Hatteras Island Fishing Militia

Just Another Day at the Office

The General — Sat, 11 Sep 2010 00:03:24 GMT

I punched out this AM with Matt the anesthesiologist from Indiana.

The wind was honking NE at 15mph+ . The swell got up-to 6ft at times, but averaged around a solid 4ft.

I already had an idea of what to expect, so I always keep my distance and make sure I know what the wind and current is going to do, before I approach. Yet, you have to stay on your toes, cause everything you've figure out can change within feet.

Unfortunately the guys I took out on Tuesday didn't think that way and came out later in the AM and one of them went down twice. Luckily he didn't get hurt, but lost all his rods. They figured it out quick enough to return to shore.

I've had too many close calls to wish the school of hard knocks on anyone..Be safe and think before you do.:D

So--anyways..I knew in my heart as I was setting up that it was going to go off this AM. It just felt right, looked fishy and there was slicks everywhere.

It was cloudy and I told Matt as soon as the sun breaks it's going to go down.

Well--as soon as Matt and I hit the front corner of the shoals the sun popped out and it went "SLAM Fn OFF!!!"

Albies, blues and spanish erupted all around us and as far as the eye could see. The birds were dive-bombing for 10acres. Game-On

Matt fires the top water plug I gave him and instantly hooks up..All I see is the water explode and I am thinking it's an albie.

Actually, it was a shark that had slammed the fish he was hooked into--he was sawed off quick.

About that time I hook-up and I see 5-6 sharks racing under the boat and then I get crushed and bitten off.

That's when I realize that these fish were not going off, cause they are feeding, rather, they were going off, cause they were being feed-on

Under the boat looked like some kind of WWII submarine battle with 4-8ft long torpeedos racing everywhere. Yeh--some of these Sum Bit---- were real studs.

Matt hangs a beast and it starts to take him for a sleigh ride for a few minutes. I had to paddle solid to remain shotgun and oversee this one. The fish starts to turn towards the shoals and as I express concern --the fish figures out it is hooked and gives an impressive and explosive burst that dumps the reel out within seconds.
By this point all 4 rods I had brought were down and needed attention, before we could return to battle.

While I was rigging everything the sharks go beyond �frenzy�. These mighty creatures are absolutely blazing every friggen thing in sight. That included chasing our boats, bouncing off our boats and chasing the paddle.

Yeh�I said chasing the friggen paddle.

Matt had some confidence in this situation, as he saw I wasn�t shook and he had read my stories of similar encounters. Truth is�this is one formed a few beads of sweat on my brow.

However, there were not much options here. Sh�your pants and freak out, run for it and be chased for god knows how long or stand your ground and get it on.

I liked the last option the best, but I knew it could get interesting quick if one of us hit the water, so staying clear of the shoals was goal number 1.

We proceeded to battle it out with the sharks, wind, and current for sometime. And, while we hooked plenty of fish, we only landed a few.

Matt did manage to get his 1st Spanish ever and a few blues to boot. I was happy and you couldn�t kick the smile off his face.

We were out just short of 2 miles and it took over an hour to get back, but we relived the moments and got to know one another on the return, so time went by as fast as one could hope.

We did manage to have an impressive display of speed and acrobats by a giant pod of dolphins that shot just to the outside of us..Nice way to cap the trip.

We�ll see what the weekend holds�but I am sure it�ll be nuthin short of interesting.:)cool

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911~What were you doing when you heard?

sehguhll — Fri, 10 Sep 2010 20:46:14 GMT

That summer I had taken a summer job, teaching allows me the opportunity to supplement my income. That summer I was working as a stage hand at the Virginia Beach Amphitheater. (It was pretty interesting, but that�s another story.)

I decided to take September 11 off from teaching to work one final day at the amphitheater. My favorite band was playing (Aerosmith) that particular night, and I wanted to be there for the unloading, set up, sound checks, meals, everything. Most of the time you had a chance to hang out and talk with the musicians, and I thought that would be pretty cool to get to meet the guys in Aerosmith!
I was back stage in the catering room waiting for the arrival of the band, most off the crew had been there from the night before. There was a rumor the band was going to join us for breakfast.

Well that all changed the moment the first plane hit.

There I stood in a room of complete strangers, and felt a bond with them all as we watched in awe at the events that were unfolding.
Then, live on the big screen backstage, the second plan hit.
That�s when the talk turned from bad accident to terrorist attack.
Then the other news, missing plane, Pentagon, the first tower falling.

Well, at that point the show was cancelled.

What I thought was going to be the coolest day off my life, was now one of the scariest, saddest days off my life. The growing loss of human life, my country was under attack for the first time during my lifetime. I was overcome with an indescribable emotion.

The jets that had been taken off from Oceana all morning and flying there leisurely routes around the area, where now taking of in droves heading in a northerly direction. At that point I rushed home to be in the comfort of family and friends.

