Article by Larry Jock
It was an interesting 2009 season with 6 Maryland state records set and a couple of closures by our government friends that really threw things for a loop.
Following is a summary of the action we saw in each issue of the Coastal Fisherman this year.
May 6, 2009 - Capt. Kane Bounds graced the first cover of the year with a 19 lb. 8 oz. tautog caught in mid-March on an ocean wreck... The winter sea bass bite was excellent, with a few knotheads caught over 6 lbs... Paul Twilley caught a 7 lb. 5 oz. sea bass in the Wilmington Canyon... The Bow Mariner wreck produced a 7 lb. sea bass caught by Noah Fowler... Dean Lo caught a 6 lb. sea bass in the Wilmington Canyon... Scott “Eddie Munster” Hoffman released a striped bass on New Year’s Day while trolling at Great Gull Shoal that was estimated at 50 lbs... The first flounder of the season was caught by Bo Smeltzer on the south side of the Assateague Bridge... In Ocean City, the early flounder bite was best in the bay behind Assateague Island... Flounder started appearing in the Delaware Bay with a good bite around Brown Shoal and in the Lewes Canal... Tautog were biting around the Outer Wall in the Delaware Bay... Other notable catches... Ken Yuen’s 6 lb. 3 oz. sea bass caught in February on an ocean wreck.
May 13, 2009 - Bob Houser captured a 6 lb. 1 oz. sea bass in 54-degree water on an ocean wreck... Mike Whiter caught a 17 lb. tautog on an ocean wreck...The striped bass bite turned on off Assateague Island with several fish beached that measured over 40-inches... Ronnie Rueter caught a 49-inch striper off the beach at Fenwick State Park... The flounder bite was very good in the bay behind Assateague Island and around the Rt. 90 Bridge... In Delaware... The best sea bass bite was around Site #11... Good flounder action in the Rehoboth Bay and the Lewes Canal... The black drum bite in the Delaware Bay turned on around the full moon at the Pin Top, Tussey’s Slough and the Horseshoe on the Jersey side of the bay... Other notable catches... Johnny Coffiey’s 13 lb. 13 oz. tautog caught at Site #11...Allen Sklar’s 44-inch striper caught off Assateague Island.
May 20, 2009 - Donald Hatfield was on the cover with a 52-inch, 45.5 lb. striper caught while surfcasting off Assateague... Several other large stripers, over 40-inches, were caught off Assateague as well... The first weakfish of the year was caught in the bay behind the Ocean City Airport... Headboats returned with good catches of sea bass and tautog from Russell’s Reef, the African Queen and the subway cars at the Jackspot... Mike Whiter boated a pair of 16 lb. tog on an ocean wreck... The best flounder bite continued to be in the bay behind Assateague Island... In Delaware, striper action was good at night in the Indian River Inlet... Black drum fishing was excellent in the Delaware Bay, especially at Broadkill Slough... Other notable catches... Derek Bair’s 46-inch striper caught in the Indian River Inlet.
May 27, 2009 - The “Nontypical” crew made the cover for the first mako of the 2009 season. Jim Hughes landed the 185 pounder in the Baltimore Canyon... “Restless Lady” found warm water ouside the Poor Man’s Canyon and caught 27 dolphin... Tom Vaughn caught an 18 lb. 4 oz. tautog near the Bass Grounds... The bay behind Assateague and the Thorofare both produced good catches of flounder... In Delaware... Flounder fishing was good in the back bays, the Lewes Canal and the Broadkill River... Striper fishing was very good in the surf and in the Indian River Inlet... Bill Hocker won the Lewes Canal Flounder Tournament with a 5 .26 pounder... the first weakfish of the season were caught along Broadkill Beach on Bass Assassins... The black drum bite was very good on the Coral Beds... Other notable catches... First dolphin of the year caught by Chuck Dammann on May 21st... John Rogowitz’s 48.5-inch striper caught off Assateague Island.
