Fishing The Vineyard

Make it a Gamefish

2011-12-04T14:15:00.004-05:00

Striped Bass Gamefish from Taylor Vavra on Vimeo.

It's funny ya know, people are always asking me, "hey, old man, what's your opinion on gamefish status for striped fish?" Well it's a multi faceted and complex issue Kevin, but I'm in favor of it. It's a precious resource kids, lets all get together and treat it accordingly before it's to late. Anyhow, watch this vid from the Stripers Forever folks, there's a couple of cameos by the author and the lawyer pushing over some local light bottom not to mention cometary courtesy of Dave from behind the airport and Coopy from the bait hut.

Recently I got a chance to hook up with the guys @ St. Peter's Fly Shop out in the Fort and try my hand at some mountain trout. If you're ever in NorCol I highly recommend looking these fellas up, first rate operation all the way.

What? Unless you're a trusty or a transient this is what being a fishing guide looks like sometimes.

"There's mosquitoes on the river
Fish are rising up like birds"

Fishing the Vineyard

Fishing the Vineyard Late Fall Report

2011-11-15T18:39:00.030-05:00

It's funny ya know, people are always asking me, "hey, old man, what becomes of the kids during the eleventh month, when the striped fish and the touristas have flown south and you're left to your own devices?" Lets check it out...

First, there's one last trip up to the jetty to make sure that no green fish slipped past the proverbial goalie. I can assure you, they did not.

Next, you put the guide op into hibernation for the winter. I've got to admit, putting your plugs in the dishwasher is one of the simple joys of being single...

Then there's one last trip out on the Boylermaker with Jimmy Crab from the big city and Stacey from the Fort to celebrate the harvest like the kids do and accumulate some flesh for the smoker...

After that all you're left with is the elusive and hetty Cayo Martha sweetwater. Fishing the Vineyard confidant Mister from Pensyl-hio has it down to a science at this point in his career. I asked him where it all goes down, I got the token response of course.

And sometimes there's a Wrasse itch. What does one do when the wrasse itch needs a scratchin'? Go down to the Bronx and get up with the crew from the Island Current for a day of pitting your wits against the cunning blackfish over some of western Long Island Sound's finest hard bottom. Pictured in this spread are Brian from the four one, big brown from City island, Jean from the Bronx and the tog-wrasse. Thanks for letting me hang out guys, I learned a lot.

Soon after turning heads at the Halloween show with the Donny Baseball costume, you see a bumper sticker, adopt a new mantra, throw all your shit in a bag and go to the airport.

And then you're in the sunshine state. Accompanied by long time friends and contributors Marshal Law, Patty from the Backwater and Mama Cass from the cradle of union, southeast Florida gets taken by storm. Well played kids, fun trip.

Sometimes the chain fish are simply not enough. When it's apparent that this is the condition it's up north with Dave from behind the airport and @theguyfromcoops to spar with the water wolf. It's hard to describe accurately in this format just what it takes to ride a pike bubble. Lets just say it's highly technical and not for the faint of heart. Pretty work gentlemen.

"Promontory Rider, Territory Ranger"

W

Island Autumn Redux

2011-10-20T08:38:00.025-04:00

It's funny ya know, people are always asking me, "hey, old man, what happens up there on the enclave in the ocean during harvest time, when the blogspot falls silent and the causatums of the days exercises are displayed on a chalkboard for all the townspeople to see?" Lets have a look...

In the modern era fall on Cayo Martha is first and foremost a time for tunny, and the 2011 campaign was neither an exception nor a disappointment. Tunny are an interesting case study to say the least. At times incorrigible, at times utterly manageable, always amusing. On the mothership we're blessed with a unique and eclectic albacore fishery combined with one of the longest seasons for them coast wide. We've had the tunny in our midst since well before labor day and strong catch is still being reported as this goes to press.

And the teeth. Although not their strongest postseason showing in recent history they were there for those who went a lookin'. Although not the robust Dukes County Choppers of years past this season's tooth crop was consistently mid range and cooperative.

Oh the green bone, the derby's golden ticket. In the absence of surface feeding fish inshore targeting mac-tuna in tournament becomes akin to chasing blackfin or kingfish in more temperate climes, just the boats are shittier and the the fish are smaller. Again though, for those willing to put in the time and the effort they were there for the taking.

Periodically I meditate on whether or not it might behoove the kids to start targeting other obscure Atlantic mackerel typologies, but I digress...

What can you even say about the clown? Fall bass on the Vineyard is an ever evolving and mysterious conundrum...a tough nut to crack to say the least. The clown was very much in the mix for the duration of the event, with the tournament boasting more weigh ins than in the previous year. It's different though. Even in my tenure I've perceived a significant decline in autumn catch numbers. I can only imagine what the old timers must think.

Sometimes I wonder if we might not be better off targeting different bass altogether. But alas, it is the striped fish which we covet. With better management and wholesale changes in the collective attitude amongst recreational and commercial fisherman alike someday I hope the fall will again be the season of the striper.

In the end, when the cards are down and all hope is lost we want what everybody wants. To be comfortable and surrounded by loved ones. So what do you do? Jump up on the pier with some old school heads and do like we've been doin' for the better part of the last 20. Really great.

So what now for the kids? Well, that remains unclear at the current juncture. Stay tuned, I have a feeling it's gonna be an interesting winter...

"I understand why the old fisherman
sail along, sail along, sail along...
Someday he’ll be gone"

W. Brice Contessa
www.fishingthevineyard.com

Tryin' to Reason with Hurricane Season

2011-09-05T15:07:00.005-04:00

The post Irene era has been a challenging dynamic and constructive chapter in the story of the 2011 campaign on Cayo Martha. Epic bloodwar? Not really. Fair winds and following seas? Not even close. All four species in the mix, some plus sized? All day. It was a really great high season on the mothership. From all of us at Fishing the Vineyard to all of you, friends, families, clients and fans alike who made it possible we extend our deepest thanks. Surely without your continued love and support the dream would have died some time ago. Happy Labor day and here's to a safe and fishy fall.

"Summertime done, Come and gone, my, oh, my. "

Captain W. Brice Contessa
www.fishingthevineyard.com

Fishing the Vineyard Report

2011-08-24T22:18:00.008-04:00

It's funny ya know, people are always asking me "hey, old man, what's the story out on that mothership of yours when the summer season begins its transition into autumn?" Generally it's an allegory whose central theme is radness. Lets take a gander...

The greenfish mystery has yet to be fully solved. In the mix, darn tootin'. Consistent, predictable, and close to the dock, not so much. It has however had its moments. Pictured in this spread are Barney from the bay state and Justin from title town. It's hard to believe I caught my first bonito 20 years ago this month. No matter how frustrating, difficult and downright strange they can be they are and will remain an all time fave.

The teeth are robust this year, no doubt about that. Kevin from Demerast alleges that I should save fluffing the toothy fish for the custies. I'm inclined to disagree. I think plus size blues are really great, especially over shallow patch/splotch bottom where we've been finding them lately. Pictured in the photographic conglomerate to the north here are Larry from the Chemung watershed, Miles from the Lonestar state and Bill from OysterWatcha. Nice work boys.

Drew from Gotham graced us with his presence over the weekend. In order to satiate his compulsion to extirpate he hooked up with @theguyfromcoops. Always a canny maneuver.

And then there's our old friend the striped fish who at the moment is proving smallish and periodically arduous to unearth with our chosen methodology. That's quite alright though, and frankly to be expected at this stage of the game. Surely as the diurnal cycles curtail and the thermometers inaugurate their annual trek downhill the brown clown will ride again.

You got that right.

"We're all in this together, and we love to take a bath"

W

Dog Days

2011-08-15T09:25:00.007-04:00

It's funny ya know, people are always asking me "hey, old man, what do Fishing the Vineyard kids do during the dog days, when the climate and the sea are calescent and tepid?" Lets find out...

On the flats and patch reefs the brown clown still reigns supreme. Bass fishing in mid August is different than it is in June of course, but it can still be quite productive for those willing to put their time in. Pictured in this spread are David from the Empire State, Bill from the Garden State, the author and the clown. Decent pick on Bobby Shorts with some handsome slot fish still hanging in the mix has been the word this past week. With the closure of commercial season and the noticeably cooler evenings and mornings I'd think the pursuit of the striped fish will continue to yield positive results in the coming weeks.

Luckily for the kids and the custies, the blues are still big, greasy and mean. Pictured in the above montage are Larry from the Chemung Valley, Carl from the Autobahn and some plus size teeth. Pretty work fellas.