As I pulled out of the Virginia Beach Amphitheater, I remember thinking, �Well, this is it; it is the end of the world�.
My clunker�s radio did not work so I could not keep up with the latest news. It was the longest hour drive back to EC.
Then as the rest of us, I watched the repeated scenes in complete disbelief.

There are annual events that happen that cause me to reflect; birthdays�, anniversaries, holidays, etc.. When I realized tomorrow was September 11, I caught myself returning to the emotions of that day.

With all the walks of life on this forum, I thought it would be interesting to share how you first heard the news�..

NEVER FORGET!

Plug — Fri, 10 Sep 2010 19:40:27 GMT

When you wake up tomorrow take some time to remember. And since you're unlikely to see it on network news, here's a reminder.

Round 2

The General — Fri, 10 Sep 2010 00:19:11 GMT

No water rescue today..thank god.

But it was loads of blues and some monster spanish. Smallest spanish was 23 inches to the fork.

Saw some scattered albies, but hooked none.:hook0)

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showdown

scrapy doo — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 21:17:28 GMT

can we get a update on what is going on?
thanks

Newbie

Cballard1 — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 18:23:07 GMT

Guys and Gals,

I'm new on here but have been reading the forums for quite awhile. Sounds like the fihing is good right now. Will be back down Oct 14.

Chris

An Interesting Day to Say the Least.

The General — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 19:03:59 GMT

Well�I want all who have clicked on this to read this post and understand it clearly.

I punched out this am with one other person on the south side of Cape Point into a 15mph SW wind.While that might sound a lil tricky, I can assure you there wasn�t much to it. That side was slick calm yesterday with very little wind or swell and the harder wind just hadn�t had time to build that side into much when I deployed.

I head straight for the shoals knowing full well that the wind and current was going to drive us straight into the breakers. Which, I really didn�t care, because the shoal break was only a couple- few feet at best and the water was chest deep at most. So, even if we went down there was no real cause for alarm, nor could much happen to us.

I�ve gone down in the real sh-- and know what it means to have my bell rung and nerves rattled. Today was not one of those days.

Sure enough upon reaching the shoals there was a smell of fish like none I had experienced in some time and there was a slick on the surface of the water the size of the gulf spill.

We fired into the slick a few times with no luck and were approaching the outer edge of the shoals quick.

We turned to punch out and reposition, when the albies and 4-5lb bluefish erupted all around us.

Screw running�lets do this. We both hook-up. Gene with a nice blue and I hooked an albie that destroyed the anti reverse in the reel within seconds.

My fish was cut off within 60 seconds, while Gene�s blue was brought almost to the yak. But, by this time it was too late�we were in the shoals and now we had to deal with it.

Long story short�Gene went down twice, while I never lost a beat. I remained in my yak, while flipping his upright and snatching him back into his boat both times. We eventually came out the other side of the shoals.

I let Gene wipe the water from his face and regain his composure. I asked him if he wanted to head in and he said no and that all was cool and he wanted to keep going.

So, I let him land the fish that had been drug through the shoals and took his pic.

By the time we turned and headed back for more I saw a Park Ranger haulin tail down the beach, followed by a water rescue truck. I thought to myself that can�t be for us, but I knew it was.

Someone had to call. Why I don�t know. They must not have paid much attention to the fact that we recovered both flips and were sitting upright and paddling.

When the rescuers made it to us I was laughing, though it wouldn�t have been funny if a person somewhere else on the beach lost their life, cause WR was dealing with me.

The guys pulled up and were laughing--telling me how some one I knew had called and said I was in trouble. When WR arrived they realized it was me and that I was cool, but this person ( who I am not sure who it was) insisted I was in trouble and not having fun.

Well�unless you�ve ever been out with me, then you could never know if I m having fun or not. And, if I am in trouble�you�ll know by the barrage of hand held emergency flares that starts to bounce off your rear window.

I can say I appreciate one�s concerns for me. But, I truly am unhappy that such a valuable resource like our volunteer water rescue was called on my behalf on a day I consider to be child�s play.

I literally train for this. I pump out a 150 push-ups 6 days outta 7 and I eat enough beef and chicken in a week�s time to choke a T-Rex. I am not here to play, die or to seem that I am not about my biz. I have spent more time in those shoals in 3 years then anyone and even the WR guys said that. I know how to read that water and I understand the dangers, as I�ve had a great deal of dicey situations occur. I even lye in bed and think of possible screwed up stuff that could happen and how to possibly fix or get around them.

Example. When Gene flipped his drain plug somehow came out on the rear of the yak and the boat flooded 2/3rds full of water. No worries. I cut a Gatorade bottle and bailed the water in 5 mins�problem solved.

We had no idea he was taking on water and it wasn�t until after the WR guys came and went before Gene flipped for the 3rd time and we realized what was happening. But, we dealt with it.

