Fishing if FUN! Well, the actual act of trolling isn’t really a big deal. You throw out a few lines while you’re sailing or motoring and hope for the best. And when you least expect it, you hear that long-awaited clicking of the reel spooling out the line.
Your mind jumps with excitement. What to do first? For inexperienced fishermen like me and Jeff, that’s the first question that comes to mind. I know the answer now. It’s slow the boat down! I learned that the hard way.
Once we get the boat down to a reasonable speed, one of us starts reeling, making sure to slowly pull the rod upright, and reel like hell on the way down. And then you see it! That beautiful flash of bright green and yellow, maybe throw a little blue in there. It’s a Mahi! Careful, don’t let it get away! Pull, reel, pull, reel, it’s a science.
We each have our jobs, things that we’re good at. It’s funny how we learn what those are. Jeff loves reeling in the fish. (But so do I. We take turns.) He gets such an adrenaline rush. And who knew? I’m the one who faints at the sight of a syringe, but I actually manage to stay upright while I impale that poor fish with our gaff. It totally amazes me.
I remember being in 6th grade and getting ready to dissect a fetal pig in science class. I thought I was going to faint, or throw up, or worse – die! But none of that happened, and when I got in there, I found it to be pretty cool. Except for the smell. I’ll never get that out of my nose.
So, now here we are, I’ve gaffed this beautiful 39″ Mahi (our smallest one yet), and it’s bleeding all over the deck. It looks like a murder scene. But that’s ok. Jeff will fill buckets with salt water and wash the blood away when I’m done. Hopefully, I’ve remembered to close the window over my pillow this time.
I get my bottle of Popov Vodka, (the cheapest I could find because I’m not wasting Grey Goose on a fish) and gently pour it into the fish’s gills. Nighty night Mr. Fishy. Thank you for your life. I hope it was good, and we truly appreciate the opportunity to eat you.
That sounds so wrong. But what else do you say? So long and thanks for all the fish?
Then I get out my trusty filet knife that Mike Willyoung gave us as a gift. It’s pretty scary looking. But I go to work. After mangling the first fish I ever filleted, my friend Bowen gave me some pointers. He knows all things fishing, so I paid attention. And it’s a good thing, too, because we got 12 portions out of this fish.
Fishing is FUN!
April 2021