As far as the green fish are concerned it's been an interesting case study this season. They've been in the mix for some time already, but we're still not seeing the numbers one might anticipate by this juncture. Gonna be interesting to see which way this one breaks...

Out in the ocean the target continues to be tunafish. Pictured in this spread are Dave from Fairfield, the author and a fine example of the fact that persistence pays. Dude stuck with it and kept his head in the game 'till hour 11 when finally the shot we'd been waiting for presented it self. Cast landed where it needed to be and he converted. Congratulations Dave, Really Great.

Of course time must be set aside for celebration. Congratulations Jaime and Heather, great day.

Guess it just begs the question...who's next?

Captain W. Brice Contessa
www.fishingthevineyard.com

Fishing the Vineyard Report

2011-08-07T17:47:00.002-04:00

Usually when the blogspot falls silent for a spell it means things are going Really Good or Really Bad. In this case it's been more the former. Pictured in this spread are Josh from Little Pond, Jimmy from Delray, Harry from ST. Mikes and Arnie the Joke man. The past week has mostly been about striped fish on the flats/patch reefs and tuna in the ocean, both of which have been relatively productive. I can't really decide which I like better, both so fun. Hopefully the current trend continues...

"The effects of sun and sand
Are hard to understand"

W

Weekend Recap

2011-08-01T07:26:00.007-04:00

Probably the best part about fishing the vineyard in general, this time of year specifically, is the variety of program options that one can enjoy. This weekend was really exemplary of that, lets have a look...

By happy chance there are plenty of nice green bonito in the mix at the current juncture. Pictured in this spread are Mamma Cass from the Village, JhonnyCakes from Titletown, the author Big Joe from Gay Head, little Joe from Kauai and my lawyer. Don't blow the rock kids. Save our Sound.

As far as the Dukes County Sight Casters are concerned it's still going really well. Happy fish crabbing over light bottom has been the main act lately, which is great, probably my favorite way to fish stripes. Pictured in this spread are Ron from north of the bayou, Michael from the sunshine state, the author and the brown clown. Pretty work guys, really great.

Out in the ocean we're finding a mixed bag. When you open the bag and look in, what you see is tuna, marlin and shark. No place in the world I'd rather be, great summer job.

"This is what salvation must be like after a while"

Fishing The Vineyard

Fishing the Vineyard Report

2011-07-28T20:59:00.009-04:00

Another July almost come and gone, can you believe it ? What do fishing the vineyard kids do to bide the time leading up to the eighth month?

Aboard F/V Gut Feeling under the watchful eye of the guy from Coop's the bow has been a varitible horn of plenty. Amongst this pumping cornucopia of life has been green fish, brown fish, and bluefish. Pretty work with the triple crown scenario.

Out on the Jimmy skiff it's been a mix of the pretty shit and whisperin' with the striped fish. Really great stuff I think.

Out on the Blue Wail it's predominantly consisted of puttin' the 'crab in my shoemouth'

W

Dukes County Sight Casters Report

2011-07-26T17:51:00.009-04:00

I get asked all the time, "hey, old man, even fishing the vineyard kids get sick days right?"

The answer to that is yes. Sometimes 4 in a row in fact. Don't worry kids, I'll be fine. Joel teaches us that "only the good die young", so obviously I'm in the clear. The blog project has a long way to go before the bell tolls Kevin. So what does one do on the mother ship when they can't go fishing? Lets find out together...

The first thing to attend to is pour over the pics from last week and be sure to include anyone who was left out. Pictured in this spread are Noel from Nectars, the Rowdy, and the author. Sight casting and open water fishing have both been reliable options in recent days/weeks. Nice work guys...

Soon its down to brass tacks. Tie flies and rig gear; there is a tournament coming up you know Mister. Sorry, tips and tackle or whatever shit you call this has never been the part of writing fishing reports that I've really excelled at. The lures are organized and the flies are akin to decivers...is that good?

Next you make it down to the postie and get up with the new Fishing the Vineyard stickers (coming soon to a stop sign near you). Everybody can have one, gratis. The only rule is you gotta come see us out on the Cayo and grab it in person. Looks like it was ripped from the poster to a horror movie or something; I'm really happy about it.

Trolling the internet for the ultimate in fishing content passes great chunks of idle time. This is that dude you always see at East Beach in the derby reeling in huge sharks over white sand down in the sunshine state. Truly the period of human history in which we live is quite wondrous.

Finally once you're on the mend you have the freaks over to the leg porch for cocktail hour in dress attire.

But wait, you've been back for a couple of days right? Where are the pictures of the recent days anglers, fondling the brown clown? It's funny ya know, I don't have any of those. A litany of excuses/cliches regarding wind and tide, time and place and the inherent difficulties of the sightcast experiment would be a logical way to wrap this up, but I'll skip it. Sometimes the cards fall kinda funny and you don't catch anything. No ones fault really, a couple of wrong turns on my end, a couple of flubbed casts on theirs is really all it takes. Eventually though, infirmary time and a couple of slow guide loops combined and it's been six days since you touched one of the fuckin' things. Then what? Back out after work and pole yourself up on one, breathing life back into the mojo I hope. Give it a little peck on the gill plate and set it free. Use obscure orange diablo for style points.

"Don't want to be a painter, 'cause everyone comes to look"

Brice Contessa
Fishing the Vineyard

www.fishingthevineyard.com report

2011-07-22T08:38:00.007-04:00

Every once in a while something comes across the desk at Fishing the Vineyard Headquarters that is deemed so awesome that it needs to be shared with the blogspot community verbatim.

Hey bro just wanted to send you a few pics been killin white rob style down here, went cobia fishing 4 trips caught 39fish biggest been 56lbs caught all but 3 on rod and reel and a few wouldnt eat so they got shot! Mothers either gonna eat or get the heat! u know how i do, you can run but youll only die tired!! this week were hitn snook at the inlet. go hard in the paint waka flacka flame

Capt Rob sunny sun

Captain Rob Bunker runs Seek and Destroy Charters in Vero Beach, FL. Check him out, looks like a good time no?

And out here in the ocean the fishing the vineyard kids find themselves working over a typical mid summer mix of mid range brown and plus sized blue. Overwhelmingly negative light and tidal conditions in the past few days have kept the Dukes County Sight Casters in the barn for the most part, but thankfully a multitude of non-pushpole scenarios have been available to take advantage of.

This is some stuff I found inside a fish...

And this is the coolest picture on the whole internet. I'm home sick, so I had time to check.

Captain W. Brice Contessa
www.marthasvineyardoutfitters.com

Fishing the Vineyard Report

2011-07-19T19:18:00.003-04:00

Seemingly, stern seat on the Boylermaker was the hot spot to be ridin' this mornin'. Pretty work kids. Early.

FTV

Fishing the Vineyard Report

2011-07-14T10:25:00.007-04:00

JohnnyCakes from Titletown wonders why no photo essays lately. Me too...

Out in the Ocean SkillyMorre and the Surfer continue to wage a 2 man offensive against the tunafish. It's going pretty well by all accounts. Reeling in those big fish is hard work, sometimes the Surfer just needs a little dirt nap.

And every now and again something remarkable occurs but it rubs through the leader seconds before it can be brought aboard to be photographed and fondled. No Rob, we're never gonna have a picture of you hiding your handsome face behind the above pictured white marlin, but that makes the achievement of catching it on a tactical sight cast with an artificial none the less prodigious. Truly you are an inspiration to us all. Felicitations my friend.

It's the middle of July Kevin, inevitably there's gonna be some Bobby Shorts in the mix.

In the true summer fashion the Dukes County Sightcasters are riding high. Grabby brown clowns crabbing hard over light bottom combined with some top notch anglers has made the push guide's task in effect elementary as of late.

It's the mothership kids, the people watching is always gonna be first rate. For the Jimmy Crab it happens on the beach down in the Bluffs.

And for me it's always gonna be in the Tiz.

"Nothing left to do but smile, smile, smile"

W

Fishing the Vineyard Report

2011-07-09T04:53:00.006-04:00

It's onerous to fathom that another independence day has come and gone. The years just keep sliding by don't they? Clearly, the predominant color scheme on planet blogspot this season has been brown. Kevin from Plover wonders, "why not shake it up a bit, show the kids something blue?" Fair enough. Pictured in this spread is Robert-Douglas from Chase, Sleeves from fly over country, the Surfmaster, Tom from the highest state, the author, and some of our various blue friends, in this case fin and fish. To say we've been up to our assholes in alligators recently would be a markedly dire understatement. It seems like this years crop of teeth are plus size which is nice for kids and custies alike. The bluefin on the other hand are just right. Healthy, turgid, robust slot fish which are manageable on gear you can actually cast. Really Great. Stay tuned...

