One of the downsides of fishing is that the fisherman only has so much control. This can be said of any endeavor, of course, but it's particularly true for anglers here in Connecticut. Sometimes the fish don't bite. Sometimes the fish seem to have somehow picked up and moved on. Far too often, fishing feels like a feast or famine proposition.
Yet the sad fact of the matter is there's nothing anyone can do about it. Fishermen don't control nature. Nor do they control where the fish swim. They also don't control water temperatures. This last point has become glaringly apparent to anyone who has tried to fish the Connecticut side of Long Island Sound these past few months. All a fisherman has had to do is place a hand in the water to realize it's too warm for bait fish.
That isn't to say no one's been able to land a striper or a blue in the Sound. It's just that the chances haven't been nearly as good as they should have been. Still, fishermen have kept on fishing. Why? Because fishing is all about the possibility of catching a fish rather than the thrill of reeling one in. If casinos guaranteed winnings, most people wouldn't have a good time going. Unless, that is, most people consider a trip to the bank fun.
And so Connecticut’s fishermen continue to head out, drawn to local bodies of water by the great “maybe” that sends chills down the spines of all sportsmen. Whether the angler decides to hit a lake, a pond, a reservoir, a river, or the Sound itself, the excitement of going fishing always rests squarely on the ocean of possibilities casting out has to offer.
Here's hoping for cooler water temperatures – and for Connecticut’s fishermen to start reeling in the big ones with more regularity.
