Once Norm and I hit the water, we got into some similar action, minus the drum. The water was pretty clear compared to previous visits, making them a bit spookier. (At least that’s what I kept telling myself all the way home).
Thursday was by far the best day fishing and weather wise, at least for the rest of us. Friday held a special treat for one of our anglers.
Friday
Up at the crack of dawn, or in this case when Dustin pulled in and woke us up, well most of us anyway, Shamus was up most of the night trying to hunt down a certain bird, we headed out into beautiful conditions. Breaking off into separate parts of the flats, I caught sight of DaveR stalking something along the edge of an oyster bar. As I fell in behind him it happened. Just an awesome eat of the fly and the fight was on. (All caught on video, which is to come later) Yep that’s right, after four long years DaveR finally had his great white whale.
Just as soon as the fight was over, the wind picked up. As if the gods themselves said “OK boys, you have had enough”. It picked up as the day wore on and the fishing slowed down. At one point I had 6 Big Uglies tailing in front of me in a cove. Not one of them was in anyway interested in what I was throwing.
Back at camp we finally met up with Uncle Tommy. As we were sitting around solving the world’s problems, the care taker for our camp ground told us about “ Danny” and his mean dog. Danny is one of the more colorful locals that lives on one of the barrier islands. Tommy, being wilderness hardened, likes to do some remote trips to these islands. Seems during this last trip Tommy had a run in with that dog. The park care taker calls him “just a little dog”, but Tommy see’s it different. “Well, he aint that small”, at least that’s what Tommy says. Seems that dog held him at bay on the water’s edge or something.
Saturday
The Big Blow. The wind, she did blow.
Tommy, DaveR , Dustin and Myself got out, with Tommy covering the most area, (wilderness hardened) the rest of us calling it quits after a couple of hours. It was just way too windy.
Some random pictures of our time in the Big Bend.
About the Author: Bill Howard is a Pro Staff Member at Yakangler.com, as well as Malibu Kayaks. He is also on the Columbia Sportswear Pro Team. Bill is an avid photographer and writer, contributing to numerous websites and publications in the Tampa Bay area.
In 2008 he completed a 17 day, 129 mile trip around Tampa Bay raising nearly $4000 dollars for the American Heart Association. He is also a board member for the Tampa Bay Chapter of Hero's on the Water.
