Another Day -- Another Round of Fishing

Well, I think I'm ready for another few hours again this afternoon -- I know my thumb isn't ready for another hook stuck in it.  I also wanted to caution anybody going out on these piers, that there are some guys who don't look over their shoulders before they cast to see who is behind them -- nearly saw one guy (another fisherman who should know the dangers) almost walk into one young guys backswing.  Maybe he came within a foot of two of having one of those nasty lures stuck in his face, body, or side of the head.

John and his Cobia

I try to look in both directions before casting and sometimes overly energetic kids come dangerously close to see the fish I might have caught -- I try to warn them and show them the hooks and the nasty teeth of the mackerel.  They inflict some nasty bites and I know personally of the pain when that treble hook gets its barbed tip into you.

Another young guy in a small foursome to my left (two guys and two girls), were fishing and like me, one of the guys also got the treble hook through one of his fingers -- happened about an hour or more after my experience.  He laid on the pier for some time afterwards fighting the pain as a couple young guys had pushed the hook through and cut the barbed tip off in order to remove it.  After some 10 minutes of him lying on the ground, I went over to see if he had cleaned the wound or bandaged it -- showed him the nearby rinsing station, gave him one of my antiseptic pads and one of the bandaids.  His friends fished on.

Yesterday's Wind-whipped Surf

Before the young group arrived, I chatted with a young guy (Tate) just to my left and found out it was his father (John) who had caught the monster Cobia the day before and he came to try his luck on the Spanish Mackerel -- seemed he, like me, was still in the learning process of how to catch them but, he had the same initial lure on his rig (much more expensive $200 pole I heard him say).  A little later, he got a little too casual with one of his catches and got nipped and cut by one Mackerel's teeth -- a few yelps and another rinsing required but, then back to fishing again.  Suspect I'll probably see him again as they are here for the week.

Surfers Were There Too.

Another oldster like me, turned out to be staying at the same RV resort and has been here for 9 nine years -- frequenting the pier about every other day and sharing Mackerel fillets with his neighbors here at Emerald Coast.  He fished with an old style open-faced reel but, had the same kinds of lures which got him the same reaction and fish we all were there to catch.  Some were too big for his small cooler and he resorted to putting them in "Walmart" bags.  There also was another older guy that came later, and he also had problems with his enclosed reel and had to cut short his fishing day as it too "gummed up" and got fouled from the saltwater.  My two rigs are rinsed and ready and the big cooler is still in the Jeep, in case something big gets on my line -- some of those Spanish Mackerel yesterday barely fit diagonally into my middle-sized cooler (the converted "Omaha Steaks" styrofoam shipping package I received containing my birthday treats).

Maybe today I will try one of those steel leaders in my tackle box and see if the Mackerel still hit the same lures (which I need to buy more of today on the way to the pier).  Only looking for the bigger fish today and will probably try some practice casting with the bigger rig -- hope I will see that Cobia again (even if I don't get him on my line).  If I do, I hope my 23 pound test line will hold up -- my back, wrists and arms too.