June 3, 2009 - Mike Weber was on the cover with a 350 lb. thresher shark caught at the Fingers... Threshers were caught around “DB” Buoy and at the Fingers... Makos were caught at the Sausages, the Marine Electric and near the Jackspot... Excellent week for flounder fishing with the best bite behind the OC Airport... Great striper bite around the South Jetty and off the beach on Assateague Island... J.D. Eddy landed a 47.95 lb. snowy grouper between the Baltimore and Poorman’s Canyon... In Delaware... stripers and shad were plentiful in the Indian River Inlet... Flounder action in the Lewes Canal was very good... Notable catches... Anthony Lano landed an 82.3 lb. black drum at the Coral Beds... Troy Schifflett caught a 13 lb. 13 oz. bluefish at the 12 Fathom Lump.
June 10, 2009 - For the second week in a row, the “Nontypical” crew graced the cover, this time by winning the Mako Mania Shark Tournament with a 224.4 lb. mako shark caught in 25 fathoms inside the Washington Canyon... Excellent week of shark fishing highlighted with over 200 caught by 46 boats in the Mako Mania... Good striper bite around the South Jetty during the early morning hours and at night... It was a good week for sea bass fishing on ocean wrecks with several caught over 5 lbs... In Delaware... Fantastic striped bass fishing in the Indian River Inlet... Thresher sharks were caught in good numbers around “DA” and “DB” Buoys... Other notable catches... Ethan Spencer landed a 443.3 lb. thresher shark near the Jackspot... J.R. Pequignot caught an 81 lb. bluefin near the Parking Lot.
June 17, 2009 - The cover featured the first white marlin and blue marlin of the season along with a good yellowfin tuna catch on the “Marli”... Terry Layton on the “Nontypical” released the first white marlin in 1,200 fathoms outside the Poorman’s Canyon... Jake Burger released the first blue marlin while fishing on the “Marlin Magic” only a mile from the “Nontypical”... the “Marli” returned with 17 yellowfin tuna (releasing 37) during a trip to the Norfolk Canyon... Bluefins were caught around the Hambone... “Game Over” landed a 506 lb. thresher shark, “Bill$ 4 Bills” hooked a 443 pounder and “Teaser” boated a 450 pounder, all at the Fingers... Quite a few makos caught around the Hambone and the Sausages with weights ranging between 90 and 125 lbs... Good flounder bite in the East Channel and on the flats north of the Thorofare... In Delaware... Flounder, stripers and bluefish were caught in the Indian River Inlet, although most of the stripers were too small to keep... Flounder fishing was good in the Lewes Canal, Broadkill River and the Roosevelt Inlet... Other notable catches... Bud Ghigliotty caught a 45-inch striper off the bank of the Broadkill River... Doug Sims caught a 180 lb. mako at the Hambone.
June 24, 2009 - The big news of the week were the new state record mako and thresher sharks caught. Jim Hughes on the “Nontypical” landed an 876 lb. mako shark during the Ocean City Shark Tournament. The fish ate a bonita fillet in 500 fathoms between the Poor Man’s and Washington Canyons... The day before, Brent Applegit set a new Maryland state record by catching a 642 lb. thresher shark at the Fingers... Blue sharks continued to be plentiful... The “Reel Chaos” blistered the yellowfin, putting 20 in the box and releasing 45 others, all in the Poor Man’s Canyon... Flounder bite moved to the East Channel... The new Assateague Tackle Deadly Double Flounder Rig debuts and becomes an instant hit... Large bluefish were caught around the Rt. 50 Bridge... Good catches of sea bass were made on ocean wrecks and reefs... Surfcasters found mostly sharks and rays and some chopper bluefish... In Delaware... good flounder action in the Indian River Inlet and around structure in the Delaware Bay... Butch Brooks boated a 10 lb. 13 oz. flattie in the Indian River... Sea bass were caught around Reef Site #11 and at the Old Grounds near “DB” Buoy... Other notable catches... Michael Branson caught the first bigeye tuna of the season out of Ocean City while fishing in the Washington Canyon... “Hammy IV” returned with a 500 lb. thresher caught at the Fingers.
