Recommended Guides in the Boston Area
It all begins with an idea.
Eliot Jenkins: Eliot is the man! He’s an absolutely awesome guide and without question the best saltwater guide in Massachusetts. See the pictures below - they should tell you everything you need to know about a trip out with him. He’s a master on fly and with gear! He should be your first call if you’re looking to book a trip in Massachusetts!!
Website: http://www.bostonflyfishing.com/ ; http://www.greasybeaksflyfishing.com/index.html
Aron Cascone: Aron probably doesn’t need much of an introduction to fly fisherman around New England. I sent Aron a pack of flies a while back looking for some advice on ways to improve. He took a lot of time and gave me a ton of great ways to make my patterns better. By the end of our conversion, I knew one thing for sure. This guy know his shit! Probably more than any fly angler I’ve talked too. If you’re looking for a great time out on the water, to learn, and improve as an angler, give Aron a call!
Website: http://constantangler.com/
Scott Sztorc: As a primarily salty guy, the ins and outs of fishing trout sometimes make my head spin. My Dad and I booked a trip with Scott on the Battenkill to try and improve our sweet water skills. Scott is a super knowledgeable guy and took the time to explain all the basics of what we were doing on the stream. Reading water, why certain spots hold fish, fly presentation, hatches… I can go on and on. Scott was patient, interested in the fishing and fun to fish with. If you are looking to book a trip on the Battenkill Scott should be your first call,
Capt. Will Raye: I was lucky enough to be invited along on a trip with Will by a friend of mine and boy was I lucky! Will is an amazing guide and a great guy. We went out on the Monomoy flats and I couldn’t believe how many fish Will put us on, it was truly amazing. Not only does he know where the fish are but he also has a great way of teaching and instructing. If you’re looking to have an epic day of fishing on the cape Will should be your first call, I can’t recommend him highly enough.
Website: http://www.capecodflats.com/
JOIN SOUTH SHORE FLY CASTERS!! FOR THOSE WHO LIKE TO NETWORK AND TALK FLY FISHING IN THE BOSTON AREA; THERE ISN’T A BETTER ORGANIZATION THAN THE SOUTH SHORE FLY CASTERS!!
Website: https://www.southshoreflycasters.com/
Conservation Thoughts
An unfortunate fact about me is that I’m a big fat dummy and for the most part the ins and outs of fisheries conservation and management fly right over my head. I have to rely on organizations that I trust to give me appropriate insights on current management measures and actionable conservation technics.
The two organizations I find the most helpful are:
The American Saltwater Guides Association: https://saltwaterguidesassociation.com/
Stripers Forever: https://www.stripersforever.org/
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Please submit comments on the AMFC Striped Bass Management Plan Amendment 7
It’s important for the recreational angling community to get involved. Submit your comments at the link below.
http://www.asmfc.org/about-us/public-input
My comments are below - feel free to copy them or use them as a guide or reference but please let the AMFC know how you feel
Comment
1
section 1.1.1.1 Management Triggers
There is a statement made in this section – “The shorter timetables for corrective action are also in conflict with the desire for management stability.”
I find this statement to be problematic in two ways:
1.) Stock health should be more important than the stability of the management regime. If rapid action is required to protect the stock it should be taken.
2.) Rapid changes in management regimes for other species of game such as deer, waterfowl and elk are made all the time, by fish and game agencies based on year to year fluctuations in populations. Hunters are able to respond to these changes and follow the rules. I don’t see why anglers would be any different.
2
section 1.1.1.1 Management Triggers
There is a statement made in this section – “Furthermore, the use of point estimates in decision-making does not account for an inherent level of uncertainty.”
It would be good if the commission can explain why the management framework cannot account for uncertainty. It would make sense that if uncertainty can be quantified then the management framework could be based on the most conservative end of the uncertainty range, there by providing some level of safety margin in the system.
