NO FLUKE

Fishing Tournament for visually impaired adults

Captain Dave Monti
Posted 5/14/14

The RI Lions Sight Foundation (RILSF) will host their 7th Annual VIP Fishing Tournament for Visually Impaired Persons (VIP's) of Rhode Island on June 22, 2014.

The Tournament, which takes place on …

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NO FLUKE

Fishing Tournament for visually impaired adults

Posted

The RI Lions Sight Foundation (RILSF) will host their 7th Annual VIP Fishing Tournament for Visually Impaired Persons (VIP's) of Rhode Island on June 22, 2014.

The Tournament, which takes place on a party fishing boat out of Galilee, RI, is supported through donations from RI Lions Clubs and individual donors. This year, the Tournament will also receive support from the Pabst Brewing Company through the Pabst Blue Ribbon Northeastern Fishing Tournament held from June through September (visit www.pbrfishing.com).

The event includes breakfast and a half-day of fluke fishing followed by lunch and an awards presentation. Participants vie for the opportunity to represent Rhode Island at the Lions National VIP Tourney being held in October in North Carolina.

The event is free of charge to all VIP's and their guides. To be eligible participants are must be legally blind, at least 17 years old, are physically able to fish from a party boat, and must be accompanied by a guide (transportation and/or guides will be provided if needed).

VIP's and guides must fill out an application to participate. Visit http://www.lions4sight.org/index.htm or call Ken Barthelemy at 401-529-6173 for information.

Fluke fishing seminar this Friday at Watch Hill Outfitters

Watch Hill Outfitters, 157 Main Street, Westerly, will hold a free seminar on summer flounder (fluke fishing) Friday, May 16 from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. Mike Wade, owner of Watch Hill Outfitters, said quest speakers will be Capt. Tom Logan of Fish-On-Charters and Cathy Muli of Jackpot Digger Jigs. Fishing gear and rig manufactures will be on hand as well. Call 401.207.4952 for reservations and information.

Fluke fishing and cooking seminar May 19

A RI Saltwater Anglers Association (RISAA) summer flounder (fluke) fishing and cooking seminar will be held Monday, May 19 at the West Valley Inn, West Warwick, RI. Captains Ron Hartman and Rich Hittinger along with local fluke expert Bob Murray will share tips from over their combined sixty years of fluke fishing experience. Chef Ralph Battista, executive chef and owner of Luigi's Restaurant & Gourmet Express, Johnston, will talk about cooking fluke. Chef Battista is an avid angler who also loves to fish aboard his vessel Hook'n & Cook'n. Seminar at 7:00 p.m., West Valley Inn, Blossom Street, West Warwick. Non-members are asked to make a $10 donation, RISAA members attend free.

DEM and DOH to Kick off Great Outdoors Pursuit this Sunday

The Department of Environmental Management (DEM) and the RI Department of Health (DOH) will kick off their Great Outdoors Pursuit (Pursuit #1) Sunday, May 18, 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at Lincoln Woods State Park. Subsequent "Pursuit" events will take place the same time of day on June 22 and July 27 with the final "Pursuit #4" taking place Saturday, August 9. The aim of the program is to encourage Rhode Islanders to reconnect with the great outdoors, get active and have fun.

"Our Great Outdoors Pursuit gets families outdoors, where they can enjoy nature, get fit and have fun. Reconnecting children and families with the natural world will ensure a healthy future for our children and for our planet." said DEM Director Janet Coit.

Four of the Pursuits take place on specific dates in set locations and are guided by DEM staff and their partners. Guided Pursuits include free outdoor adventures such as biking, hiking, nature walks, fitness challenges, kayaking, fishing and rock climbing. They also include music, environmental and health-related exhibits and free raffles, give-a-ways and samples.

Teams of children and adults will be challenged to visit different facilities and take part in outdoor adventures and learn about environmental and health issues over a 12-week period. They earn points for each "Pursuit" event they attend and can win prizes valued up to $1,000 at the Grand Finale. Each team must include a minimum of two people - one member over age 18 and one member under age 18. There is no limit on the number of members that each team may have.