Juy 1, 2009 - Scott Pringle was on the cover with a 210 lb. bigeye tuna caught while fishing on the ”Press Time” in the Washington Canyon... The East Channel was red hot for flounder fishing with several that weighed over 5 lbs... Ocean City’s first bigeye of the season was caught on the “Restless Lady” in 250 fathoms outside the Poor Man’s Canyon... Bluefin tuna were caught in Massey’s Canyon and at the Hambone... Yellowfin were the star of the week with several boats coming back with double digit catches from the Poor Man’s and Washington Canyons... Makos were found on ocean structure between 20 and 30 fathoms... Triggerfish showed up in good numbers on ocean wrecks, primarily the China Arrow... In Delaware... Flounder fishing was steady in the Lewes Canal, off the Cape Henlopen Pier and in the Delaware Bay... Stripers were plentiful in the Indian River Inlet... Croakers arrived in the Delaware Bay near the Star Site and the Shears... Other notable catches... The “Marli” hooked 51 yellowfin tuna in 150 fathoms in the Poor Man’s Canyon.
July 8, 2009 - Anglers on the “That’s Right” were on the cover with 4 yellowfins, 2 dolphin and a blue marlin release, all hooked in the Poor Man’s Canyon... Three white marlin were released during Canyon Kick-off... The “Bluefin” caught 10 yellowfins in 70 fathoms inside the Poor Man’s Canyon... Bluefins were caught at the Hambone with several fish in excess of 80 lbs. hitting the scales... Two big makos were caught... Dave Guinto landed a 232 pounder at the Fingers... William Marvel boated a 321 pounder in 1,000 fathoms between the Washington and the Norfolk Canyons... William Wildbergh landed the first wahoo of the season on the southern end of the Poor Man’s Canyon... Most of the keeper size flounder were caught in the East Channel, north of the Rt. 50 Bridge... In Delaware... Plenty of flounder were caught in the Indian River Inlet along with some stripers... Delaware Bay reefsites #6, #7 & #8 also produced flounder... Other notable
catches... Brad Richwine and Kenny Schoen ventured out to the Fingers in a flat bottom skiff and captured a 389 lb. thresher shark.
July 15, 2009 - The crew on the “That’s Right” were on the cover with a 158 lb. bluefin caught at the Chicken Bone that took Heaviest Tuna honors in the Ocean City Tuna Tournament... During the tournament, 20 to 25 bluefins measured 61-64 inches... Yellowfin tuna were scarce... The “Marli” returned with 17 YFT’s from 65 fathoms inside the Poor Man’s Canyon... Bluefin action centered in the triangle formed by the Chicken Bone, the Hot Dog and the Sausages... Large flounder were decked in the East Channel and on ocean wrecks... In Delaware... Plenty of flounder were caught in the back bays, at Brown Shoal and at Reef Site #10 in the ocean... Sea bass fishing was good at “DB” Buoy... Tautog and triggerfish were caught on Fenwick Shoal... Other notable catches... Matt McGuigan decked a 41 lb. cobia on Winter Quarter Shoal... Tassos Argyros speared a 60 lb. cobia on an ocean wreck.
July 22, 2009 - Junior anglers Taylor McCart, Spencer Cropper and Parker Kreppel were featured on the cover with releases of 2 white marlin and a blue marlin, winning the Billfish Division of the Kid’s Classic... Over 380 kids participated in the Marlin Club Kid’s Classic... Several bluefins over 60-inches were caught around the Hambone, Chicken Bone and Lumpy Bottom... Flounder bite moved to behind Bahia Marina... Some white marlin were released between the Baltimore and Wilmington Canyons... A blue marlin was released by Tony Burch in the Poor Man’s Canyon... Croaker showed up in mass for anglers drifting in the bay... Bluefish continued to be caught in the surf and by anglers off of the Rt. 50 Bridge... In Delaware... The area between “DA” and “DB” Buoys produced nice catches of flounder... Jody McCullough landed an 11 lb. 10 oz. doormat near “DB” Buoy... Flounder, weakfish and bluefish were all caught off Bowers Beach... Other notable catches... Tom Moran caught a 65-inch bluefin at the Hambone... Giuseppe Ferrarelli boated a 170 lb. bluefin.
