Maine Striper Fishing 2010: Dominican Republic North Shore Report

Dominican Republic North Shore Report

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Lately the fishing in the D.R. has been getting alot of press....I recently had the chance to spend some time exploring the fishing around the north shore of the Dominican Republic...I spent 8 days fishing with a local panga Capt. and mate out of Sosua Bay...Sosua is conveniently located only 10-15 minutes east of the Puerto Plata airport.
It was my first trip to this area so this trip was largely exploratory...We fished mainly bluewater as the edge of the drop is in quite tight to Sosua. Dorado were the primary target and boy were they willing to eat...The locals have set up an extensive set of F.A.D's...under which the Dorado loved to gather...so thats where we mostly focused our efforts. Each day out we had a solid pick of Mahi between 30"and 50" also a few wahoo each day and as a bonus some "football" tunas on light tackle. One day we also had the treat of sight casting to smallish tripletail on the weedlines and flotsam.

The next trip...we'll focus on the inshore fishing and around some river mouths and the extensive reefs that line the coast....Snook, Tarpon, Jacks etc....stay tuned!!!



Call us today to plan your trip


Capt. George Harris
207-691-0745
www.superfly-charters.com

Yesterday C O D

Catch of the day:
 Alex's perch mum.

Chasing Striped

The first signs of  spring
We've got what we came for
Complete happiness 
Our policy- catch& photo& relase
I love this :)
Aurora borealis- made in Ireland

Kaki Pancing Malaysia

Here are anglers (occasional pay pond visitors who have nothing better to do) and there are anglers (hard core enthusiasts who were probably fisherfolk in their past lives). Project director Norafandi Mokhtar, 43, falls in the latter category.

Having lived by his life philosophy, “Have rod, will travel”, he’s ready to scurry off to the next fishing destination at every opportunity, with his 12-year-old son in tow. The great thing about fishing, he claims, is that there is no concept of elitism.


“It doesn’t matter if you’re a boss or a clerk, a Tan Sri or a nobody, you’re equal aboard a boat. You share the same food, sleep in the same places . . . and I guarantee you, after two or three days of doing so, you’d be the best of buddies,” he says.

Norafandi’s endless pursuit for the perfect catch has seen him fish atop rickety rafts, houseboats, small ships and . . . oil rigs?

“Yes, that’s where the big fish are,” he says. “But I don’t recommend it for beginners. It takes one day to get there and another day to get back. It’s expensive too. You must be prepared to spend a few thousand ringgit for a trip like that.”



Needless to say, there aren’t many people like Norafandi around. That’s the main reason he set up a Facebook group . . . to find others as devoted as he.

Through word-of-mouth referrals, his group — which began with only a few of Norafandi’s friends — has now grown to accommodate 221 members of mostly rough-and-tumble men. He has organised two trips so far — Tasik Kenyir and Endau Rompin last year.

“First timers are always very enthusiastic but many a-time, their imagination gets the better of them,” says Norafandi.

“There was one incident where, because of the weather, the boat was rocking. This guy started crying and begging us to leave him back at the shore, so we had no choice but to dump him on the nearest island until we were done. Even now, it’s a great story to tell my fishing buddies.”

The group is organising a trip to Taman Negara next for a round of kelah fishing. Companies who are willing to sponsor, he declares, are always welcome.

“So are the fairer sex,” he adds. “We have a few ladies in our group who are interested in fishing but we need to get more so they can organise their own trip.”

And to all marine lovers, don’t worry. Norafandi claims that he is fully behind the catch-and-release technique, especially where protected species are concerned. Sounds fishy? We think not.

Fly Anglers Online is all take and no give

I'm a little ticked and somewhat miffed.
I've been a contributor to Fly Anglers Online for a few years. I've written articlesfor the site free of charge. I've given them free photos. I've contributed the Fly of the Month with detailed tying instructions and photos.
A few months ago, FAOL began a new policy to elminate commercial advertising on its popular forum. I didn't think I was really advertising and didn't worry about. Then I noticed a link to my Southern Drawl Kayak Fishing website which I used in my signature had been removed by someone at FAOL. In addition, the link to this non-commercial blog was removed.
I wrote the forum administrator a nice note and stated my reasons for disagreeing.
His reply was that he didn't care and I could go elsewhere.
I didn't want to do that. I had made several friends at FAOL over the years and I liked participating in the forum.
Over the next few weeks, I saw posts from members with links to their websites in their signatures. So, I added mine. That didn't last long. Again, both links were deleted.
At that point, I decided I needed to make a decision.
I've made a considerable amount of money over the years writing about fishing, so I figured I was doing FAOL a favor by not charging them. Of course, they wouldn't pay anyway. But the point is that my articles and photos are worth money.
But FAOL's philosphy is "We take, but we don't give!"
FAOL will quickly accept free articles and photos, but won't allow me or others to have a linke to our sites in our signatures.
I understand that it's FAOL's new policy. I don't have to like it, but it's their decision.
No more free articles. No more free photos.
No more Free Anglers Online for this outdoor writing pro.

