sports

outdoors with Lou Rodia

Get Ready to Greet Flighty Mackerel

It is mid-February. Given a break in the weather, the start of the fishing season might be as little as a month away. The first party boats are planning to sail the weekend before Easter. That's the weekend of March 23 and 24. The following weekend, which starts with Good Friday. will see even more boats ready to make their first trips of the current season. For the first weekend, and perhaps, the long weekend over Easter, the quest will be primarily for mackerel. Most of the skippers we talked to so far indicate that they will also be ready to fish a fewwrecks to look for blackfish. sea bass and other wreck fish in the event that mackerel do not show up. This will promise a little better opportunity to bring home fish if the mackerel do not arrive on time. MACKEREL ARE flighty fish, at best. They can show up early, set in and stay for a while. Or. they can pop in and out with little rhyme or reason. They can hang offshore or move right in to, the beach where they are "easy prey for even trailered outboards. The only thing predictable about mackerel is that they are unpredictable. Our best advice for those who want a mess of mackerel for the table, the freezer or for salting and pickling is to get in on the run of macks as soon as they arrive on the scene. Too many anglers have missed the mackerel action by waiting too long into the run to go after macks. Weekend fishermen are often greeted by crowded rails and boats that sail early when they are filled to capacity, especially if the weather is nice. Weekday anglers face fewer fishermen, much more rail space and less competition. SOME ANGLERS guarantee their trips by joining in on charters which book the entire boat for a fishing club, company group or a pick-up group of friends. Some years the mackerel are so plentiful and so cooperative that they are even close enough for -the four-hour and six-hour boats. Even some of the short-trip boats will be scheduling runs for the mackerel, depending on weather, availability of the fish and distance offshore they decide to set in. Boaters who have their trailered rigs reddy can also join in the mackerel mania which will set in soon along the JerseyShore. If you do not belong to a big club or if your fishing group is too small to charter a whole big party boat, you might consider chartering a smaller boat. There are lots of charter boats around that will take six-man charters. A few take clubs and group of up to 20 anglers. BY CHARTERING, you can fish with a group of buddies and come and go pretty much according to your schedule. Lest you get turned off by the possibility of crowded boats, remember that

there is usually plenty of room on weekdays. On weekends, there is usually more than ample room as well. Occasionally, however, the crowds anxious to catch mackerel outstrip the boats available to take them To be assured of a seat or rail space, it is always wise to get to a party boat at least an hour in advance of the scheduled sailing. Most boats do not take reservations. WHEN YOU ARRIVE at the dock, select your boat, talk to the skipper or the mate, get your gear aboard and then go find breakfast Or. if you have already had something to eat. the waiting time is a good time to swap fishing stories with some of the other anglers or to check over your gear. If you are short a few items of tackle, there is usually a tackle shop close by or you can check with the skipper or mate to see if they have the necessary itemgaboard. Remember that anything which you do not have or cannot get on board may cut into your fishing production. Don't depend on borrowing it from another angler. While many are obliging and will try to help you. they may also be victims of short supply if the action gets hectic. ONCE YOUR GEAR is aboard and a space at the rail is assured, be sure to stay close enough to the boat so that if the sailing time comes, you do not hold up other anglers who have to wait for you. Some skippers will give an angler's last call and leave shortly after. Be ready. Don't get left at the dock. Mackerel fishing can become a real test of friendship, especially if you whack a buddy with a string of mackerel as you lift it over the rail. Mackerel fishing can be a little sloppy at times. It pays to put on foul weather gear early in the trip. After the hot fishing starts, it may be too late to get into the oilskins before you get slopped up. ONCE THE FIRST few fish come over the rail, you will get caught up in the catching or you will have already been decorated with fish scales and salt water, at the least. Cool weather makes it expedient that you dress warm. Make sure you dress in layers so you can don and remove clothing as the air temperatures goes up or down. Make sure to wear warm boots Cold and wet feet can ruin an otherwise exciting fishing trip. Mackerel fishing is production fishing. Most anglers fish with a mackerel "tree" made up of two to fil|p tube lures tied on a leader and a sinker, mackerel jig or Hopkins lure tied to the end of the line. Multiple catches which feature one mackerel on each lure you tie to the end of the line are not uncommon. IT TAKES a hefty rod and 40 to 30-lb. line to fish in this manner. Big catches of mackerel are possible fishing this way. Lots of days the fishing action is far beyond what anglers