July 29, 2009 - On the cover was Chris Toner who landed a 71 lb. cobia to set a new Maryland state record. The fish was caught in 70-feet of water outside Great Gull Shoal... The “Billfisher” took top honors in the Branch Kreppel Memorial Blue Marlin Tournament with 2 blue marlin and 4 white marlin releases... Over 30 white marlin and 9 blue marlin were released during the week from the Spencer Canyon down to the Rockpile... A couple of mako sharks were caught around the Hot Dog... Dolphin were caught in good numbers in 30 fathoms around the Hot Dog... Bluefins were caught at the Hambone... A couple of fantastic days of fishing produced good catches of yellowfin tuna around the Hot Dog... Striped bass showed up again around the South Jetty and also at night around the Rt. 50 Bridge... In the surf, croakers and bluefish dominated the action... In Delaware... Striped bass fishing in the Indian River Inlet turned on... “DB” Buoy, Reef Site #10 and Brown Shoal all produced some nice catches of flounder... Other notable catches... Wilson Hazzard caught a 75 lb. wahoo in the Baltimore Canyon... Joe Kossek caught a 10 lb. 2 oz. sheepshead at the Ice Breakers... Alex Levantowsky boated a 16 lb. 4 oz. tautog.
August 5, 2009 - On the cover was the crew of the “Big Oh” who released 5 white marlin to win the Marlin Club Ladies Tournament... 298 boats entered the White Marlin Open... Some whites were released around the Rockpile and at the Hambone... The bluefin bite moved up to the Lobster Claw... Yellowfins were reported in 20 fathoms inshore of Massey’s Canyon and around the Chicken Bone... A couple of wahoo were caught near the Chicken Bone... Dolphin dominated action at the scales with most ranging between 12 and 15 lbs... Croaker fishing was red hot in the bay, especially behind Assateague Island... Some stripers were caught around the Rt. 50 Bridge... In Delaware... Back bays were loaded with croaker... Sites #6 and #7 at Brown Shoal and #8 Star Site were hot flounder spots in the Delaware Bay... Other notable catches... Greg Garman landed a 69 lb. wahoo at the Hambone... Taylor Harman released 2 white marlin to win the Junior Angler Division of the Ladies Tournament... Jerry Gray caught a 5 lb. 8 oz. flounder to win the Ocean Pines Summer Flounder Tournament.
August 12, 2009 - It was a very exciting White Marlin Open, highlighted by Bob Farris’ 1,062 lb. blue marlin that took 1st place in the Blue Marlin Division and set a new Maryland state record. The big blue was caught in 125 fathoms outside the Poor Man’s Canyon... Sean Healey caught a 93.5 lb. white marlin (second heaviest in tournament history) to win first place and over $900,000 in award money... Overall, 27 billfish were weighed and 380 were released during the 5-day tournament... Bigeye tuna dominated the Tuna Division with a 249 pounder caught by Doug Salter taking first place... Jamie Gill captured a 254 lb. scalloped hammerhead shark to set a new Maryland state record... The best flounder bite continued to be on ocean wrecks, with some action in the bay around the East Channel... In Delaware... Flounder, tautog, sheepshead, bluefish and stripers were all caught in the Indian River Inlet... Croaker, kingfish and spot were featured in the surf... Jake Knox landed an 11.14 lb. flounder on a Gulp! Swimming Mullet at Reef Site #10... Other notable catches... Gunnar Zorn landed a 67.5 lb. longfin tuna... Anglers on the “Playmate” caught a grand slam (white marlin, blue marlin, spearfish) in 70 fathoms between the Baltimore and Poor Man’s Canyon.
