WOW! There can be no complaining about the weather. In fact, those who can never be pleased are saying that it is too calm. Fear not, though ¿ despite the fact that we seem to have escaped most of the tropical season, we will soon have the winter to contend with. If the pattern holds true, we may be able to scrounge another few weeks' worth of good weather but then the passage of cold fronts will see rainy, gusty days and a cessation of interest in the offshore. In the meantime, we should take advantage of some uncommon but rewarding conditions.

As to wahoo, so far no frigate mackerel but there are plenty of them around. Those who prefer to use live baits in the hope of drawing larger fish are relying on robins but why go to the bother? Old-fashioned trolling using baits or artificial lures is paying off with some good hauls of wahoo with many boats managing to get into double figures. The most common complaint is that the fish are small but, this is not really the case. There are enough 'hoos in the 40-pound plus bracket to make life interesting and some considerably larger have also been caught.

Although most prefer to work the Banks, there have been some good catches down off the East End and along Bermuda's Edge. The action has been pretty much spread all over. From the casual angler's point of view, this is great. It is nice to be able to slip out just about anywhere, even along the South Shore, and stand a good chance of catching a wahoo with only the briefest of effort. One wahoo is enough to satisfy most amateurs' needs; two or three allows you to freeze some for the future and there is no reason to be greedy. Catch a couple and come home or concentrate on bottom fish, thereby saving on fuel.

Something else that there are a lot of, and this is a seasonal thing, are barracuda. These are numerous at this time of the year and are willing to take most trolled offerings. Lots of would-be wahoo strikes turn out to be barracuda and they are more numerous in the shallower water just inside of the drop-off. Occasionally they can be found out in deeper water but they love structure so places like the site of Argus Tower usually have a number of them hanging around.

Often referred to by pros as "dragons", they are an important component of the local commercial fishery. They are also almost always willing to please and can supply a bit of action when everything else has gone quiet.

Now, let's not be too finicky or act like you have never had it before. The truth of the matter is that, for many years, one of the staples in the fillet bag has been barracuda. Bottom line: they make excellent white meat fillet and are nothing short of abundant.

Actually, the barracuda gets a bit of a bad rap. Most anglers find them a nuisance because they take up residence in a chum line and scare away all the robins and rip up any hooked fish like mackerel. That simply does not fit in with the average angler's agenda.

Likewise, most anglers do not want to waste a live robin on a barracuda particularly if the baits are hard to get and the intended species is wahoo or tuna. Complaints include that they are useless and they stink.

They are covered in a slime that is unpleasant but one doesn't have to have much to do with it. Some people claim that they don't notice it or just dismiss it as a "fishy" smell. Actually, it really isn't much worse.

To the former claim, they are not useless. They can be hard to gaff and their teeth do pose a menace but one that can readily be dealt with in the usual fashion. Once they have been filleted, they turn into nice white slabs of tasty fish. Given their size and shape, it is possible to get a boneless fillet quite easily.

This sure beats filleting a whole bunch of barbers or coneys. Figure the fillet yield about one-third of the fish's total weight. The average barber weighs a pound so the fillet is about five ounces. A decent barry will weigh from eight to ten pounds and that means about three pounds of meat with just a couple of strokes of the knife. Of course, they grow considerably larger and that just makes for more meat.

Ciguatera, or a form of fish poisoning, is often associated with top predators like barracuda. Happily for us, although the disease is not unknown here, it is extremely rare and the barracuda is as eligible a food fish as any other.

Just to put things into some sort of perspective, the marine taxidermists (fish mounters) in Florida do more barracuda than any other species. Their ferocious appearance and the fact that even small fish, in terms of weigh, reach a reasonable length (2-3 feet), make this a welcome conversation piece in most homes or offices.

If variety is what is desired, then consider slipping out into the deep. There are still quite a few blue marlin around and these are tending to be of a more manageable size. Manageable in that they are in the 150-300 pound range and are well suited to 50 or 80-lb tackle. Blues in this size class usually put on a good aerial performance which, on a calm day, can be nothing short of spectacular.

Other than that, there isn't too much around. Yellowfin tuna have been scarce all year, for whatever reason and it is hard to justify putting in much effort for something that might not be there. Dolphin are spotty at best and while there should be a few around now, this is another species that you are better off waiting for them to come to you.

Even small boaters should look to take advantage of the present good weather and fine fishing conditions. There should be plenty of snapper, bonita, ambers, coney and barber on the inner bottom. While few of these really fit into the category of game fish and even those that do are likely to be overpowered by the tackle used, they are still well worth catching. All of these make for nice fillets that can be enjoyed fresh or frozen for a later appearance when winter starts to become a reality. It won't be too long now before your imagination or a piece of fish out of the freezer is the nearest thing that you will get to Tight lines!!!