By tomconley
…was a good one! Capt. Josh took the Yankee Freedom out on Saturday, December 19 for the Yankee Fleet’s final fishing trip of 2009. He reports a good day overall for the 30 anglers on board, most of whom were regulars willing to brave the chill for one last shot at some pollock and haddock.
The morning started off a bit slow, as the pollock were scattered high in the water column and were tough to set up on. Over the course of the first stop, however, the fish settled further down near the bottom and began to feed, and an hour after anchoring up it was fish(or double-header)-a-cast action for most on board. All good-sized specimens today averaging 12-15 pounds with a plump 24-pounder winning the pool.
After hammering away at the pollock for an hour or so, Josh steamed off in search of haddock with fair success, plus more pollock. Looking to end the day/season with a bang, he moved back onto the pollock for the last stop to fill up the sacks and freezers for the long winter ahead.
Thanks to everyone for a memorable 2009 season. Happy holidays to you and yours and see you in April!
Willy G
By tomconley
The Yankee Freedom is scheduled to head out on both Saturday and Sunday, weather permitting, from 7AM-4PM, targeting haddock and pollock. At least 17 people need to book to make it a go–be sure to call the office by 4PM at the latest the day before each trip to make a reservation!
By tomconley
The weather’s washed out the last couple of days, but the Yankee Freedom is planning to head out Sunday. Give the office a call to get out there! Large heated cabin and galley to ward off the winter chill.
Willy
By tomconley
Sorry for the recent delay in updates!
Capt. Josh took the Yankee Freedom out last Friday, December 4 and reports a fair to good day overall. The pollock were on the move, and it was hard to effectively anchor on top of them, making their successful capture a function of Josh’s persistence at the wheel and anglers’ persistence at the rail. Most of the trip consisted of quick flurries followed by a few minutes of nothing, then another quick flurry, as schools of fish would scurry under the boat. As usual, skilled casters like Dave Parsons, who had upwards of fifteen fish himself, hooked up far more consistently than those who flopped their jigs straight down. They tried a stop for haddock at the end of the day with limited success, experiencing only a slow pick on the silver ones. A 20-pound pollock won the pool. The highlight of the day was a fat 28-30-pound codfish that snapped up a jig before being successfully lip-gaffed and released by mate Capt. Kirk. Them’s the breaks.
The Yankee Freedom is scheduled to run this coming Thursday through Sunday, weather permitting. Give the office a call for an update on the weather and to make sure there are enough anglers booked for the boat to sail.
Willy
By tomconley
Sunday’s report on the Yankee Freedom: Get anything half-resembling a jig within 80 feet of the bottom, and congratulations: you’ve caught yourself a pollock. Absolute silliness on Sunday, with 7-15-pounders committing suicide until anglers had had enough and Capt. Josh moved off ‘em. Want to fill your and your neighbors’ freezers? Now’s the time…
Next trip is scheduled to be Thanksgiving Day, weather permitting. Trips are scheduled to sail on Friday, Saturday and Sunday as well.
Willy G.
By tomconley
Just talked to Capt. Josh, who ran today’s (11/21) trip aboard the Yankee Freedom. The first anchor stop produced a true pollock slam for almost two hours–fish-a-cast doubles on jigs and teasers before hitting bottom…although many anglers who used leader material of less than 80lb test broke off a number of jigs on the brutes. And they were brutes–although fish averaged 10-15 pounds, there were at least a few dozen over 20 pounds and three confirmed 30-plus-pound beasts. Those are big pollock! I’d recommend using at least 80 lb monofilament leader for a jig/teaser rig; 100lb isn’t a bad idea.
By the time the fish finally started to become a bit finicky, still eating but only attacking jigs casted far away from the boat, most anglers had had enough of them, both in terms of meat in the box and PAIN in their shoulders, arms, and backs. Josh moved off in search of haddock, first anchoring for 45 minutes and then setting up a drift. Both stops offered a steady pick of haddock with some cusk and pollock mixed in, although the action never really got hot and heavy. Still, those who stuck with it managed to top off their coolers of pollock with a few tasty haddock. It was a very good day overall, with wide-open, excellent pollock fishing in the morning and fair to good fishing on a variety of groundfish in the afternoon.
Next trip leaves tomorrow at 7AM–now’s the time if you want to tangle with some bruiser pollock!
Willy
By tomconley
I had the opportunity to jump aboard the Yankee Freedom yesterday to 
help film a fishing show for On The Water Television. A full load of eager anglers joined Kevin (editor/host), Matt (cameraman) and I as Capt. Tom took us out in search of pollock 
and maybe some haddock as well. It was an absolutely perfect day out there—sunny, warm and calm, with just enough of a breeze to stay cool wearing just a long-sleeved T-shirt!
The morning started off with a bang—not quite “old-tyme-pollock slam”-level action but generally fish-a-cast activity for those slinging jigs with a generous amount of double-headers thrown in as well. Fish were of mixed sizes—one cast would result in a 20-incher; the next, a 20-pounder. I saw at least half a dozen fish pushing 20 pounds come over the rails, with one toad that probably went 25 taking the pool. I managed to hit three or four nice-sized (8-14-pound) fish on a light-tackle rod with a 6-ounce diamond jig as well, making for some fierce battles and great TV footage!
