GO fly a kite — at least that is appropriate for this weekend. The holiday weekend will no doubt prevent most anglers from venturing forth and, happily, the longer-range weather forecast suggests that planning shoreside activities is probably a good idea.Not that there aren’t a few fish around with enough positive signs that may mean that fishing season is upon us. It really is time to start planning your excursions afloat and that usually means getting the boat ready for another summer-long campaign.

Best of all, the wahoo are starting to please with some degree of consistency. Some of the commercial boats are making hauls into the double figures and even an abbreviated day on the troll along South Shore or out to Sally Tucker’s has gotten results.

What is a bit surprising is the size range of the fish. For the most part, the spring and autumnal runs are made up of fish of similar size with the odd larger fish turning out to be a bonus. So far this year there have been some nice ‘hoos taken but just lately there are some really small fish showing up. Some of these have trouble making ten pounds and they really beg the question that maybe they should be turned loose. On the one hand, the thought of releasing a wahoo goes against the established grain but on the other, a fish that is barely ten pounds now will almost certainly have more than doubled its weight over the summer.

Something else to watch out for early on in the year. When the wahoo start running, a few mako sharks put in an appearance. May would be the most common month, but it seems to be coincidental with the increase in the numbers of wahoo around the Island. The sure sign that one or more are about is catching a mangled half wahoo or having your expected wahoo totally cleaned off the hook. Many times the culprit goes unseen but there are usually enough tell-tale signs to confirm the presence of this apex predator. Shark fishing experts seem to think that the mako prefers water that is more spring-like than the hot, calm slicks which dominate high summer. While there are no rules cast in stone, experienced skippers and anglers will recall most mako activity has occurred when the wahoo trolling was good early on in the season.

Another species that has turned up with the spring run of wahoo is the sailfish. Never numerous here, it appears that is early spring or late autumn that the spindlebeaks are caught locally. This ties in nicely with the expected wahoo runs and there is probably some connection between the two although why a predominantly coastal species has business out here in the mid-Atlantic is a whole other question.

Back to the bit about kites — they are actually well suited to fishing. And there are a lot of ways in which to be more creative than simply using a kite to get the bait out some distance behind the boat. To look at some of the uses of kites, let us first consider the usual tactic of rigging a flying fish with its “wing” fins extended. A hook is then placed in the bait and the object of the exercise is to use the kite to get the bait some distance behind the boat, usually out into deeper water where the raising and lowering of the kite makes the dead flying fish look like it is alive, skimming along the surface of the waves. Many a tuna has fallen for this ploy and there is no doubt that it does work.

Another rigged bait method is to use a squid in the same manner. Correctly rigged this bears a resemblance to a flying squid and there is no doubt that any passing tuna will take full advantage of such an easy way to catch squid.

An alternative use, locally seldom used method, is to troll with a kite. Again, the kite is used to get the bait, usually a rigged flyer, to skip over the surface of the water. What is different is that by trolling across the direction of the wind is that the bait is farther out of the wake than an outrigger would take it and the forward motion of the boat makes it look like the bait is swimming along the surface. This can attract a predatory fish’s attention at least as well as a normal trolled offering and there are some who say that it works better. The only problem is that the usual situation on the Banks is somewhat crowded and with the twists and turns that a boat has to take to stay on the 30-50 fathom curve, a kite ends up going all over the place and there is plenty of potential for tangling up the lines, creating an unholy mess.

The best use of all is to use the kite to get a live bait out there, allowing it to thrash on the surface. These seldom last long and this can be a useful technique for getting a live bait away from any barracuda or other undesirables that may have taken up residence close to the boat that is chumming. If the lie is right and the wind is cooperative the bait should end up out in the deep where the preferred species should be cruising.

Inshore waters are now seeing schools of jacks and it won’t be long before the grey snappers start to take up their summer abodes around shady docks or bridges. Similarly, non-game species such as sailor’s choice or yellow grunts will also please shoreline anglers.

Over on the South Shore beaches, pompano should be nothing short of abundant and extremely willing. All it takes is the most basic spinning gear to have a go at this small but pugnacious species. This is also an easy step up for someone who wants to try their hand at fly fishing. Once chummed up the pomps will hit almost anything. The trick to using a fly rod is to learn to throw the line where you want it to go, taking into account the effect of the breeze which can be devastating.

As April wears on, the fishing situation will improve rapidly. It won’t be long before just about every Sunday and a fair few weekdays will be given over to the tournament circuit. Before that happens, it helps to have a run or two to get the mothballs out, so to speak. It is this sort of pre-season time that offers some good opportunities for Tight lines!!!