The wife and I have been away since June in beautiful Prince Edward Island. Now that we are back, I thought I'd post a little something about the fish activities out here, with a few pics.
As usual, you can go down to the local wharf just about anytime and haul in a feed of mackeral. They tend to get bigger towards fall with some approaching a pound and a half. Tasty critters whether fried, boiled BBQed or just raw..... saba sashimi makes a regular appearance on our dinner menu. Typically, one casts out with a rig of 3 flies on a leader and a lure on the end for weight. Commonly, as a school passes by, every hook attracts a fish, and you end up with three or four being landed at a time. After two retrieves like this, supper is in the bucket. There will always be fresh ones there for later.
It seems I missed the major trout season, which starts in mid April, and peaks in early June. However, there are still tons of trout in the streams all summer. Just about every brook holds small speckles, the trick is finding some with a size worth keeping. After some exploring maps and clay roads ( I got the car really stuck!), and a walk of about 3/4 or a mile through the bush, I found a beauty of a location with some dandy brook trout. Seeing that the banks were only 5 to 8 feet apart, and I was fishing with a 7 foot fly rod, it made it a test of patience, as every second cast would find a tree. The fish were hidden in the deep pools and were challenging to coax out. Here's a pic of the stream and a couple of keepers.
If you've got a hankering and the tide is out there's clams and arsters aplenty. Most arsters are farmed these days, and I'm lucky to be close to Colleville Bay Oyster Factory where I just keep a running tally and pay up at the end of the season. In the picture we have bar clams (the big brown ones) used for chowder or stuffing; the soft shell or steamer clams (the small light coloured ones), which is what Islanders mean when they just say 'clams'. Good for steaming lightly and serving hot with garlic butter; razor clams ( the long skinny ones), which have the sweetest meat, but are not in high demand because they don't keep that well, but are great steamed or fried; quahogs, (called cherry-stones or littlenecks when smaller, the small brown ones), are great raw. Just split and gulped down with a dab of seafood sauce makes a great snack; and arsters, which, here, sell for $6 to 10 a dozen for medium select. They cost so much more in Ottawa. Great raw, or on the barbie with garlic butter. The wife just loves these.
One late September morning I meandered down to the North Lake wharf and they were bringing in bluefin tuna.....big tuna.....600-850 pound tuna.....3 of them....all caught just off shore by rod and reel. I got talking to the sister of the boats' captain and she says her other brother would love to take me out the next time he goes!!!
The call never came before I left, but I'm lined up for next year.
Maple
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