7/30/07

The boat I run is docked at the Devon Yacht Club, which is in the southwest corner of Gardiner’s Bay, near the old fish
factory. Every day that I go down there I check out the waters south and west of the Hither Hills campsite from the
overlook, and up until this week had seen very few boats fishing there. Then one day this week I noticed one boat fishing
down by the Parachute Jump. The next day there were a dozen or so boats there, so obviously somebody did well. Later
that day I spoke to a charter captain who was there and he told me he was able to keep a dozen or so fluke, which is
pretty damned good with these regs. The next day there were no boats there again. I wondered about this until I got out
my handy dandy calculator. That spot is about a dozen or so miles from the point, and with today’s fuel prices a run
down and back will cost about $50. Think that’s why nobody went back?

Striped bass fishing is continuing difficult. There are some real nice fish around and the night boats are catching some
real cows. The day boats are catching big fish too, but not very many of them, and taking a limit is almost unheard of. A
friend of mine who is fishing commercially for bass is having a hard time. Not enough fish in the daytime and the fish at
night are over the maximum size limit.

Shark fishing is pretty plain vanilla right now. Just about everybody who goes catches a couple of blue sharks. Not many
makos or threshers being taken. And don’t go too far. You can do just as well fifteen miles out as thirty, and that old fuel
price comes into play here too.

Inshore tuna fishing is just about non existent. I haven’t heard about any bluefins for the last week or so, even though
there is oodles of bait out there. Pick a glass flat day and take a ride and it seems like you are never more than a couple
hundred yards away from a patch of bait cruising along on top. But nothing to eat them.

Further off shore the action is picking up with reports of yellowfin, longfin, bigeye, dorado and wahoo coming in. I know
of a couple of boats that took a half dozen fish and a couple that only caught two, but I haven’t heard of anyone who
didn’t catch anything. Of course those guys wouldn’t be bragging anyway. You have to make a long run though. Nothing
much inside of the 450 line and most fish are being taken at the Fish Tails.

For more information about fishing in Montauk, you can give me a call at 800 280 5565 or check out
http.//www.montauksportfishing.com. And, if you would like these reports sent to you directly, drop me a line and I’ll
add you to the list.

Capt Gene Kelly
Montauk Sportfishing