3
section 1.1.1.2 Recreational Release Mortality
In this section the commission states that the striped bass fishery is a predominantly catch and release fishery. The section goes on to essentially infer that unless recreational release mortality can be addressed harvest mortality reductions may have a de-minims effect on the stock. This statement needs data to support it. Other fisheries are managed as catch and release and stocks perform well. The commission has not made their case with data that the striped bass stock would still be trending down if it was managed as catch and release.
The commission openly admits the fishery is predominantly catch and release, this has worked for many other species and moratoriums on harvest have worked in the past for striped bass. It seems to me that an implementation of harvest moratoriums would be a good first step in rebuilding the stock and further measures could be enacted if the stock is still trending downward.
This path would represent the will of the vast majority of the fishery participants. The current management framework seems to over emphasize the wishes of the commercial striped bass industry which is a small minority of fishery participants.
4
Tier 4 Options: Deferred Management Action
The deferred management action framework of management triggers should be removed from the document. Some could reasonably argue that the current framework of management triggers has not been followed and that action on the obviously overfished and declining stock has already been deferred.
The deferred management action framework is not acceptable in my mind and in the minds of most of the fishery participants.
5
section 4.2.2 Measures to Address Recreational Release Mortality
The following is stated in this section: “If management action is taken to influence where mortality (harvest vs. discard) is coming from, managers must consider the impacts those actions will have on the fishery. For example, management measures focusing on reducing recreational releases could discourage participation from anglers that value food fish and negatively impact industries that cater to those anglers”
Two comments:
1.) Again, this makes up a small majority of the fishery participants but under the current management regime they seem to be given outsized considerations.
2.) People who value striped bass as food fish have many other food fish options to move to if striped bass harvest is closed. In truth they have many other better options. Catch and release anglers do not have the same luxury especially those who participate in the fishery from shore.
6
section 4.2.2 Measures to Address Recreational Release Mortality – (option B effort controls)
As a first step in management, I do not support no targeting closures. The first step should be no harvest closures and we should see how the stock is affected.
As a second step I only support no targeting closures in very specific instances such as pre and post spawn and in areas where high water temps can drastically increase post release mortality. I also think if no targeting closures are considered, the commission should have to present clear data that the closure is warranted.
I’m also concerned about the efficacy of no targeting closures because enforcement of the measures would seem to be very difficult if not impossible. Anglers could just claim they are fishing for other species.
7
section 4.3
See comments 3 and 5 – I believe we are at the point where the stock should be managed as a catch and release fishery and commercial quotas should be zero.
The commission states in this document multiple times that the SSB is low, yet we are allowing commercial anglers to take fish over 35 inches. This does not make sense. If we want to rebuild the stock, we need large female fish remain in the stock.
8
section 4.4.1 Recruitment Assumption for Rebuilding Calculation
This section makes the following statement: “Several years of poor recruitment may indicate the stock is entering a low
recruitment regime…”
has the commission explored reasons for this? It appears the commission is asserting that this low recruitment is predominantly a natural occurrence and that humans have no role to play in it and therefore out of their control.
Recommended action for the commission: explore/study causes of low recruitment; remedy if possible.
9
Final comment general statement on management
I do not believe the current management structure approaches the issues related to the striped bass stock in the most effective or efficient manner.
If we approach this problem from a balance point of view the rate of change in striped bass stock is equivalent to the difference between the fish entering the system (spawning and recruitment) and the fish removed from the system (mortality in all forms).
This document focuses heavily on reducing the mortality of striped bass – reducing the removals from the system, but really in no way addresses the other side of the equation - fish entering the system. The document states low recruitment and poor spawning as problems but provides no substantive measures to improve recruitment or improve spawning.
We cannot solve the problems with stripedbass without remedying the problems causing low recruitment and poor spawning.
We need to be looking at environmental factors affecting spawning results, we need to be looking at habitat loss and degradation, we need to stop killing the large females that are so important to spawning success and we need to understand the dynamics of low recruitment vs high recruitment regimes.
We have to focus on both sides of this equation not just the mortality side if we’re going to rebuild striped bass.
