# 7/2/2011 - Bay Bridge Trip Report



## mmanolis2001 (Sep 11, 2009)

We got on the water around 7:45AM and made a bee line to last years bait spot. I Rigged up with an experimental bait rig that consisted of three tiny orange #8 salmon Egg hooks and small nibbles of Fish Bites. I wanted to mimic a small Sabiki rig and see if it would tease up the smaller perch and spots. We Caught all the 9" and 10" perch we could want but there was a problem getting small bait sized perch. The small spot are still hiding and we only managed one chubby 8" spot. After 30 mins of bailing perch that were too large for Live lining but to small for dinner we finally had 7 perch around 6" to 8" and the one spot. The size of the bait would cause issues for us later in the day. 

This was also my first real test of the gogo gadget live well. It worked perfectly all day. I had it running for 4 1/2 hrs and it was purring like a kitten. The whole setup is very quiet and i forgot it was on during the day. The last bait of the day was still green and pissed and got a good spine in me to let me know (Dangers of live lining perch). I lost no stability with the volume of water in there which is a major plus. The lid system worked great and was easy to get to. It fits with my crate but it does cause some issues opening and closing it. The gamma seal catches on the crate lid and i have to play rough with the crate lid to open and close. Not a major issue but its not perfect. It extra weight of the full live well does slow me down a bit but i can cope with that. Much better than pulling that damn bait bucket around. I’m going to continue to run the live well on my next trip to see how many hours i can get out of a single charge.

The fishing was slow to say the least. I had one take that immediately spit the fish and Luis had 4 good takes and runs that netted the same result. I’m pretty sure it was due to the large bait and relatively small hooks we were using (6/0). We hooked them in the back and they would spit it out. We nose hooked them and they would spit them out. Not matter what we tried it ended in the same result. I stuck with it for a couple of hours and upon snagged and popping my line i decided to change things up and jig. 

I started using a 4" Gulp Pogy in a herring color for [email protected] and giggles instead of the proven Chartreuse Jerk bait combo. I like trying new things so i gave it a shot. On the second pylon I swung the jig past the eddy behind the pylon and i felt a tap and set the hook. Felt a couple shakes and then some good weight. I got excited and started planning my Rockfish dinner and then it happened. The shake and weight turned to a dead pull. A hard dead pull that lasted for the next 15 mins. I finally got my Chesapeake sleigh ride thanks to a wing hooked ray and Luis got to sit back and laugh at me. After having my fill with the beast i Snapped it off and made the long 1/4 mile Up current paddle back to the bridge.

We kept seeing fish break the whole time we were live lining so i decided to put a small metal on and see if i could find out what they were. Unfortunately whatever they were shiny metal things were not on their menu. I switched to a silver rattle trap and tossed it around the pylons for the rest of the day. I got several hits and finally got the skunk off with a little 10" rockfish.

During this time Luis hooked nice rockfish on a perch. It came up to the boat and He got a good look at it. He estimated it at 30"+ . It was all in vain though as it spit the perch back into his face. I saw this and heard him cuss from 100 Yards Away. He got payback 5 mins later with a 24" fish that swallowed the bait. No chance on this one spitting it back out but it came with a price. The fish had a sore on one side but due to the fact it was gut hooked and would not survive release it went home with us.

We called it quits around 2:00 and headed back in. The weather and water condition was great. The bait supply was not but it was a great trip. I got the chance to meet and talk with 3 members of this board for the first time and saw two other members. Its nice to put a face to a screen name. It was nice to meet you StupidJet, YakFish and Pinch. In fact i don’t think there was a Kayak out on the water today that does not subscribe here. StupidJet's master plan for world kayak domination is well on its way.

Video Recap.
7/2/2011 - Bay Bridge Recap


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## tjbjornsen (Oct 31, 2009)

Terrific Report.
Thanks,
TjB


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## Jckhama (Jun 13, 2011)

I have been wanting to go out there on my kayak only been on water a couple times. Where do you put in? Are there reqyirements besides pdf?


