Cape Cod, week 25 – 2018

This years trip to Cape Cod was more or less with the usual suspects: Thomas, Peter, Carsten and Caspar. We also fished with some of our American fishing buddies Scott and Tom. The procedure was standard as we know where we want to eat and where we and how we want to fish but the weather may force us to change plans. This year the weather was very nice to us as we could go out in our kayaks five days and that is our preferable way of fishing as this often give us the opportunity to sight fish.

 

We started out on Brewsters Flat which is a  nice place but also quite popular so do not expect to be alone.

 

Most of the days we went kayaking and sometimes we could not leave the  beach fast enough as there a LOT of sand flies that literally would enter every opening around your ears and eyes.

 

But when we left the beach the weather was nice the water was clear and we got into fish. Here Thomas is fighting a fish in his shorts and boot outfit.

 

He lands the fish….

 

 

and presents it before the release. As always the big majority was schoolies like this but we saw good numbers of big and very big fish though we did not land them this time but some keepers were also landed.

 

 

Like always a lot of horse shoes crabs, here one trying to date our anchor.

 

One day Thomas got a small striper with a mark. We could not see any number so we just released it again but some scientist want to know more about this.

 

In very shallow water Scott hooked a nice fish that passed between us.

 

It turned out to be his first keeper of the year

 

 

So he was a happy man presenting his fish before the release.

 

We met some og our Danish friends several times this time wade fishing. To get to the bar you have to wait for the tide to drop which Jacob had a hard time waiting for but he managed without getting wet.

 

The ospreys are nesting and with plenty of fish around they have a high success rate in raising the young birds.

 

We had a good trip with a lot of exciting and many times quite frustrating sight fishing.  Everyday we wade fished I met American fly fishers using my Linekurv so that made me glad and a bit proud.

We had breakfast almost everyday at HangarB at Chatham Airport which by a good margen is the best we have ever tried in the States and we had burritos at the Corner Store and twice we grilled big rib eye steaks at the summer house so the food was good and the beer were cold so we will come back next year.

 

 

 

 

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Cape Cod, week 30 – 2017

I haven´t been fishing for a couple of months to spare my bad shoulder as I hoped that could be ready for our annually trip to Cape Cod and that is the reason that not much happens in the blog. This year I went with Thomas, Peter, Carsten and Henning and we naturally hoped to get to fish with some of our American fishing friends as well. And we did get out with Scott, Tom and Bruce. During our stay Tom became a grand father so it was hard for him to wipe of his smile and congratulation to him and his family.

 

The first morning we went to Brewsters and we got into a lot of action.  Carsten this morning got 70 stripers which is a new record in one session for our group. It was mostly schoolies but good fun and a good start. Thomas also got a keeper so not only small fish.

 

We as maybe a bit too often timed the fishing so we could have breakfast at Hangar B at Chatham airport. This is by a big margin the best breakfast place we have tried at the Cape. A bit more expensive but very good.

 

This is how American pancakes should be served and no matter what we order it looks good and tastes even better. And the coffee is also top-notch I am told as I am not addicted to that.

 

The next day we went wade fishing on the bars and got many schoolies but also some nice fish and Thomas got this 31 inch fish that later were served with sweet corn, asparagus, potatoes and homemade hollandaise. This we normally do once every trip but we can only do it if we get a keeper.

 

Thomas and I have bought a tandem kayak and the other guys rented kayaks so we could go on an expedition. The conditions were fantastic high sun on no wind.

 

The first day in the kayaks Scott really pulled it of as he got all the keepers but we all had a terrific day with sight fishing and a good number of fish in the 25 – 27 inch range.

 

We had four days where we went kayaking and that is the first time we could do that and especially three of the days we had terrific sight fishing and the last day the fish just kept coming, it was really world-class fishing.

 

Carsten did not get a keeper but many time she was close and that suited him quite well as he then has an excuse for coming back next year.

 

The action went on so the time to take photos should be limited.

All fish except one were released and the big number of schoolies promise some good years to come.

