MY FIRST FISHING TOURNAMENT

This past weekend, Chuck, Brian, Kyle and myself, went hunting for that award winning fish. It all started at 5 am Saturday morning. The boat was loaded with bait and ice, we headed out to find big fish. The weather forecast was 15 knots of wind and 1.5 -2 feet waves... they lied. When we reached the area we targeted it was brutal. Six foot rollers made the ride uncomfortable, to say the least. It was not a fruitful day of fishing either. Everything we caught was not legal until next month.

Kyle's black grouper... not legal.

Sunday. Again we leave the dock at 5 am. Determined to come back with fish in the box, Chuck had a plan. After reaching our destination and two blocks of chum over the side, we dropped our hooks in the water and watched it float back with the current, hoping to interest a hungry yellowtail snapper. In no time, we started pulling one after another in the boat. These were nice size fish. The yellowtail are not a large fish, but they are very tasty. When our chum was gone, so were the fish. We moved on to target another type fish. Chuck's next plan was to troll for a while, hoping for a sailfish. The six foot waves made for a rough ride. At times, the boat would drop off a wave so fast, I would come off the seat. I found that laying down was easier on my body, besides... I was tired and sleepy.

"It's just a little fish."

There are many "wrecks" around the Keys. Wrecks are sunken ships that make for a wonderful place to catch big fish. These structures are home to many different kinds of fish, and big ones too. Kyle hooked a fish, and his immediate comment was, "It's just a little fish." About two seconds of reeling, that "little fish" grew. The line suddenly got tight and the rod bent almost to the water. This was one of those times that the fish you hook, becomes "bait" for a bigger fish. Kyle fought it for about 20 minutes, and the fish never budged and just laughed at Kyle's efforts to bring him in. It was obvious that we couldn't get that Goliath in the boat with that rod and line, so the line was intentionally broken.

Top eight

On the way to the weigh-in, our catch was pulled from the box and the top eight were lined up on the deck. Only one yellowtail could be weighted and entered into the tournament. Chuck looked them over and chose the biggest fish, it was one that Brian caught.

With fish in hand, Brian takes his fish to the scale and we eagerly watch and see 3.17 pounds on the display. That is big for a yellowtail, and the heaviest caught that weekend! Our boat was a winner!

3.17 pounds

It was another great weekend in Key West. It had all the ingredients for a great time: water, sun, boat, fishing, and spending time with my Sweetie. It doesn't get any better than that!!!