The inshore fishing in 07 was as good as it has ever been over the past several years. We began our fishing quests in the early part of June chasing striped bass in Vinyard sound. The trick was finding the fish. The water temps were on the cool side, and the bass were tightly schooled during the early part of the month. Once we found them though, the action was relentless. Thats the beauty of the early season, happening upon the motherload of fish. We experienced some days when rods were bent as long as the tide was moving. There were a couple of days when the fish were elusive and we truly worked for a mere few! That happens every year, but those trips are far and few. Most of the time the numbers of big fish were in the double digits. Now here's the thing, we chase big bass and big fish only. If you're looking to catch 20 fish under 36 inches there are plenty of charter captains who do it, but not us. The fish we catch average 40 inches and some are much bigger. Live and dead bait are the key to our success with big fish. Sometimes we break out the wire line, but only when we have to. The new St Croix Tidewater series sticks worked out beautifully for bait fishing. They worked great when paired with my Penn 320's. We employed 40 pound Sufix tritanium line this year and once again, it worked out great. The green colored line seemed to outfish everything else. Fish under 40 inches are rare when live bait fishing, and don't do much for excitement with my clients anyway. The trick is to follow the tides. Every spot is different depending on current and water clarity each day. Anyone who fishes with us knows that I'm not afraid to run the boat to find fish. Big bass are a challenge, and we like being put to the test.

Some of the notable catches were a 48 pound, 52 inch fish caught by Rob Stracuzzi, a 39 pound 48 inch fish caught by 24 time returning guest John Smith, three 44 to 46 inch fish to 36 pounds caught on the same day by 6 year old William Saunders. This kid is hot. he even caught a few tuna with us in July, not to mention he caught a 33 pound bass with us last year. I think its time for my 5 year old son to put away his Sponge Bob rod and step up! The 07 season yielded over a dozen other fish over the 30 pound mark. Now keep in mind, we're just fishing for bass in June. Our inshore season lasts a month. The odds of catching a 30 pound plus fish with us are very good. In 07 we went four straight days catching fish over the 30 pound mark. The bait gig is fun as it is challenging. Clients are forced to hook their own fish. Though it's not easy for some folks. As usual, we employed circle hooks, and they proved to be deadly like always if used correctly. Once folks caught on, the fish didn't have a chance. There were a lot of big fish around this year. We even bottomed out my 45 pound scale on a fish. Actually I think the scale broke! I needed to get a new one anyway. We caught a ton of 45 inch 30 somethings. I'm an advocate for releasing big bass. The smaller fish are better tasting. We threw a lot of 45 inch brutes back in the drink on most trips. A few rainy day outings yielded tough conditions and relatively slow action. the Mike Ogrodnick crew and the Brian Harris crew experienced such luck. We caught fish, but not like we should have caught them.

We will be commencing the 08 season in early June like always. The trips are a blast, and a great way to entertain groups. Everyone catches fish, and its hands on. Nothing beats cat and mousing big fish with live bait. We caught most of our fish in 07 drifting with lead rigs. Slow trolling is also a method I like, especially when the tide isn't flying. Hopefully '08 will yield the same class of big fish...a little fatter this time around! Call if you're interested! Inshore trips are always a beautiful day on the Castafari, and big fish are $$guaranteed. We don't catch schoolies. There is a time and a place. Don't get me wrong. I like focusing on the big fish. Its more work, and sometimes a little more time, but it's always well worth it! We are starting to fill up already so don't wait too long to book a trip!