This year program partners include United Healthcare, Verizon, Clivus New England, Fort Adams Trust, Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor, the YMCA, and Coast 93.3.

For more information contact Robert Paquette at (401) 667-6200 (robert.paquette@dem.ri.gov) or Terri Bisson at (401) 222-2776, ext. 4402 (terri.bisson@dem.ri.

gov).

Where's the bite

With warmer weather and a lot of bait (Atlantic Menhaden and squid) in the Narragansett Bay and along coastal shores fishing broke wide open this week with tautog, fluke and striped bass. Here's what is going on.

Striped bass bite for schoolies was very strong all along coastal shores and in Narragansett Bay. Mike Wade of Watch Hill Outfitters, Westerly said, "Many fish were caught in the River (Pawcatuck) this week with s 28" keeper caught from shore at Weekapaug." Ken Ferrara of Ray's Bait & Tackle, Warwick said, "There were more striped bass in Greenwich Bay this week than in years. Everyone was catching school bass with an occasional keeper (one in fifty fish)." Last week's warming water combined with bait fish (Atlantic Menhaden) being in the Bay in large numbers seemed to be the combination of conditions needed to activate the bass. Dave Pickering, noted author and shore striped bass fisherman said, "The fish tonight (this weekend) were hitting well after dark, a real good sign that the fish are becoming more active. The hot artificial combination that has been scoring big time has been a Red Gill teaser set up on a leader along with a white, 7 1/2 inch Slug-Go at the terminal end. The leader that holds this all together is made with 30 lb. test mono and is about 2 1/2 feet long. The teaser (Red Gill) dangles about 6 inches off the leader's swivel. This is cast out and twitched along with short pulls of the rod tip as you retrieve at a slow to moderate speed. The Slug-Go moves erratically in the water and stripers simply cannot resist slamming it. One fish out of seven or eight will take the teaser which sometimes leads to double headers. This is hot stuff right now."

Tautog fishing was heated up this week too. Angler Larry Norin said he fishied off shore this week for tautog, "Left Point Judith at 7:00 a.m. Three guyes fished for two and a half hours and we caught eleven fish, nine keepers to six pounds, all on crabs in 30-40 feet of water." Ken Landry and friend caught tautog to 11 ½ pounds using both clam worms and green crabs. "They fished at Plum Point Light, General Rock and Ohio Ledge." said Ken Ferrara of Ray's Bait. Mike Wade of Watch Hill Outfitters said the tautog bite has been slow as not many anglers are targeting them this spring.

Fluke fishing is heating up with commercial fishermen starting to land fish along the southern coastal beaches. Noted fluke angler Cathy Muli said, "Got the word there's small fluke on the beach here, draggers are working out front." So Cathy and her husband Pat gave it a try this weekend. "There were only three boats out (ours being one of them) from Watch Hill to Weakapaug Breachway." They picked up a few fish, all under 18" (recreational minimum size is 18" this year, 8 fish/angler/day). Cathy said, "I used the Jackpot Digger Jig with a new addition to the line… a fluorescent squid skirt on a glow jig head. That's what I was using tipped with a strip of squid. Pat, on the other hand, was using the white/red bucktail jig. We got out late 12:30 p.m. stayed 2 hours… Nothing to write home about but at least we know they're moving in." Frank Blount of the Frances Fleet reports that, "(Last week) hi hook took home six fine keepers with everyone on board getting at least 2- 3 fish apiece to take home. Pool fish was 5 lbs…. This past Saturday's fluke fishing was also pretty good with a nice pull of keepers... From mid week on they have been marking increasing amounts of bait as well."

Squid fishing has blown wide open with the Frances Fleet reporting great squid trips, "Patrons are landing a half of bucket (five gallon pail) each which is equal to last year's best trip," said Roger Simpson. John Migliori of Newport said, "Squidding at Goat Island is better than it has been in a few years."

Captain Dave Monti has been fishing and shell fishing on Narragansett Bay for over 40 years. He holds a captain's master license and a charter fishing license. Contact or forward fishing news and photos to Capt. Dave at dmontifish@verizon.net.

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