So when I last left you hanging, we were still basically conscious. However, late afternoon into evening on Tuesday had me up since 2AM, 6 hours in the car, and now a good, solid 7 hours of rock hopping. The weather is not cooperating at all. Bluebird skies, no swell whatsoever so no real whitewater, and a solid 20 kt wind in our faces almost everywhere we go. Fishing is bad, and when this happens you need to pull out all the tricks.

A Beavertail local had told us about a local inlet that was holding some daytime fish, and after almost being shutout in Jamestown, we figured we should trust the intel and make a drive south. Neither Craig nor I had ever been to this inlet to fish before, so we were in the dark, even though it was bright sunshine. I am fishing the same outfit from the morning, but Craig shifted gears and busted out his old faithful, a VS 150 on a classic Ron Arra Lamiglas. These recently discontinued rods (although there is a rumor that somebody bought out the entire remaining from the manufacturer and still has a bunch in stock…LOL) were just perfect if you were looking for a surf rod that had the backbone to handle a big fish, but still a responsive enough tip to throw light jigheads and plugs.

It was the bottom of the tide but with the narrow inlet, there still was plenty of current and Schoolie was defiantly in! Throwing a 1/2 oz Hogy X-tra Strong leadhead and a shot curlytail, it was strike after strike after strike. This is in bright daylight, with huge boats rolling through. We actually had to time casts so our lines would not get prop wrapped in the outboards! The jetty is very long, and as the tide started to die and the bite slowed, we moved closer in to keep throwing at the current in the narrowing inlet. We could see the clouds of sandeels in the gin clear water. We milked this pattern for almost an hour until the tide finally died, and so did the bite. It was pretty cool following the fish up the long jetty as the rip moved with the declining current. Our Korkers were sure getting a good workout. We promised ourselves that this was going to be a daily occurrence while we were in the area, and paid close attention to the timing and the tides so we could follow up for the next couple of days.

Thoroughly exhausted, now punchy with sleep deprivation, the bite was dead and so were we, It was time to head back towards Newport. We made a quick pitstop at Jamestown to visit the Lighthouse with no luck and to our amazement figured one more stop would do it. Caffeine is a wonderful drug. We pulled up on Ocean Drive and broke out the big rods and checked the batteries in our headlights, just in case. This is where our fishing for the first long day closed out with nothing much to show for it. We finally took off our waders, and hit a local pizza stop for a light meal of grinders, wings, a greek salad, and a pair of icy cold beers. Very healthy fare for two guys that could barely speak while shoveling down their dinner just before 10PM.

By the time we unpacked and cleaned up all the gear, I finally saw the pillow at about 11, with my alarm set for 3:15. It was my job to make a hot pot of coffee for the thermos and Craig got to sleep in for an extra 15 minutes. I can’t ever remember falling to sleep this fast before. What would Wednesday bring?

Stay Tuna-ed!
Ed