WBC
www.fishingthevineyard.com

Stars and Striped Fish

2011-07-04T13:28:00.006-04:00

It's funny ya know, people are always asking me "hey, old man, how do Fishing the Vineyard kids ceremonialize their sovereign autarchy from the United Kingdom?" Well Kevin, parades and fireworks are great, but the best way to rub it in the face of the monarchy is to go out and get our hands on something that they lost their rights to at the surrender of Yorktown; the brown clown. Sorry Cornwallis and company, but once you were besieged at the battle of the Chesapeake these became ours. You can come back and visit them, but it will cost you roughly $600 a day. Oh, and by the way, our infant democracy has grotesquely mismanaged them so they're much smaller and harder to catch than you remember. Sucka. Fishing on Cayo Martha remains pretty good, and with the weekend crowds sailing back to the mainland soon I'd anticipate that it will maintain vitality for some time to come.

"Red and white, blue suede shoes, I'm Uncle Sam, how do you do?"

WBC
www.fishingthevineyard.com

Dukes County Sight Casters Report

2011-06-28T07:06:00.007-04:00

Mister from Pensyl-hio asks, "Hey, old man, summer's here and the close star is emitting that telltale twinkle, what have the Dukes County Sight Casters been getting into?" Well Mister, we've been pushing the big rig around a variety of submerged terra firma, including but not limited to light, dark and patch bottom, finding good numbers of grabby brown clown and double diamond difficult wrasse. Pictured in this spread are Christopher from Falmouth, David from behind the airport, Scott from Trout Unlimited, Michael from the nutmeg state, the author, the brown clown and the coveted fly caught, sight cast, tog wrasse, a potential world record none the less. Congratulations Christopher. I'm very pleased with the current fishing trend on Cayo Martha, hopefully it holds up for us.
Last week I had the opportunity to fish with some interesting folks, Rob and crew who own and operate a website on the island called What's Up Martha. If you know me, you know that I truly believe hyper-local web based content to be the future of media. These guys are riding that wave and riding it well. They also did a nice little write up about their day out fishing with the old man, which you can view here. Thanks for that guys.

"Compass card is spinning, Helm is swinging to and fro"

W. Brice Contessa
www.fishingthevineyard.com

Fishing the Vineyard Report

2011-06-23T19:38:00.005-04:00

When the Surfmaster from Dark Woods woke up on Sunday he thought he'd go out for a friendly aboard F/V Gut Feeling with the guy from Coops and Al and Maggie from Chase. Heck, he thought he might even get a nice doormat. Don't think he bargained for the whole rug. A tourista from the great white north commented that he didn't know we had halibut here. Neither did I. Congratulations to Captain and crew on a truly magnificent achievement. The striped fish have been hitting the deck as well. It's like, what can't this guy do?

Aboard the Blue Wail the fishing has been sometimes fast, sometimes slow, always colorful of course. Pictured above are Nicole from the aloha state, the author and the brown clown. When she's not teaching classes or kayak guiding in Volcano National, Nicole can be found floating around Cayo Martha, shredding on topwater. Pretty work Nicole.

A note to the striped fish. Beware. If your not careful when swimming by the kids you may wind up panko encrusted over a bed of udon, in a shitake miso broth. Good for us, for you not so much.

"Never could read no road map, No I don't know what the weather might do"

WBC
www.fishingthevineyard.com

Fishing the Vineyard Report

2011-06-19T19:50:00.006-04:00

Standing the precipice of the Solstice, it seemed like one last photo tessellation from the vernal season would be opportune. Incredibly fun weekend as always with the StriperFest crew. Fly fishing on the enclave in the ocean has been relatively robust as of late, with the brown clown falling victim to various methodologies. These include, but are not limited to, sight casting and open water fishing.

"Wishin' every month of the year could be June"

W. Brice Contessa
www.fishingthevineyard.com

Fishing the Vineyard - Mid - June - Synopsis

2011-06-15T20:55:00.007-04:00

Bill from Jackson drew a tough day. An old adage dictates that when the wind is from the north, wise anglers don't go forth. That's all well and good, but striped fish season is only a few months long, so generally Fishing the Vineyard kids go anyway. Plus sometimes we hammer on a north. This day not so much, but we did prove that persistence pays. "Thanks for being there partner."

Phil from Toronto proved to be an interesting case study. I fish a lot of strong anglers, and Phil stands amongst any of them. His skill set translates nicely to the potato farm and the skinny patch bottom, which is convenient for him, less so for the brown clown. Pretty work Phil.

And sometimes the sun-dog comes. And then the kids begin to whisper. Pictured in this montage are the author and the Jimmy Crab. What can you even say about Jimmy. Look at the lips. Look at the slime. Truly you are the Obi Wan to our Skywalker.

WBC

Fishing the Vineyard Report

2011-06-12T05:14:00.002-04:00

I honestly can't believe how the spring has flown by. The summer is almost upon us and fishing on planet mothership remains strong. The open water bite has been relatively accordant. Some days are easy and the rail if rife with the brown clown. Others are more difficult and we grind for exiguous digits. The clouds and rain have kept the Dukes County Sight Casters in the barn for the most part, but fear not, there's plenty of time left for all that. Pictured in this spread are BD from Gotham, Dave from the Garden State, Matt from the city of brotherly love and the author. These guys are strong anglers with whom I've worked often...they get it done and it's always a pleasure to share the skiff with them. Pretty work guys.

"Here by the sea and sand
Nothing ever goes as planned"

W. Brice Contessa
www.fishingthevineyard.com

Fishing The Vineyard Report

2011-06-09T20:19:00.006-04:00

Roars which were once dull have become deafening. It's the kids, vociferating for a photo essay. The dude abides...

Recent outings of the Dukes County Sight Casters have been met with positive results. Pictured in this spread are Harry and Lou from the Granite State and the striped fish from the light bottom. Thought I wouldn't drop a little black and white in the mix; foolish really. Lately it seems like when the viz is there so are the fish. So I got that goin' for me, which is nice.

Sometimes when the stars line up or whatever we go out under the aviary for a frolic in the potato patch. Open water fishing can be most productive at this hour of the season, and in order to stay true to the ethos of program diversity from time to time a trip out off the flat is necessary. Pictured in this spread are Andy from Palo Alto, Bill from Jackson and the author. Kevin from Plover quips, "powder blue skiff, white shades and a 7 weight from Oregon, it's all a little much no?" Um...maybe so maybe not?

Yup.

WBC

Dukes County Sight Casters Report

2011-06-06T05:26:00.003-04:00

Well the sun finally decided to hang around for a little while this weekend and luckily my bow was graced with the presence of Pat from Hoboken. Pat is a repeat offender as far as sight fishing the stripes is concerned, and his skill set has improved considerably since we first started this experiment some years ago. The shallow water stuff has been relatively strong in the past couple of days with good numbers up on the light bottom crabbing. Fish are uber grabby still which is nice. Stay tuned...

Captain W. Brice Contessa
www.marthasvineyardoutfitters.com

Runaway June

2011-06-01T22:54:00.008-04:00

It's funny ya know, they ask me stuff like, "hey, old man, when are you truly in your comfort zone?" It's a loaded question and lends itself to a multitude of responses, snarky and otherwise, but I'd say fishing with one of my oldest clients, in my favorite month of the year for my beloved striped fish is right there with anything. Pictured in this spread is Jason from Little Rhody, the old man himself and a few members of the local bomb squad. Incredible day. Great summer job.

"Night come sudden, dawn be soon" - Bobby

W. Brice Contessa
www.marthasvineyardoutfitters.com

Memorial Day Weekend Recap

2011-05-30T12:51:00.004-04:00

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

2011-05-26T11:36:00.004-04:00

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

2011-05-23T14:01:00.002-04:00

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

2011-05-22T14:54:00.002-04:00

"Everyone was screaming when they saw the lump"

RIP Macho Man

Fishing the Vineyard Report

2011-05-20T23:03:00.004-04:00

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

2011-05-17T08:20:00.006-04:00

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

2011-05-15T15:16:00.006-04:00

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

2011-05-14T10:07:00.003-04:00

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

Preseason Report

2011-04-28T23:10:00.009-04:00

Stacey from the Fort conjectures; "What's preseason on the pebble all about anyway?" Surely the only appropriate delineation is a photo essay, right?...

So the crabbing has been somewhat indolent, I'll be the first to admit it. Seemingly Sig Hanson I am not. This, combined with the fact that Mako's is only open 2 days a week leads me to believe that Jimmy's chowder pots will again this spring be the effigy of a barren wasteland, void of wrasse.

