Pink Bubbalicious




The Drought is over (maybe).

Well, it's hot pink in color and really, really gooey when its wet but, it certainly aroused the taste buds of this beauty -- a twenty-five and a half-inch Redfish (Red Drum).  A Keeper that already has replenished the stock of fish in the freezer -- this time mostly as nice sized steaks instead of a fillet or two.

I did make the 20 some mile trip east to Okaloosa Island and pulled in at the west foot of the bridge going into Destin -- the same spot where something broke the hook on me this past Monday afternoon when I had gone there just to explore.  Yesterday, I had also stopped at the Visitors Center some 5 miles to the west on my way to fish and checked to see if there were any other beach accesses and/or shorter routes to the western rock jetty along the channel leading into the Destin Harbor -- no such luck.  So, I made the long walk along the beach and decided to fish at the jetty where some small patches of sand were available for planting one pole support for my large rod while I threw some lures with my smaller rod.  I didn't go to the very end as I thought it more difficult to climb the boulders and more problematic to land a big fish (if I had been so lucky as to hook one).



One Martini to go please.

After about an hour of fishing with no strikes or bites, I decided to backtrack to a point on the beach where it was easier to cast into the channel and its deeper waters and still tested the deeper shallows with my lures.  I had arrived sometime before 11:00 a.m. and as I fished the point with no results, I snapped a few pictures and looked longingly at the large conglomeration of buildings at the harbor's edge to the east -- thinking of maybe quitting early and getting a martini or two before heading back to Navarre.  An older guy in shorts confirmed that it was 5 til 2:00 as he passed by and I leaned more heavily in favor of finding one of those bars I had seen advertised on the local TV station -- maybe one of those special concoctions could kill the disappointing day of fishing.

Well, I gathered my things and moved closer to the parking area and decided to throw back towards the bridge again where that big "something" broke the hook.  I planted my big pole in the support in the sand at the new location and began to throw my lure on either side of my deep line.  After about a half dozen throws to either side, something hit the big rig and nearly pulled the rod support over (I completed the process by knocking it over as I grabbed the rod, set the hook and dropped my small rod to the sand).  Guess that was about 2:30 and the fun was on -- first and only bite resulted in one nice fish.  And I caught it on "Fishbites" (Pink Bubbalicious).

 



View from the bar last night.

Today is Friday and all the working folks should hopefully be working so, that bridge is looking to be the spot to try again for another "Bull Redfish" (30 or 40 pounder perhaps).  The beach tomorrow (with "Fishbites").