August 19, 2009 - On the cover was the crew on the “Predator” who took 1st and 3rd place in the Dolphin Division of the Poor Girl’s Open. They also released a couple of white marlin during the trip... 435 lady anglers participated in the Poor Girl’s Open at Bahia Marina... Anglers on the “DA Sea” went to the Spencer Canyon and released 2 blue marlin and 2 white marlin to win the Billfish Division... The first Cubera snapper ever caught off the shores of Ocean City was boated by Brad Cave. The 40 pounder was hooked on an ocean wreck... Wahoo were caught at the Hot Dog... Larger flounder were captured on ocean wrecks and reefs... The South Jetty produced small bluefish and stripers, triggerfish and sheepshead... Snapper bluefish, huge rays and large sharks provided action for surfcasters... In Delaware... Good size flounder were caught at the Old Grounds and near Sites #6, #7, #8 and #10... Cobia were caught around Delaware Light... Other notable catches... Joe Sbriglia caught a 66.5 lb. yellowfin tuna in the Poor Man’s Canyon... Mickey Payne caught a 10 lb. 9 oz. flounder to win 1st place in the Rick’s Bait & Tackle Flounder Tournament.
August 26, 2009 - The crew on the “Toplesss” were featured on the cover for winning the Mid-Atlantic $500,000 with a 95 lb. white marlin worth over $653,000 in award money... 36 Ocean City boats released 114 white marlin during the 5-day tournament... Offshore action was very slow, with dolphin dominating the action up and down the line... Donnie Moore on the “”Predator” caught a 69 lb. yellowfin in the Poor Man’s Canyon to win 1st place in the MA 500... A few wahoo were caught, highlighted by a 60 pounder landed in the Washington Canyon... Steve Hammond scored an 11 pound flounder in the East Channel... The better flounder bite was definitely in the ocean around the Twin Wrecks, African Queen and the Bass Grounds... Bluefish, kingfish and sharks kept surfcasters busy... In Delaware... Good flounder fishing was at “DB” Buoy, the Old Grounds and Reef Site #10... Sea bass were caught near “DA” Buoy... Snapper blues, croaker, spot and a few spike trout were caught from the beaches... Other notable catches... Daina Kazmaier released a blue marlin in 500 fathoms east of the Poor Man’s Canyon... The “Lil’ Man” recorded 2 sailfish and 2 white marlin releases in the Washington Canyon.
September 2, 2009 - On the cover was John Bowman of Ocean View, DE with an 11 lb. 3 oz. flounder caught in the Indian River Inlet... Tropical Depression Danny rolled through and really messed up the fishing action... One of the few bright spots was the white marlin bite in the Washington and Norfolk Canyons before the storm... “Clear Shot” went 6 for 9 and the “Mak-Atak” was 6 for 6 on white marlin... After the blow, the bite moved to the Wilmington Canyon where the “Moore Bills” released 12 whites... Flounder were caught from the Rt. 50 Bridge north to Harbour Island on live spot and peanut bunker... The Twin Wrecks, Great Eastern Reef and the Bass Grounds provided the best flounder action of the week... Sea bass bit at the Great Eastern Reef... A dolphin was caught only 8 miles off the beach... The “Shelly II” returned with 7 golden tilefish and 10 wreckfish... In Delaware... Kingfish, spot, croaker and bluefish are being caught off the beach to Sites #10 and #11.
September 9, 2009 - The crew on the “Press Time” were featured on the cover with 20 yellowfin tuna and a couple of dolphin, all caught at the Hot Dog... Over the weekend, the white marlin bite was hot with 48 recorded releases in the Labor Day White Marlin Tournament... The billfish bite centered in 50-75 fathoms in the Baltimore and Wilmington Canyons... Some boats went south to the Poor Man’s and Washington Canyons and did well also... The weekend yellowfin bite was scattered along the 30 fathom line between the Hot Dog and the Elephant Trunk... “That’s Right” returned with 18 yellowfins north of the Hot Dog... An Indian River boat caught an 80.4 lb. wahoo in the Baltimore Canyon... The flounder bite was better this week with larger fish landed in the East Channel and the deep holes just south of the Commercial Harbor... In Delaware... Larger stripers were caught in the Indian River Inlet and larger bluefish were landed mostly on the incoming tide... Massey’s Ditch gave up some flounder, croaker and spot... Other notable catches... Pete Hesson caught a 12 lb. 8 oz. sheepshead in the Indian River Inlet... The “Zipper” returned with 14 yellowfin tuna from the Elephant Trunk... Lance Smith decked a 10 lb. 12 oz. flounder behind Bahia Marina.
