Early

Posted on March 20, 2012

Striped bass are already spawning in parts of the Chesapeake Bay. This according to my good friend John Page Williams of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, who also added that the hickory shad have started running. In certain areas of the northeast, the striped bass never left, finding palatable water temperatures in this non-winter. The Weather Channel reported 1,500 record highs across the country last week. I am wearing shorts. Will this be the new normal? Maybe my late April trip to the Susquehanna will not be my first dance with striped fish this year after all.

Tagged: Chesapeake Bay, striped bass, Susquehanna, warm

Landing Striped Bass In A Muskie Cradle

Posted on April 25, 2010

My colleague John Page Williams, who works for the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, is also involved in the Maryland CCA. He turned me on to Careful Catch Maryland, which is promoting the use of catch cradles used by muskie anglers to keep big bass in the water during release. The science behind it is that the less a fish is handled on release, and the less time it spends out of water, the more likely it is to survive. Check out this scientific paper on catch and release mortality, and how your gear and handling affect a fish’s recovery.

Tagged: catch and release, Chesapeake Bay, Droppin' Science, fish mortality, responsible angling, rockfish, striped bass

And So It Begins (Book Saga Continues)

Posted on April 22, 2010

Tosh Brown flew in to Baltimore and I was an hour late picking him up, violating one of my guiding life principles: Never piss off a Texan. But the book project rolls on. We beelined it up to Havre De Grace, where the Susquehanna River empties into the northernmost reaches of the Chesapeake Bay. From there we drove up through Delaware and to the Jersey Shore. I had to bail after the first five days of this leg, but Tosh headed back down to Maryland to catch up with more rocks on the way down to Annapolis. Special thanks go to many people for making this trip possible: Capt. Tom Hughes Capt. Sean Crawford Bob Popovics and his entire crew. (And for that awesome…

Tagged: Chesapeake Bay, Departure Publishing, striped bass, the blitz

The Menhaden Problem

Posted on March 2, 2010

An article in the Richmond Times-Dispatch about the debate between anglers and scientists who have seen a decline in the atlantic menhaden population and the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) and the Omega Protein Corporation, who say the baitfish population is just fine. From the vantage point of my home waters on the Western Sound, I’m going with the scientists and anglers.

Tagged: bunker, Chesapeake Bay, menhaden, omega protein

Save the World Links

Posted on January 13, 2009

Tarbone sends a letter to Florida Fish and Wildlife asking for better bonefish, tarpon, and permit protections. Capt. Gordon sends word of more news in his battle against Carolina gill nets. Coastal Voices blog has a link to a map showing the extent of human impact on the oceans. The Chesapeake Bay Foundation has a petition to the EPA to keep its promise to clean up the bay by 2010.

Tagged: bonefish, Chesapeake Bay, EPA, Florida, gill nets, North Carolina, permit, redfish, tarbone, tarpon

STRIPED BASS: Low YOY Numbers in the Chesapeake

Posted on November 14, 2008

An article on striper numbers from Annapolis. Interesting paragraph: Another factor worth considering is the fishing pressure. If you combine the recreational striper fishery, both in Maryland and Virginia (including the winter fishery at the Bay’s mouth) and along the Atlantic coast with the commercial effort, stripers never really get a break, unlike other game species, such as waterfowl and deer. Add these factors to declining spawning stock biomass (confirmed by the federal striped bass board) and YOY data and you have reasonable concerns.

Tagged: Chesapeake Bay, fisheries management, striped bass, YOY numbers

CHESAPEAKE: Monitor Buoys Vandalized

Posted on August 1, 2008

John Page Williams is a colleague, a fine angler, and, with his work for CBF, one of the most upstanding citizens in conservation. Stop shooting up his buoys.

Tagged: Buoy System, CBF, Chesapeake Bay

The Chesapeake and the Critical Area Act

Posted on February 28, 2008

What happens when the people in charge of upholding an environmental law work to circumvent it. For those not familiar, the Chesapeake Bay watershed is only the largest in the United States, as well as the most important estuary on the Eastern seaboard. It’s also the world’s largest striped bass nursery.

Tagged: Chesapeake Bay, Critical Area Act, gutting environmental laws, over development

Posts tagged “Chesapeake Bay”