7/14/08

It’s starting to get a little interesting offshore. Last week on the MONTAUK a white shark ate a small blueshark that they
were fighting. Then on Thursday on the JOYSEA another white tried to eat a 200 pound mako that they were in the
process of boating. I always equate a lot of white sharks with whales, since they are not very common if there are no
whales around. And, there are whales around. They are being seen every day just to the east of the inside Butterfish Hole
along with porpoise and birds feeding. Whales need a lot to eat, and if they are around, there’s a good chance that if some
tuna wander by they are likely to stay. I have tried dragging some plastics a couple of times while going sharking, but all
I’ve caught were bluefish.

I’ve heard of a couple of second-hand reports of some nice yellowfins being taken out on the edge. It’s hard to get a
gauge on that since it seems like the guys willing to spend the $$$ to go out there are few and far between.

The shark fishing is continuing to be excellent with most boats hooking up with 10-12 bluesharks per trip, with makos
and threshers always a real possibility. On Friday the WAKE had a bunch of blues along with what I call summer makos,
three of them, all out of the same mold, about five feet long. On the same day the VENTURE had a bunch of blues along
with a hammerhead and a brownie.

A couple of dozen boats signed up for the MBCA’s Charity Shark Tournament, less that hoped for, but enough to ensure
some scholarship money for four local kids. The folks along with their kids that showed up to see the sharks being
weighed had to exhibit a lot of patience when the first shark didn’t show up until nearly 5 pm. Sunday was also slow
until around 4 pm. The results are as follows;
ARC ANGEL - BLUESHARK - 275 LBS
ALYSSA ANN - THRESHER - 226 LBS
SEA WIFE - BLUESHARK - 224 LBS

Inshore there’s nothing to complain about either. Fluke fishing continues steady with more keepers being caught
everyday than I thought we’d be able to catch. Of course that probably means that the regs will be even more stringent
next year, since we’re going to be over our quota once again.

Striped bass fishing continues excellent as well, with a much better class of fish showing up. More boats are using the
big tubes when trolling and more are using the porgies as well, taking a pass on the smaller fish that are also around in
abundance.

Simon Winterburn, the mate on the ADIOS learned a little about the dangers of shark fishing on Saturday. He was wiring
a blueshark that did a bit of a roll on him, grabbing him by the upper arm. Nothing that thirty some stitches couldn’t cure,
but he did have to buy a large bottle of Tylenol before his Sunday morning trip.

Pete Fagan, who mated on the HERL’S GIRL, never woke up on Sunday morning. He apparently had a heart attack and
passed away at 57 years old. Get out and have some fun while you can. You never know.

If you would like to get these reports sent to you directly, drop me a line at captgene@montauksportfishing.com and I’ll
put you on the list.

Capt Gene Kelly - Montauk Sportfishing