The English fella is still a looker after all these years. He's waking up early for this Royal Wedding scenario tomorrow. He's kind of like that uncle you have who never got married...

Another great rite of spring on our little planet in the ocean is orphan Easter. All us wash-ashore types go home for Christmas and such, but sadly for our kinfolk, the resurrection came at the wrong time of year man, and it almost always proves impossible to get away. So Mama-Cass from the rust-belt fires out a Hawaiian ham, the old man cashes in on a mac and cheese coupon, brothers ballgame wax the shuffle deck, and a festy is born.

Inevitably, there's one last trip to America. I know Kevin, a boat on a boat...oh the irony.

And the funny thing is, it's like nothing even changed since you've been overseas. Shit, the packaging on the Doritos is even how I remembered! Oh, and I found this little gem over there as well. They'll sell you a taco here for 89 cents!! I know I expatriated for a reason, but clearly the conjoined 48 are as seductive a mistress as they ever were.

When I visit the states I always make an effort to build something of historical and/or cultural significance into the matrix of the excursion. This isn't bullshit by the way. It kills me that I can't find a picture of Drew and I at the Liberty Bell like 2 hours before the Philly show on 11/25/09. Pictured above is Plymouth Rock. I'm told it hurts when it lands on you and I now know from first hand experience that it lives in a cage. Freedom isn't free kids. I threw a penny on it and wished for good fishing this season; I know, I'm a sap.

So the real reason for today's errand was the fabrication of the poling platform for my new blue skiff. The facilitators of this endeavor were the boys at Fastech Marine in Buzzards Bay (www.t-tops.com). If you tune your frequency to planet blogspot, you are aware that promoting stuff I don't truly believe to be radical is as far outside of my wheelhouse as the use of pedestrian vocabulary, not beating on Mister in the tourney, or drinking wine at a bar. In all my years in the marine industry I have yet to come across an operation as polished as this one. Highly recommend checking them out. Special thanks to Scott, Shawn, Justin and the crew; job well done.

So the Dukes County Sightcasters ride again kids, back for season 10 on the mothership by the skin of the teeth on the 8:30 Island Home outa the Hole. Long day, well worth it. I know, I know...sweet blagh, KYS, get a lyphe, show us a picture of a fish already. Duly noted. Next one has stripes.

"I'd give you everything I got for little peace of mind"

w

A New Chapter

2011-04-23T19:30:00.005-04:00

Drew from Tudor City estimates(paraphrasing as is customary), "Why would one even consider it? Dissolve a brand that you've cultivated for a decade, not to mention the undisputed sexiest moniker industry wide, in favor of a bland, impersonal title?" Well Drew, all I can say is that the mothership is a fluid entity my friend. I've got a new boat and some new ideas, so logic dictated that the time for a new website with an updated URL had come. So that's it, if and when a formal press release to this effect is issued I'll be sure to link it here. But realistically, this, and some new checks to pacify my debtors, are likely to represent the extent of the announcement. Oh and I got new business cards. Anyway, the link is below, you can like us on facebook and all that other happy horseshit. Your cooperation in this matter is appreciated.

www.marthasvineyardoutfitters.com

But you know, it's more than that Hoagie. Times on the rock are changin' man. I mean, TeTe's takin' the bar, the village kids are makin' moves as always, Jimmy's gettin' hitched, Jesus-God, @RobbieMorre even left the nest! And as for me, the novel is nearing completion. The conceptual phase has been everything up to now.

So for the moment, project blogspot continues. Marching on like a soldier, blinded with the passion that can be instilled solely by youth, and nationalism. The fishing season is right around the corner, so be sure to check in here frequently in the coming weeks for the blow by blow. It is you, the fans, that make this all possible, and for that we are eternally grateful.

"Mama, mama many worlds I've come since I first left home"

WBC

Winters End

2011-03-20T18:38:00.007-04:00

They say stuff like, "he can't do it...20 minutes 'till the vernal equinox and he's gonna drop the only photo essay of the winter??" Y'all underestimate the old timer..

Pictured above is Boston Legal. Ice fishing is a dangerous sport kids, be careful out there.

Shredding some fine pow stashes in Summit County never hurt anybody.

This much is clear.

Some of the kids even got to go fishing. Pictured above is two thirds of the coveted grand slam. Stay tuned, one of these assholes is gonna catch a permit before it's all said and done.

Not me though, I've been busy working on my novel.

"Write drunk; edit sober" - Hemingway

W

Fishing the Vineyard Report : Winter 2011

2011-01-31T10:57:00.004-05:00

Dukes County Ice Casters
West Tisbury, MA
01/30/2011

Set 1
Shiner and Delilah >
Built to Cast
Cream Perch War
Attics of my Ice
Caution (Do Not Step on the Cracks) >
When Push Comes to Gloves >
Big Frost Man
Desolation Snow
Don’t Freeze me In

Set II
Unbroken Chain (Pickerel)
Looks like Maine
Me and My Shovel
When I Drill My Masterpiece
Simple Twist of Dave
MummyChub Station >
Drums >
Space >
The Golden Load (Of Unlimited Canola)
Silver Threads and Polar Tip-Ups

E: Victim or the Slime

Fishing the Vineyard 2010 Holiday Report

2010-12-22T17:44:00.005-05:00

Conceptualizing the reincarnation of planet bolgspot has been akin to an unguided trek through the tumultuous pass traversing the clandestine and the conjunct. Although concerns on this front have yet to be fully alleviated, it has become apparent that the appropriate course of action at the current juncture is to forge on with the project. Possibly the most complex aspect of content generation is the bold and all to often vein proposition of attempting to interpret the muddled and kaleidoscopic tapestry that makes up the eastern seascape of the gray matter betwixt my ears. Recently however, certain images concerning the re-launch have emerged with a higher degree of clarity and resonance than I previously thought possible. These include, but are not limited to, a phoenix, rising auspiciously from the ashes of doubt, that of a newborn babe, emerging triumphantly from the amniotic fluid of elucidation and commonplace and finally a wailing hobo, drunk on the elixir of infamy and omnipotence.

Pictured in this spread is Jolly Roger the elf, Tom from the sunshine state, Josh from OB, Jon the Fisherman, Slime-Dart Larry, and Barron Von Blackfish. There are inherent obstacles in surmising the planet mothership autumn 2010 fishing crusade. I think it’s safe to say that the general sentiment amongst island anglers is that a little more cooperation from the fish would have been greatly appreciated. That stated, there were some notable catches, and the kids found their names gracing the derby chalk like always. Sadly however, for the most part this fall will be forever logged in the annals of time as a wind shorn disappointment. But hey, spending the harvest season marooned on a tiny rock out in the North Atlantic with a couple of thousand drunks clinging to it obviously thwarts being stuck in a copper mine, or an office, so I'll put my tiny violin back in its case for now.

http://marthasvineyard.patch.com/

The link above is a window into a new project that I’ve undertaken. Print is dead kids. This is what a newspaper is gonna look like in your life time, get used to it. Seriously though, Patch.com is a cutting edge subsidiary of AOL that’s revolutionizing/reinventing the conceptual framework of modern culture as it pertains to the dissemination of information on planet earth, so I opted to get in on the ground floor. I suggest you do the same. The site goes live on 12/29 and the launch features a page turning pickerel article from the old man, so be sure to check back then.

I’d like to take this opportunity to extend a happy and healthy holiday season to all of you who have helped make Fishing the Vineyard into the institution it has become. You know who you are; clients, friends, family, fans and Kevin alike. Sans your love and support there would be no blogspot, further bolstering the position of those who seek to emphatically espouse the downfall of western civilization in general.

Have a Cool Yule,

W

Packed up and headed....

2010-10-27T12:35:00.010-04:00

to Harkers Island, North Carolina. The fishing has been red hot down there is fall. Check out some sick pictures by Tosh Brown taken last week.

http://toshbrown.com/lightroom/VA-NC%202010/index.htm

If any body is looking to extend there season I will be there until the 20th of November.

Some from a few years ago.

derby wrap up 3

2010-10-18T11:16:00.001-04:00

derby wrap up 2

2010-10-18T11:12:00.002-04:00

Derby wrap up 1

2010-10-18T11:10:00.001-04:00

A little photo essay of the derby.

