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Report for Long Island Sound
Capt. Sal Tardella
July 29, 2007
Norwalk Islands - Saltwater Fishing Report
Monday's weather was gale-like, but Dennis Carson of Clear Lake, Minnesota, was not deterred in any way. He was visiting his family in Norwalk--along with another grandson, 11-year old Skyler Rickertson of Amery MN, who's been dreaming about catching a large saltwater fish--of any species. The Norwalk contingent included son-in-law, John Albrecht, Dean of Students and athletic coach of Norwalk High School, his wife, Danielle--a Stamford attorney--and their children, 7-year old Jonathan and 3-year-old Tessa. Everyone was swathed in warm clothing and foul-weather gear as we headed out upon rough seas at 7:00am, and then the skies opened up. The stalwart group managed to fish for the full four-hour trip, bearing up quite well under the unpleasant weather conditions, and for their tenacity they were rewarded with some striped bass, porgies, and one large blue, about ten pounds(caught by Skyler, making his dreams come true!)all while everyone aboard was being pummeled by the NE winds. Our passengers were soaking wet at the end of the trip, but many memories were made that morning.
On Tuesday the weather was fair and, unfortunately, so was the fishing. Aboard "My Bonnie" were locals, Craig Steinberg and his son and daughter. Not surprisingly, Monday's all-day blow negatively affected the fishing conditions, but we did manage to catch some bluefish and striped bass.
Thursday's weather was greatly improved, but we had a slow start with Robert Anderson of Darien and Charles Fredericks Jr. of Weston. However, as the tide changed around the Norwalk Islands. so did the fishes' feeding pattern, and they proceeded to catch blues up to 8 pounds, nine stripers from 26-29.5" and porgies up to 17".
We sailed Friday morning with Richard Wood Jr. of E. Stroudsburg PA and his son, Richard Wood III of Rochester NY. The action was on and off throughout the trip, but father and son brought in 11 striped bass up to 26" and one 9-pound bluefish--with lots more being dropped before being reeled in.
Our final trip of the week took place on Saturday morning...a very, very hot and muggy day. Aboard were regulars, Michael Cohen of NYC and Westport and his children, 7-year-old, Benji and his 3-year-old sister. We fished for only three hours because the weather was too oppressive for the youngest of the family, but our passengers did manage to catch some nice blues up to 10 lbs. and striped bass up to 26".
One of our fishing buddies died this week. Norwalk octogenarian, Charlie Toth--a perennial fixture whose boat was anchored in a few honey holes he'd cultivated for decades--passed over very quietly just a day after his last fishing excursion. All the locals knew and respected Charlie's tenacity. We all knew that Charlie's special spots were exclusively his, and we never trespassed on his territory. Early in the morning he'd net fresh bunker for chunking, and then he'd feed the leftovers to the sea birds that recognized and followed his boat home at the end of each trip. He'll be missed by all of us--bird and man alike.
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