Frustrating Fishing but Interesting Cooler Weather

The thing about fishing is that- sometimes it sucks.  It's like with gambling, unless you are rigging the cards or reading them or whatever, or if you are fishing a stocked car-sized pond in your backyard you will be disappointed from time to time, sometimes for a streak.  When the bet is higher and failure occurs the result is that much more disappointing.  All I will say about the A effort that Doug and I put in last night is that we essentially drove two hours for ice cream.  But I thrive on frustration and a blocking atmosphere, so you bet I'm going to try that much harder next time, and when I score it will be huge!  And there will be more than one . . .

Yet another ominous shelf cloud moved through, but this one had a lot less wind than the one the other weekend.  The downdraft dropped the tempreature some 15 degrees for a while and it felt awesome compared to the relentless 90s.

Just like there is a 'January thaw' there is a 'July cool down' but this is no ordinary cool down in July.  Today, the 20th, I arrived at the beach to see life guard stands on the verge of drowning and knee deep brown foam blowing around them.  A July nor'easter!  Climatologically, the middle/final third of July has to be the least likely time for a nor'easter, but yet as I type there are gusty NE winds, cool air, rain, and 4-6ft wind swell.  By September, or next week, this storm will surely be catalogued in the whatever category in memory, but for July it is a pretty decent nor'easter- and just as good as any of the winds during the past winter that wasn't a winter.

July Surprise!  I think in the last update, in a caption, I mentioned how when there is storm the beach would go right out because there is no outer bar to break up the wave energy.  If I didn't move the stand the high tide tonight surely would have.

Record warmth in Greenland and a high pressure means cooler weather and NE winds locally.  It's a big world, but then it's not, but it is certainly interlinked.

So as the central United States roasts and Greenland is coming off of record warmth, locally the weather is nice and cool and refreshing.  If you've ever noticed how when you let air out of a bicycle it feels cool, that is similar to what the low pressure overhead is like.  Expanded air is cooler.  The July nor'easter is traceable to the effect of record warmth and high pressure over Greenland, since that type of pattern tends to force cooler weather and NE winds here.  There is a weather station in Greenland that only broke 32F four times from 2000-2011.  So far this July the station broke 32F five times, and on four consecutive days from the 11th through 14th.  That record warmth and high pressure creates a profoundly negative High Latitude Oscillation- and in New Jersey that translates to an unusual July nor'easter.

What this means for fishing is that it's time to surf.  Waves only.  This moon is cancelled, so it's now up to the August full moon to get it done.  But what will it be then?  Thunderstorms, sea weed, upwelling finally, jellyfish . . . That's why when I see someone with a picture of a nice fish and they show it off to me I am happy for them.  There is a degree to which it is okay to brag as I empathize with the dedication and enthusiasm and perseverance that is attached to this great activity.

I might gamble some more tonight- the worst i get is a nice couple of hours in my favorite NE wind weather and the best I get is a night that will make the summer . . . Whenever I can I rig it so I never lose . . .