Wearing a PFD saves lives
On Monday, a boat capsized off of Cape Henlopen and everyone on board was saved because each of them had on a Personal Flotation Device or PFD. This was a perfect example of how fast bad things can happen on the water, as the boat was capsized by a big wave. All on board were tossed in the water. While I am sure everyone was shaken up by the experience, no lives were lost.
According to the reports I read, several of the passengers were children and all had on their PFDs. Every week during the summer I read the arrest reports from DNREC enforcement officers and every week there are at least two or three citations for kids not wearing their PFDs. This is not the fault of the children; it is the fault of the parents or other adults on the boat. A child’s chances of surviving a situation like the one on Monday are near zero unless they have on a PFD.
Fishing report
Fishing in the Lewes area is pretty good. There are croaker and flounder in the bay and in the Broadkill River and in the Lewes and Rehoboth Canal. The slot-sized rockfish action has been good in the river and canal, while boats running out to the ocean are connecting with flounder, sea bass, dolphin and tuna.
Croaker are keeping coolers full on the head boats running out of Lewes. The best action has been at the reef sites with bloodworms or squid the top bait. The croaker in the canal and river seem to be larger than those in the bay.
Flounder are not as numerous as we would like, but they are around and if you work the proper baits in the right location you should score a few. Once again, the reef sites provide the best chance for a keeper flounder. The trick is to hold the boat over hard structure by back trolling. This involves keeping the stern into the wind/current so the anglers can jig directly over the structure. This technique also produces the larger croaker. Some kings and a very few trout have been caught in the same areas. Bucktails decorated with strips of squid or fresh fish have worked very well in this application.
Out in the ocean, flounder have been caught over reef sites and at the Old Grounds. The water depth can be as much as 70 to 100 feet, so heavier tackle is needed. The teaser rig with a bucktail or Tsunami Ball Jig for weight and a Delaware Bay Green Machine or similar device tied on above the weight has been very effective. Tsunami has made up flounder rigs that already have the teaser tied on and a snap for a ball jig. Captain Mitchel has also created a rig with a floating jig head above the usual Delaware Bay Green Machine. Both look great and I hope to test them out within the week.
Dolphin have been caught along the Buoy Line and seen at the Old Grounds. They are providing good action at the inshore lumps such as Massey’s Canyon, the Hot Dog and the Chicken Bone. Trolling has been the most productive technique.
While dolphin provide good sport and great eating, most of the boats working these lumps are hoping for tuna. In many cases these hopes have been realized. Both bluefin and yellowfin tuna have been caught here on the troll. The best bite seems to be before sunrise so anglers have been leaving the dock as early as 3 a.m.
In the canyons, bigeye tuna are being caught from dusk into the night. Trollers are working from late afternoon until close to midnight and connecting with bigeyes to almost 300 pounds. One day last week, the Fish Whistle returned to Northside Marina with more than 900 pounds of tuna. While this was their best haul to date, it was just one of several successful trips they have made this summer. The crew seems to have the bigeyes dialed in.
We are getting some reports of white marlin from both inshore and offshore waters. This fishery should peak next month into September.
Indian River Inlet has seen a fair number of croaker taken from the rocks. Flounder have been caught in or near the jetty as well as from Indian River Bay. Rockfish have been caught at night on drifted sand fleas or bucktails.
DMS meet and greet
This Saturday, July 11, the Delaware Mobile Surf Fishermen will hold its third meet and greet of the summer. This one will take place at Three Rs Road on the south side of Indian River Inlet. Hours are from 7 to 9 a.m., and as always there will be surf fishing experts to answer your questions.
Eric Burnley is a Delaware native who has fished and hunted the state from an early age. Since 1978 he has written countless articles about hunting and fishing in Delaware and elsewhere along the Atlantic Coast. He and his wife Barbara live near Milton, Delaware. Eric can be reached at Eburnle@aol.com.
