Five days into the 74th annual Striped Bass and Bluefish Derby, all over the Island fishermen are hauling their packs of tackle along the shoreline or heading out in boats.
The fish are beginning to climb their way up the scales as the 74th annual Martha’s Vineyard Striped Bass and Bluefish Derby approaches the halfway mark. More than 3,500 anglers have registered and 665 fish have been weighed in.
Some kids believe in the tooth fairy. The kids in the Kleeman family believe in the fish fairy. So far, the Kleeman kids have landed on the junior leaderboards multiple times and have been battling each day to remain at the top.
Four weeks into the Martha’s Vineyard Striped Bass and Bluefish Derby, the leaderboard remains static and the fish remain fickle, as Island anglers struggle with scarce catch and some scary weather.
With 51 minutes to go during Saturday night’s final weigh-in for the 74th Striped Bass and Bluefish Derby, it seemed as if all the fish on the grand leaderboards were going to hold.
The bell will ring and the first fish will cross the scale Sunday morning as usual. But beyond that, little will be as usual when the 75th Martha’s Vineyard Striped Bass and Bluefish Derby gets under way.
Serena Ward, fishing in her first derby, earned bragging rights for the first fish, an 8.4-pound false albacore. Chuck Winter was second with a 4.44-pound bluefish.
