Management Area - low, muddy, visibility 6 inches, canal dredging in progress.
Mill Landing Road (Nanny Creek) - low, muddy, visibility 4 inches.
Beggars Bridge Creek - So low it's just mud flats.

West Neck Water Level Report

I had lots of folks helping me out with water-level readings today. This photo, taken by Justin Reese at 5 o'clock today, shows the water standing at nearly 2.2 feet, up a good bit from Charlie Bruggemann's 12-noon reading below. I also received a 3 o'clock photo from Skip Schaible, in which the wind already must have shifted, because his reading also showed an improvement over Charlie's.

 

When Charlie was out to West Neck this morning, the water level stood at 1.5-feet. When the water is this low, it means just one thing: Nothing bigger than a kayak will be able to launch for a spell. Charlie said the water is muddy, with only 6 inches of visibility. He also noted that it's cold out there in the wind.




My thanks go out to all of you for your assistance.

A Little Dock Talk: Another One of My Notions Up in Smoke

Most local anglers who know me very well know that I use 100% braided line--specifically Stren Sonic Braid in the olive green color. I settled on this particular line after a lot of testing--and a very dear lesson I learned several years back while fishing Lake Gaston for a week with my friend, Jim Bauer. Suffice it to say that when you try fishing that lake with bright white braid, you might as well be hanging out a neon sign, telling the fish to "Go away!" That's exactly what they did--all week long.

I think most fishermen generally will agree that, in a sense, fishing has a lot to do with confidence, whether it's the boat we own, the rod and reel we use, the lures we fish, or the line we spool up with regularly. And, for a lot of years now, I've been fishing that olive green Sonic Braid, thinking that, given the color of the water in the North Landing River, the fish likely were not seeing my line--at least not very clearly.

That notion, however, has been squashed, thanks to the research of my friend, Charlie Bruggemann. I'm here to tell you that this man's brain never rests. He's always coming up with new experiments. The last time we had coffee together, he shared a couple ideas with me that he plans to try this year, and I hardly can wait to see how they turn out.

At the moment, though, he's working on some underwater photography of his lures running in the water. He sent me a short clip of what he got on video the other day that I'm going to share with everyone at the end of this blog entry. He's a little disappointed in the fact that his underwater pictures were a little blurry. However, as he noted in his email to me, he found it "interesting how well the braid he uses stands out. I would have thought it would be harder to see," he said, adding that he plans to try the same experiment with a fluorocarbon leader and see how it shows up. He's also going to try coloring a few feet of line ahead of the lure with a black marker.

One look at Charlie's video clip quickly will dispel any thoughts you may have had about your olive/moss green braid being invisible in the North Landing River--far from it. For the record, Charlie uses 15-lb. Power Pro in moss green on his medium rods and 30-lb. Power Pro in moss green on his heavier rods. Take a look and enjoy.

Incidentally, a little while after Charlie had sent me the above video, he emailed me again, saying he just had finished watching some Rapala crankbait demos, in which the line was really visible in all of them. He concluded that nothing is "invisible," no matter what the ads say.

Tourney Time Again This Saturday, Feb. 9, 2013

Tournament No. 6 (Nos. 3 and 5 were cancelled due to inclement weather) is scheduled at Bob's Fishing Hole from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. this Saturday. Registration closes promptly at 7:50 a.m. Entry fee is $10 per angler. You may fish alone or with a partner. Tournaments only will be cancelled by a majority vote of those present before scheduled blast off.

Roger Armentrout owns the Big Fish title so far this season with a 5.49-lb. fish.

There's a bonus in store this Saturday. The registered tournament angler weighing in the heaviest pickerel of the day will receive $20.

Hook, Line & Sinker...

The weatherman's promise of sunshine today, despite a bit cooler temperature than yesterday, was all the inducement I needed to go back for seconds. Like yesterday, I launched about 10 o'clock and fished until 2:45. There was only one other trailer in the parking lot ahead of me this morning, and it was gone when I came in, but Mike Evans' vehicle had replaced it. He stopped by on the water just long enough to find out how I was doing, then meandered to the opposite shoreline and started fishing.

