Sea Robins and Sunsets

“What shall we do on Saturday?” Kathy asked as the eight-day weather forecast came up on the TV screen. It was Sunday evening (August 2nd) and the NBC Connecticut weather team was promising us temperatures in the low 80s and a light breeze the following weekend. We both knew the answer to the question.

Saturday came around and, sure enough, it was the perfect day for some chilling out, looking and learning and watching the world go by.

After an early lunch we set off for Madison and Old Saybrook, with a slight detour to visit River’s End Tackle on Boston Post Road. Once I had the latest copy of “On the Water” magazine we headed to the shoreline.

Several online fishing reports had stated that after the “blue” moon the previous weekend fishing had picked up in the area so we were hopeful of some activity. The water had some chop to it and the flotilla of boats with fishing rods onboard traveling to and from Long Island Sound were encouraging signs. Unfortunately that was where the promise ended.

A couple of guys were set up on the Dock & Dine jetty and apart from reeling in copious amounts of grass and seaweed they didn’t have a lot else to show for their efforts. The picture was the same at the dock near the hotel.

We saw several people trying to catch crabs (ouch) at both locations but they all pulled up empty baskets. Despite this it was a fabulous afternoon to be outside. It almost felt like the sea air was cleansing my soul.

After a few hours we decided to jump in the car and get some liquid refreshment from McDonalds (strawberry-and-banana smoothie, highly recommended). When we returned we had a little snack in the car (New York Cheddar cheese and Ritz crackers if you’re really interested) and returned to the dock area.

The anglers were getting ready to call it a day as we sat down, but some more folks appeared to try their luck and throw a few lines out.

Bunker (Atlantic Menhaden)

I recognized one of them as the gent who caught the 25+lb Striped Bass a couple of weeks ago. With his son fishing alongside him, he set up his gear and cast out a 12-13ft rod. It was noticeable how much further he cast compared to the other anglers.

His style was fluid and effortless. He stood at 90 degrees to the water, held the rod with both hands level, planted his weight onto his left foot and cast out. The other fishermen seemed to put a lot more effort into it and only achieved half the distance. Mental note – technique trumps brute force.

He also put considerably less Bunker on his hook for bait. Most of the other fishermen were baiting with large pieces where this guy was using much less, almost a slice rather than a chunk.

Whatever he was doing differently it worked. Within minutes he had a Sea Robin in his hands. This was quickly followed by a couple more and a Fluke. His son had some bites but lost a couple before reeling in another Sea Robin. No wonder the other anglers looked bemused. They’d been there all afternoon and couldn’t buy a bite.

Sea Robin.

To our right the sky was getting darker and boats were coming in to moor for the night, but as the sky darkened, the sun gave us one last blast of sunlight.

The off-white colored boats on the Connecticut River entrance were now almost golden in appearance and the far side of the river was glowing in the warm, soft light. The water, which was now calm and like glass, took on a pale salmon pink hue as the last rays of the sunset reflected off it. No wonder landscape photographers call that time of day the “golden hour.”

Fluke (Summer Flounder). Photo – http://www.connecticutsaltwaterfishing.com