Rolph captures state record fish- The People’s Defender
June 25, 2009
Tom Cross
Sportsmen’s Exit
A new state record Blue Catfish has been certified by the Outdoor Writers of Ohio State Record Fish Committee. An Ohio state record Blue Catfish, weighing 96 pounds is only the second blue catfish to fulfill a new state record category established in 2008.
Chris Rolph, of Williamsburg, was fishing for catfish from a boat on the Ohio River near Cincinnati in the early morning hours of Thursday, June 11, when he hooked and landed a 54-1/2 inch blue catfish with a 36 inch girth weighing 96 pounds.
Upon landing the fish after a 30 minute battle, his fishing partner that night, Jon Owens, of Amelia, knew they had just boated a new state record catfish and the pair immediately headed back to Schmidt Field ramp from where they had launched. Later that morning Rolph, who kept the fish alive in a large aerated stock tank, had the fish weighed on certified scales at Bethel Feed and Supply.
Rolphs record blue catfish was caught using cut skip jack for bait at approximately 12:45 a.m. Together the fishermen caught five small catfish before hooking the state record.
Rolph wanted to release the fish unharmed, therefore special arrangements were made to have the fish examined and photographed that morning by the chairman of the OWO State Record Fish Committee. Afterwards the record blue catfish was safely released into a large farm pond.
Rolphs blue catfish replaces the previous record held by Keith Setty from Lynchburg, who caught a 57 pound, 3.2 ounce blue catfish from the tailwaters of Meldahl Dam on the Ohio River.
Joint studies conducted by the Ohio Division of Wildlife and Kentucky Fish and Wildlife found blue catfish populations in the lower Ohio River were substantial enough to warrant down listing the species from “endangered” to species of special concern.
Down listing the blue catfish opened up sport fishing opportunities for anglers on the Ohio River, resulting in the fish being added to the state record fish list by the Outdoor Writers of Ohio in 2008.
Ohio Division of Wildlife fisheries biologist Doug Maloney, at Wildlife District Five, identified Rolphs catch as a blue catfish. Blue catfish is the largest growing catfish in the Ohio River often weighing in excess of 100 pounds. The Kentucky state record blue catfish is 104 pounds and was also caught from the Ohio River.
Ohio state record fish are certified by the Outdoor Writers of Ohio State Record Fish Committee. Assisting in the process is fisheries biologist with the Ohio Division of Wildlife.
For more information on Ohios state record fish program contact Tom Cross, Chairman, OWO State Record Fish Committee, 1497 Cross Rd., Winchester, OH 45697, phone 937 386-2752 www.outdoorwritersofohio.org.
via Rolph captures state record fish.
His hunting buddy died. The DNR gave him a new one. | Duluth News Tribune | Duluth, Minnesota
June 12, 2009
Santo Antonutti’s hunting buddy died a day before his moose hunting license notification arrived in the mail. Now, that license will go to another friend.
By: Sam Cook, Duluth News Tribune
For 37 years, Ray Rizzi and Santo Antonutti had been applying unsuccessfully for a Minnesota moose license.
This was almost their year.
On May 21, the 69-year-old Antonutti, of Esko, got a letter from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources saying he’d been drawn for the hunt in the state’s lottery. He called his 80-year-old friend, but Rizzi, of Duluth, said he hadn’t received notification yet.
The next day, May 22, Rizzi joined some friends at a fishing camp near Orr.
“He died Friday night at the dinner table,” Antonutti said. “His license came Saturday morning.”
Antonutti and Rizzi grew up in Gary-New Duluth. They had worked together for a time at the U.S. Steel Plant in Morgan Park. Their fathers had immigrated to America from the same region of Italy.
Understandably, Antonutti gets a little emotional when he talks about his old friend.
“Rizzi had so much enthusiasm for the outdoors,” Antonutti said, sitting on his porch Thursday morning. “He was a tough old buzzard. Best brook trout fisherman I’ve ever seen. … It was like we became brothers.”
When his moose hunting partner died, Antonutti had to decide what to do. He still wanted to hunt moose, but he has stents in his heart and is a Type 2 diabetic. He would need another partner, he told Lou Cornicelli, big-game program coordinator for the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.
Antonutti told Cornicelli he would like to hunt with his and Rizzi’s longtime friend Ray Rybos, 79, of Gary-New Duluth. Rybos had not applied for a moose permit this year.
After weighing the decision for about a week, the DNR granted Antonutti’s request and notified him of the decision Thursday. Rybos’ moose permit is in the mail, Cornicelli said. The decision to issue the permit was made by Dave Schad, director of the DNR’s Division of Fish and Wildlife, Cornicelli said.
“We got authority to do this, and it’s the right decision to make,” Cornicelli said. “It’s a reasonable request given an extraordinary set of circumstances.” Click Link Below for Full Story!
via His hunting buddy died. The DNR gave him a new one. | Duluth News Tribune | Duluth, Minnesota.
