A Fishy Surprise
16 May 2015
Dutch Dresser
On the passage from St Simons, South Carolina, to Brunswick, Georgia, we spotted a number of seabirds and porpoises in an offshore area early in the trip. Using Peter McCrea's axiom for catching fish, "First you go where the fish are," I threw a lure overboard. We dragged that lure for the full trip, and, frankly, forgot about it.
As we were entering the then busy channel in Brunswick late in the afternoon, I was down below when I heard a whirring of fishing line peeling out and Jeffrey's simultaneous call, "you have a fish on."
I hustled to the rod and began trying to reel in the catch. At first, it was so difficult I wasn't sure I'd be able to land the fish. Once the adrenaline had settled a bit, and we had sense enough to take some way off the boat, reeling was still difficult, but manageable if I pulled the rod back and then reeled quickly as I let it go forward.
After a while, we were saw a flash in the water as the fish shot under the boat in a last ditch effort to free itself. When I had the fish close enough, I swung him into the cockpit where Jeffrey quickly put his Croc-clad foot on the middle of the fish. The skipjack tuna, 8-10 pounds, wasn't at all happy with his lot and thrashed to demonstrate that displeasure. The teeth in his mouth made it clear we shouldn't try to handle him just yet.
I grabbed the "fish rum," the cheapest booze in the locker, and poured ample doses over his gills. He quieted, and, after a bit, died. I removed large filets from the fish and put them in the freezer immediately feeding the rack to his predatory peers.
When one filet was pan-fried the next day, it amply fed two "good eaters," and it was remarkably good. Elaine and I thawed and ate the second filet a few nights ago, and it will still fresh and flavorful. We'll keep dragging those lures looking for more tasty surprises.