Memorial Day Weekend Recap

Let me start by wishing everyone a happy and healthy Memorial Day. I truly believe that we live in the greatest country on earth and to those who have paid the ultimate price to defend the freedoms that we know, love and sometimes take for granted we are eternally grateful. As far as the fishing scenario is concerned, I'll let the photos (got that new Nikon so they should be looking somewhat better) tell the story, for the most part. Open water fishing has been a bit complicated due to the heavy fog conditions, but once the potato patch is located and marked it can be farmed extensively. Still mostly slot fish with some periodic bomb scare drills thrown in for good measure. This weekend also marked 2011's inaugural outing of the Dukes County Sight Casters. The sun was only out for a couple of hours, but I had the talent show on the bow after work (my neighbor and my lawyer) and after a few flubs to get the kinks out the fish were coming over the rail in true memorial day parade type fashion. I've been fishing with those guys since we were little kids, and it never ceases to amaze me just how adroit they really are. Pretty work kids. There has also been a swift and strong influx of teeth, making the few periods of slow stripe fishing infinitely more entertaining. All and all I'd say the 2011 campaign has gotten off to a smashing start. Cue June...








God Bless America...

Captain W. Brice Contessa
www.marthasvineyardoutfitters.com

Jamaican Me Crazy

Pictured in this spread are DJ D Dub and Esco, the founding members of the Jamaican Bass Sled team. These two are amongst the finest that the Caribbean has to offer in terms of fishing ability. We were on serious dawn patrol this morning, but it paid dividends in the form of a relatively fast paced pick of healthy slot fish with a few bigger in the mix. Lot of life in the water right now, that's for damn sure. All and all an awesome morning with a couple of great dudes. On a programing note, as long as the tracking info I got on my new camera is correct and I don't sleep through the post office closing this afternoon today will mark the end of the cell phone pic era; it's been a good run, but clearly it's getting a little ridiculous.

"Oh! Fisherman row to reap what you sow now"

Captain W. Brice Contessa
www.marthasvineyardoutfitters.com

Fishing the Vineyard Report

This morning I had the pleasure of sharing the skiff with two fine anglers, Peter from Katama and Jack from the Big Easy. The weather was almost as bad as these pictures, but we transcended the difficult hand that we were dealt by Ma nature, and managed to have an extremely productive morning floating around the open water with the striped fish. The majority of what's coming over the rail these days are slot fish, with some bigger and some smaller in the mix. I've always said that I'm more about high fives and happy times then numbers...some days you get both. Now if the sun would ever come out and we could dress more like we were spending a day on the Vineyard then in Aspen we'd be all set.

Captain W. Brice Contessa
www.marthasvineyardoutfitters.com

Opening Day

"Everyone was screaming when they saw the lump"

RIP Macho Man

Fishing the Vineyard Report

http://patch.com/A-h4bB


http://www.mvtimes.com/marthas-vineyard/article.php?id=5694

I hear the rumblings. It goes something like "The idiosyncratic parlance of the blogspot has surely made any attempt at a foray into mainstream media futile at best, fatuous at worst." The links above say touche sucka. The first one is an informative piece meant to introduce visiting anglers to some of the opportunities that exist on the Vineyard. The second essentially amounts to a socialist manifesto on fisheries management. Enjoy.









And then there's the fishing scenario...really strong at the extant kismet. Pictured in this spread are Flando from behind the pit, Uncle Christo from the Tar Heel state, and the author. These guys hadn't gone fly fishing in over 10 years (I screwed around with it a little last year but nothing major) , but seemingly it's like riding the proverbial bike.

W. Brice Contessa
www.marthasvineyardoutfitters.com

Fishing the Vineyard turns 200

It’s funny ya know, I always pondered what I might do with the bicentennial post. Kevin from Baltimore opines (and of course I’ve recapitulated here, just a touch), “Adhere to the rubric. Percolate the same content that electrified the grassroots for the last 199, and maybe give them a little taste of how it’s generated.” Amiably…










They ask me stuff like, “Why are the kids always hiding behind the fish?” Well, what started as a shout out to the Bonefish Whisperer, has grown into a explicit identity protection strategy. Having ones likeness depicted on the blogspot is an accord which must be considered with the utmost seriousness. Clearly, it’s a comedy piece and meant to be taken with a grain. But the foul language, adult themes, cryptical envelopment, politics and kegstands will inevitably be problematic for some. Mostly heads of state and such, but the option of anonymity is extended to all.










This next set comes to us from the Wandering Woods Hippie. I highly recommend following this blog, it is east coast hardcore at its absolute finest. Guide credit on the backwater bomb scare above to @the.guy.from.Coops.

In closing, on behalf of all of us in the Fishing the Vineyard family I want to extend my gratitude to you, the fans, for your continued support and loyalty. Sans your piety the dream of reaching this milestone would have never come to fruition.

W

Mothership Report

Today I was joined aboard my ship by the Wandering Woods Hippie(www.woods-hippie.blogspot.com) , my neighbor and my lawyer. These fine gentlemen-scholars are passionate anglers all. The manifestation of their fancy is pictured in this spread. A mixed bag of striped fish and cerulean critters were enjoyed by all on deck. The bonds of friendship were fortified, the cheeseburgers were delicious, and god forgave us for skipping church.

Keep Calm, Carry on

Captain W. Brice Contessa
www.marthasvineyardoutfitters.com

Early Days

It's been some years since I experienced success on my first go-round of the fishing season. There are a multitude of factors that contribute to the seasonality of a given fishery, and for whatever reason it seems that here on the island things have been a little slow out of the gate for the past few years. This year has been a bit of a departure from that trend. Island wide anglers already seem to be finding targetable numbers of striped fish inside the estuaries and on the outer beaches. Found this little marsh pirate about half an hour into this years tour opener, tucked way up into a corner along a sod bank at the top of the tide. Landed one other and missed a couple of bites. All and all not a Seal Team 6 style assault or anything like that, but a nice way to get on the board for the year on a beautiful Friday afternoon when I should have been at work. The Fishing the Vineyard squad is gonna be in heavy rotation by the end of next week, so be sure to stay tuned here for the latest.

Captain W. Brice Contessa
www.marthasvineyardoutfitters.com