2010-09-11T05:32:00.008-04:00

Most wonder "old man, why no content?" It's called a dry spell kids, it's kind of like a batting slump. What do you do when you hit a slump; change the mojo. In my case this involved shaving that awful moustache, a new hat, and ceremoniously sacrificing the duck in the parking lot of the boat ramp before work (he'd started looking at me real funny any way). Pictured in this spread is David from the garden state. This guy is a multi talented athlete who's skill set includes but is not limited to wrestling, playing a mean second base, and chucking tight loops at the green fish. Pretty cool way to christen the new ride if you ask me.

But you know, it's more than just a dry spell Kevin; it's a transitional phase. Sadly, what this recent hiatus has made me realize is that it's time to take a step back. So it's with a heavy heart that I tell you this will be my final post of the 2010 campaign. A wise man once wrote me a letter that said never to "stand by and allow it to drag on beyond the point of vibrancy and health", and I think that's where we are now. Keep in mind this is not the end. But in order for the art to continue to be meaningful and beautiful one must periodically reinvent it. I'm most sorry to those who depend on this content machine for your life force (guess you're gonna have to get some energy crystals or whatever), but rest assured that no one loves the blog-spot more than I do, and when the time is right, it will return.

So I'll leave you with this...An old friend of mine from a cabin in the woods used to ask me (and as is customary, I'm paraphrasing here) "hey, old man, when is it over? When are you gonna straighten up and fly right, quit the life, get a real job and stop acting like such a loon?" Although the one word antiphon is generally not my forte (a professor of mine once even called me 'wordy'), the answer to that is simple. Never.

"So many Roads to ease my soul"

W

FTV report for 9/9/10

2010-09-09T16:38:00.001-04:00

This bonito was released for some good derby karma.

EARL ?

2010-09-04T08:40:00.013-04:00

Dave from Dark Woods writes "hey old man, what's the Fishing the Vineyard kids modus operandi in the face of impending doom courtesy of the first hurricane to pummel the rock in like 20 years?" While my first instinct is to say "none of your goddamn business, now get back in that bunker and wait for a national guardsmen to tell you what to do", in the spirit of full disclosure, I'll show you...

Before the blow we spend a couple of days with a guy from Connecticut trying to dispel the myth that bananas are bad luck in a boat. Sadly for us, and despite our strongest efforts, that theory still seems to hold a great deal of verisimilitude. Robert-Douglas from Ocean Heights usually just brings a pineapple or some huckleberries when he covets a fruit fix while afloat.

The first step of hurricane preparation is to pull everything from the skiff into the basement. In the event that a Wizard of Oz type scenario were to play out I'd still need my fishing poles and such.

Mister from Pensyl-Hio decided to spend the hours before Earl in the lapstrake skiff with Karl from OB teaching the greenfish one last lesson in the event that the storm were to swallow him up and they could never play again.

A stroll down to the Village for some window shopping is always a good time killer.

Before the streets are shut down to non-emergency vehicles it's fun to take a ride and contemplate the heard mentality and the manifestations of mass hysteria.

What, you thought I was gonna let the hoarders get it all?

As it turns out you can actually measure approximate wind speed with this sucka; kind of like a flag at a ballpark. We had some decent gusts on the lead edge of the storm, but nothing that would make it stand at attention for any prolonged period of time.

I've always been terrible at shopping under pressure. They said get canned goods and the essential non-perishables. This is what I came up with.

Once the hatches are battened down and all supplies have been inventoried/re inventoried it's time for a libation.

Eventually, all that's left to do is don the riot gear and guard the expensive shit from looters.

I think we'll always remember Earl as the most prepared we ever were for a 3 hour rainstorm that came in the middle of the night when we were all asleep anyway. Can we go fishing again now?

WBC

FTV offshore report 9/1/10

2010-09-02T17:21:00.002-04:00

Took advantage of the pre storm calm and made a run south of the island in search of gold on fly. Rick landed 3 around this size and we lost track of the number of peanuts landed.

So now we are just waiting for Earl!!

ftv report 9/1/10

2010-08-31T17:14:00.000-04:00

Picked up a few bonito on monday and tuesday. Skok's mushmouth and Justin's surf candy were the ticket for these picky bones.

Capt. Jaime Boyle

2010-08-30T20:48:00.003-04:00

Dukes County Sight Casters

08/30/2010 Vineyard Sound Civic Center, Martha's Vineyard, MA

Set I

Touch of Green
Brown Muddy River
Feather Report Suite>
King Solomon's BaitBalls
Playin' on the Sand>
One More Searobin Fight>
Playin' On the Sand

Set II

China Cat Shoal Tower>
I Know You Strider
Stuck Inside of Bow Bell, With the Cocktail Blues Again
CedarTree Jed>
Little Red Merkin>
Seek your Day Slob>
Drums>
Space>
And We Bid You Good Fight
Sunshine Daydream

Encore: Crabwolves of London

Fishing the Vineyard Report

2010-08-26T12:52:00.005-04:00

Kat from the Tiz asks, "old man, what do the Fishing the Vineyard kids do to alleviate the pococurantism induced by a mid summers nor'easter that inhabits the mothership for what resembles a fortnight?" Well young lady, if a picture is worth a thousand words, a photo essay is worth how ever many thousand words you get when you multiply the number of pictures you used in said essay by one thousand. In this case eight thousand words...

A quick visit up to Terrapin Station is always fun. When we get sick of harassing these little critters I'll let y'all know, but truthfully I wouldn't hold my breath.

Naturally, we pour over the season's highlight reel. Whether or not to reveal the identity of the bird fish dominatrix was a decision process that can only be described as long and arduous. In the long run however, the look on the face of Mikey from the South End when he sees this and realizes who it was this whole time tipped the scales in favor of affirmation.

Browsing the up island boat market is always entertaining.

Heck, sometimes we even buy that shit and tow it back east. Pictured in this spread are the old man and his new toy, a 22 Pathfinder. Kevin from Baltimore wonders, "what the hell are you gonna do with that thing?" Take six people to go catch white marlin at like 50 mph is what I had in mind, but I'm open to suggestions. Also, we're having a 'name that boat' contest. Entries can be submitted via mail or email. Dave already denied me on Smurf Master.

When the wind finally drops out we hop in the little boat with Larry from the Chemung and go see if the mac-tuna are still bouncin' round the sound. Luckily for the kids, they are.

Don't even think about it punks. Were I to sell, where would they ensepulcher my remains after my time here on kid rock is complete?

WBC

2010-08-23T13:52:00.006-04:00

Fishing the Vineyard would like to congratulate Jackson Brex on his Black Sea Bass. This fished weighed in at 5 Lbs 2oz and is the new leader in the Mass saltwater derby junior division.

Good luck Jackson,

Capt. Jaime Boyle

Dukes County Sight Casters Report 08/21/10

2010-08-21T18:50:00.004-04:00

Ted from the Willamette National Forest asks "old man, do the Dukes County SightCasters hang up their spurs once the dog days roll around up on that mothership?" Elucidation: "Nah son. Just slide up on some light bottom and groove on a mixed bag of striped and robin fish." Pictured in this spread are Peter from Gotham, Dave from Berkley, Laura from Boulder and the Teradactyl Tamer. Never got the gull's name. Pretty much status quo on the rock at the moment kids.

"Out here on my own, I watch it ebb and flow"

WBC

Fishing the Vineyard Report

2010-08-16T17:29:00.006-04:00

Kevin from Baltimore asks (and I'm paraphrasing here) "Hey old man, why do you post reports that feature obscure text and pictures with altered colors instead of just bombarding the server with images of the kid's greenfish exploits like everybody else?" Fine.

08/12/2010 - 8:00AM

And if you thought I wasn't putting an Elihu shot in there you're bat-shit kiddo.

www.fishingthevineyard.com

Fishing the Vine Report 08/15/2010

2010-08-15T21:19:00.006-04:00

Inquiring minds want to know, "old timer, how do you know when the Vine is ripe?" The obvious answer to those in the know is "mostly green, with little brown spots and a couple of patches of deep thick blue." Pictured in this spread are EveryJuan from The Run Around, Patrick from WSFly, Mister from Pensyl-hio, Larry from the Chemung and the Rob Morrison Quartet. Special thanks to Johnny from the Hogadon Valley (formerly of Philly/Village East) for guiding EveryJuan to copious micro-skiff mac-tuna whilst I was working and dealing with various maintenance issues. Needless to say, campus is fishing well at the moment.

I tried to stop him, but he got this crazed look in his eyes and just started cutting.