Thomas fighting another nice fish in the shallows

 

and presenting it the standard Thomas way

 

Peter with a nice fish

 

Thomas with a big smile and a big fish

 

A bit blurry but you have to see my life-preserver from the 80´ies. That gave me many remarks maybe I next year should bring shoulder pads and leg warmers.

 

We had a terrific trip with lots of fish and a good number of keepers but not any really big ones and several days with fantastic sight fishing that we can only hope for and be happy for when it happens. We met our American friends, had some good things to eat and drink so what more can you ask for? We will come back next year for sure.

 

 

 

Cape Cod week 33 – 2016

The team for Cape Cod this year was exactly the same as last year and included Thomas, Caspar, Peter and Carsten. This time we came in September which is new to us. The new time of year gave opportunities af fishing for false albacore known as albies but we were a bit concerned for the striper fishing as the summer had been quite hot and long so the water temperature was high.

 

The first day Casper and I went out with a guide Dave. We primarily looked for albies and Caspar got one and that was one of his goals for the trip, so from dy one he had been succesful. We arrived late in the evening and we met with Dave 6 AM next day and I must admit I had not finely tuned my gear from start and therefore I missed some good opportunities with albies at the surface. It was Saturday and there were many boats on the water. Another time I would definitely go for a day outside the weekend.

 

Later in the afternoon we did some fishing towards the rocks of an island and had some interesting fishing here. I got a nice striper though not a keeper. Dave with his characteristic beard in the back – I will recommend him if you want a guide trip, he was knowledgable and keen to give us a good trip.

 

In the evening we met with the other guys that had been fishing the bay side and had very good fishing. Caspar and I also had good fishing and this first day I got two keepers around 29 inches and then I had fulfilled one of my goals.

 

This day and the day after we got a lot of fish. We got between 30 and 50 stripers each. Most were smaller fish but also several like this that were not keepers but almost. This raise the hopes for next years fishing. Peter got app. 50 fish the first day including two keepers and he had two goals: to try to catch many fish and to get a keeper so he was also content from day one.

 

Caspar excelled with a new species on fly on our trip to the Cape, a fluke or a flounder.

 

The second day we fished in the dark at Brewsters flat and found a spot where the fish at least at that time had a very good average size. Here Thomas presents a keeper.

 

Monday the weather forecast was not that good and some went shopping but Peter and I wanted to fish. We fished at Mill Creek and we got a few smaller fish but we saw a lot of surface activity but out of reach. At times the weather prediction was very precise as it rained a LOT. We had the empty our stripping baskets every 3 minutes.

 

On e morning Thomas and I fished Chatham bay. We heard something we have never heard before. It sounded like there was a speed boat race going on constantly. It turned out to be seals howling. All the dark areas on the sand bars are big grey seals. We could see several hundreds of seals and often they come very close and I must admit that I do not have much confidence in the fishing if I have several seals within casting distance.

One day Caspar and I tried some new spots on the ocean side near the canal. I had to stop fishing as a school og small bluefish literally took my fly all the time and Caspar added yet another species to our list. I can not remember the name but here it is.

 

 

As always we see some wildlife despite that Cape Cod is thickly settled. This year I saw many wild turkeys, chipmunks, squirrels, coyotes, a skunk in our garden, osprey and a big variety of birds and then a lot of seals.

 

This year we had one day kayaking to the sand bars. There were too many clouds so we did not get many opportunities for sight fishing. The day before would have been much better but we had some problems renting the kayaks so we had to wadefish. And during this wadefishing we saw many fish at the surface at very shallow water so we got our bit of sight fishing. Now Thomas and I have bought a kayak so next year we hopefully will be able to use that a lot.

To sum things up we had very nice weather, we caught a lot of fish though the pace went down from the first frantic days, we got five keepers and many almost keepers, we had some sight fishing and we found a new favourite breakfast place (Hangar B at Chatham airport). We also visited The Corner store several times for panini and burritos so we all look forward to next time.

 

 

Cape Cod week 24 – 2015

A quick report from our trip as I have loads of work to do at the moment.

For the fifth time I fished Cape Cod and this time it was with Thomas, Peter, Carsten and Caspar. After a very tiresome road trip from New York Friday afternoon we made it to our rented house and next morning everyone were eager to get started. The first morning we met our companions from last year and they could tell that the fishing had been quite slow and this morning proved this as we only got a few small fish.

