It was yet another great clave. I learned a lot, which always seems to be the case at claves. I think it would be a worthwhile topic to recap what we all learned while it's still fresh on the mind.
1) One of the things I learned is the great fishing on South Beach. I usually opt for the classic flats experience and 'famous' North Monomoy flats, but I'll have to say that South Beach sure had a lot of fish!
2) Another is a distinct south-north movement of large fish at the edge or on the flats during the dropping tide. This was evident on both sides (ocean and inside). In fact I did not see any fish moving from north to south during the entire time, although I did see lots of fish going the other way. In fact, right after Chuck hooked his 34" 50 yards to my south, I hooked a fish over 30". It was trailed by another keeper sized fish and I hooked a second fish the same size right after the first.
3) Third is the predation of released fish by seals who target fishermen for their tendency to tire fish out and release them haplessly into the seal's death trap. I will avoid fishing near seals for this reason.
4) Fourth is a timely reminder that the bentback fly can be used as an unweighted alternative to the clouser to construct a fly that not only rides point up but conceals the hook well, allowing it to slide thru more junk than conventional hook designs. Roops affinity for the price of tides and the fish he caught convinced me of the need to explore this area further.
5) Another was the role of bright flashy flies and stealthy transparent flies with respect to conditions. My luck during low light and deep dark pools was better with bright or flashy flies, my luck during high sun and bright water was better with dull or clear colors. Of course I already knew this but every visit to Monomoy and it's surrounding flats (summer on Brewster flats, etc) re-inforces this message.
6) There is such thing as over-exhuberance in fishing. We overdid it a little by dropping our forks and running to the water leaving the fire burning and a buffet for skunks, racoons, squirrels, and foxes on the table. It had the effect of tapping out our energy when needed, and made it difficult for some folks who were trying to join up with us (sorry Fred!) for some fishing. I would suggest in the future to do a 3pm luncheon (opposite of brunch) in the afternoon on Saturday to save enough time for an evening run at 5 pm. Clean-up can begin without giving too many chances for animals, large tubs can be brought for dumping dirty dishes into until return, etc.
Please post YOUR observations and learnings...
1) One of the things I learned is the great fishing on South Beach. I usually opt for the classic flats experience and 'famous' North Monomoy flats, but I'll have to say that South Beach sure had a lot of fish!
2) Another is a distinct south-north movement of large fish at the edge or on the flats during the dropping tide. This was evident on both sides (ocean and inside). In fact I did not see any fish moving from north to south during the entire time, although I did see lots of fish going the other way. In fact, right after Chuck hooked his 34" 50 yards to my south, I hooked a fish over 30". It was trailed by another keeper sized fish and I hooked a second fish the same size right after the first.
3) Third is the predation of released fish by seals who target fishermen for their tendency to tire fish out and release them haplessly into the seal's death trap. I will avoid fishing near seals for this reason.
4) Fourth is a timely reminder that the bentback fly can be used as an unweighted alternative to the clouser to construct a fly that not only rides point up but conceals the hook well, allowing it to slide thru more junk than conventional hook designs. Roops affinity for the price of tides and the fish he caught convinced me of the need to explore this area further.
5) Another was the role of bright flashy flies and stealthy transparent flies with respect to conditions. My luck during low light and deep dark pools was better with bright or flashy flies, my luck during high sun and bright water was better with dull or clear colors. Of course I already knew this but every visit to Monomoy and it's surrounding flats (summer on Brewster flats, etc) re-inforces this message.
6) There is such thing as over-exhuberance in fishing. We overdid it a little by dropping our forks and running to the water leaving the fire burning and a buffet for skunks, racoons, squirrels, and foxes on the table. It had the effect of tapping out our energy when needed, and made it difficult for some folks who were trying to join up with us (sorry Fred!) for some fishing. I would suggest in the future to do a 3pm luncheon (opposite of brunch) in the afternoon on Saturday to save enough time for an evening run at 5 pm. Clean-up can begin without giving too many chances for animals, large tubs can be brought for dumping dirty dishes into until return, etc.
Please post YOUR observations and learnings...