The Joys of Pouring Jigs - Round 2

It's been close to a month since I poured jigs with Mike Burton. The last time I wrote about it, Josh (smallieman) told me that he had never done anything like that before and would like to learn. So, Mike invited both Josh and me to come to his home and experience the "joys of pouring lead" jig heads. Today was the day!

I won't go through the entire process like I did before, but I will post pictures of our good friend, Josh, as he learns the process of pouring lead.

For those who have ever wondered what a 1000 hooks looked like...


Here is Josh sitting at the workbench. I believe he has found a "second career!"


Josh placing hooks into a hot mold. There are a few finished jigs in the pans. We use one pan to hold new hooks, one pan to hold finished jigs, one pan to hold the hot off the mold jigs, and one a pan to hold excess lead that will be returned to the lead melting pot.


Josh pouring hot hot lead... Be careful there, Buddy. You don't want to hurt "the boys!"


The Finished Product!


Lead can come from many different sources... plumber's lead, old stain glass windows, lead conduit piping, tire weights, etc. Some lead sources are much cleaner and do not produce a lot of slag (by-products. Once the lead is melted, the slag normally rises to the top and can be easily removed.

Here is a sample of a lead source - a bag of lead that one can buy at BPS. This type of lead ingot is often used to hold decoys in place. It is not the most economical way to purchase lead, but who can resist a sale!


Where is Josh!? Falling down on the job... "JOSH!"


Josh poured over 200 tube heads and a variety of odds-n-ends like these Arkies w/o weed guards.


What a great day with two very good friends! Mike even cooked chili con carne for us hungry men. We had plenty of hot coffee to keep our bones warm in the cold garage and an abundance of fishing stories to pass the day.

Josh and I want to say a big, "Thanks, Mike!"

dad

Finally - My First Fishing Trip of 2010!

January and February were memorable months for dear ole' dad. It started out with me being in the hospital for 6 straight and worrisome days. January finally turned into February and we got slammed with back-to-back major snow storms that dumped the most snow EVER in recorded history onto our county.

The 9th Grade bball team that I help coach went undefeated once again (lost only 1 game in the past three seasons). And our high school varsity bball team fought hard to make another appearance in the PA. District Playoffs.

This past Friday, I got yet another cortisone shot in my right elbow. It has been doing rather well over the weekend.

So, in some ways, January and February sucked and in many other ways, they were rather good.

Last evening, as I was driving to visit my 9th grade coach who is recuperating from bilateral knee replacements, I got a cell phone from my good buddy and fishing mentor, Mike Burton. Mike wanted to know if I had been fishing much lately... "Yea, sure (HA!)." :-) He knew I had been in the hospital in January, but he didn't realize that I was currently experiencing more swelling in my right "surgically repaired" elbow.

I told him I hadn't been out fishing since December, 2009. Mike was planning on hitting the river in the morning and wanted to know if I wanted to accompany him. Okay... let me think about this for a moment... "SURE THING!"

I have been working diligently on my tackle this past week and had everything ready just for this moment. There was just one more thing I needed. When I returned home from visiting my fellow coach in the rehab center, I needed to jump on-line to get my 2010 Pa. "Resident Annual" license.

The on-line "Outdoor Shop" it is extremely simple and fast process to purchase a fishing or hunting license. I bought my Resident Annual ($22.70) and my Trout/Salmon Permit ($9.70) for a grand total of $32.40. Now, where else in your life do you put so much time in for just $32.40? What a bargain in today's economy! Think about how much time you fish.

We planned to met at 8:00 a.m. at the ramp. The weather was iffy, but the expected rain was suppose to hold off until the afternoon. Good, we'll be fishing a pre-front condition which should help some.

