We Never Give Up
(Thanks to Mr Craig Hammock for suggesting the title)
We are America...We Never Give Up. We are fishermen...We never Give Up
The American fishermen/women are a hardy breed. Fishing fast or slow, cold or hot, rough or calm, half day, all day, or over night, it makes no difference; fishing is in our blood. Only have a half day? No problem; the fish are there: However, there is one little problem. Be on guard guys; those ladies and kids can fish:
But so can the guys:
Two half day boats went out this morning. They caught so many grey snapper that it took six very fast professional expert well over forty five minutes to clean the mountain of fish. And why not; this is Florida. This is the 'Fishing Capital of the Worl!' Captain Frank Bacheler and even Captain Mark Hubbard were cleaning fish. It took a total team effort.
For the even more adventurous the extended over-night trips offer a real challenge. Feel up to an extreme adventure? Ok! Let's go. Our home away from home for the next thirty nine hours is ready and so are we. Three P.M. Friday afternoon. As we board the Florida Fisherman ll, Hubbard's Marina, we are simply amazed at this land we call Florida; this tropical wonderland with year around beaches, warm weather, friendly people, and Cuban sandwiches. Yes! I said Cuban sandwiches. Nothing represents the Sunshine State better than chef Tammy's own hot off the grill pressed Cubans. Gosh! We are hungry just thinking about it.
As we cross under John's Pass Bridge the first thing we see is beautiful Madeira Beach. How could anyone possibly want to live anywhere other than Florida?
Captain Bryon punches in the numbers for the far off Florida snapper banks. The kings and mackerel are running. Let's troll until dark:
Mr Eddie Sumrall prepares the outriggers for action:
Ed is one of the best. Way to go partner:
Mr. Larry Eaton, fishing out of Buford, Georgia, hooks up:
What a beauty:
Sundown, time for a Jersey Girl hot off the grill meat ball sandwich with plenty of melted cheese. We must be in heaven. Time to hit the bunks. After all, we will be challenging the monsters of the deep for over twenty hours of actual fishing time.
One A.M. We are ready for action, but the fishing is, by our standards, slow. We catch some very nice mangos but not near as many as expected. Never-the-less, we are fishermen; 'We Never Give Up!' As the sun does it's morning thing our number one fish box still has plenty of room. We are fishing around 140 feet; lets push out to 150. Ed. that's a nice gag:
Master RJ Franklin is so proud of his bonito:
Let's try this wreck in 170 feet. Hopefully the AJ's will be hungry. We catch a few small ones; time to start chumming. The Amber jacks are so thick we can look down and see them. Few takers! Well, let's eat lunch and take a nap. Hopefully the fish will be hungry later in the day. Here it is, that Chef Tammy special hot off the grill Cuban:
That big smile says it all:
Mr. Richard Sipple wants to make sure his live pins stay happy. He feeds them lunch:
Let's move back into around 140 feet and get ready for the evening mango bite.
Mr Bo Janecka lands the very dangerous scorpion fish. The scorpion is one of the worlds most venomous species. Their sting comes from sharp spines coated with a very toxic mucus:
And, speaking of dangerous, look at the size of that lion fish:
Finally! The fish are getting hungry. That's a nice red grouper:
Mr. Richard Sipple:
Looks like the mangos are ready for dinner:
And so are we. Now that tender chicken Alfredo and steamed vegetables are really special. Thank you Chef Tammy.
No matter how many times we see the sunset, it's always special one hundred miles off shore:
Hey! Do your thing. The fishing may be slow, however, 'We Never Give Up!'
Now that's looking better:
The mangrove snapper are on fire:
Oh no! Bo lost a huge king fish just before the gaff. John Martin was luckier:
It's easy to see why, 'We Never Give Up.' This can happen at any time:
First mate, Will, likes to hook huge fish on a flat line and let a lucky angler finish the job. Problem is they are often over-powered. Two hits; two lost trophies. Will tosses a large spot tail from the number five spot, middle of the stern. An instant hook-up. This is a really big, fast, powerful, big boy. Will is drug from the stern, up the port side, to the bow, to the starboard, and back to the stern. It's a blackfin tuna, a record size. The great battle has now been going on for well over thirty minutes with no end in sight:
This speedster is way too fast for the gaff:
Will attempts to lead the mighty fish into Mr. Bo Janecka's huge landing net. Every time the mighty fish sees the net he dives. Oh no! Will's fifty pound test line finally can take no more. What a fight. So long friend. You have earned your freedom.
Time to hit the bunks. Hold on! Richard is determined to fight until the last minute. Rich, that's one to be proud of. See you in a couple of months. Remember! 'We never Give Up!'
Now that was one quick night. Let's check out the jack pot winners and start dreaming of our next trip:
(L-R) Captain Bryon, Mr. Brian Tacy, Mr John Martin, Mr. Richard Sipple:
'We are America...We Never Give Up. We are fishermen...We never Give Up'
This is Florida...how could we?
Even on a slower day:
Be sure to check out all the action. See the great tuna fight:
(click on the Youtube link)
Bob Harbison Florida Outdoor Writers Association
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