September 16, 2009 - The “Playmate” made the cover with 2 wahoo, 6 yellowfins and 11 dolphin caught near the Tea Cup... Maryland closed the flounder season on September 13th... Before the closure, anglers caught some nice flounder in both the East and West Channels... Ben Pollmeier won the Flounder Round-Up with a 6.6 pounder and Les Givens won the Bahia Flounder Pounder with a 4 lb. 9 oz. flattie... Croaker left the bay... Tautog were caught off the 4th Street Bulkhead... Stripers and bluefish were caught near the Rt. 50 Bridge... The dolphin bite was good from the Baltimore Canyon down to the Washington Canyon... The wahoo bite was also good around the Tea Cup... Some yellowfin tuna were caught in 30 fathoms from the Tea Cup to the Elephant Trunk... In Delaware... A few flounder were caught in the Indian River and a few stripers were hooked in the Inlet... Some flounder were also caught around “DB” Buoy... Mullet showed up inside Cape Henlopen and in Canary Creek... Other notable catches... The “Restless Lady” returned from rough seas near the Elephant Trunk with 12 yellowfins, a dolphin and a false albacore... Kelly Wenzel won the OCFC Spot Tournament when she muscled in an 8-incher... Dillon Baker caught a 50 lb. wahoo to win the Wahoo Rodeo... Dean Lo speared a 60 lb. cobia at Fenwick Shoal... Ed Krell boated a 5.75 lb. flounder to win the MSSA Beach-N-Boat Tournament.
September 23, 2009 - The cover featured the crew on “Rhonda’s Osprey” with a 101 lb. wahoo caught by Jerry and Mason McMullen in the Baltimore Canyon. This ended up being the largest wahoo caught out of Ocean City in 2009... The Cape May Marlin & Tuna Club released 118 billfish to win the Challenge Cup with the Ocean City team releasing 89... Most of the action was in the Norfolk Canyon... White marlin were also caught at the Rockpile... The “Recon” boated a 71 lb. wahoo in 50 fathoms between the Poor Man’s Canyon and the Hot Dog... Other wahoo were caught at the Hot Dog, the Tea Cup and in the Baltimore Canyon... The “Playmate” returned with 15 yellowfin tuna and some dolphin from the Elephant Trunk... Other yellowfins were caught at the Tea Cup and the Hot Dog... Tautog and sheepshead were caught at the South Jetty... Good numbers of sea bass were caught at the Great Eastern Reef... In Delaware... Rick Ritter landed a 10 lb. 15 oz. flounder in the Indian River Inlet...Brown Shoal produced good catches of flounder... Anglers anchored at the Star Reef Site picked at a mix of croaker, kingfish, snapper bluefish, small sea bass and triggerfish... Other notable catches... “Pumpin’ Hard” released 4 white marlin in the Norfolk Canyon... Capt. Nick Clemente caught an 8 lb. 9 oz. sheepshead at the South Jetty.
October - December 2009 - Weather-wise, it was a horrible fall with 6 or 7 nor’easters keeping most anglers at the dock.
A good white marlin bite kept offshore anglers excited through September. It was difficult to get a bead on the tuna bite with the weather making it tough to get offshore.
Inshore, with the flounder closure on September 13th and no trout bite, most anglers in the bay were forced to search for stripers, sheepshead and tautog. Sheepshead and tog bit around the South Jetty and off Martha’s Landing.
Coming off of three straight years of excellent striper fishing inside 3-miles, the bite had not really materialized at the time this issue went to press. On a good note, stripers were still being caught off New Jersey, so local anglers are still hopeful.
At the end of September, the red drum bite was very good around the Mud Hole.
From the end of October through the beginning of December, it was all the bluefish you could catch with choppers showing up both along the beach chasing mullet and roaming the inshore shoals. Choppers, on average, were exceptionally large with many fish hitting the docks weighing over 10 lbs.
Our government friends closed the sea bass fishery on October 5th, causing incredible pressure on tautog until its closure for the month of December.
To end on a high note, congratulations go out to Steve Doctor for landing a 62 lb.
great northern tilefish to set a new Maryland state record. The fish was caught in 800 feet of water in the Baltimore Canyon. Way to go, Steve!
