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Infiltr:rting a SactoPro BassTourney
Adventure
Living the LouisianaDream
Profi1c
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Patagonia's JurassicSea-Runs
Tiavel 0?
Conservation
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Copi Vojta
Iceland,Striper Bars,Tibetan Hexes
OPENWATER CAUGHT BEHIND BARS Words:TamKeer
t RrGHrl Tidolfiol Ccpe Cod 8oy:"Joined two locols who were olreody h e c d i n gt o r t h e c r e e k mouth. Throwing s k i n n ys c n d e e lf l i e s , we were oble to p i c ku p o h o n d { u lo { h o r d J i g h t i n gs c h o o l i e stripers.Heoded bock when the keepers move onto the flot." Jon Eoch Kristensenquote, p h o t o g r o p h e rC . ope Cod, MA.
Jusr uNoER sIX HouRS the tide comesin and it's high tide;just under six hours later it's low tide and the water disappears.If it weren't for those few minutes, the tide would be every six hours like clockwork. But it's not. You could use charts to track its ebb and flood, but the best way is probablyjust to head to the shore and look. When the water runs out, the bars show up. To a fisherman, it's like finding the Lost City of Atlantis. We drop the air pressurein our tircs ro 12 psr, shift into 4-low, and run our trucks on the beach as far as we can. I have an old JeepcJ-5 I use for that very purpose. The frame is rotted out and one time I stuffed my foot through the rusted floor board while stomping the clutch. I like everything about the beach-the bars,brcirks, occan holes,even the seills.Carole l{ing was probably st2rndingon sandwhen shewrote aboutfeelingthe earth move beneathl.rerfeet. I like the birds best-laughing and black*bacl<edgulls, tcrns picking sandeelsfrom shallows-:rncl sometimcsspendhours watching them divc on bait brolrshtto thc surfaceby podsofbass. The fall is the best timc for bird watching when the gannets and shearwntcrsshow-cnormous flocks sprcird out for miles. They fly higher :rnd highcr, searchingall the while until they tuck their wirrgsarrd plummet a hundred fect to the ocennbclow. Yru'd figure the impirct would hit them like a load of high brass 6s, but they haveair sacksin their nccks ar-rdfirccsto cr-rshion the blow. On warm summer d,.rysthe winds blow west-southwest, temperateand welcoming.Thc cloud ceilirrgis high, and the eggshellsky is mottled with puffy, white cotton balls. Sometimes,when the winds shift, you'll see mare's tails splashedaround likc a painter gone mad. In late summer the wind starts to shift to westnorthwest, bringing a Canadian chill-a woodcock 'doodles wind, and ilfter the move out, the ducks and geesefollow. A soft, southwestwind and dropping tide on a quarter moon makes the occan 1aydown-calmer than a bathtub. Whcn you're on a beach and look out at the horizon, you'd swearit was 5o miles awayinstead of the eight or nine it really is. Give it a few days;it'1l change. When the winds shift eirst-northeast-dropping the tide-you wouldn't be surprised if someonetold you this was a warm up for 2rtsunami. Now it seemslike
IO2 IHE FLYFISHjOURNAL
the horizon is a mile away,if that. And fortunately,it pushesthe fish up the beach,where you'll seethem in the wash right at your feet. I like to follow the adviceof old-time anglers:"Fish points on full and new moons; fish coveson quarters." Bait stagcsin covesduring half moons and moveson full moons-silversides,sandeels, glassminnows,herring, peanutbunker,anchovies, mullet, and butterfish. 'rL-:- ^--^l^^-^)1^*^ Lr F fishing. Bass and bluefish yrLuN lood , Iie in wait to pin them againststructure,the surface, whereverthey can.Anglcrs just needto get therebefore the fish. There are many typcs of bars, and they changcycar to year. My firvorites irre the offshore bars that run parallelto the beach.Ir.rthe winter, they aremeantfor surfing,in the summcr,fishing.With hard currentrunning on both sides,offshorebars arc like small islands, and sometimcsthe water betweenthe beachand bar is chock-a-blockwith bass.Other timcs the fish arc on the outsideedge. I'll tug on my wetsuit and p:rddlcout. Surroundedby schoolsof stripers,I'm remindcdof my favoritechildhoodgame:Cowboys,.rndIndians. Onshore bars connectwith the bcach.They arc far morecivilizcd,requiringnothing morethan a longwalk. Most run at irnglessetby the dominzrntcurrent.I'11start working olrt rn onshorcbrrra few hours beforelow tide, going as firr as I can, and tl.renwandcr back as the tide floods. Somctimesthc fish irre nowhcrc to bc ftrund, wlricl-rgencrallymeansLattd, ho!and or.rtoanother. Bu11-nosc brrrslook likc an upsidc-downletter U. Theyte easyto fish, but often are dcvoid of lifc-not reaching far cr-roughinto the ocezrn.Sometimesyou'll fir-rdbassand bluesin tl.relee; other times they'rcfcasting on the windward edge. I alwiryslet my first cast sweepover the sand and into deepcrwater,waiting for the dull tug that will make it worth my while . When fish are tight to the beirch,I don't have to cast much further than my feet. Few events are as fmstrating as watching a large schoolof bassritngejust beyondyour bestcast.A few yenrsback, I watched ir desperateanglerborrow a kid's inflatable rzrf-tand paddle past the beach break. The cheirpplastic bottom tore out beforc he ever got off a c:rst,and hc returned to shore sozrkingwet and laughing. Later, I walked him to the bar at the top of thc hill and bought us both a whiskey.Any mtrn with gutslike tl-ratdeservcsa drink.
From Chatham west you'll find fast fish on the beaches:bonito, false albacore,Spanishmackerel,and occasionallybluefin tuna that like the warmer, Gulf Streamwater. When I seea school of bonito or albies racing down a beach edge, spraying silversidesand anchovieson the drop-off, it's pure magic. A hooked fish tearsaway,stops,then racesright back, forcing you to back up the beachwhile reeling-all to keep them
from spitting the fly. When one finally hits the sand, it's causefor celebration. Just under six hours, the tide comesin and it's high tide;just under six hours later,it's low tide and the water disappears. Just askany angleror surfer-they'll tell you. Better yet, head out to the beach break and see for yourself.The only way to learn anything about the oceanis to headto the shoreand look. d
THE FLYFISH JOURNALIO3