 

In the afternoon we tried another spot and that was a good idea. When we arrived we could see many fishermen and as soon as we entered the beach we could see people hooked up. There was a guy with a Linekurv and he got this nice bluefish just as we arrived. It was Christian from Haarby, Denmark and he could tell that they had been pulling bluefish in most of the day. He also told that surface flies and wireleader was a must.

We had a problem as we only had a few surface flies and almost no wireleader but that just intensified everything when you know that at any time you can be cut off.

I started with a regular flatwing fly and got soon into a bluefish

I managed to land it without wireleader and we took one for the pan. The bluefish were all around the 27 inch mark and they jumped and gave a very intense fight

 

All in our Group got fish  and we were all excited over this fantastic fishing, here Peter presents one of his four bluefish.

here are the rest of the team casting for bluefish. I had to stop early as my shoulder did not like all this casting with the right arm.

I got a surface fly from Caspar and retrieving this fast and just wait for it to be attacked in a vicious manner is very addictive. The seventh bluefish that I hooked on the surface fly bit my leader and then it had to go back to a flatwing.

There were many fishermen casting BIG surface plugs very far out and they got up to 20 fish per hour so it was wild and something we all would love to try again.

 

The next day we tried at Brewsters flat. As you may see we were not the only ones that got that idea.

 

The fishing was a bit slow but like last year I met Laura and Danilo from Italy and Danilo got this keeper so he was very content.

 

The third day the weather was nice and we went kayacking with Scott and Tom. Here we have the chance of sight fishing on the sand bars.

 

On one of the first bars I spotted a good fish in less than 2 feet of water and was lucky to get it. It was a 32 inch fish and our first keeper this year so I was very happy. 30 minutes later I had a similar sized fish that came off after a couple of minutes but that could not spoil my day.

 

Two days later we went kayacking again with Scott and Tom and things repeated itself more or less as I got this 30 inch keeper and lost a bigger one 10 minutes later. Again after fighting it for a couple of minutes

 

This fish we kept as we every year like to make one striper meal. This year it was pan fried fillets with new potatoes, sweet corn on the cob, aspargus and homemade Hollandaise sauce.

For the first time were we able to go on a third kayack trip and this time Bruce also joined us. Bruce has a good track record as we almost allways have the best fishing when he joins the Group.

 

this year only added to his record as Thomas got into a very serious fish.

 

After a long fight Thomas got it into shallow Water and we could see that it was a big fish

 

And finally Thomas could present a new personal best with this fantastc 38 inch striper.

To sum things up we had a terrific trip despite the number of fish were less than normally. We had a fantastic bluefish adventure and three days with fantastic sight fishing and we got four keepers and lost three after long fights. And furthermore it is allways good to come and visit our American friends so I hope we can come back another time.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cape Cod week 24, 2014

This year I went with Thomas, Jacob, Frank and Kim to fish for stripers at Cape Cod. As this was my fourth consecutive year I knew more or less what I was in for but three of the guys were rookies and it is always a pleasure to show new fish and places to other fishermen.

The first day we fished nothing happened the first hour or two but then I hooked a good fish and everyone were excited

The first striper turned out to be a keeper (28 inches) but just barely and it was released

 

Later the same day we hit some very nice sight fishing where the fish were smaller but it was very good fun and everyone caught fish. Here Kim presents one of the fish.

 

When a school of stripers passed we several times had a double or a treble hook up.

 

The fish were all (minus one) released

 

There were a lot of horse shoes crabs and they were in the mood for love

 

Due to the tide and the wind we fished quite a lot at night time. The first night we went out Jacob got this 32 inch keeper.

 

This was the only fish during the trip that was killed. We made a very nice dinner out of it. We tried it fried on the pan and oven baked and we must say that it is an excellent fish to eat.

 

We had a schedule with fishing both at night and during the day time and we got many fish, most of  shoolies but despite this is not a keeper it is a very nice fish to catch.

 

We fish primarely with sand eel patterns and that was for a reason as there was an abundance of sand eels.

