Contents:
Meeting Notes
Upcoming Events
Time to Renew
Club Contests
Cuttyhunk Trip
Connecticut Surfcasters Association Membership Meeting
Wednesday June 12th at 7pm at the Madison Surf Club
Rod Night - Bring your favorite fishin’ pole and tell us all about it.
Prior to our ROD Demonstration we will have our regular business meeting. We should also hear all about the recent Cuttyhunk trip and have sign-ups for the October 3, 4 & 5 trip. Be prepared to leave a deposit of $80 or the full payment of $240 per person.
Also, Swap, Sell or Give Away night at the June meeting.
Have some tackle that’s lost your love or looking for a bargain maybe even some freebies. Here’s your shot at this Wednesdays meeting. Bring any fishing related items and tag them with a price or just free. Last years swap had some good stuff. Scored a couple of 7” Redfins for free.
I’m giving away some vintage fishing shirts size XL - Pat Abate
Upcoming Events
Mystic Seaport Planetarium
Please mark your calendars. We are confirmed for Thursday, June 13 for a 7:00 – 8:00 PM show specially geared toward the night sky during striper season. Details shall follow. Procedure is attendees meet at the Seaport’s north entrance between 6:30 – 6:50 or so then guided into the planetarium from there. Price is $9.50/head with the Seaport agreeing to take a CSA check once we have a final attendance headcount. Find out more at the meeting.
As the season progresses, we will be having many of our usual outings to more local beaches in Connecticut and Rhode Island. We would like to plan for trips to Deep Hole, East Beach/ Fire District Beach and Shelter Harbor Beach, with dates to be announced. If you have any ideas of places you’d like to try fishing or just want to get out of the house, come along or speak up if you want to run a trip yourself.
It really is time to renew your Fishing License
Go to https://portal.ct.gov/DEEP/Fishing/General-Information/Fisheries-Licenses-and-Permits to renew.
Connecticut Coastal Access Guide - https://portal.ct.gov/DEEP/Coastal-Resources/Coastal-Access and and click “Here."
Club Contests
Striper a Month 2024
Each year CSA runs a year long contest to see who can catch a striped bass in the 12 month period between December of the previous year and November of the current year. The following members have managed to catch at least one bass a month from December 2023 through April 2024.
Mike Benzinger
Steve Hasselbacher
Jim Munson
Liam Rosati
Bill Tesbir
High Hooks and Top 10
High Hook Rules are as follows:
1. Fish must be caught from shore or surf, with both feet planted on Terra Firma.
2. The High Hook club tournament generally runs from the first Sunday following Thanksgiving for a period of one year.
3. Overall length, measured from the tip of the lip, to the end of the tail, is used to determine the winner. Weight is optional and not used to determine a winner.
4. Entries must be reported by the first membership meeting following the catch.
5. Entries can be sent to Mike Mullen at mike@highhooklures.com or the current Club President via email or submitted in writing at a club meeting.
Our June Cuttyhunk Trip
I think everyone in our group was glad to be back on the island. Cuttyhunk looked great with lush green grass, bushes and trees. There was some mung along the east side of the island and other places, that gave us problems for the first couple of days, but it did start to clear up on Saturday.
It was really great to see some old friends Like the Lombards, Asa and Chrissie, at the Island Market and young Asa, who works on the island year round for the town. Lexi was glad to see us and she was a good deal more talkative this year. I guess she too was glad to see some familiar faces. Lehner House was in great shape and we settled in right away. There were only 5 of us staying there, when there would have been plenty of room for all 9 who came out from the club.
We are used to being in a full house while we’re there. We didn’t have any club cookout, like we usually do. That seems to have been from a lack of a leader or organizer for our group. I think we all agreed, that needs to be corrected for next time.
Aside from that, it was a good trip. I felt really glad to be back to all the sights and sounds of the island. I’ve been doing the trip for nearly 20 years and Mary and I have been enjoying our trips for at least the last 15 years. I couldn’t wait to get out with my gear on the south shore and start casting out to familiar waters between the rocks and in the coves. I enjoyed listening to the waves crashing on the shore and the water dragging the smaller rocks back out with it. I love the sound of that.
There was bait around. Birds were circling and diving on fish a few hundred feet off shore, well out of reach. Guys were catching some fish, but not a lot and they were mostly small or in the 30” range. I think Aram had the only big fish, what I think was a 40” bass. I didn’t catch any fish for the first 2 days, I think because of the mung in the water. But it was clearing up late Saturday afternoon and evening and I started getting a few hits. It was kind of funny, as you may know I like to throw big lures. Well, they just weren’t hitting the big stuff, but I do always carry what I call my “Change-up lures.” What I found works on Cuttyhunk when the big lures don’t catch, is to go small. I tried using a 4” stubby and it worked! My first bass was 34” and it fought like hell and got me hootin’ and hollerin’! I caught a couple more and I was just relieved to have been rid of the skunk.
Getting back to having a small group in the house, we actually talked quite a bit. Not just hollering and swearing like the Plum Islanders. We had actual conversations at mealtimes and at night after fishing. We talked and listened to each other and we found, though we are very different people, we have some important things in common like our love of fishing and the enjoyment of being on Cuttyhunk Island.
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Editor’s note: SUDS is generally better when more members contribute. Do your part and write something up. And remember, adding pictures can make a difference.
Mike M.