We caught a few more blues and headed in. Gene was not shook at all and retained his confidence in me-- he will be back for round 2 tomorrow.

The moral to this story is..Don�t waste valuable resources unless you are 150% sure someone is in trouble. A person or persons somewhere else could pay the price with their life. Some of us�have what it takes to be out there on days like today.

Thanks again for the concern, but you�ll know when I need help. I got that much covered.

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Help yourselves

jmadre — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 13:46:01 GMT

Savethetrails.us has asked for help with the USDA's America's Great Outdoors (AGO) initiative. Voting was opened earlier this year and the access and OHV crowd was doing good. However it appears the anti-access crowd has been voting while we were out enjoying the great outdoors.

Please register to vote and let your voice be heard. Voting works by promoting or demoting ideas on the site. Look at http://www.savethetrails.us/AGO-Vote.html for a list of access-minded idea to promote and some anti-access ideas to demote.

Kim Moser on Discovery Channel

sehguhll — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 22:57:09 GMT

I was going through old shows on my dvr, and I found this episode of Deadliest Catch, but it was a cross between the Alaskan King Crab guys and the North Atlantic Sword fishing guys.

Sort of a greatest hits show.

This guy from the North Atlantic fleet was wearing a Kim Moser�s jacket.

Anyway�.. I thought it was pretty cool!

Albies Everywhere

The General — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 19:57:36 GMT

The alberts could be walked on most of the morning off the Point.

The football sized dudes could be seen erupting from the Point to ramp 45.

They are great entertainment and there was no lack of them.

Sorry Dave, you missed it by a day.:)bang

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Da flat, I mean da point.

drumrun — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 00:55:47 GMT

Went down to check on my house, no major damage; thank someone higher then me. So went fishing, mainly the point. Sat looked ok with a large swell still coming in. Some 3-5# blues and puppies around. Sat once the surf settled down it might as well have been the keys, a huge bar on the southside about 8 acers large and only about 50 yrds from the beach. No deep water around it. Nice ankle deep water at lowtide, all over the bar. From the bar looking further out ya probably would need a scuba outfit to reach fishable water. We need some sort of change in the next few weeks!!!

Time for a new reel...

Johnny B — Mon, 06 Sep 2010 16:43:38 GMT

It's time for a new reel on my Kayak Rod. (Ugly Stick 7 foot SP 1101) I'm looking for something inexpensive but not too cheap, know what I mean? Any suggestions would be great. JAM, I'm staying in a house right across from the Roost next week, so if it's something you guys sell, I'll be there.

Piping Mad Video

Alexy — Mon, 06 Sep 2010 13:44:13 GMT

From Tradewinds board,
Good vid that describes what is happening on hateras island

http://vimeo.com/14696293

JAM,Speaking of the Six Pees

flathead — Sun, 05 Sep 2010 23:09:02 GMT

sometimes,even with only one pee,ya get really,really lucky.Unbelievable,extremely happy that the angels were hanging on to those children surrounded by Darwin nominees:

[quote](CNN) -- Seven people, including three children, who were missing since Saturday night were rescued Sunday morning about 25 miles off the coast of Charleston, South Carolina, the U.S. Coast Guard said.

Evanson told CNN Radio that airborne search crews were running low on fuel and were "getting ready to call it a night" when something was spotted in the moonlit water.

"One of our rescue flight mechanics had noticed something at the surface of the sea that looked something like a debris field. The only light he had to assist him in the search was the moonlight," Evanson said Sunday.

That all seven were wearing life jackets "was a major factor in the fact that we were able to save their lives," Evanson said. "It could have been much different had they not had life jackets."

Searchers were first alerted to the situation after the wife of one person on the boat contacted authorities to say the seven hadn't come home on time. Rescue crews located the missing boaters at 6:02 a.m. Sunday.

Evanson said those on the boat "made the decision to abandon ship" after the engine compartment started to flood but he said they were unable to call for help because they had no emergency communications equipment.

Quote:

"They didn't have a VHF radio. They didn't have an emergency position indicating radio beacon ... that can pinpoint the location of a distress when a boat sinks. There was no signaling flares, nothing," Evanson said.

"It's a very fortunate situation ... that the rescue crew was able to identify these individuals utilizing just the moonlight."

A very bad kayak surf launch

jmadre — Sun, 05 Sep 2010 20:42:59 GMT

I shot this a week or so ago on the north side of The Point during the Hurricane Danielle swell. Kevin McCabe ended up finding the guy far out beyond the bar.

I was on the beach nearby and saw him paddling out. This guy was in the water about 20 minutes before being located. From Kevin's comment about finding him in 'dirty water', I believe a rip current prevented him from staying with his kayak.

There were several pairs of binoculars on the beach and nobody could see this guy from shore.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9V7I19ex2jk&hd=1