NJ OWL - Learning the Way of Feathers, Fins and Fun

NJ Outdoor Women's League
Learning the Way of Feathers, Fins and Fun
Part II - Surf Fishing
May, 2006

Note: The following is Part II of a two-part account submitted by NJOWL member Mary Vasconcellos.
Read Part I, Turkey Hunt.

After my spring-time encounter with feathers, my next quest would try to be with fins. Dorothy Obropta, an experienced surf angler taught NJ OWL members the art of surf fishing at the Sandy Hook Unit of Gateway National Recreation Area. For those of us who were inexperienced, both Dorothy and her assistant, Debby Stephano, patiently showed us how to cast and properly use saltwater tackle.

Dorothy also demonstrated how to use, store and prepare various types of bait (fresh or salted clams, fresh mackerel, bunker chunks, fresh squid, etc.), as well as different types lures that mimic bait fish.

But knowing how to fish involves more that just knowing how to cast. Interspersed with the actual fishing, Dorothy informed us about other things that influence whether fish would bite or not such as tides, moon phases and wind direction.

We were trying to catch striped bass, bluefish or fluke. These fish, however, proved elusive for the day, though we did catch others.

Sea robin
Click to enlarge

For example, someone caught a searobin. This primordial-looking fish had the usual fins you might expect to see on a fish, but also legs for crawling along the bottom, fins which resembled wings, brilliant reddish-orange colors, and a huge, hard, spike-studded head. Someone else caught a clear-nosed skate, a flat, sandy-colored fish with wings like a manta ray. Other interesting catches included a live horseshoe crab, and a small blue crab with an egg sac.

Debby (right) gives Mary pointers about fishing the surf.
Click to enlarge

Some of the most interesting catches weren't alive at all. For example, Linda LoPresti reeled in a kayak anchor, although she was disappointed that the kayak was not attached (Perhaps the one that got away!). Joyce Pinkava landed a lost lure (called a Krocodile) that was tangled up in some fishing line.

Some of the other prizes were sighted on land or flying above it. We saw osprey hovering above the water looking for prey, which for osprey is fish. Dorothy pointed out a variety of shorebirds resting on the beach, and noted how they face themselves into the wind.

And it wouldn't be NJ OWL if we didn't have food. We had various nibbles from which to partake, chief among them was Gloria's delicious chocolate cake.

The fishing and the nibbling went on late into the afternoon, and although we didn't get the fish we were after, this was truly another wonderful NJ OWL outing.

- Mary Vasconcellos

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