Pat, we blundered into a school of big AJ's -- every one between 40 and 60 lb -- and they flat wore us out. Back then the limits were a lot looser, we could take (I think) four per person, including the captain, so for two fisherman that was six each.
Six times 25 to 35 minutes of absolute strain in every muscle of the body. And there was little time to rest, the school was hungry.
After one, I was panting but thrilled. What a fight!
After two, I was hot, sweaty, and tired. After three, I was utterly whipped and ready to call it a day. After four, I faked a need to visit the head so I could get a break. Hard to lift my arms. After five, I said No Mas to a big fish on the line for the first and only time in my life.
We finally went in, but the captain spotted a shrimp boat cleaning its nets and thought it would be fun to stop there and tangle with jack crevalle...just for the sport of it. It really was exciting to see a 50lb fish rocket up to take the bait, but by that time I would have preferred to go in and drink a few gallons of GatorAid.
Best fishing trip I've ever had or ever will have. But we were totally beat puppies when we got to shore with a 5 hour drive ahead of us!
Last edited by anthropic; 03/01/15 02:10 AM.