Captain W. Brice Contessa
www.fishingthevineyard.com

Fishing The Vineyard Report

2010-08-12T06:52:00.003-04:00

Fishing on the mothership currently consists of a pick of smallish striped fish and largeish mac-tuna. Pictured in this spread are Bill and Sally from the Garden state and Larry from the Chemung River region. Light winds, warm air, bait appears to be plentiful, fish seem happy, and I'm definitely happy. Great summer job...

www.contessaflyfishing.com

Fishing the Vineyard Report

2010-08-10T12:56:00.012-04:00

They say stuff like, "hey old, what are some of the things the Fishing the Vineyard freaks have been finding out there lately?" I say, "why, how about a photo essay"...

Some days we discover a turtle.

Other days we ferret out a rubber ducky. I found this little fella floating around out off the Ocean State. I've named him Elihu. He's accepted a job as my deckhand for the duration of the 2010 campaign. He's not much of a talker, but that's ok, I am.

Once in a while we go up in the forward hatch to get something and low and behold, we expose a hobo.

When we chance upon lost or injured birds, sometimes we hug them to let them know everything is gonna be alright.

Ever and again, we find the need to put ourselves through great anguish and suffering. Nothing that can't be cured with some Ben-Gay and a stiff drink however.

On occasion we get to touch a tunafish. Pictured in this spread are long time FTV friends and contributors Pat from the Backwater and Kevin from Baltimore with a fine specimen captured under the watchful eye of Capt. Tom from the Village aboard F/V Tuna Helper. People ask, "old man, who's Kevin, and why does it seem like you write the blog to him and not to me?" Well kids, Kevin is one of the founding fathers of Fishing the Vineyard (think the along the lines of a 5th Beatle type scenario), and the charter member of the blogspot fan club. In the absence of his criticism/critique I'd surely grow complacent and the quality of the art would deteriorate.

Every so often we happen upon Cassie from Key West, swimmin' with the fishes.

Remember your first day of high school? Your mom dropped you off, and they're were these 2 seniors sitting on the hood of a Pontiac blaring AC/DC and you thought to yourself how badass they were? We find that too.

www.fishingthevineyard.com

some more...

2010-08-09T20:08:00.003-04:00

New pix

2010-08-09T20:02:00.001-04:00

Code Blue

2010-08-08T17:52:00.004-04:00

People say stuff like, "hey, old man, what happens when you go to chase the tuna dragon but you can't find him?" Generally, the retort reads something like "Why, get over some hard bottom with Drew from Gotham and play Donkey Kong of course, what do you do?"

W. Brice Contessa
www.fishingthevineyard.com

Fishing the Vineyard Report

2010-08-05T20:15:00.005-04:00

Pictured in this spread are Brother Cogan from Elm Street and Dan from the Nutmeg state. Fishing out on the People's Republic remains consistent and productive in the here and now. My pursuits of late have been stripercentric ...plenty of time for fucking with funky fish forthcoming. It's funny ya know, people are always asking me "hey, old man, why must you constantly acclimatize the chromaticity of the images on the blogspot?" I guess it's kind of an art thing at this point Kevin.

Capt. W. Brice Contessa
www.contessaflyfishing.com

Fishing the Vineyard Report 08/02/2010

2010-08-02T14:30:00.003-04:00

Dukes County Sightcasters

Vineyard Veterans Memorial Coliseum
Campus Mothership, MA

08/02/2010

Set 1
Let the Good Times Roll
Fish in a Bucket >
Eyes of the Swirl >
He’ On >
Nicer Striper Getaway
Good Morning little Schoolie Girl
West Buzz.Bay. Fadeaway

Set 2
Bird Song
Fire on the Patch Reef >
The Other Run >
Dark Bar >
Lazy Stripin’>
Smokestack Stripin’ >
Drums >
Space >
The Other Run
Peeking Bones

E: Brokedown Trailer

Entire show featured Tucson John on 9 foot 9 weight (first time played in saltwater).

Green Hit...

2010-07-31T16:43:00.004-04:00

One of the main inquiries that crosses my desk over here at FTV headquarters is "Old Man, why do you insist upon periodically failing to produce content for a weeks time or more?" Generally, my answer to that is "hey man, I'm but a yeoman in a funky old guide boat, I'm giving you my foremost effort but sometimes your tired feet get buried in the quagmire ya know." That's true, however this recent hiatus has been due to a visit from some trout bums and a heinous case of tuna fever. Ryan Davey and his crew (pictured in the spread along side Jimmy, Mister, and the marlin dreamer) are great. If you've seen any of these guys flicks you know how they roll; somehow managing to make a sport as goofy as ours look cool. This year they're traveling up and down the right coast making a documentary about striped fish called 'Between the Lines'. I'll be sure to drop the knowledge when it's coming to theaters near you. I fell off the push tower during filming, so clearly you won't want to miss it. Tuna fever is a curious ailment you know Kevin, it makes you buy shit you don't need and blow off shit you should be doing. Hey look though, every now and again even the Fishing the Vineyard bairns have to come back inside the 20 fathom line and make some money. Fortunately for us, the fishing on kid rock remains relatively strong at the current juncture. Juve stripes are staging over the reefs, enjoying the mid summer climes and menu options. Yellow eye is there when you need him and there are still some studs in the amalgam. Furthermore, Mac-Tuna are now available in targetable amounts. At no point yet have I gotten on the radio with the Coast Guard to tell them that we're being invaded by the green plague or anything, but when we were leaving the ramp this morning I told my johnnies we were going bonito fishing, and this time I meant it.

"If the sun don't come, you get a tan from standing in the English rain"

Captain W. Brice Contessa
www.contessaflyfishing.com

FTV rteport 7/22-23/2010

2010-07-23T20:37:00.003-04:00

Have had a couple of good days with the schoolie bass again. Sorry, no pictures due to the UDL in the back round. As a bonus we have been catching a few tautog with the stripes. No bonito yet, but should be any day now.

Capt. Jaime

www.boylermaker.com

Long Strange Tuna Trip

2010-07-22T10:15:00.008-04:00

People are always asking me "Hey, old man, what does the Fishing the Vineyard squad do when they've been working to hard and need a vacation?" The answer of course is go tuna fishing. Pictured in this spread are Johnny from Philly, Thomas and Robert-Douglas from Eddyville and the Bologna Snacker from Leg State University. Tuna fishing is kind of like being a fireman; long periods of inactivity periodically interrupted by short snaps of blistering heat. We hooked 2 tunafish on this errand, employing various methodologies that ran the gamete betwixt oldschool and new. One fish was fought to boat and lost, the other parted shortly after its initial run. Regardless of how many interactions I have with them, the drastic brawn of a tunafish will never cease to amaze me. We also wrote Haiku poems about our friends and enemies, had a amplitude of picnics (which were exceptional because there's no ants out there as Rob pointed out), contemplated how we could have forgotten to bring Trivial Pursuit, and berated the whales and seals for being banished to the sea after being deemed inadequate to cohabitate with the rest of us land mammals. All in all a peachy holiday with a terrific crew, hope to get back real soon.

'Grab a pack and hit the trail'

Fishing the Vineyard

FTV Report 7/21/2010

2010-07-21T19:07:00.005-04:00

A Rock Bass for Rock Star Nick.

Had a nice bass blitz on these guys today. I have never seen striped anchovies up here this early. This is the bait that the albies go crazy for in North Carolina. Hopefully the bones will follow them in!
Take care,

Capt. Jaime

FTV report 7/20/2010

2010-07-20T18:53:00.003-04:00

Hi Everyone,

First let me apologize for not keeping up with the report and blog posts. It’s been a very busy summer between charters and trying to move into my new house. Yes, I have finally planted myself on this rock permanently.

I must thank the Captain “ Old Man” Brice for keeping up with the blog. Since I’m not nearly the wordsmith he is I will just keep adding my pictures and simple comments. So be sure to check it often.

Now for a quick fishing report:

The bass has been good as long as you go early, they have been ranging from 20-32" with a few bigger ones in the mix. Flats’ fishing has been tough with the hot water and hazy sky. The top water blue fishing is off the charts this summer with up to 14 pounds. I’m expecting bonito any day now and if this weather keeps up we should have Mahi and skipjack in close.

If you are interested in getting out before summer comes to end I still have some good dates open.

Take care and tight lines,

Capt. Jaime

Fishing the Vineyard Report 07/19/2010

2010-07-19T06:44:00.004-04:00

Pictured in this spread are Pamela and James from the Granite State. This husband and wife bluegrass duo (he plays 12 string and she plays mandolin, can't make it up Kevin) had never fly fished in saltwater before their trip to campus mothership. Fishing first timers can go a couple of different ways. When people come in with pre conceived notions, misaligned chi, or are unamenable when it comes to the instruction scenario, usually the results are poor. When people pack a positive attitude, appropriate expectations and their listening cap like these 2 did, things tend to turn out quite well. Fly fishing is a funny game ya know. To say that it's an experience as opposed to results based exercise is a grotesquely colossal understatement. On this jaunt we apprehended 4 small fish and it was one of most notably auspicious and fruitfully victorious excursions in recent memory.

