Several firsts at the CBBT

[J.A. Veil]

I fished yesterday at the CBBT with Walleye Pete and another walk-on angler named Joe. It was a fun day with some exhilarating natural spectacles, good pullage, and some excellent tutelage. The day represented quite a few firsts for me:

1. This was my first trip targeting winter rockfish at the CBBT (great fun).
2. This was my first time fishing with Walleye Pete (a real pro -- he took it easy on me as a first-timer and rookie LTJ guy).
3. This was my first ride on a Judge (very nice boat)
4. I caught my first Virginia rockfish over 20" (about 20 of them)
5. I saw my first sea lice (what a life style)
6. I saw my first gannet and my first gannet divebombing show (extremely amazing and awesome).
7. I posted my first videos on YouTube.

With that as introduction, here is the report. Last Saturday, I saw Pete's ad for a walk-on charter for Jan 31. I had the time available and the weather looked decent, so I called him and reserved a space. I drove to Virginia Beach on Mon morning with my kayak on the roof racks. I kayak fished the Elizabeth River Hot Ditch on Mon afternoon. This was my first time there, and it showed. The weather was fine, but in three hours of slow trolling with three different rods and different lures, I did not get a single bite. Nevertheless, it is always fun to see some new waters.

I met Pete at his marina slip in the Lynhaven area about 6:45 Tues morning. Two other walk-on anglers had cancelled, but Joe, who has fished previously with Pete, was there.


We headed out of the inlet and along the CBBT to a spot that Pete thought would hold fish. We began jigging 1-oz heads and 6" BKDs. I quickly hooked the first fish (23" rockfish), then Joe got two and I got another in the next 15 minutes. That was the end of our morning bite. Pete looked around the area, saw fish on his sonar, but we were unable to induce them to bite.

After checking in with some other captains, Pete headed out toward the ocean. Partway there, he made a binocular scan and found a huge cloud of birds several miles to the north. We rode through choppy seas and soon found thousands of gannets swirling around. I was speechless to watch the large seabirds dive from 50 ft in the air and splash into the sea chasing menhaden. What made the picture so spectacular was the vast number of gannets flying, sitting on the water, and divebombing like a coordinated assembly line. The birds rose up into a cloud, flew laterally a few hundred feet, then dove to the water in a continuous cycle for 30 seconds at a time. The last photo shows Wild Bill's boat.




I took two videos using the video function of my Canon digital camera. I have only used the camera a few times and have not yet mastered the video capabilities. That plus the rocking of the moving boat make the videos somewhat primitive. But they do show the amazing gannet storm. Check them out at:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4H1Fs...GE-ScI06GXR1Ss

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rsbGh...GE-ScI06GXR1Ss


We were very pumped and expected to find big fish under the gannets and bait. Sad to say, we found not a single rockfish there or at the next 5 flocks of gannets we spotted as we worked well north. The only fish we caught there was one shark that Joe hooked while jigging on the bottom. I added to the species total by hooking and retrieving an unhappy gannet. That bill looked ominous up close.




We faced a 15-20 mile ride back over 2-3 foot seas. I must admit that I was glad when we reached the southern end of the CBBT again. Pete checked out the spot where we had caught the four fish in the morning. We saw a small group of gulls working on bait. This time the sonar lit up and the fish were biting. We stayed in the area for the next 2.5 hours jigging BKDs and catching fish after fish (at least 50 fish for the day). These were not the huge rockfish that Pete and other anglers had found a week or so ago. But the fat fish from 20" to 28" were lots of fun to catch on light tackle. Many of the fish had a few sea lice, and several were dripping with sea lice.



Pete and Joe outcaught me. My jigging techniques are still pretty raw. They continued to offer critique and suggestions throughout the trip, such that by the end I was holding my own. I can see why so many TF anglers make the trek south to fish such a spectacular fishery. I had a great time fishing with Joe and look forward to our next outing together. I can't say enough about Walleye Pete. He worked his butt off and ran many miles looking for fish. It was a pleasure to fish with and learn from him. We eventually found the fish and had a blast.

[jumbo1]

The CBBT is an awesome place for the LTJer..............Great read John..Next time there make sure you visit Kellys in cape charles..excellent food..I live a little under 3 hours from that bridge and it's a good thing...if I were a little bit closer I'm afraid I may spend a little too much time there...nice thing about the CBBT this time of year..big fish can show at any time..
Pete works hard no doubt about it...

[240 LTS]

Very, very nice write up!!
I've yet to fish the CBBT (I'm 5 hours north) or with Capt. Pete but someday I will!
Sounds like you had a good day to test the Judge out!

Thanks,
Jeff
240 LTS


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[Timbo]

What a special trip! Its really cool when it all comes together. Heck, I live 5 hrs away and I'd be down more often if I lived much closer. Thanks for the report and pics. Nice write up. I'm envious John. I coulda went too. Even tho I just got back from Panama Canal cruise.

[Bayhawk]

Nice report.... and that's not the "first time" I've said that this year! never fished with Pete, but I've heard lots of good things...Living in the Baltimore area keeps me grounded. If I lived 5 hrs South or 5 hrs North, I'm afraid I'd be a real bad fish junkie.....

[Capt. John Deering]

john, looks like your having fun. good for you.

[Wild Bill]

Hey John-


Those gannets were quite a sight.


Took a little running along the coast to get into what we wanted (90 miles Tues and 107 today) but it was a blast when we found them. Our fish were mostly under small baits. We would fish tomorrow but looks like rain. Don't need that.

[EDGEWATER]

Nice report John. You're getting your share of time on the water this winter.

[Hillbilly Boater]

John, Nice report and good for you. Firsts are great and now that you know the excitement that happens down there, I'm sure it won't be your last trip.

[Shawn Kimbro]

John, I missed your report earlier. Nice work and keep at that jigging. Got a feeling you're gonna have a monster turn up soon.