I'm planning on taking all the pictures, thoughts and memories from the Ditch Fling and putting them all together on the site. I know, I know....but I really am planning on it! Much as each prior Fling, it was great to meet so many new folks! Equally memorable was time spent with friends that I generally don't get to see too much of. It does my heart good to see so many folks enjoying one of the truly great striper fishing spots on the globe. I am counting the days till I can sneak back up there!

So this main page just doesn't seem to get updated all that frequently and it's causing not only me concern but many of the crew here are beginning to miss the main page updates. I truly enjoy writing this page...I sincerely miss being able to write it fresh every single day. What happened was the online store got way more popular much quicker than I would have ever guessed. It's a blessing and a curse at the same time. It's taking me away from the things I love about this site...but it's also offsetting some of the mounting costs of keeping StripersOnline running. We are nearing another big turning point for this site...well at least I am mulling it over and considering it heavily. What I am thinking about doing is getting out of the tackle business. I never really intended to get involved in it, it just happened. I really want to get out of it...but at the same point, the income has become a necessity to keep things rolling here....a dilemma indeed! Geesh, it's making me sad just thinking about it...I love the fact that I know you guys are getting the best tackle that's out there at reasonable prices. But the growing demands on my time of dealing with all the ordering from my suppliers, keeping things stocked up, chasing down stuff that's in short supply, packaging, shipping, etc, etc...it's taking me away from the very heart of this site - the main page and all the other content pages. I'm torn. I think what I will do intially, should I find the courage to make this decision, is to just carry those things that are not widely represented in the online tackle world...but very important. What are those things? Lamiglas rods and blanks, Habs Plugs, TiCA reels, Mitchell Neptune reels, and some of the Gibbs line...ain't no way I'm gonna give up my ability to get custom colored darters and swimmers! Sometimes being slightly selfish can benefit everyone ;-) I dunno, I haven't made any set in stone decisions yet, but trying to keep all the other things in stock is very difficult when the bulk of the profits go right back into keeping the site paid for. Now if I had $50,000 just doing nothing, I could make it all work...but I don't so I need to do something :-) My goal is to attract advertisers. Yes, there are a good number who are interested, but I have been somewhat hesitant to get them started. It's almost an ethical thing..I don't feel quite right about competing with someone who is paying to advertise here. I'm gambling that my drastically reducing the items carried here will not only draw more advertisers, but it will give me the peace of mind that my advertisers are getting the most bang for their buck. It's a complicated thought process that I am no doubt making more complicated by thinking about it ;-) I'll keep ya informed as I work through this decision...it ain't gonna be an easy one.

The fishing...like I have anytime for such frivilous activites anymore ;-) Anyway, the times I've managed to get out locally, the fishing has been a momentous disappointment to say the least. We are truly reaping the rewards of a terribly mismanaged striper stock. There just aren't anywhere near the numbers of fish around as there have been in each of the past almost 20 years. Yes, they breeze by in the spring and they breeze by in the fall...but the meat and potatoes are all the months between May and November...and the fish just don't live here anymore. Certainly, there are some fish...but they are scattered and unreliable. Summers past used to be a great time to fish...you know, while everyone was screaming about the doldrums...I was catching 10-20 fish regularly at night. Those days are long gone, to land more than a couple stripers a night is now worth noting...and there are more and more nights where you can't find but a single fish. We are nearing a time when we, the people who fish for stripers like rabid dogs, will have a once in a lifetime opportunity to do something positive for the striped bass. We are being given the opportunity to make our voices heard on Amendment 6 of the striped bass management plan. This is by far the most important conservation issue that you as striper anglers will face. The striped bass are at an extremely critical juncture right now. Amendment 6 has basically 3 options.

Option A is to continue harvesting the stripers at the alarming rate that we've been harvesting them for the past roughly 12 years. This option is being called "status quo". Don't let that monicer fool you...status quo means that the stocks and average size and expected life expectancy of the striped bass will continue to plummet! The only thing that won't change is the size and possession limits...the stocks will certainly not improve, the stripers will not get bigger, and within a half dozen years, a 15# striper is going to make headlines. Be very alarmed if any "conservation" organization that you support is in favor of status quo. Question them, hold them responsible for the future of your striped bass. Be likewise alarmed if any conservation organization refuses to take a stand...question them and hold them responsible. Tell them that you want your $$ put towards restoring the striped bass instead of turning the ocean into a breeding pond for commercial interests that constantly want to kill more and smaller stripers. This has to stop.

Option B is to manage the stripers in a manner that will restore the natural age and size structure of the striped bass. This is good :-) What this means is that you as an angler just might be able to fish in an ocean that has a diversified and healthy population of striped bass in it. It means that there will be more big fish, more older fish, and more fish that are capable of spawning great numbers of baby stripers! Killing stripers before they can breed is Option A and it is not working and it cannot work...to make more striped bass there must be a healthy spawning stock. There is a quickly declining spawning stock right now...status quo simply means that the number of striped bass that are allowed to spawn will continue to decline. Less fish able to spawn each year...and how is that supposed to do anyone any good except those folks who mistakenly believe that you will only fish if you are allowed to kill lots of small fish. Don't fall for it, it won't work...the proof is in the past 12 years! It hasn't worked yet, why on Earth would someone expect you to believe that it will suddenly start working? The only way to be certain that you children will be able to enjoy striper fishing of the not too distant past is if you and I put every effort into making it known that we all support Option B for Amendment 6. There's no other reasonable choice. Status quo isn't working now and it won't work in the future. Restoring the stripers natural age/size structure will ensure that there will be enough fish to breed each year to make more fish! The fishing pressure increases each year and that means that each person fishing must kill fewer fish just to keep status quo! In other words, if there's twice as many people fishing for striped bass next year then each person should be able to keep half as many fish as they did this year...and that's just to stay on the current path of destruction! The stripers have been good to us, it's time we all protect their future and push hard for Option B. Make sure any organization that you give your $$ to is aware of how strongly you feel about this. Don't get me wrong, if you want to continue to kill small fish and don't care if there is every any big fish around, it's your right to push for Option A and support those groups that likewise want to continue on the current track...but please consider the future. Let's make a move that's conservation minded for the first time in 12 years when it comes to striped bass...there's been 12 years of plenty...it's time to protect the future.

Option C isn't worth mentioning...but I'll do it anyway ;-) Option C is to manage to striped bass to reduce their numbers (basically, Option A and Option C will reduce their numbers...but Option C is more drastic) The thinking behind Option C is that if there are fewer stripers then they won't eat the crabs, lobster, bunker, etc, etc. Umm...excuse me, but the stripers have always managed just fine along with the crabs, lobster, bunker, etc. This option is a commercially motivated scape goat for their mismanagement of the crabs, lobster, bunker, etc! It's important to force any conservation organization to take a stand on either Option A or Option B...for if they do not, by default that will give the commercial interests and Option C more power...we don't want that to happen!

OK, I'm off the soap box fer now :-) One last thing...all of the above is my opinion based on the science that I've been privy to combined with my never ending first hand on the water experiences. If you are new to the striper scene, trust me, it can be a whole lot better! It wasn't too many years ago when you could expect to plug up a 20# bass each and every night you fished...now if you see one or two a season it's a lot. We can put things right!