'All you need is love'...

Brice Contessa
www.contessaflyfishing.com

Fishing the Vineyard Report 0715/10

2010-07-15T13:59:00.007-04:00

Pictured in this spread are Justin and Layla from the UK and Dr. Eric from the Green Mountain State (birthplace of Chester A. Arthur and Calvin Coolidge, bet ya didn't know that). The conditions on the mothership the past couple of trips have prohibited us from sightcasting for any prolonged period of time, but hey, we've been making some pretty tasty lemonade. Open water bass fishing is still hanging tough, especially for this time of year. And the teeth are still plentiful when you need um. The visibility looks better going forward, so hopefully I'll have a flats report in the near future.

It's funny ya know, people are always asking me "hey, old man, what do Fishing the Vineyard kids do while they're waiting for the mac-tuna to become prevalent inshore?" In the spirit of keeping this thing informative I decided to compose a little photo essay to answer this very question...

Sometimes we take field trips. Here's Robby the other day at the Green Room.

We've been known to roast a pig or two.

On Tuesdays, it's arts and crafts at Jaime's new house. This little camper made a mask...isn't it cute?

Once in a blue moon we even go people watching in West Tisbury.

SAVE OUR SOUND...

WBC

Fishing the Vineyard Report 07/12/2010

2010-07-12T21:21:00.006-04:00

DukesCountySightCasters

Martha's Vineyard Island, MA

07/12/2010

Set 1

Foreplay>
Long Run
Big Bait Ball Jam
Rocky Pick
Fly Famous Seagull>
Blues and Lonesome
Crowded Control
Runaway Jaime

Set 2

Push on 'till the Flats>
Big Brown Furry Crab Fly From Skok>
Mind Left Striped Fish Jam>
Backing Down the Eel Grass Line
Joy
Slave to the West Chop Light

E: Good Times, Good Times

Entire show featured Pat from Hoboken (pictured in the surrounding pictorial vignette) on nine foot eight weight. Special guests Mudrat Ramone and Karl of the Bluffs on steel wheels for Set 1. Old man on pushpole for Set 2.

Fishing the Vineyard Report 07/10/2010

2010-07-10T17:51:00.003-04:00

The crispy forehead pictured above is Mayor Weld from Bronxville. This cat likes to spend his time away from work gassing Stoli, losing his sandals, and getting in altercations with azure beasties like the one featured here. Fishing on the Vine remains relatively consistent at the current juncture. The water is getting warm now, and folks are already starting to talk about green fish...no confirmed kills that I know of yet but I bet that's gonna change sooner rather than later.

Tune in, turn off, drop out...

W. Brice Contessa
www.fishingthevineyard.com

Dukes County Sight Casters Report 07/07/2010

2010-07-07T14:30:00.003-04:00

Pictured in this spread is long time Fishing the Vineyard friend, contributor, and worthy tournament adversary, Mister from Pennsyl-hio. This full time fly pole junkie splits his year between chasing chrome in the lake Erie tribs and pounding the beaches of campus mothership with striped fish on the brain. I gotta say, he's pretty good at all this briny shit, especially for being from fly over country. He's also pretty hard to read generally, but I'm pretty sure he had a good time.

Till next we dance...

Capt. W. Brice Contessa
www.contessaflyfishing.com

Dukes County Sight Casters Report 07/06/2010

2010-07-06T17:44:00.007-04:00

To anyone who comes into contact with me lately, my passionate love for El Nino is surely as palpable as my libidinous disdain for windmills. Hot, calm, sunny, stable weather. Mid day lows. Heaven. Pictured in this spread are Stu and Kim who came all the way from the beaver state to go for a fish on the mothership. Make no mistake class, the last couple of club outings for the Dukes County Sightcasters have been met with mixed results. If it was easy Kevin, everybody would be doin' it. Loads of toads grubbin' pink food...got that. Sometimes feeling like I'm fishing at the bottom of the exit ramp off the Mayflower...got that too. It's funny watching a 20 plus sliding down the flat lookin' for ladies, only to have a nerf ball land on his head or split window blow through and try to give it a hair cut. If you let that stuff piss you off it's gonna be a long summer, just gotta keep on keepin' on kids. But I digress. Good shit; touching a hand full, ogling a myriad. Great summer job...

Harmonious Equanimity,

Captain. W. Brice Contessa
www.contessaflyfishing.com

Independednce Day Massacare

2010-07-04T08:41:00.005-04:00

Lets be honest, nobody likes England. What better a way to celebrate 234 years independence from that bloated, priggish tyrannical kingdom across the pond than to partake in an activity as uniquely American as baseball and/or apple pie; bottom fishing. Pictured in this spread are Tommy and Robby from the MV east, Sophie from St. Louie, Brooke from Christmas Cove and Drew from Gotham. Even the sea robin tickler got into the fray right around hour 11, when he abandoned the bait station momentarily to cajole the prehistoric teradactyl of the deep pictured above. Today's bag was comprised of, but not limited to, a nice mix of left-eye Lopez, rockbass and split-rock porgy. The first drift over the digits yielded a triple hook-up and the fish of the day, the shag carpet displayed below by Sophie B. who was clearly a rug trader in another life. After a drift that productive all the souls on board are thinking the same thing; this is gonna be a sick brown-out Cap, obviously I should shoot my neighbor a text and make sure that little bastard makes some room in his freezer for the bag I'm bringing over. Sadly though, the rest of the day played out more like the Boston Massacre than the Battle of Yorktown for our militia of guerilla fluke fighters. 3 more drifts were met mostly with by-catch, shorts and a few more button keepers for the box. Soon, the crew was tattered and exhausted and the leadership decided that in order to avoid a Valley Forge type scenario that it would be best for Captain Tommy to hurl F/V Tuna Helper back through the sound like a silver dollar across the Potomac. He did, and the crew was rewarded with fish tacos and cold barley sodas. Happy fourth of July...

God Bless America,

Captain W. Brice Contessa
www.contessaflyfishing.com

Dukes County Sight Casters Report 06/30/2010

2010-06-30T17:58:00.003-04:00

Waited on the wind to come down 'till 1 PM today...never did. Ended up getting out for a quick afternoon push with Backwater Trading Co's own Patty-Boy, who promptly demonstrated why those qualified to fish above it all will be rewarded with great visual stimulation and slamming. We only saw a couple of other fish...conditions were complete shit despite the sun, and we called it early because we were freezing our tuckus' off.

Captain W. Brice Contessa
www.contessaflyfishing.com

2010-06-28T12:52:00.001-04:00

This comes to us from long time Fishing the Vineyard friend and contributor Johnny from Philly. Real windy today.

Fishing the Vineyard Report 06/26/2010

2010-06-26T16:35:00.003-04:00

This morning's agenda included a mix of open water jerk bait fishing for rolling striped fish and blind fishing with in tight over patch bottom. Neither were a home run...while we're not talking complete famine, the open water potato patches are certainly a wee bit less dense than they have been in recent weeks. This, compounded with heavy weekend boat traffic made the conditions for getting bites on light tackle difficult at best. We ground through it though, and wound up with a decent sized hand-full of slot fish. Once said action dispersed we tucked back into to the beach. While the patch reefs aren't holding to many striped fish at this point they were holding the plus sized yellow eye that you see pictured at the top of this spread. Fun morning with a great father son team...

"Make every song you sing, your favorite tune"

Captain W. Brice Contessa
www.contessaflyfishing.com

Fishing the Vineyard Report 06/22/2010

2010-06-22T07:49:00.004-04:00

Pictured in this spread is team Flanders. These dudes bring the heat boys and girls. Yes Kevin, I'm aware that the blog has become the definitive experiment in the ineptitude of iPhone photography. For this I apologize. Also, check out the link below to a youtube vid shot on the bow of the super skiff the other day. It features Giff from Bozeman displaying an exemplary crab feed over some light bottom. Pretty work Giff.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cp4wcj2w6Gg

Captain W. Brice Contessa
www.contessaflyfishing.com

Dukes County Sight Casters Report 06/19/2010

2010-06-20T13:00:00.004-04:00

Pictured in this spread is Ned from Philly. During the course of our trip yesterday Ned learned to think like a crab. Dukes County sight casting remains strong at the current juncture. It's been a bit tougher the past couple of days with weekend crowds and intermittent clouds, but when the sun is shining and there's not some dope yelling at you for fishing in front of their cute little private beach all is right with the world.

