It's 4am and we're off! The skies did not look good my friends....total blackout with camera flashes of lightning that makes it look like daylight for a split second along with Forrest Gump's "big ol' fat rain". We get out to a service station on Pine Island and there's more of the same weather.....so we do a little redneck camping under the gas pump canopy. Two hours later, just as the gasoline vapors were really making for some pretty wicked dreams, Adam wakes me up and the sun's out.......well kinda, but at least we can see any serious cloud formations moving in on us.
We arrive at the launch and the rain has stopped but the thunder and lightning are still hanging around (about a mile away in each direction) . I decide to hang in the truck for a while longer and after several disparaging remarks about the status of my manhood, Adam sets off
.Just as I start to doze off, I hear Adam shouting......I climb out of the truck and find that instead of being melted to his 'yak, he's has a Redfish!
Well, the skies were clearing somewhat........
...and I haven't caught a Redfish in some time sooooo.....
......"Where exactly did you catch that fish again, Adam?"
Adam caught a Bluefish later, but was unable to complete the Dr. Seuss slam....he only needed a one-fish and a two-fish
We both caught dink Seatrout by the truckload, then I hooked into a bigger one but, (yes, this is the story about the one that got away) once I got him on the el sucko, POS, cheap-o Boga grip imitation by Rapala, IT BROKE!!! The flippin' thing broke when I put the fish back in the water while retreiveing the ruler and camera. A solder or something gave way and one of the pinchers came loose. AHHHHG! I'm pretty sure that trout was over 60 inches :P , but alas, I have no pic because Rapala should stick to making lures and not fish lipping devices. Whilst fretting over my loss, Adam was shouting something or other....couldn't understand him....come to find out he had caught a nice trout that became very ornery once in the 'yak....so fiesty in fact that the trebles from the topwater became caught in *ahem* his nether regions. I was unaware of this predicament, but believe me, if I had known there would be a pic of the situation here before I started helping him
. He was able to free himself without damage and the fish measured 21"
The skies were becoming gloomier and the rain was getting harder
But we were still catching fish....my biggest (on camera
) was this 16" trout
The rest of the day was more of the same....bad weather, plenty of small fish. Then I see off in the distance what I think is a ray flapping his wings on the surface. I paddle over in a hurry hoping to cast to some Redfish behind the ray only to find a Manatee flapping his jowls while munching down on a weedline like it was a buffet. I've never thought of reincarnation much, but after watching this guy, it seems to be a pretty blissful life if you're a Manatee. This weedline was hundreds of yards long and all this guy had to do all day was float around and gnarf
The weigh in was at the Lover's Key boat ramp and it was soggy, but the food was good and as it turns out, Adam won 1st place in the kayak division! Congratulations, buddy.
(I'm available for professional photography of tent poles at weddings and bar mitzvah's too by the way)
Big thanks to the Blue Fund for putting on a great tournament. For more information on these kind folks and their wonderful charity here's the link http://bluelinefund.org/Home_Page.php
