{"id":2316,"date":"2013-07-17T22:33:09","date_gmt":"2013-07-18T05:33:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/fishtales.abatemarco.com\/?p=2316"},"modified":"2013-07-24T14:48:45","modified_gmt":"2013-07-24T21:48:45","slug":"a-mid-summers-fish-charter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/fishtales.abatemarco.com\/?p=2316","title":{"rendered":"A Mid-Summer’s Fish Charter"},"content":{"rendered":"

A tasty return when four Realtors set sail for stripers on a sultry day<\/h4>\n
\"Lenny<\/a>

Lenny the Sailor, Bobby the Fish Killer, Yours Truly and Sammy Shamu.<\/strong><\/p><\/div>\n

JULY 17, 2013: <\/strong>\u00a0My good buddy and fellow Realtor–let\u2019s call him Sammy Shamu<\/em><\/strong>–says his wife\u2019s latest best dates were with me. True, the elegant Ms. J<\/em>.<\/strong> and I have tooled around Kings Point waterfront properties in her hot wheels; we\u2019ve had picnic lunches, and recently spent a day touring and tasting in North Fork wine country. But it\u2019s been all business. I assure you. I assure him. Still, Sammy remains skeptical.<\/p>\n

So, to demonstrate that I don\u2019t play favorites in his family, I used the occasion of a striped bass fishing trip to give Sammy a literal taste of the good life, Fred<\/strong><\/em> style.\u00a0Another of our esteemed real estate colleagues–Bobby S<\/em><\/strong>., the silent but deadly striper hunter–arranged for a four man charter aboard the Sundowner out of Orient Point<\/a> on a particularly vicious mid-summer morning.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

In his Element: Bobby S. is a silent but deadly striper hunter.<\/strong><\/p><\/div>\n

Bobby\u2019s had good fortune aboard this vessel. In fact, the captain adorns his cockpit with a photo of Bobby and the 45-pound bass he boated on a past sail aboard the Sundowner. Ordinarily, I eschew boating in favor of surfcasting. But I was in for the camaraderie and the conviction we\u2019d go home with dinner at least.<\/p>\n

Unsure whether to appeal to my colleagues\u2019 carnivorous or vegetarian side for breakfast and lunch, I fired straight down the middle, stepping aboard the Sundowner at 7am with eggplant caponata sandwiches on seeded mini semolina rolls, along with grilled breaded chicken cutlet panini on beds of baby spinach flecked with tangly feta cheese. There was a cooler filled with Hofbrau House lagers, but the dozens of Poland Spring water bottles won the 90 degree day.<\/p>\n

Shortly past 8am we began drifting live eels over a 26-foot deep ledge in The Race, a stretch of fecund water off Little Gull\u2019s Island where Long Island Sound meets Block Island Sound. We lucked into a gentle breeze that gave some relief from the searing sun and mercifully kept the black flies off our legs–except for those of Lenny P. the Sailor<\/em><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

\"Lenny<\/a>

Lenny the Sailor: He took first fish and most fish for the day.<\/strong><\/p><\/div>\n

Couldn\u2019t feel too bad for Lenny, however. He took two-thirds of the day\u2019s pool by nailing the first fish–a fat 33-inch striper–and the most fish–later he added a gorilla bluefish and a frisky sand shark. Bobby, our fearless leader, had two keeper bass, but threw one back in hopes of a trophy that never came. This was my first time fishing with Bob who had not been indoctrinated in Fred\u2019s fishing rules. Note to Bob: Never throw back a keeper. It\u2019s in all the literature.<\/p>\n

\"There<\/a>

There are NO small fish in my hands, not ever.<\/strong><\/p><\/div>\n

My production was nothing to write home about. I landed a short bass and hooked a monster bluefish that bit off before we got it to the boat.<\/p>\n

But back to the star of our show: Sammy Shamu.\u00a0 About an hour into our drift session, Sammy boated a broad-shouldered linesider. In the interest of full disclosure, the very capable mate–\u201dfilet-and-release\u201d Zack–estimated Sam\u2019s fish at 34 inches, 12 pounds.My highly trained eye told me Zack was underselling: 36-inches, 15 pounds for sure. And, I am certain by the time you read this–though this fish has long since been sliced, grilled, eaten and digested–it is sure to be even larger.\u00a0 Reread this story tomorrow and you can add two more inches and two more pounds.\u00a0 Such is the nature of stripers–and fish-tale tellers.<\/p>\n

\"Shamu<\/a>

Sammy Shamu: He scored with the fish of the day.<\/strong><\/p><\/div>\n

With a cooler full of fish, Sammy and I hustled off to Amagansett on the South Fork for a lightning round of organic farm-stand shopping, a swim at the ocean beach and dinner at Big Brother Frank\u2019s house. Hoping to introduce Sammy to the joys of fresh caught bluefish, I went with a mixed grill of bass and blues, dressed with a summery fresh tomato and basil salsa.\u00a0 It all disappeared in record time, consumed along side fire-roasted baby zucchini, a summery escarole salad by SIL St. Toni of the Blitz<\/strong><\/em>, and washed down with a blush California ros\u00ea.<\/p>\n

\"Dinner:<\/a>

Dinner: 40 pounds of bass and blues<\/strong><\/p><\/div>\n

Do we think that Sammy had a good time?\u00a0 I\u2019m guessing yes because the following evening Sammy and his wife asked for the recipe to prepare the rest of his catch precisely the same way.\u00a0For the record, here it is:<\/p>\n

\u00a0Mixed Grill of Striped Bass and Bluefish with Fresh Tomato & Basil Salsa<\/strong><\/p>\n