Keep it between the buoys...

Captain W. Brice Contessa
http://www.contessaflyfishing.com/

Dukes County Sight Casters Report 06/18/2010

2010-06-19T05:26:00.005-04:00

Pictured in this spread are Wally from Gotham and Ian from Hot-Lanta. These bros pack a skills that have been honed all over planet earth. They also pack an extra lunch for their fishing guide, which is always appreciated. The flats fishing on the pebble is about as good as it gets right now. Bluebird skies, mid day lows and snatchy striped fish have made our last few sessions truly memorable.

Captain W. Brice Contessa
www.contessaflyfishing.com

Fishing the Vineyard Report 06/16/2010

2010-06-16T14:14:00.006-04:00

Pictured in this spread is Pam from Orlando. Her true passions in life are snapper and grouper on the Florida coast, but I have a feeling she'll be amending that to include stripes on the Vine after this morning's fish. We spent the beginning of the day farming the open water potato patches under the aviary, yielding a good harvest of slot fish on jerk baits. After we'd had our fill there, we slid up on the flat and poked this nice fatty on ultra light over a shallow patch reef. Pam can slam kids; hope to get her back out real soon.

Captain W. Brice Contessa
www.contessaflyfishing.com

Dukes County Sight Casters Report 06/15/2010

2010-06-15T15:08:00.008-04:00

Today's meeting of the Dukes County Sightcasters was greeted with bluebird skies and stiff northerly winds. Pictured in this spread is Highly Migratory Guide Services own Captain Mud-rat-detector. When he's not reading case law or hunting giants Tommy can be found up on the flats with his white gloves on, doing it with style. Around the middle of the day the scup whisperer even showed up and made his way down to the pointy end for a spirited sparring session with the striped fish. Fishing was good today; copious shots at nice sized targets that were looking to shanghai most anything we tied on. The water is a bit warmer now and the fishing seems to be taking a turn for the better. The next couple of weeks is about my favorite sightcasting stretch of the entire season; no where in the world I'd rather be.

Captain W. Brice Contessa
www.contessaflyfishing.com

Dukes County Sight Casters Report 06/11/2010

2010-06-11T20:02:00.002-04:00

Pictured here is Jason from outside lil' Compton. Today marked 8 June's that this cat and I have fished together. That means a couple of things. First, we're getting old. Second, we always have fun. The goatee is new, but the skill set is the same; solid. The life on the flats was a bit thinner today and the stripes were somewhat less aggressive then they have been over the course of the past week, but we still managed to go 4 off 5 and tossed at a load. Fish were on a wide variety of bottom and fly selection was less important than good presentation (no shit).

Brice Contessa
www.contessaflyfishing.com

Fishing the Vineyard Report 06/09/2010

2010-06-09T21:06:00.002-04:00

Good open water fishing this morning with West Chop's own Chip and Earl. The bass fishing was at it's strongest early, and we capped off the morning with a nice mix of bluefish and brownfish eating small bait in deep water. We tried to get on the flats after the action subsided, but by then the clouds were a major factor and we ended up seeing only a few which were not receptive to our advances. All and all a fun morning with a great father son team.

Brice Contessa
Fishing The Vineyard

CRABWOLF

2010-06-09T14:19:00.004-04:00

This is a CRABWOLF. It's a close relative of the squid hound. Dukes County sight casting has been really strong so far this season. Nothing huge over the rail yet, but we pricked one yesterday with Davey up on the bow that was a good bit north of 3 feet long swimming in like 6 inches of water. Clearly one of the more rad things I've seen this year.

One Love,

Capt. W. Brice Contessa
www.contessaflyfishing.com

A little addition to Brice's Report

2010-06-06T20:25:00.002-04:00

Made it back to the dock with a few minutes to spare.... thanks to Sirius weather!

Waiting it out in the parking lot.

Fishing the Vineyard Report 06/05/2010

2010-06-05T19:55:00.004-04:00

Pictured in this spread are Bryan, Dave, John and Matt. Even a little cameo from Admiral Old in there if you look close. These cats are east coast hardcore. Predominantly overcast skies the last couple of days made the sight casting difficult, but fortunately we were able to dial in on some good open water fishing that included a mix of mid range bass and blues. When we did get the sun on Friday afternoon the flats were loaded and we went 2 off 4 on Ray's Flies and green Merkins. Pretty fun fishing on the pebble at the moment...to say there's a lot of life in the water right now would surely be an understatement. At minimum it's a good way to pass the time before we're surrounded 360 by windmills.

Thanks and Praises...

Captain W. Brice Contessa
www.contessaflyfishing.com

Memorial Day Weekend Report

2010-05-30T16:51:00.004-04:00

First, allow me to apologize for going dark for a while. My content machine has been on the fritz, but it's back up and running strong now. Pictured in this spread is Drew from Gotham. He's trained for this. High numbers of hungry fish on the flats combined with some of the nicest spring weather we've seen on campus mothership in recent memory has made the early season sight fishing a truly kind creation.

Happy Memorial Day...

Fishing The Vineyard

Beautiful morning on the water...

2010-05-26T19:39:00.003-04:00

until this happened.
Then came home to this on the Silverhawk trailer!

10"mantis shrimp

2010-05-18T16:57:00.002-04:00

This creature was inside a striped bass along with a few crabs.

Skiffin around

2010-05-18T16:55:00.001-04:00

Strange New View

2010-05-14T10:18:00.002-04:00

2010 fishing season has begun.

2010-05-04T20:53:00.004-04:00

Ran the first trip of the season on Sunday and managed to find a few bass in the backwater.

Super Skiff Overhaul Day 24

2010-05-04T20:24:00.002-04:00

"Look out mama there's a white boat commin' up the river"

Welcome Back Striper

2010-05-02T18:31:00.004-04:00

Pleasant afternoon in the Hewes skiff with Capt. Jaime who managed to capture this handsome bright on a rubber snake. Well played Karl. We got this one and had one other sniff over dark shallow bottom.

"What potent blood hath modest May"

Super Skiff Overhaul Day 15

2010-04-24T20:17:00.003-04:00

"There's fever in the funk-house now"

RAD NEW DECK FURNITURE

2010-04-12T19:39:00.005-04:00

Yeah, I know what you're thinking Kevin. It all seems like a little much to get my hands on a rad new deck chair the front of which can be filled with cold beer. Clearly you forgot who you're dealing with...

Super skiff face-lift Day 4.

Aloha...

Capt. Brice

Spring Cleaning

2010-04-08T21:27:00.003-04:00

Today we started spring cleaning. I'm taking votes on whether to go tiller steer, split window or telephone booth. Also taking suggestions on paint colors for the deck. Tommy told me today that Picasso would scrub old paintings off of canvases and rebirth masterpieces in their place. That is my ethos. I will try to report periodically with developments. If you happen to see me busing tables or banging nails somewhere in June, you'll know I ran out of money.

"Take the train from Casablanca going south"...

MV fishing report 4/7/2010

2010-04-07T22:06:00.003-04:00

Rob and Dave crushed the white perch over the weekend.

Key West Report

2010-04-01T17:18:00.002-04:00

Happy Spring Kids. Lets get this party started...Brice

I got a Scanner

2010-02-23T17:32:00.004-05:00

So now the sky is pretty much the limit when it comes to looking at old school pictures of FTV kids in their prime. Check them out here

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=203715&id=212470235785

Enjoy...Brice

The Dark Side

2010-01-11T17:29:00.005-05:00

A little window into the dark side of being a fishing guide; framing houses in New England in January. Unfortunately, no fishing related news from the rock at this time. If I can get Dave out of the duck blind at any time in the near future hopefully we'll get the augers fired up and drill down for some sweetwater glory. Sadly I fear that getting Dave to disband his shotgun at this point in time is highly unlikely.

In other news, the Rapone boys have just returned from a vacation to Key West in the midst of the worst cold front in the history of the world or whatever. Little tree huggers, they spent the whole time cleaning up the trash on the reef!

Snitches get stitches...

old

2010-01-09T18:07:00.000-05:00

Happy New Year

2010-01-01T17:54:00.002-05:00

Happy New Year from the entire Fishing the Vineyard crew!

As 2009 comes to an end, we would like thank all of our customers and friends for a safe, entertaining, and productive year on the water. Here's to a healthy and fish-filled 2010.

We hope to see you all on the Vineyard this coming season.
Best regards,

Jaime, Brice, Rob, & Tom