Most people only dream of catching a big fish every time they cast a line into the water.
Scott Danis of Hollis, his buddy Jeremy Lucas of Nobleboro and fishing guide Ian Sawyer didn’t have to dream. It really happened to them.
Danis and Lucas went with Sawyer on his fishing boat Megan Michelle at the end of July for a night of striped bass fishing. Lucas and Sawyer had a deal. Lucas had taken Sawyer turkey hunting and Sawyer, who owns Pine Island Guide Service in Ogunquit, reciprocated with a striper fishing trip.
The three men landed 45 stripers in just 5 hours, and only stopped then because the fish had worn them out. They had wanted to get to 50, Danis said Monday.
“It was the most epic striper fishing night of my life,” he said.
Striper fishing, which is regulated by the Maine Department of Marine Resources, is really popular in Maine’s saltwater during the summer. Current rules allow fishermen to keep one striped bass per day, which must be from 28 to 31 inches long. Larger and smaller stripers must be released alive.
Fishing had a slow start, but once the sun started to go down, it got busy fast when the fishermen saw a school of stripers busting out some pogies, he said.
Most of the fish were between 38 and 44 inches long, weighing upward of 35 pounds. Only three fish were less than 40 inches, Danis said.
“I’ve caught big fish and I’ve caught a lot of fish, but I’ve never caught so many big fish at once,” Danis said. He caught the biggest fish at 44 inches. They stopped measuring after a while, he said.
The fishermen were using live eels, and were able to reuse some of the bait multiple times. Often two of the men would have stripers on their lines at the same time, leaving one man to help net the fish.
At one point, all three of them were hauling in stripers at the same time. Danis said he reeled his in first and somehow managed to net it, then helped Lucas and Sawyer.
Danis said one of the best things about the experience was how effortless it was. The fish were hungry and the fishermen didn’t have to work hard to find or entice them to bite.
Danis, Lucas and Sawyer released each of the 45 stripers, which swam away, some with a slap of their tails. Danis said that one fish soaked him.
“You just have to laugh when they do that,” he said.