 

One day we rented kayaks and went out with Bruce and Scott as guides. We had two extra memorable spots on this trip. The first was a sand flat with 1½ feet deep water and we could cast to hunting and tailing fish. Especially Frank had succes here and it was nice sized fish.

 

Later Bruce, Thomas and I went to another spot where really big fish cruised around us. They were not eager to take the fly but Bruce hooked up a very strong fish.

 

It was not only strong but it was also a big fish

 

and he was very content when he could present this 39 inch striper

 

15 minutes later I hooked a similar sized fish which was a new personal best for me but soon after we had to leave as the tide was rising.

 

Franks camera had a dramatic effect switch and that could presents som very interesting photos.

 

Here Jacob presents a keeper in dramatic mode

 

One morning we met a couple fishing with the Linekurv and it turned out to be an italian couple. They were as most fly fishers very nice to talk with and I had a blast fishing in the States meeting italians with my basket.

 

We were cut off by bluefish several times but Jacob and Frank each managed to land a bluefish.

 

We caught a lot of fish mainly schoolies actually Thomas the last day got 11 fish in 11 casts so there were many fish. We got 5 keepers but many just below the 28 inch mark and as I had two keepers and a new PB despite my left hand casting I was very happy. As always it is nice to meet our American fishing friends whom ¨we can not thank enough and everyone would love to com back next year for another round of striperfishing.

 

 

 

 

Cape Cod week 26 – 2013

For the third year in a row a trip to Cape Cod for striped bass or stripers as they are nicknamed. This time with the rookies Lasse, Henning and Thomas. Thomas had fished for stripers two day about four years ago but without luck so he is also labeled as a rookie.

Thomas had rented this Jeep at Dollars and we can´t recommend either. The Company tried to get us to buy more and more and the car did not have the roof rail that was promised. And the car was actually too small for normal grown-ups which normally is not a problem in the States. Here we are outside Scotts house planning the coming days.

The first afternoon Lasse had a very nice hook-up on one of the flats

The fish was like almost all bigger fish pulled on to the sand bar

Here he presents his first “keeper” which is a fish above the allowed size which is 28 inches so all keepers are really nice fish. this was a 33½ inch fish.

despite it was a keeper it was released like everything else we caught

and it took off in a splash.

In the evening Thomas hooked his second keeper and he had a very hard time not to show his happiness which is a blessing

The baitfish was sandeels which popped out of the sand when when the tide pulled out turning the sand bars into a smorgasbord for the sea gulls

We used allmost only flat wing flies to imitate the sandeels, here a view in Thomas´s fly box.

Thomas had a hard time finding the sadlle feathers at a reasonable price so he bought a dry fly neck and on the internet he had found a recipe on how to dye the feathers with Kool-aid. It was something with adding a bit vinegar and then put it into a micro wave oven. It worked very well and he could control the intensity of the colours by the time in the micro wave oven and the colours did not fade when exposed to salt water or the sun.

We fished most of the times on flats or sand bar that only could be waded at low tide and therefore the tide chart is the bible for the striper fishermen and  despite we were told that the night fishing was much better than day time fishing we sticked mostly to day time fishing. It does not ruin your sleep and you have the visual aspect which adds a dimension.

We did not catch as many schoolies as last year but naturally the majority was not keepers. But even the schoolies can put of a decent fight on our 8-weight rods.

Another schoolie caught when the weather was fine.

One day the weather forecast predicted a not too heavy wind and we rented and borrowed kayaks and here we (Scott, Bruce, Lasse, Henning and myself) are ready to start early in the morning. From my experience last year this could be the highlight of the week with sightfishing in shallow water.

On the first bar we did catch some big schoolies but on the second beach we found good sized fish cruising into the very shallow water. First Lasse got a keeper and a bit later it was my turn.

Same procedure as last year …

  and away it swims in a big splash.

