We left on a Thursday morning early to get to Heidi's school. Karen picked up the girls and took them to Marty and Heidi's house. There she spent the weekend with the kids while Marty and Heidi went on a re-treat. I continued south.
I met up with my fishing partners, Skeeter and Tim. We were all getting excited as we talked all night about the big trip. We were going out with 19 other men on a 80 foot boat for 40 hours. Solid fishing.
We finally left on Friday afternoon and boated approx 100 miles out into the Gulf of Mexico. When I got up to go fish at 1:00 AM, I was sea sick. The worst its ever been. However I managed to keep a hook wet and caught a few Red Snappers. Over the next 30 hours, I was miserable. No one was catching a lot of fish, and I had the dry heaves. Oh, one guy did catch a 130 pound sand shark, one caught a 30 pound Barracuda a few King Salmons, but not much. I had managed to stay on deck almost the entire time. Throwing up each and every hour. When I would go down to the bunk, a severe wave of sea-sickness would engulf me. I guess you can tell that this trip was not going as good as we had hoped. Anyway, the deck hands told us that we would be heading back in in 1 hour. So the fishing trip was coming to an end.
At 3:00 AM in the morning almost everyone was in bed, accept for a few of us "can't catch anything if you don't have a hook in the water" types. I was watching 3 poles with different baits at different depths. I would catch a Red Snapper every once in a while. I also had a shark line out with an 8 pound Snapper for bait. This shark line had a 15 foot steel leader and 2 large hooks. It was designed to catch something big. It had been out for several hours and I had lost track of where the bait was. I had thought about pulling it in to check the bait several times, but I was still not feeling to well and we were going in soon anyway and I probably wouldn't catch anything on it anyway.
Three other fishermen were setting near the front of the boat, watching a couple of lines each and visiting with the deck hands. I was fishing off the stern of the boat alone. No one likes to fish next to a man with the dry heaves. When suddenly a very large fish jumped completely out of the water at the front of the boat. Those guys were oohing and awing and wondering what the heck? When at the same exact time, my shark reel began to buzzzzz..... zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. The line took off and rod bent in half. I couldn't believe it I had a shark on in the last hour of fishing!
When you set out a shark line with big bait, you always secure the rod and reel to the boat with a rope so "IF" you get one, he hopefully won't pull it in. So, I picked up the large rod and found the line going around my three other poles and then toward the bow. And, I was tethered to the railing by the security trap. I began yelling for help. "Deck hands". Well, they were still around front wondering what kind of fish it was that jumped and what was going on. I, in the mean time was able to set the hook. Finally, one of the deck hands came and started cutting lines. He kept trying to take the rod out of my hands, and I wouldn't let him. I was bound and determined to bring the fish in myself. He eventually convinced me that he would give it right back, so I relented and gave it to him. He took it and set the hook. I said, "I already did that", and the other deck hand let me know the two times wouldn't hurt, and he handed it back to me, and the fight was on. Now I have been sick for 30 hours straight, with naps on the bench, and no food. One of the deck hands ask me if I was going to be OK. I told him "me or this fish is gonna die". This seemed to impress him.
Well it wasn't pretty. When you think of someone reeling in a big fish the picture in your mind is of someone setting in a big chair with the rod handle inside a holder while the fisherman pulls the rod back, then reel in real fast while the rod goes down. This is not how it happens. I have caught a 75 pound Wahoo, and a 125 pound shark before. And, on our boat there is no chair. You are standing on the deck with the rod handle either stuck in your belly, or, you buy a belt with a little holder to put the rod handle in while you reel it in. After I caught the big fish the first year, I bought one of those devices. It will help keep you control the fish without hurting yourself. OK, back to how it really happens. When you do hook a big fish, it's not a matter of the fisherman pulling in the fish. If a 75 pound fish doesn't want to be caught, you can't catch him. You have to out smart him. A shark is the strongest swimming fish in the ocean. And, when he decides to go down, he goes down.
I was holding the shark rig, witch is like a giant rod and reel. The rod is about 5 foot long and the reel is about the size of a 1 pound coffee can. So just holding it can be a little bit of a struggle. I'm holding this with a mad shark on the other end. He is taking off and swimming away and down as hard as he can. It's all I can do to hang on. Forget about reeling it in. The railing around the boat is about waist high, so I would rest the rod on the rail just in front of the reel. Then I put the handle of the rod, which is about 2 foot long past the reel, between my legs. Then I bent over the rod and reel and kind of squeezed it with my whole body. Of course the rod and reel was jerking and yanking me all over the place. The fish was winning at this point.
