NEVER, EVER EVER GIVE UP

ABOUT THE TRIP

There are lots (too many?) stories about the fish that got away.  Well, this is one about a fish that did not get away.

A while ago we found ourselves fishing one of our best grouper spots.  It was a beautiful day; flat water and a cooling breeze.  Things were going pretty well right up to the point where my rod doubled over and I had to catch my breath before I could even try to exert some control over the situation.  Once I regained my composure and began to try to get some line back, it became obvious that whatever I was hooked up to was heading toward Mexico….at about 2 miles per hour.  Pretty quickly we figured out that I was attached, at least temporarily, to a Goliath Grouper.  I knew that we were attached, but it apparently did not.  So it continued in a southwesterly direction for a while.  When I finally got its attention, it turned around and came back towards the boat.  I was gaining line and feeling good until it went right past the boat and headed north.  In spite of the locked down Penn Senator, I was giving up line again.

This had been going on for a while when I decided that it would be in everybody’s (mine and the fish’s) best interest if I just recovered as much line as I could and cut the line.  I asked if anyone else on the boat wanted a shot at the goliath before I cut the line, and one brave sole took advantage of the situation.

His turn on the rod went a lot like mine and he too was ready to give up after about 15 grueling minutes.  He offered his position on the rod to anyone who wanted it, otherwise he would be cutting the line instead of me.  Without my friend’s knowledge, I looked in the water and there, about 10 feet below the boat and on its way up, was the biggest fish I had ever seen.  So, being the good friend that I was, I immediately relieved him of the rod.  With three effortless turns of the handle I claimed and released my first, several-hundred-pound goliath grouper (IGFA rules not withstanding). 

LESSONS LEARNED

Patience.  We had plenty of time, water, food and fuel.  Sometimes the unrelenting desire for instant gratification that permeates our very beings onshore somehow finds its way onto the boat.  While I may not have been beast enough to conquer that goliath, my friend surely had three more cranks in him.  If he would have had a little more patience, he would be telling the story, not me.

ON THE HORIZON

Goliaths have made a remarkable comeback in our area of the Gulf.  While we don’t target them because of their protected status, we still find them every now and then.  Our hope is that, with this year’s minimal red tide impact, spring will bring us numerous opportunities to test our gear and our patience.