That day Henning also got a keeper and then we had got at least one and that was one of my hopes for the trip. The problem with this fantastic sight fishing after good sized stripers is that it spoils you. The following days we did not feel the ususal urge to go out on the flats and blind fish so the fishing intensity went down and the beer drinking intensity went up.

at the end of the kayak trip this big grey seal showed up and that is not improving the fishing

Lasse and I one morning fished a river mouth in very bad weather. The photo do not show how bad the weather was – at time the wind made the rain feel like needles stuck into your bag despite we wore jackets.

That morning we ran into some bluefish – not big ones but in the 22 inch range. Some cut the leader but I was lucky to get a couple.

We also fished other than sand bars, here I got a nice 31 inch fish at a rocky point with plenty of current.

There were many ospreys in the area and several times we saw ospreys flying with fish in the claws

A close up of the star of the show. We had a fantastic trip with World class sight fishing, everyone got keepers, nice company and a lot of help from our American friends Scott, Dick, Bruce, Frank and Tom whom we can not thank enough. I was naturally very pleased that everyone fished with my stripping basket the Linekurv.dk 🙂

We all hope to come back next year.

Cape Cod week 23 2012

The trip to Cape Cod in late October really wet our appetite so Thomas and I had booked for a week of striper fishing at a time where the fishing according to our man on the Cape – Scott – can be really good and productive. Our goal was to catch a fish above the minimum size (28 inches) and hopefully to have some sight fishing. The first couple of days we fished by ourself on some of the spots Scott had shown us last year. As there is a considerable tide many times you can only fish a specific spot in a time window of 1-3 hours. This forces you to move around and gives the fishing a lot of variation. We also fish both inlets, beaches, rocks, canals and drop offs. From the start it was clear that the number of fish were much larger than in the fall but also that there were quite a lot of small fish. This is very promising for the future and thrilled the local fishermen.

Thomas fishing in quite rough wind.

One of the small fish that are the hope for the future.

The first two days we caught many fish but only up to 24 inches, which are fine fish but we hoped for more.

The third day in a VERY heavy storm I hooked a really big fish that took off like a freight train. In an area known for nothing but sand it got the line around something unknown and after a while my shooting line were ripped apart. That was an eye opener for the power these fish can produce. The next day we got a report from Dick and Richard that had some fantastic fishing in a new spot. We naturally had to try it out in the evening when the tide was right. Soon after we arrived Thomas started with a 25 inch fish so expectations were high. For me not much happened untill the fly were stopped on a quite shallow area and when I tightened the line it start to move.

I immediate knew it was a big fish and after a 10 minutes battle I could land it on a small streak of sand.

It was a 36 inch fish and I was very happy that we had got what we hoped for. It was released and after that we only got a few smaller fish.

Next morning we tried the same spot and in the same area as the night before I hooked another good fish a 34 inch striper.

Release of this nice lady.

One day Thomas hooked this sea robin. We saw it hunt small bait fish at the surface despite it should be a bottom feeder.

One day I felt something bump into my boots several times. It was a rape attempt by a horseshoe crab that apparently took my boot for a good-looking female crab.

The team preparing for an evening trip. Me, Dick, Richard, SCott, Thomas and Bruce.

On the outgoing tide Scott got this beautiful lady in the mid thirties. As his shooting line had a tangle he was forced to pull it up on the beach at a long distance but he managed.

The sunset this evening was impressive.

The last day the weather forecast predicted sunny and not too windy condition so we headed for a kayak trip to one of Scotts special spots. When we started out it was a bit foggy and no wind at all.

When we arrived Tom was in the action and he soon hooked a very fine fish but the top of his rod fell off so he had to land it by pulling the line directly with his hands.

But despite the problems he landed this beautiful fish in the mid thirties.

Thomas hooked up with a good fish. At this time he had broken two 8-weight rods so he used his 6-weight.

And soon Thomas finally got his keeper – well it was released but he was allowed to keep it.

Another fine fish caught by sight fishing.

There was a lot of action – here Thomas and I are both hooked up simultaneously.

We got many nice fish and we casted to a lot that only followed the fly or rejected it totally. Thomas and I got two keepers each plus several good-sized fish in the 24 – 27 inch range and I can say that this was the best day of all and I also think that even the local guys will call a very good day.