Now I know I am going to have to keep the line tight at all times. The first little while, this wasn't any problem. Because the fish was going away from me. Well, he finally got mad and decided to attack whatever had him. He started swimming toward the boat. So, I started reeling as fast as I could. Now, remember how big this rod and reel is. It's a chore just to check your bait. Anyway I'm reeling with everything I have. The fish was getting close to the surface. This was going to be too easy! The boat has very large flood lights that shine out away from the boat about 30 feet. Well the fish surfaced, or almost surfaced just outside the good light and just under the surface. One of the deck hands got a look. He said something like "oh my goodness, that's a big fish". Well, that may have not been his exact words. Remember he is a "sailor" on an 80 foot fishing boat. But, we knew what he meant. Now the fish also got a look at us. I don't know what he was thinking, but when he saw us, he left. He dove. Now when a large shark decides to dive, you, the fisherman can't change his mind. zzzzzzzzzzz......zzzzzzzzzzzz. Remember its all you can do to hold on. I almost went in!
So, what does this mean? It means it was not going to be as easy as I thought! The fish was on bottom (about 260') and swimming away again, and this time he wasn't going to come to surface with out a fight. The real fight was just beginning. While the fish is yanking me around, and I'm holding the rod and reel with all I have, the deck hand yells in my ear "reel him in, crank it!" So now not only is the fish kicking my butt, the deck hand is putting pressure on ME to fight! There was a lot of excitement, people yelling for all hands on deck, the captain was awaken, ( who brought his 9mm pistol), the remaining deck hands were woke up, and they even woke up the cook! And he brought his 45 cal pistol. So we have 4 deck hands running around the boat with 20 foot gaffs in their hands, the skipper and the cook are packing heat and checking ammo, fishermen who were sound asleep are running around trying to get a look, chaos! While I am doing everything I can to hold on. By now, I am starting feel some pain. My arms are getting weak, my back is starting hurt, the rod handle is between my legs moving in hard uncontrollable jerks, (ouch) my chest is against the big ole reel and I am trying to turn the reel.
Slowly, and surly I begin to get the fish moving up. After what seemed like an hour I get him to the surface again, just outside the light. The fish saw the light, all the deck hands see the fish, and the excitement is notched up. Then the fish takes off again! zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz....zzzzzzzzzz down he goes. We start all over again. I am worn out! And have to start all over again. OK, after another eternity, I get him to the surface again. The fish seems to be getting a little tired. This time when he sees the boat he went down and under the boat. This is bad. We could loose him if he got the line fouled on the prop or anchor rope.
Sam, the deck hand who has been yelling in my ear and coaching me said "hand it off to me for just a minute, he's going to get hung up". Well, I handed it off reluctantly. I really needed a break anyway, but, it looked like we could loose him. All that work for a fish tale! Sam leaned over the stern railing and put the rod tip in the water! I thought he was going in! Another deck hand, Rob came over with about ten very large lead weights tied on a rope. He leaned over and tied the rope with weights around the line, and dropped it, while Sam let the reel free wheel. There was no tension on the line since this all began. I thought the worst. Well the weights went down and pulled the line away from the bottom of the boat, and with the slack in the line the fish took off! It worked! Sam and Rob got the fish untangled. Sam clicked the rod and the fish hit the end of the line, and the fight was on again. zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz....zzzzzzzz went the reel. Sam cranked it for a couple of minutes, gosh he made it look so easy. Then he gave it back to me. Oh my gosh, I'm tired, worn out, but more than ready to catch this fish!
Finally, I get the fish to surface and for the first time I get the line to the top of the steel leader. That's all you can reel in. The leader is 15 feet long. So this big shark is close enough to gaff. But he has other ideas. He takes off one last time. This time not as far. I'm winning! I get him to the leader again and close. Four gaffs are snagging him and he's fighting. Now it's the deck hands turn to get beat up. They are all holding on to their 20 foot gaffs, and trying pull the fish up and next to the boat. While, another deck hand pulls on the steel leader.
Finally they have this huge fish next to the boat, the captain says "look out everybody, I'm going to shoot". He emptied a nine round clip into the fish. The captain wasn't a very good shot. He was still pulling the trigger when it was empty. I was standing next to him still holding the rod and reel and said " you're out of ammo skipper". The shark is still alive and kicking. Here comes the cook with his 45 colt. He empties his clip into the fish, he is a better shot. The fish is not dead but dazed enough to begin pulling onto the boat.
The fish is on the boat, and my adrenaline is subsiding. My arms and legs feel like noodles. I had the worse case of cotton mouth I've had since my wrestling days. My back is killing me, my rod holding belt came off during the fight, so my belly is bruised and hurting, my chest is bruised where I was clamping down on the reel and between my legs, was a pain.... were the rod handle was. I had to set down. Woo!
What a great, exciting end to a bad fishing trip. Will I go again? You bet, when is the boat leaving?
7-1/2 foot, 240 pound Mako Shark.
The most dangerous fish in the Gulf.
2 comments:
Wow! What a story! It makes me want to go fishing right away. :) I couldn't stop reading. I would've been in the water in a heartbeat. Good job Dad! Awesome!
THanks for writing this, but the whole time I was reading it I could see your face. You did an awesome job writing, but man it's much better HEARING it in person. You should hear Isaac tell his buddies about it. He still talks about Grandpa and the shark he caught and they had to shoot him and Grandpa was sick and tired. It's halarious! You are soooo super strong and AMAZING! What an example.
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