Where has the time gone? As I get older you would think that you would have more time, but it doesn't seem to work that way. When we moved to Port Isabel, I thought I'd be fishing every day....not! Seems that recently I've been spending more time in the car than my boat, more time doing honey dos than fishing dos, and thinking about fishing much more than actually doing it.
I made a pact this morning as I sat at my computer writing this blog that the month of May was going to have a much larger number of fishing hours marked on my calendar than April... We'll see!
The winds are still blowing, but the fish are still biting. Two weeks ago, a college friend of my wife came down and stayed a few days. She really wanted to fish, but for three straight days it blew 25+...does not make for a pleasant boatride. Finally on the day before she was to leave we had a break. She some how convinced my lively bride to accompany us and we were on the water by breaking light...a miracle!
I headed north towards Three Islands and we started the day near Cavallo Island throwing LL Paint Can Topwaters. We worked hard...the girls were casting as much as I was, but two hours later we were still begging for our first fish. Blowups, but no takers!
I decided to head out on the white sands near the drum boats. We found half way decent water and set up a drift. We were now throwing cohoos in red/chartruse. I connected first with a nice trout and the girls followed with respectable trout. My new MinnKota Talon anchoring system went down and we managed to land another half dozen nice trout. We continued our drift hoping to hook a red or two. I tried to get one of the girls to fish the tower, but they were having no part of it...the water was too....shallow...they were afraid if they fell in they'd break something!
I spotted a nice red and tried to get the girls to cast to it, but they couldn't figure out where 10 o'clock was, so I placed the cohoo in the sweet spot and immediately had a nice 26'"red on. My bride netted the fish and asked why I had not let her land the fish....good question. Next one was theirs.. It didn't take long for me to hook up again. I handed the rod to Marla, our friend, and gave her some helping guidelines to land the fish. It was again a nice 26-27" fish. She almost had it to the net, when it made a run under the boat and quickly exited out the back end...right under the prop. Goodbye redfish!
I rerigged and ten minutes later was on to another red. This one was a bruiser! I had spotted him laying in a hole and I guesstamated him at 30+. I handed the rod to my lovely bride and gave her great words of encouragement...." DON'T LOSE MY RIG!" The red was stripping off power pro faster than I could ever put it on. I told her to tighten the drag ..a little. Remember I'm on the tower watching... she knows where the drag is and she tightens it down..and "POW" goes the line...too much tightening! I thought my rig was going overboard as she got POed.
It was time to go home! It had been a very sucessful day. We had fish in the cooler and the girls both have memories of the one that got away.
Its days like this one that keep me wanting to go back day after day ...maybe may will be that month!
See ya on the water...