This bass was my second one of the day. Tipping the scales at 1-2, he fell for that pineapple Bandit Footloose that the manufacturer tried to pawn off on me here recently as being khaki/brown back/scales. My first bass, a dink, fell for the same bait, and I had another one following the lure until he saw my boat, splashed his tail, and quickly changed directions. For the benefit of everyone reading this, please note that the bass is in my net--not on the floor of my boat--for this picture. None of my fish today touched the carpet, which is in keeping with a promise I made to everyone not too long ago. In each case, I rested the net on my lap as I snapped a picture, weighed the fish, then released it. Hope that makes everyone happy.

The bass in this photo weighed in at 1-4 and was one of three bass that I boated between 1 and 2:30 today on my chartreuse/white chatterbait. I watched all three fish follow the bait, then take it in their mouths ever so gently before turning and trying to dart away with the lure. In addition to these two keepers, I had one more 12-incher. The other two only would have gone 8 to 10 inches.

The water level at 10 o'clock was 3.4 feet, which is what it was showing when I quit yesterday. When I came in this afternoon, though, it read 3.2 feet. With the northeast wind I saw in the forecast this evening, that level is going to drop dramatically.

Like yesterday, too, I found some water that looked clear, while other stretches looked a tad muddy. At launch time today, the water temp at the ramp was 45. Unfortunately, I forgot to check it when I came in this afternoon.

For the record, I gave the Yo-Zuri SS Minnow a fair workout today but didn't have the first fish act interested. I'll keep giving it a try, though, 'cause I know it will catch fish.

Hook, Line & Sinker...

When I got home from West Neck today, I had this note waiting for me from John Goodman:

"I couldn't stand house-arrest any longer, so I ventured out to Bob's. Several other guys had the same idea, but they appeared to be after crappie. I managed one good-sized bass and one bigger pickerel. Got the chance to use my midget little-league bat to dispatch the darn crankbait-eating fool, too."

While talking to Skip Schaible and Charlie Bruggemann this afternoon when I arrived at the dock, I learned that Charlie had what, for him, was an off day but one that still was better than what I had. He ended the day with 6 bass (a couple that he said would have gone about a pound apiece and the rest dinks). He also boated about as many pickerel. All the fish fell for a Yo-Zuri SS Minnow in gold with black back.

The fish you see here, as I learned from Chris Fretard, is a gizzard shad. As you can see, he caught it today on a crankbait. He tells me when he lived in Tennessee and fished Lake Barkley, he occasionally would accidentally snag one of these fish with a crankbait, but he's never heard of one biting a lure. Chris finished the day with a total of 4 bass (the biggest a 2-pounder) that hit a worm, 2 pickerel, and 1 perch. He said that 3 of the bass were just 12-inchers.

My day ended with 3 pickerel and 1 of these gizzard shad, which I also caught on a crankbait--a silent Strike King. Unlike Chris, though, I hooked mine in the tail. This was the first time I've ever caught one of these fish. I'd be curious to know why they were hitting crankbaits today--or, for that matter, why they were hitting any kind of lure.

This is the Yo-Zuri SS Minnow I caught all 3 of my pickerel on today--also missed a couple fish that slapped at the bait but missed. Charlie is the one who persuaded me to get some of these baits and try them. They've been good to him. I've had 3 in my tacklebox for a spell now, but it wasn't until today that I really gave one of 'em a chance to catch a few fish for me. Now that I have a little confidence in the lure, I'll likely be throwing it a lot more.

Incidentally, before I forget, let me pass along a water-level report. It was at the 3.6-foot mark when I launched at 9:45 this morning. When I came in at 3 o'clock, though, it was showing 3.4 feet. Most of the water I fished was pretty clear, but I did hit a couple of areas that were a bit muddy. I never found any water temps above 46, but Charlie told me he found an area where his gauge hit 50 degrees.

West Neck Water Level Report

I received a note from Skip Schaible this morning, along with this photo of the gauge, showing 3 feet of water. At this level, the water is about 2 feet above the joint in the ramp. Bottom line: Launching is no problem.