Fish in the Box

***Late Entry*** May 20, 2016--- The end of trophy season and the new Striper limits (2 fish per person, 20" minimum and only one can be over 28" after May 15) meant greater opportunities for finding fish to take from the Bay and place on the table.  May brought few fishable days with the bulk of the month filled with cold and rain.  Undaunted, Mikey D Fishing left the dock on one of the few bright and warm Saturday mornings to set up the chum line and send hooks baited with fresh alewife to the bottom. 

Once anchored, the Lowrance HDS began marking multiple fish.  In fact, the Lowrance is so sensitive that it picked up the chum line.  As shown above, we set up at one of our more prolific spots and soon after we hooked into a keeper Rockfish.  The key when using the bait runner reels is to allow the fish to take the bait and run to allow the circle hook to set properly.  If you attempt to set the hook at the first sign of a bite it almost always results in a lost opportunity.  The video depicts the end result when Mikey D Fishing pulls it all together.  When the bite slowed, we moved to the #1 can buoy off of Hacketts Point.  We caught a few undersized stripers and a determined perch on alewife and soft crab.  A great day culminating in grilled Rockfish for dinner.  Back at Mikey D Fishing headquarters we followed this simple step by step recipe for grilled Rockfish:
1. Fillet with a quality knife....Mikey D Fishing recommends the Bubba Blade.
2. Leave the skin on one side
3. Sprinkle with olive oil, salt and pepper
4. Add a dusting of lemon pepper panko
5. Grill with skin down until flesh is between white and translucent .... and enjoy the bounty of the Bay!