When I flipped the calendar over to January 2020 11 months ago, I could not have forecasted much of anything for the new year. Certainly Covid-19 changed a lot, and when it first started to grip our country in March I knew it was going to burn at least for the remainder of the year. Everything else outdoors-wise turned out to be collectively different than I expected. And that's how I am going to approach this recap. Let me start with,...
FISHING RECAP:
ROCKFISH: 2020 greeted us with tightened rockfish regulations, with a new creel limit of ONE stinking fish per day. Well, all I can say is that I caught more rockfish this year than in other year in recent memory. And by and large they were healthy fish, not the skinny sore-laiden fish I had caught the year before.
CATFISH: The year actually started for me in April with blue catfish, and I was able to load up on them in the Wicomico River. They were not prolific in Tangier Sound as they had been the before, but then again we didn't have all that heavy spring rain in the region as in 2019.
SPECKLED TROUT: This species was the show-stopper for 2020. I caught more speckled trout in 2020 than in the prior 5 years combined. Some outings were indeed dominated by speckled trout, hitting the 4 fish limit many times.
DRUM (RED and BLACK): I caught one legal (and tasty) 25 lb legal black drum in May, my first in the Chesapeake. My buddies caught many more, and also larger specimens. Starting in August I caught many puppy red drum, but such a shame they didn't make the 18" minimum slot size. Still, more drum than ever before, and completely unexpected.
OCTOBER and NOVEMBER FISHING: I didn't get out nearly as many times as I had hoped (and expected), and even when I did, the unexpected happened. One trip with JB in early November, the fog was so thick we could not see 100 yards. And the fog persisted that day until our conclusion at 2pm. Another outing with Brooks resulted in arms tired from casting, but only 4 caught fish. There were 2 other decent trips in this time, with Spring Island unexpectedly being one of my most productive spots. I never did get in on any of the late season jigging action, as time and weather conspired to eliminate most opportunities. CRABBING: I got out one time in the impoundment, on Nov 7th. Like clockwork- I expected to fill at least a bushel basket with big heavy crabs. And as my unexpected fate would have it, I ended up dumping the 4 keeper crabs at the end of 3 1/2 hours. Note to self: the water level was low, and the silting-in of the impoundment toward the dike is progressing at a rapid pace.
HUNTING: Squirrel camp outcome was totally unexpected. Apparently, a late spring heavy freeze had so damaged the buds on the hickory and oak trees that hey largely failed to produce nuts, thereby sending the squirrels to other areas in search of food. Totally unexpected. DEER HUNTING in WV: Totally new and unfamiliar land, as Pat had moved an hour SW of his previous location. Seeing only 2 deer in my new location in the 2 days I had available to hunt, it was unexpected (to me) when my shots on each failed to connect with their target. I typically don't miss at 100 yard stationary targets. No excuses, bottom line is I left WV empty handed, although I hope to exact some revenge on these deer next year. DEER HUNTING in MD: The week started unexpectedly with apocalyptic rain and wind. Before the weather set in, I had opportunity to join Mark on Sunday at his new lease outside of Pocomoke City, but in that one evening we saw no deer. Monday blew in with 3 inches of rain and gale winds, so I did not get out until the evening. Little did I know that the line of showers that passed through that evening would drop another 3 inches of rain right on my head- I have never ever sat in such an intense focused period of rain. And yes, it was unexpected. Tue and Wednesday both blew 20-30 mph, and hunting on the public resulted in zero deer seen. Not to mention that unexpectedly, the state of MD has stopped planting corn or soybeans in the fields on these properties. The deer have stopped showing up, and for the most part so have the hunters. Thursday evening presented another (unexpected) opportunity to join Mark on some private land on Deal Island, where he had killed 2 the night before. And just at 5:10pm, 2 deer showed up to feed on the corn Mark had set out for them. Neither deer were big (one button-buck, the other a smaller doe), but my week was ending the next day so I quickly harvested them both. Unexpected (as if on cue), each required a 2nd round to put them down on the ground. I'm glad to have been provided this opportunity, but honestly- I'd like to write a different script for next year.
Final thing to share- we got yet ANOTHER 3 inches of rain at Deal Island Friday night. The already saturated ground could not absorb the water whatsoever- the picture below is of my camp, under about 10 inches of water in many places.
Looking forward to a great 2021, with more adventures and as always-hoping for more opportunities to fish, crab, and hunt. Until 2021, this is #dealislandrandy