We shifted around a bit in the morning, and generally found fish eager to bite everywhere we went, but once the tide went slack in the late morning the pollock spread out and ceased to “make up” on the pieces of bottom where one would expect to find them. Nevertheless, anglers persisted throughout the late morning and into the afternoon, still enjoying a pick on pollock, cusk, hake, and a few haddock and short cod that were released.
Right at the end of the day the pollock seemed to turn back on again, and we enjoyed 
a fierce blast of action at the last stop before Tom pushed up the throttles and we headed back to G-town.
Overall, it was a tremendously enjoyable day on the water, with very good fishing on the pollock in the morning followed by a fair grinding pick for the rest of the day, followed by a good surge of activity right at the end. Thanks to Kevin, Matt, and of course the whole YF crew for another fun trip!
Willy
By tomconley
With the closing of cod season, the Yankee Fleet has switched gears, targeting primarily pollock and haddock. Capt. Josh has typically begun the day in search of pollock, and depending on the action, sometimes switches over to haddock toward the end of the day. But the latter might become more unpredictable as we move deeper into November, so bring those jigs and plan for pollock! From here on out, all trips will be run on the 100-foot Yankee Freedom.
10/30: Capt. Kirk reports good fishing on Friday’s trip aboard the Yankee Clipper. They drifted all day in spite of a hard-running tide and it paid off; they managed to evade the dogs for the 
most part while doing well on the groundfish. They made four long drifts, catching about a 60/40 split of haddock and codfish, the latter ranging from barely-keepers to 10-pounders. A strong pick with some solid flurries characterized each of the drifts. Jigs seemed to do better on both species and also avoided the dogs. Pete Jones took the pool with a plump 32-pound cod at the very end of the day.
10/29-10/30 overnighter: Capts. Tom and Dave report that the overnight trip on the Yankee Freedom started out with a good surge of medium pollock at sunrise, followed by a stop that produced a steady pick of haddock. Later in the morning, however, the dogfish became unbearable and they elected to make a substantial shift in search of codfish. They succeeded, drifting over obliging mixed-size schools of cod, ranging from shorts to the 19-pound pool winner. Sounds like it was a good trip overall, with some really bright moments but a few periods of slower fishing as well.
10/31: On the last day of cod season, Capt. Josh targeted codfish on the Yankee Clipper, and was rewarded with some solid action on the drift in the morning, despite breezy conditions that made tending bottom difficult. It was fish-a-cast action for jiggers, although the short:keeper ratio was in the neighborhood of 3:1. The wind eventually became too much to continue drifting, and they anchored up in the afternoon, experiencing slower action but still picking away at a mix of cod and haddock. The pool was a 19-pound cod. Josh called the trip fair to good overall, with good drift fishing in the morning and fair action on the anchor later on. So ended the 2009 cod season in the Gulf of Maine!
11/5: After a spate of bad weather, Capt. Josh ran the all-day trip on the Yankee Freedom, reporting a fair day as a whole. He found the pollock, but they didn’t bite as savagely as everyone hoped they would. Casting a jig far away from the boat was the only way to consistently hook up with the boat-shy fish. Nevertheless, they were able to put a good number of them in the boat, the largest of which weighed 18 pounds and took the pool. Also in the mix were a good number of haddock and a handful of white hake from 5-10 pounds.
11/7: Aboard the Yankee Freedom, Capt. Josh reports another fair day overall. The morning began with a good drift on the pollock, during which they put a pile of the larger models in the boat, including the pool-winning 20-pounder. After that, however, they experienced just a grinding pick on a mix of pollock and haddock with some white hake mixed in. Jig fishermen did substantially better on average than the bait dunkers.
11/8: Sunday’s day trip aboard the Yankee Freedom, Capt. Josh reports, began with an anchor stop that first offered only a slow pick, but then turned into a 45-minute pollock slam for the jig fishermen. At the same time, those fishing the clams caught a mix of haddock and small hake as well. Eventually the pollock pandemonium petered out and Josh made a shift in search of haddock. He found them; anglers enjoyed a strong pick on the silver fellows with a few coming up at all times over the course of an hour and a half. At the end of the day, they made another stop on the pollock, which once again obliged, and they put a few dozen more on the boat. A good to very good day overall, Josh said; both target species were located and were willing to bite! A pollock in the 18-pound range took pool honors.
There is an all-day trip tomorrow (Veterans Day) aboard the Yankee Freedom, departing at 7 AM and returning at 4 PM. The trip has an extremely light load of anglers and Josh has high hopes. Join us!
By tomconley
When the weather allows the boats to make it out to the grounds, the fishing over the past week or so has been really solid, with cod and haddock making up the bulk of the landings but with more and more pollock showing up all the time. Dogfish have been a bit of a nuisance on some trips but should be thinning out shortly with the dropping water temperatures.