As usual, I get excited the night before a fishing trip. So, before heading to bed, I packed a light lunch and set the coffee maker timer for 6:00 a.m.

It had been over a month since fishing in cold weather conditions. I always plan to be warm. Before hitting the sack, I found my silks and set them out along with my insulated boots and fishing garb.

I arose at 5:00 a.m. with my wife. As she prepared to head to work, I packed all my gear into the F150, kiss the wife goodbye, and set out for breakfast at the local greasy spoon. "George's" has a breakfast special of 2 eggs, home fries (I substitute pears), and toast for $.99. Coffee runs another $.99. You can have a nice breakfast with tax for $2.10, Not bad, for a small town... LOL!

I bought a local morning paper to mull over as I ate my breakfast. After paging through the news, I worked on some of the crypto-puzzles and the crossword puzzles. It helps to keep this aging mind engaged. :-)

I met Mike at 7:45 a.m. We quickly and carefully loaded his Snyder jet rig on the icy and slippery ramp. I have to be extra careful with these two metal hips inside me. We launched without incident and headed across the river to a very rocky "bassy-looking" eddy.



Within a few minutes, I landed my first 2010 smallmouth bass. She measured in at 15.5", nice and fat! Yes, I felt so good being able to finally be on the water after so much drama these past two months... Thank You, Lord!

I caught another bass rather quickly afterward. She was a bit smaller, but a real chunk.

We ran a bit further upriver...


... when Mike nailed this pigbeast.


My largest bass came towards the end of our trip.


It felt so good being out on the water once again. We were able to catch 7 smallies and fouled hook a carp ("She's got some weight, Mike!").

We were about 3 miles down river from a warm water discharge. The main river was reading about 34 degrees. The water we were fishing ranged from 42-45 degrees which was a big help.

The skies were overcast and there was a stiff South Easterly wind blowing between 5-10 mph. That may not seem like a lot, but blowing over 34 degree water makes for a rather chilly morning!

The air temperature ranged from 31 degrees at launching to 37 degrees upon trailering the boat.

We tried numerous lures today - JB, Deep Diving JB, Spinnerbaits, 3.5" and 2.5" tubes, and Grubs. The only successful lures were the two sizes of tubes.

I wanted to throw a hair jig, but didn't find the time to do it.

dad

Ikan Patin Pahang River

"Welcome to the Castle, Bandar Ikan Patin". These are the banners that appear when you enter Castle Town from either Kuala Lumpur, Kuantan, Mentakab, Triang and Jerantut.

Description Municipal Council Atjeh introduce brand (branding) catfish have shown a success. Catfish and Castle, has become a synonym for the drivers in the road near the Castle. Patin Castle has become a reference entire Malaysia.



There are two types of catfish that are searchable in the Castle-looking. Wild river catfish and catfish cage. Wild catfish have been cooked can achieve price RM40 a piece. So anyone who want to try the catfish tempoyak Castle, restaurant owners be asked first is what the catfish. Wrong-wrong slipped budget. If the family 6 people, not to eat once RM240 ... suffer!



Shark cage is not less oneself. Fish a piece (2 inches wide) that have been cooked are usually priced RM4.90. For anyone who has tried catfish cages, guarantee not to eat catfish ponds.

What is the difference catfish catfish ponds and cages ... may not know many people including distinguishing Castle. Catfish is a catfish that cages be defended in cages in Sungai Pahang. While catfish swimming in the pond that reproduce dug either in the former farmers and others.

Catfish cages priced at RM12 per kg, while in catfish ponds usually RM3.90 to RM4.90. In terms of physical, catfish cage has a lean and thin stomach than the fat merening catfish ponds. Catfish cages less fat in their bellies and it is more active. This is because they are forced to fight with the river current speed. While many catfish swimming pool water because fat does not move, so it is less active and work their eating and sleeping only ..




Fat catfish cage while white fat yellow catfish ponds. For those who have been cooked, catfish ponds because they felt the land wallow in the pond. Catfish cages or invoice does not feel the land because the fish cages are not reaching the river policy.
In pasar2 Castle and Mentakab, catfish cage usually sold hidup2. While catfish ponds that have a low vitality is usually sold already dead and split their bellies.

During the Pahang River we can see berderet2 population cages built with subsidies from the seed and cages Department of Agriculture. It is estimated that over 700 people actively working on this industry. Heard Tengku Mahkota Pahang also have cages built on the basis of their own hobbies.