want and the boats come in early. If you plan to mackerel fish, make sure you know what you are going to do with the catch. Mackerel is excellent when fresh. It is delicious when smoked. It can be salted, using some of the old-time recipes which are still around. Some freeze mackerel, but it is not one of the best fish for future use in the freezer. If you do freeze mackerel for either the table or for future use as bait, here are a few tips: FIRST. FREEZE filets, rather than the whole fish, for the table Depending on what it will be used for, freeze filets or the whole fish for bait. Put each whole fish in its own plastic bag. F3y freezing them individually. you will be able to separate them easier when planning a fishing trip. As for freezing filets, the best way we found is to use Zip-Iok bags or '2 lb. margarine containers Put in two or three mackerel filets. Add a little Kosher salt and enough water to cover the filets and freeze them. If the mackerel were in good shape when you put them away they should be in good enough shape to use for bait or even for the table. Thaw them out in the refrigerator or on ice in your cooler and they will stay firm longer WHEN YOU CUT the filets into strips to fish with, keep the strips refrigerated rather than let them lie in the hot sun. Mackrel strips make excellent bait for blues, weakfish and fluke. Whole mackerel are excellent bait for sharks. Whether you bring home mackerel for bait or for the table, be sure you can use what you catch. It is a shame to waste fish, and mackerel are tough to give away at times. If you do not care to slug i' out with four or five mackerel at a time on a mackerel "tree" of worms, and if you are on your own boat or an uncrowded party boat, macks are fun to fish for on light tackle Trycasting a small jig or a small banana type lure into a school of mackerel on a one-handed spinning rod or a light bai (caster. CATCHING THEM one at a time cn be loads of fun. but be sure you have plenty of room if you try a light rod on a party boat. Check with the mate or skipper first so they know whit you are up to. If you want, a real fun mackerel trip, gather up some light tackle fa/gjtnd charter a boat for/iheMay Many of the chataer,4:aptains who take six-man charters will be rea'ay to sail in mackerel "Season If you pqt. together a charter — be it on a six pack or on a head boat — and the whole group wants to fish for mackerel with light tackle, it can be an interesting day. W O R M COLOR: Mackerel "trees" have av variety of colored worms attached to the leader Some also come with worms of iust one color, but most are* varied. This is because macks get fussy on .

some days. They may hit only one of the several colors. If you find one color dominating the catch, it is easy to make up a "tree" with just one color of worm and fish it for a while. If the action stops, go back to the multi-colored tree until you find a dominant color again. MACKEREL CHUM? Mackerel can be ground up and used for chum for blues and sharks. But it is interesting to note that ground mackerel or ground menhaden also can be used to chum the mackerel themselves. Oftentimes the use of chum can spur the mackerel into a feeding frenzy. Other times, it can be used to draw the macks up closer to the surface. We fished with a group of salt water flyrodders for a while, and they went for mackerel in their own boats, using fly rods. The results were varied, and I have always wondered that the better flyrodders caught the most fish because they were more skilled. The same flyrodders caught the most Campers Clinch CAPE MAY - Whippoorwill Campground clinched first place in the regular season in Cape May Men's Power Volleyball as it defeated Library III in three of four games. 15-6, 15-3, 13-15 and 15-13. These two teams face each other in the playoffs next week. In the other match. The Potter and Will Morey Development Co. split their four games in a playoff preview with The Potter winning the first and last games 16-14 and 17-15 with Will Morey Development winning 15-1 and 17-15. STANDINGS W'hippoorwill Campground Cl l 7 Will Morey Development Co W 22 The Poller 33 27 Library 111 6-54

fish wherever we went, anyway. CHUM HELPED the flyrodders catch more fish a lot of days because it brought the mackerel up where the fly rods worked best. If you have a hankering for some smoked mackerel and have access to a smoker, you can get sajTie recipes for same. The Cape^

May County Public Affairs Department has some recipes -for smoking, salting and pickling fish which might help you put some of . your surplus mackerel to work Write Cape May County Public Affairs Department. Box 365. Cape May Court House. N.J. 0821(1 and ask for your free copies of the recipes.