Bruce handling his business – nice office

On the way back the wind had increased and after a while The kayak Thomas and I used started to take in water as it was not a sit on top kayak and we did not have a spray hood. This made the kayak heavier and more unstable and we realised that we needed help. On the way to Scotts kayak a wave hit us and the kayak flipped. The other kayaks were soon to help us and we inflated our life preservers. There was no panic but it was not possible to get back in so finally we had to call for help. Many thanks to the Barnstable fire fighters that helped us out as we started to get cold after 30 minutes in the water. This was a reminder to us and all involved  to allways  remember life vests and take your precautions.

Two wet fishermen in the ambulance after the physical examination.

After the incident there was many things to dry. My camera was tested and it is water proof.

To sum up our trip. We caught more than 100 fish each, we both got keepers, we got big fish up 36 inches, we had terrific sight fishing, we had a blast of a time with our american friends – what more can you wish for. OK next time we can do without Air France cancelling our flight back home.

Cape Cod week 43 2011

Last year a kind Linekurv.dk user from USA wrote that if I ever wanted to fish striped bass on Cape Cod he would be glad to help. As I have wanted to fly fish for stripers for many years I wrote back that I would very much like to try that and so this year Thomas and I went to Cape Cod for a week. Scott (the kind man) told us that we were a bit late but as the flight tickets were bought we would come anyway.

We rented this 4WD Kia which in our world is a quite big car but many times it actually looked small parked next to the standard 4WD here in the States.

The first place we visited together with Scott I got this hook-up….

soon after I cold land this striper on the beach

and present it before the release. I think that Scott was more relieved  than we were after this catch because due to the late season he was afraid that we wouldn´t catch anything at all on our trip.

Later there was a small blitz outside Scott and he got this mackerel which was his first ever on a fly rod.

In the evening we also got a couple of very small pollacks which was nice as the stripers feed on those.

Scott and his friends Dick and Bruce really helped us a lot as they both fished with us and gave us tips on where to fish and when to do it. As the tidal difference was up to 12 feet the fishing is very tide depending and therefore local help is crucial. Besides the help they were all very nice people as almost all fellow fly fishers are and they also supplied us with some very nice flies (flat wings) which we now try to duplicate here in Denmark. We fished in very different environments as we fished in estuaries, rivers, sand beaches, sand bars, canals, jetties etc.

One day we came to some sea gulls that dived and we could see that there fish chasing in the shallow water as well. Here Thomas started to hook this fish.

Which he also landed. As you can see the fish are nice but not that big, they are what the locals call schoolies but still good fun especially when you’re on your first trip for stripers.

The action was pretty intense and several times we were both hooked up simultaneously.

Here I got the biggest fish on our trip a fish around the 26 inches mark but it has to be 28 inches to be a keeper.

We fished early in the mornings and during the day and late in the evening. Due to the tide many times each trip was only a few hours but this gives a lot of variations.

This morning Scott got a schoolie as well.

I can´t remember the name of these ancient creatures but you found them on all beaches.

On one of the trips I got two bluefish. They were not big ones but I was surprised that they did not bite the line as I have heard that they normally do that when you do not fish with a wire leader. Thomas lost one due to this.

If you wade out at low tide you shall remember to come back in time. This time we were a bit late and Scott had to swim while Thomas and I just made it with only a bit of water in our waders.

When you are on a fishing holiday you fish in weather that no normal person would leave the house in. we did that one evening with heavy rain and more or less a storm.  This is one of the fish we got that evening and we thought that we really deserved those fish.

At the hotel we every night had a beer with the fly tying and the talk of the day to come and we tried different american micro brewed stuff. Some were quite disappointing but these two which Thomas grabbed because of their fish motives were actually very much to be recommended. Later we checked on ratebeer.com and found that we were not the only ones that found them very good.

Despite the fog in Frankfurt that delayed us 24 hours and the storm that prevented us from going in kayaks and that we never got a keeper we had a terrific trip. We got fish on every trip we made except one morning trip when two duck hunters had taken our hot spot and some times we got more than just one or two (up to 8 fish). We met some new fishing friends and tried some interesting fishing and had a wonderful dinner at Scott and Grace´s place so as the Terminator says: ” I will be back”.