Brad Pitt made fly-fising look so easy in A River Runs Through It. Dappled sunlight on blond hair, the big smile and a slight flick of the wrist to set a fly lure right on the lip of a hungry trout. Oh, if that’s all it took.

Thankfully, for the rest of us mere mortals looking to get out from under a tangled mess, help is on the way. On Saturday, May 14 from 8:30 a.m. to noon John Kollett and Sandra Demel at the Martha’s Vineyard Rod and Gun Club will host a workshop for all levels.

Three Vineyard fishermen had a real-life Jaws moment on Friday morning when they encountered a great white shark circling a dead minke whale that had become tangled in lobster line in the area known as Devil’s Bridge off Aquinnah.

Early Bluefish

The first bluefish of the season was caught by an Oak Bluffs angler at Wasque on Tuesday.

George Moran, 66, was fishing for striped bass with another Oak Bluffs angler, Vincent Frye, in the afternoon, overcast with a hollering wind.

Mr. Moran said they were hoping to get striped bass — and he did get one.

But shortly after 2 p.m., Mr. Moran said: “I made a cast, and suddenly I got a hit. It didn’t feel like a bass.”

You want advice about catching trout tomorrow morning?

Cooper A. Gilkes 3rd has a winning starter tip for first-time freshwater anglers: Go early.

Plenty of good fishing techniques will be demonstrated tomorrow morning between anglers, before sunrise at the 37th annual Martha’s Vineyard Rod and Gun Club trout tournament which begins at first light, or about an hour before sunrise. After years of fishing, Mr. Gilkes said he has the technique that works.

In an incident that has reverberated among fishermen up the East Coast, more than 10 tons of illegally caught striped bass were confiscated by environmental police in Maryland over the last two weeks.

Atlantic bonito are here. After rumblings over the last two weeks, reports are coming in that the summer’s fastest swimmers have entered Island waters. We’ve heard that Atlantic bonito, which usually reside in warmer waters, have been taken at The Hooter, a buoy that marks Muskeget Channel.

Capt. Porky Francis of Edgartown said he also is hearing reports that bonito are being taken at Hedge Fence, a shoal that is off Oak Bluffs.

The Martha’s Vineyard Commission Thursday approved a two-year extension to complete a long-planned Oak Bluffs fishing pier.

According to a letter to the MVC from Douglas H. Cameron, assistant director and deputy chief engineer from the state Department of Fish and Game, all necessary local, state and federal permits for the state-funded pier have been obtained, and the project will begin upon the final approval of funding.

The thousands of baby flounder being raised at the Wampanoag Tribe’s Aquinnah hatchery will be released late this summer at Clam Point in Nashaquitsa Pond, part of the Menemsha Pond system, according to the lead scientist of the two-year project to raise winter flounder in captivity and release them into safe waters.

Elizabeth A. Fairchild, of the University of New Hampshire, told a gathering last week at Chilmark Public Library that the Aquinnah project, overlooking Menemsha Pond, has been a great success thusfar in raising the tiny fish.

The local seafood economy is about to get a big boost: The commercial striped bass season opens on Thursday, July 12.

While the recreational angler has been out enjoying the benefits of catching striped bass since before spring, restaurant-goers get their chance next week.

Commercial fishermen are permitted to land and sell their striped bass on Sundays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. Except for Sunday, when the bag limit is five fish, the daily landing limit is 30 fish. The minimum size is 34 inches.

Battle of the Islands

Which island is better? In the interest of unbiased reporting, we’ll let the fish do the talking.

This weekend the Martha’s Vineyard Surfcasters soundly defeated the Nantucket Anglers’ Club in the fifth annual Island Cup fishing contest, held June 22 through 24 on Martha’s Vineyard. The catch and release surf casting contest is designed to build friendships and foster friendly competition between the islands. (And what’s better than friendly competition when you win?)