Patin burdens fairly soft, like fill groupers. Tempoyak most delicious in cooking. Can also be made fat chili rice, grilled cicah sour, sour, spicy and Goring.
For those who want to buy a super fresh catfish, let along starting from Triang Pahang River until to Jerantut. So many sangkar2 selling fish from morning to ptang. Around Town Castle, we can buy in the river not far from Hotel Seri Malaysia (in the 500 meters only), via the village to village Stork.
If anyone who has tried catfish Castle, sure do not want another catfish ponds that are sold in malls or night ... that catfish penangan Castle. If you do not believe, ask lah Kida Lan, Lan Kentei or Raman Buffalo!

NW river Ring Perch

I launched out of Bob's Fishing Hole in Chesapeake and went toward the NC border. It took a little while, but when I found them, they were thick.



Tasty River Chicken n Slabs.

Tackling My Tackle - 2010

I have been spending some quality time with my tackle in the past week. Although there is still snow laying on the ground and the temperature has barely risen above the 30's, I have been sitting in my garage with a tiny space heater turned on sifting through my new and used tackle. Boy, do I have a lot of it!

I can't help thinking about a statement I heard made several years ago at a BASS Fishing Techniques workshop that 90% of all bought tackle would never touch water. Well, I thought that just can't be said about my tackle. Ahem... maybe that statement is correct after what I just saw this week in my garage.

I have every known natural color of plastic tubes known to mankind. Green pumpkin dominates, but I have every "flake" added to a green pumpkin tube that's imaginable.

I have so many varieties of tubes that it would make even a manufacturer's head spin like Linda Blair's in the Exorcist!

Not only do I have a "Ton of Tubes", I also have just as many Case Magic Sticks in a variety of "needed" colors.

Since I no longer fish as often for largemouth as I had back in the 90's while doing Pa. BASS Federation tournaments, my largemouth tackle isn't as large as my smallmouth tackle. Not to say that I do not have way too much Lgmouth "stuff"' because I definitely do.

My hard bait collection is filled with so many spinnerbaits, crankbaits, and jigs that I'll never use half of them in my lifetime. That's why I plan to never die until I use up all of them. Sort of like Mr. Magorium's (Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium) comfortable shoes. He knew it was time to pass on when he was wearing his last pair!

I have a plan to help me better organize my plastics. I am going to buy a lot of cheap "Tupperware-like" containers with the snap on lids. Each separate color tube will be placed in it's own container and then stored in a larger storage bin in my garage. These separate containers will be marked with the color and size plastic lure that it contains. This will give me instant access to whatever color and type of plastic I am looking for.

I will also be buying a lot more hangers for my garage pegboard wall. I have a lot of tackle that I can place on that wall for easy access. I call that my "Wall of Fame" or only lures that I have found successful during my years of fishing on the Susquehanna River.

In my mind, I know exactly how I would like it all to look and work. We'll see if it turns out that way or not.

Stay tuned in the next few weeks as I take on Step 2 of the "Tackling My Tackle" task!

dadTB

Friday fly tying; giving in to the weather when it's bad

Tied a bunch of flies today. One pattern was for salt water and called a GIP Fly. GIP stands for Genuine Imitation Plastic. I found the pattern in Fly Tyer Magazine in an article written by Bruce Sublett. The GIP is fly fishing's answer to soft plastics such as the Exude, Saltwater Assassin and other jerk worms.

The other flies I tied were for fresh water. I'm not really sure what they're called. I got the bodies from Capt. Pete Greenan of the Gypsy Guide Service in Sarasota. I think he got the bodies from master freshwater fly tyer Jack Neeley.

Here they are:

The Bigwater jack

Gravel beach at Blesso

Typical irish weather

Yellowfin pike

Catch of the day

Yesterday, we made a trip to the Pollaphuca Reservoir ( I like the name- sound like the name of ancient Mayan temple) I have never fished there before, freshwater lake of this size neither. It was something different for me. The amazing big scenery. Some dissapointment also. The water level was at least 8ft lower than normal. Dubliners were very thirsty recently :) We have found hundreds of acres uncovered gravel beaches mixed up with dried water weeds. The hot spots, which used to house big pike mummys, became the prairie now. Fishing was very difficult then. We tried many lures, different sizes, colours and shapes. Fruitless. At the end of the day I managed to catch the yellowfin jack :)