Mahi-Mahi for dinner!
21 February 2007 | Conception Island, Bahamas
Jim Lea
What a day! Yesterday we left Thompson Bay in mid-morning and had a nice sail up to Calabash Bay at the tip of the island. There we anchored off the Calabash Bay Resort, a beautiful facility on a long white beach. It is a very nice resort with fishing, snorkeling, diving, and all the regular water sports. We went ashore and spent an hour catching up on email, then walked around for a bit, went back to the boat to change, then returned ashore for dinner. Watching the sun set from the restaurant across the calm seas was a very impressive sight. And we saw a green flash, a tropical phenomenon that occurs some times just as the sun dips below the horizon. There is a very very short flash of green across the whole horizon. For dinner we had a grilled grouper and a lobster & shrimp pasta. And, of course, Key Lime Pie for dessert! Calabash Bay is a beautiful bay, but it is susceptible to swells from the north, and there was a nice one left over from the winds on the weekend, so it was a bit of a rolly but quiet night. Then this morning, we listened to the SSB weather forecast. 15 knots @110 degrees... exactly where we wanted to go, so dead on our nose. In any case we set out, rounding Cape Santa Maria and sailed to windward. Just as we got off-soundings (beyond the ability of the depth sounder to read, or about 350'), zzzzzzzzing went the reel. As I reached for it I said to Jeannie "If this is another barracuda, I'm giving up fishing!", and a great green and yellow mahi-mahi leapt clear of the water! Stopping the boat is always an issue, so we let the sails fly free and I grabbed the rod. Up on the deck I began to reel in and he repeated his leaping act, clearing the water and twisting wildly. As I got him alongside the boat, thinking he was exhausted, I leaned over, and when he caught sight of me, he was off again! In all it was close to an hour before I could pour some vodka (Thanks again, Sally) down his throat to quiet him finally. On deck, I stood proudly for pictures (proof!!!) of the 4', 40 pound fish. Next job was filleting him. Again, on deck with a large cutting board and a filleting knife I bought in North Carolina, and after it was all over, I had 14 fillets and a very bloody deck! So it's mahi-mahi for a few nights, and some for the freezer. I will also give some away to a boat we were traveling with. We were both anchored in Calabash Bay, and whhen we were ashore we were chatting with them. They were headed for Rum Cay also, and decided to motor into it as they were making no progress under sail. Not only was the breeze dead ahead, but it was also light, and there was an opposing current of 2 knots. So as we fought with the fish, they motored out of sight. By the time we were cleaned up and under way again, it was clear that we wouldn't get to Rum Cay tonight, so we diverted to Conception Island, only 7 miles away. Tomorrow's wind sounds more favorable for Rum, so we will have broiled mahi-mahi (with olive oil, salt & pepper and a salsa topping, rice & beans and a zucchini stir-fry for dinner. Perhaps a bit of grapes and cheese for dessert!And if I dig deep, I think I can find some cold white wine!