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2001 "Ascension Thursday" Trip |
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Home --- About the Club --- Trips of the Past --- 2001 "Ascension Thursday" Trip |
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Aye, even I had a gloomy outlook before this trip. Although I had done my best to hide it from those who had signed on, the prognosis was not good. All the data from my usual pre-trip research indicated today's trip would not be very pleasant. It had all the makings of a day only the seasoned veterans of "sloppy seas" would be the only souls left standing when a truce ending this battle occurred. Those souls brave enough to venture out this past weekend returned home battle scarred by rain, 15mph east winds and chill. But what really caught my attention was the whisper of 10 to 12 foot seas. Even a seasoned vet will make an involuntary primate-like grunting sound at that point.
Thirty two brave souls embarked from Belmar Marina on Thursday morning May 24th, 2001 at 7:15 am. (Thanks John!) They stood ready to engage whatever loomed before them aboard the 'Deep Adventures III. This is what the ship's log will show.
Our first stop yielded about 150 sea bass. Mr. Ortega boated a small dogfish (squalus cubensis), which looks like a sand shark. About a half dozen bluefish (pomatomus saltatrix) were taken. The second wreck yielded about half the sea bass as the first. But on the third, when the first angler hit bottom, all Hades broke loose. The frenzy and chaos were on. Hooking two at a time (for those wise enough to bring two hook setups, heh heh) occurred frequently. In one hour two fifty five gallon barrels were full of sea bass. Everyone was satisfied and in good spirits as the Captain signaled time to reel the lines in and head home. |
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Ah�but at this point the trip became an adventure for one lad! Lutchy Jerome struggles to reel in with no success. He calls a mate for help adding his line is STUCK under the boat. As all lines are in, a nosy crowd begins to gather at the stern just as the STUCK line causes the reel to scream out about 100 feet of line away from the boat!! FISH ON!! In a prolific battle (that had our hero backing up the aisle of the boat with line straight out from the stern at one point, try picturing it) lasting about three minutes that must have felt like thirty, Mr. Jerome became the proud owner of a 27 lb stripped bass!! (morone saxatilis). And the whole event was caught on tape and when asked he planned to do? Mr. Jerome's response was, "I'm going to Disney World!" The tumultuous roar let go from the crowd was just indescribable and something all will remember. As for the final tally and honors, just over 350 sea bass fell victim along with the blues and the stripper. |
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Sky Fabian had the largest bluefish. Coach Steve Trembley had the largest sea bass. |
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