After a long blogging but not fishing, hiatus…I am back to writing.

The fishing from the Staten Island surf has been, by most of accounts, DEAD.

While, I’ve been silent I haven’t been too far away from the water. Still maintaining a weekly fishing trip, I’ve faced something I haven’t had to deal with all season…The Skunk!

Concentrating most of my attention on the front side of Great Kills, the closest I’ve come to a fish has been a couple of skates and I’m not alone. Each time I’ve been out, there have been 3-5 other clam-slingers and the occasional sharpie. All of whom grumbled the same thing in the parking lot—Nothing biting.

Today was not exception. Clam and bunker for 3 hours from about 10:00 AM. There were 2 “hits” but each time there was nothing doing. The way rod shook and the drop leads me to believe that skates or big spider crabs were the culprits.

Meanwhile, my kayaking brethren on the other side of the Outerbridge seem to be into the mix. Nice stripers are falling to AVA’s left and right. At least that’s the word from the plastic armada. The fish have been spread out along the Jersey Shore with larger fish being hung is Southern Jersey leading me to believe that the big’uns have passed us by–again.

That said, there may be another wave of bigger bass that haven’t vacated the Long Island waters yet. If that is true, we might get lucky.

That hope has me reluctant to hang up the surf gear just yet.

With that said, I will admit to feeling more like trying to land a particular fish in a particular pond of late…Seems that there’s a carp with a grudge against me. On a lark, I dusted off the cans of corn and the dough balls for a simple day of freshwater fishing 2 weeks ago. Lacking in real tackle, I made due with a set of cheapo hooks. My mistake. A nice carp with serious shoulders took a swipe at a corn rig and just as I was getting him in…He tossed and bent the hook straight. I now have a nemesis. A gold-back, ugly-faced, nemesis!

Here’s me giving thanks that I am back and that things are good!

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