10/21: After staying tied to the dock for almost a full week due to uncivil weather, Capt. Kirk reports that last Wednesday’s day trip aboard the Yankee Patriot was good overall, despite a rather strong dogfish presence. In the morning anglers experienced a good pick on a mix of haddock and codfish (about 70% haddock), with just a handful of cusk mixed in as well as a couple of good-sized wolffish. In the afternoon, Kirk marked a pile of pollock and jig fishermen cashed in on a pollock slam for about an hour, with double-headers of larger 14-18-pound models keeping gaffs flying. Those fishing bait continued to catch cod and haddock while the jiggers bailed pollock, although the doggies were still a bit of an issue for the former. A pair of 20-pound pollock tied for the pool.
10/22: Thursday’s marathon aboard the Yankee Patriot was very good overall, according to Capt. Kirk. They drifted all day except for the last stop, catching fish everywhere they went on both bait and jigs. Dogs weren’t much of an issue at all. They ended the day by drifting over a pollock hump and putting a pile of fat specimens in the boat, although they weren’t biting quite as viciously as yesterday. A trio of 15-pounders tied for pool honors. High hooks had upwards of 15 fish.
10/22-23 Overnighter: Capts. Tom and Dave ran Friday’s overnight trip aboard the Yankee Freedom in rather sporty conditions, although the large vessel handled the seas just fine. Unfortunately, the bite never really came on strong for the hardy crew of anglers. They had a few quick flurries of large pollock in the morning, but the bite then settled into a grinding pick on cod and haddock for most of the trip. The pool was a three-way tie of 18-pound pollock. Capt. Tom dubbed the trip fair as a whole; there were always a couple of fish coming up but never quite as many as he would have liked to see.
10/23: Capt. Kirk tried to make a go of it on Friday’s day trip, but the conditions were just too snotty. He turned the Yankee Patriot around after making it out past the breakwater. Saturday’s trip was cancelled as well.
10/25: Capt. Josh reports fair fishing overall for a full load of anglers aboard the Yankee Clipper on Sunday. Anchoring into a strong tide in the morning, anglers ground away at mostly haddock, with some cusk and legal cod mixed in. In the afternoon, the tide slacked off and Josh went looking for some pollock. He found them, with some haddock mixed in too, but the action was never quite as fast as he would have liked to see. High hooks included Keith and Loretta, who had upwards of 20 fish between them, while a 21-pound white hake took the pool.
10/26: Sailing with a light load, an enthusiastic Capt. Josh called in to report a good to very good day of fishing aboard the Yankee Clipper. Codfish on jigs were the order of the day, with anglers experiencing fast action, although there were a lot of shorts in the mix; Josh estimated that one out of every 3 or 4 cod that came aboard was a keeper. In the morning, bait fishermen caught some fish too, with not many dogfish around to harass them, although jigs held the decisive advantage. In the afternoon, they made a shift and found some better quality market cod from 8-15 pounds, although this area seemed to be inundated with dogfish that even attacked the jigs. Within a few seconds of touching bottom there would be a fish on the line: either a quality codfish or a doggie. A 15-pound codfish won the pool.
10/27: Today’s limited-load trip aboard the Yankee Clipper started off with challenging conditions due to a ripping tide, according to Capt. Josh. The bite seemed to be off as well, and anglers experienced a slow pick for the first couple of hours. In the late morning and early afternoon, however, conditions improved dramatically and Josh was able to set up a couple of productive drifts, experiencing good action on mostly codfish. So, while the morning was slow, the afternoon was good, making for a fair to good day as a whole. A fat 19-pound codfish won the pool.
The Yankee Fleet intends to continue running seven days a week until November 1, when we’ll be running Thursday-Sunday. New this year, however, is the “Minuteman Club,” which will start next week: During the months of November and December, if the weather looks good on a Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday we’ll e-mail you 48 hours in advance to see if you’re interested in a trip, and then call to confirm the day before. There’s no obligation to get on the list, and it’s a great way to take advantage of any early-week weather windows that might pop up. Give the office a call at 1-800-942-5464 to sign up.
By tomconley
Bill at Yankee Fleet only has a few trips to report this week. Once again the weather has kept us tight to the dock. The few days we were able to get out, the fishing was very good. Mostly Haddock and Pollock,
A few nice Cod were caught and most of the action was on bait. The Thursday Marathon produced great fishing. Almost every face on the boat recognizable
We will continue running daily trips throughout the fall. Starting November 1st our all day trips will be going Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday at 7am. As always, reservations are a good idea, so you don’t get stuck on the dock. We will have the option to run two boats when needed, as well.
A new idea we have come up with is the “Minute Man” club. We are looking for people that want to fish in the month of November and December as much as possible. If we see a nice day to go fishing we would email you 48 hours in advance and call and confirm the trip the day before. If you are interested in getting notice of trip that we will put on the schedule, give the office a call to sign up. There is no obligation to get on the list. Give us a call at 800-942-5464.
Yankee Fleet