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## atblis (Jul 20, 2003)

> . I Rigged up with an experimental bait rig that consisted of three tiny orange #8 salmon Egg hooks and small nibbles of Fish Bites.


I think you're only allowed two hooks under MD law.


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## cducer (May 7, 2010)

atblis said:


> I think you're only allowed two hooks under MD law.


Very true..... only 2 sets of hooks per line


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## mmanolis2001 (Sep 11, 2009)

cducer said:


> Very true..... only 2 sets of hooks per line


I know about this law but i am unsure of how it applied to sibiki style bait catching rigs. I have also never heard of anyone using Sibiki rigs getting hassled by Fish and Game wardens. Not that it makes it OK to use them i just think there is a grey area reguarding Bait catching rigs. I saw several conversations in the past with emails to the Fish and Game department but i don't remember what the final saying on this was.

In the end the rig made no difference on the size or count of bait caught. It did tangle allot and will not be used again. :redface:


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## mmanolis2001 (Sep 11, 2009)

Jckhama said:


> I have been wanting to go out there on my kayak only been on water a couple times. Where do you put in? Are there reqyirements besides pdf?


We launched out of Sandy Point State Park. Your PDF should be on at all times and have a signalling devise such as a mirror and whistle preferably both in your vest. Also make sure you have a paddle leash. Depending on the weather and boat traffic it can get dicey around the pylons. The waves can come at any direction so make sure to always have your paddle in your lap and ready. You don't want to get pushed sideways into a pylon trying to reach for your paddle. 

The pylons offer some protection from boats that like to blaze full throttle under the bridge and you can position yourself in the down current eddy behind the pylon and hold your position pretty well. The current can rip thru there at a good clip so be prepared to do allot of paddling to hold your position.


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## dena (Jun 20, 2010)

Some folks launch on the other side of the bridge.
The guy that runs the bay side bar gave the OK last year to park there, and launch on the small sandy beach at the foot of the Eastern Shore side.
It is a shorter paddle to the bridge, but that shore can get battered if a NW wind comes up.


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## yakomatic (Jan 9, 2008)

dena-
FYI, Hemingway's restaurant is under new management and, sadly, they are no longer allowing people to launch from that beach.


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## mmanolis2001 (Sep 11, 2009)

yakomatic said:


> dena-
> FYI, Hemingway's restaurant is under new management and, sadly, they are no longer allowing people to launch from that beach.


Yep unfortunately that launch is gone for now. Several people have spoken to the new management there an d they will not allow it. Its sad that was the perfect spot to put in at. Better fishing and less boats jocking for the same pylons.


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## ComeOnFish (Apr 8, 2009)

mmanllis2001,
Thanks for the report. We were waiting for the spot report. I guess spot will be in full force next week. 

Regarding the WP for live bait,
Since WP will be dead most likely after used as live bait, cut off the dorsal fin of a WP (or 9"-10"croaker). Two reasons. WP won't hurt striper if hook is not set firmly and striper got away. And increase the chance of catching striper - just in case striper attack a WP from behind. I learned from old experienced anglers.

about sabiki rig,

I had the same conversations like you had. I don't think two hook rule applied to sabiki rig - at least none will give us ticket for that. But when I used sabiki rigs on my kayak I learned the exactly the same problem you had. It is simpler to use tandem fish-finder rig than using sabiki rig.

Thanks,
Joe


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## mmanolis2001 (Sep 11, 2009)

Thanks for the tips Joe. It never occurred to me to cut the dorsal fins off. That should help hookups allot and definitely be less painful to handle while hooking.


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## dena (Jun 20, 2010)

yakomatic said:


> dena-
> FYI, Hemingway's restaurant is under new management and, sadly, they are no longer allowing people to launch from that beach.


Thanks for the FYI.
I was planning to head there in a week or two when the Spot are more plentiful.
I predict a short business tenure for Hemmingways new managers.


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