What an absolute joke the fisheries service is!
What actual service are they performing and for whom? Certainly not the benefit of the fisherman.
Once again here we are tied to the dock because of poor managment. Who actully thought closing the Fluke season on the 25th with basically nothing to fish for till Oct. 1 was a good idea? Why couldn't Sea bass have opened up when fluke closed? at least give us a chance instead of being tied to the dock! Would 5 days have destroyed the species?
We had a charter yesterday, had to toss back over 300 Sea Bass, many floated away, many got eaten by the birds, customers got to eat none. How the hell is that fair or right.
I hear talk of better Sea Bass regulations coming... are they going to open it May 1st instead of the middle of the month? Still going to leave it at One fish for the summer, close it for another month then open it a week after fluke closes?
You can imagine why many of us have had it, it's not only Sea Bass, it's every dam species out there.
Don't tell me we could go bluefishing, that's bullshit. The boats bluefishing are carrying not many customers either and been doing it all summer. Fish for 1 keeper blackfish? Catch & release at $90, I don't think so.
The lost days that turn into weeks by the end of the summer never get returned or taken into consideration, another joke.
Here it is a gorgeous Sunday the end of September and only 2 customers showed up today, there were enough for 1 boat out of 5 to make it out in the Harbor.
With the Official Sea Bass opening on Wednesday and crap weather coming again this week, maybe Friday we will be able to make it out. Sad what this once flourishing industry has come to. I know exactly how the mom & pop shops, hardware stores and any other small business feels, we are all in the same dam boat with-out any paddles.
Capt. Ron