■ , Cape May County - ALMANAC FEBRUARY. 1986 MOON PHASES/POSITIONS CORRECTION TIMES The Moon's effect on the Tide is Compute approximate timet greatet I when closest lo Earth of high £ low water for your (in perigee) and when in direct area by adding or subtracting alignment with Sun A Earth the following number of I full £ new moon phases) On minutes for each tide phase in and about these dates, low the Tide Table pressure sy-tems and'or strong winds (depending upon direc tion) may result in flooding and /or extremely low tides Moon Phase* LOW HIGH Last Quarter I Great Egg Harbor Inlet Moo° " " Plus 12 plusio EKT"- .. " plus 35 plus 22 Apogee IS . Corson Inlet • br.dge. Perigee I P1"*21 Plus7 Sea Isle City < Ludlam Thoro Bridget TIDE TABLE plus 66 plus 43 } \ Computed for Cape May City Sea Isle City Beach beachfront, for other areas, see minus 2 minus 21 Correction Times Townsend InJel DATE HIGH LOW plus 21 plus 4 a m p.m. a. In. p.m. Seven Mile Beach 1 Sal 12 11-12:24 HI- 6 27 P1"5 15 „ ^ 0 2 Sun I 06- I 24 7 21- 7 34 s,0« Harbor 3 Moo 2 10- 2 34 8 33- ft 42 ' Great Channel Bridge' 4 Tue 3 20- 3 51 9 38- 9:47 plus43 plus 40 5 Wed 4 28- 5 (10 10 42-10:47 Hereford Inlet - A nglesea i 6 Thu 5 29- 6 00 11:37- plus 19 o 7 Fri 6:23- 6 51 II 46-12 33 WUdwood Beach 3 Sat 7 13- 7 39 12 43- 1 23 „ 9 Sun 7 58- 8 22 1 34- 2:07 M,nus2 _m,nUS 10 Mon R 41 9 05 2 21- 2 49 West Wild* ood 11 Tue 9 23- 9 48 3 05- 3 28 'Grassy Channel bridge • 12 Wed 10:08-10 28 3 44^ 4 04 plus46 plus.43 13 Thu 10 46 — II 10 4 25 -**4. 4 1 Cape May Harbor 14 Fri 11.27-11 51 5:07- 5. w plus 1 minus* 15 Sal 12 08 5 52- 6 *0 Flv, Falhom ^ 16 Sun 12 35-12 56 6 50- 6:52 , 17 Mao 1 22- 1 48 7 53- 7 51 *»" .. „ P IB Tue 2 17 - 2 53 8 54- 8 50 rape 19 Wed 3:22 - 4 02 9 51- 9 49 plus 46 plus 34 20 Th'i 4:24- 5 03 10 45-10 42 "MctTne Shoal 21 Fri 5*20- S S3 II 32-11 32 plus 28 '• plus22 22 Sal 6 06- 6 37 -12 20 Delaware Bav U Man 7 » 'T w- ! « ^Vshure Outrmel 25 Tue 8 11- 8 39 1 52- 2 23 'Bay Canal Junction ' 26 Wed 8 52- 9:20 2 37 - 3 02 P,Us *' plus36 27 Thu 9 37 10 06 3 19- 3 40 Miami Beach 28 Fn to 24-10 57 4 04- 4 21 plus75 plus 61 Dennis Creek Entrance plus 114 plus 97 Brandywine Shoal Light plus 71 plus 52

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