the fish tank

Sometimes my feelings are so mercurial. I go from wanting to make this 10 ft sailfish trophy (more about this later) to wanting to build an aquarium. ADD makes all of this possible. I had a thought that the world will shift to take advantage of the inability to stay focused for very long.

I digress, Todays post is about the fish tank currently on display at Krystal's house. Three african clawed frogs in a 2 gallon tank. One a

lbino and two original flavor. They are currently suffering the inappropriately names of: Jacob (the larger dark skinned sh

irtless frog) Edward (the pasty one) and Bella (the female) totally embarassing!

They are interesting to watch and sometimes attack food. When they were fed today Jacob bit Edward on the front paw! Hopefully when spring rolls around I will be able to get some video of the three of them tearing apart a w

orm. But any way I am attaching pics so you can experience their ferocity on the internet.

Thank you KK for having this tank it keeps me sane in the cold dark winter days.

Norwich "fishing conundrum"

There is so much to figuring out a spot. For the last five years I have fished In winter in Norwich harbor. It has always been a difficult spot to fish. At my best I caught 4 stripers in one day. I have caught one or two here or there but never the numbers that I have heard reported; 50, 100 ,150 , more? Is this hyperbole? Or is it simply a situation that I have never come across. Where are these huge numbers? What is the key to success behind a 50 fish day? I need to figure what I am doing wrong.

There has to be a formula. I have heard and experienced that there are many factors that make fish bite. I have observed that timing following the monthly lunar cycle to be a major contributing factor to the activity of fish in both salt and fresh water. I know that bait selection is important if the fish are feeding on a particular type of bait then that is what needs to be presented to them if they are to be caught. Certain types of bait seem to work better in some situations than o

thers. Tide is important to catching fish under situations where tide is a factor. Norwich harbor is a tidal effected area. Weather is also an important factor when choosing a time to go fishing. An imminent sto

rm or drop in pressure or an overcast sky often sparks the feeding behavior of striped bass. Temperature f

luctuations also have an affect on the quality of fishing. Increases in temper

ature seem to be more favorable than consistent or downward turning temps. Time of day also has an a

ffect on fishing in that there seems to be a lot more fish willing to bite

at night or in the margins of the day. While midday can be productive it has to coincide with a plateau in temperature.

Trends in fishing always seem to come and go but the times where I am at my best are when I have done some research and look around myself to observe conditions that have a positive effect on fishing. I will continue to learn about the fishing of Norwich harbor and hopefully be blessed with an amazing fishing experience there.

The quest for a fish a month continues

2010 Could be the year? Things are starting off auspiciously.
Of course 1/1/10 was a skunk of a snook trip on the Rio Nosara.
Being skunked on my first trip of the year whet my apetite for cold weather fishing at home. My first opportunity was 1/10, on the seth river. it was exciting to catch a fish in cold water. a 6 inch brookie to be exact! The colors and the white fins I think he was a wild fish. Even though it was a small fish It made me feel fulfilled that I had caught fish in January!
I also took a short trip out to long pond with the ice auger. It was sunny and warm. I fished for about 30mins or until the ice I was sitting on felt soft and made a loud crack noise. I made haste as I exited the ice grabbing my belongings and heading for shore. I looked back and realized that I had not been far from shore although it felt far enough when I was on it. Its funny how my perspective of space is controled by my level of comfort whth the situation. If I was 25 feet out on the ice I felt like I was 100 feet.
My accomplishment for the month of January was the capture of a 2# 16-18" brown trout in the the big pool near 95 on Latimer brook. I doubted I would catch anything but I took a chance and it paid off. I will probably try again soon even though the ice has melted too much to go out on it any more.