NWTF Unveils New Publication — Turkey Country
June 12, 2009
EDGEFIELD, S.C. — The National Wild Turkey Federation is introducing a brand-new, full-color publication — Turkey Country.
The new magazine will take the place of the Federation’s four main publications — Turkey Call, Women In The Outdoors, Get in the Game and Wheelin’ Sportsmen — beginning in September 2009.
“Turkey Country is not just a new name, it’s an entirely new magazine,” said Burt Carey, NWTF editorial director. “We’re taking the best of all the NWTF’s titles and rolling them into a brand-new, exciting book with a cutting edge look. It’s the publication of the NWTF and all its programs.”
For years the NWTF has promoted its outreach programs and Hunting Heritage Club as independent units, and members of those programs received a high-quality, member-specific publication as a benefit. The challenge with that approach, however, was that members of those outreach programs received information separate from regular Federation membership.
“Having four different magazines devoted to separate programs resulted in a fragmented communications effort where regular NWTF members were rarely aware of volunteer opportunities within the outreach programs,” Carey said. “By folding these four magazines into a single publication, we’re creating a method for focusing on our member volunteers while providing a tool that tells the Turkey Federation story in each and every issue.”
The new magazine will be divided into six sections: Conservation, Special Issues, The Caller, Outreach and Education, On the Hunt and Get in the Game. While the new book will have a brand-new look and feel, some old favorites from each magazine will remain the same including Ask Dr. Tom, Hen Tracks and Seeds of Success, as well as inspiring stories about Wheelin’ Sportsmen NWTF members. Turkey hunting legend Tom Kelly also will write a regular humor column that is sure to keep readers laughing. Plus Turkey Country will broaden its reach to the Web by featuring exclusive online content.
“The best part about this change is having the opportunity to give all our members six issues of a top-notch magazine that is packed with their current favorites and new features,” Carey said. “When readers open the new Turkey Country, they will, without a doubt, get a clear picture of the NWTF and will know how they can get involved in furthering our mission.”
Founded in 1973, the NWTF is a national nonprofit conservation and hunting organization dedicated to conserving wild turkeys and preserving hunting traditions.
via Press Releases.
Fishing The Sulphur Hatch
June 12, 2009
BY JOHN BERRY
It was a rainy day and my wife, Lori’s, parents were visiting. We had been scheduled to take them to Branson for the day but had rescheduled for the next day, due to the weather. I checked river conditions and noted that the river was down. I decided to get in an afternoon of fishing. The prospect of doing it in the rain did not bother me. Lori’s parents silently questioned my intelligence and wondered just what the heck their daughter had gotten herself into.
When I arrived at Rim Shoals, I ran into David McCray, one of my fishing buddies from Memphis who has a weekend place in Gassville. He had arrived before me and had already rigged his rod and donned his waders. We spoke briefly and agreed to link up on stream. David walked toward the river and I briefly escaped the rain under the hatchback of my ancient Volvo wagon while I put on my waders.
I pulled out my beloved nine foot four weight Sage Light Line fly rod and began rigging it. The sulphurs had been coming off during the preceding week so I tied on a copper John nymph in size fourteen. The sulphurs are our major mayfly hatch of the year. They are yellowish orange and the copper John is a dead on imitation of their nymphs. I used an eighteen inch 6X tippet, a bit of lead tape just above the tippet knot and a strike indicator set at the depth of the water plus a couple of inches.
I zipped up my rain jacket and closed the hatch back. I walked the trail down to the top of the shoals. I carefully waded across. The water was still dropping out and the wading was a bit treacherous. Halfway across I stopped and pulled out my wading staff. I always carry a folding wading staff and pull it out whenever I encounter fast heavy water. I carefully made my way across and breathed a sigh of relief when I emerged on the other side.
I made my way down the island and quickly located David. He was fishing one of my favorite spots. I waded over to yet another favorite spot that is located just a few yards out from his location. We were close but not too close. We both had plenty of water to fish, both spots held a lot of trout and there was room for both of us to cast.
David was rigged pretty much the same as I was, a copper John under an indicator. David was into a nice trout when I arrived and I hooked a good one on my second cast. There were a few sulphurs starting to come off and the trout were keying in on the nymphs. The natural progression for the sulphur hatch, or any other hatch for that matter, is to start with the nymphal form of the insect before the hatch (copper John). When the nymphs rise to the surface and the trout begin keying in on the emerging insects you switch to an emerger pattern like the partridge and orange. Finally, when the trout begin keying in on the adults, you switch to a dry fly like the sulphur parachute.
There is a certain amount of overlap on these phases. For instance, I have found that trout will take nymphs during all phases of a hatch or the trout will key in on the emergers and never move on to the adults. Emergers are much easier to fish with and for the fly tiers among us much easier to tie.
As David was fishing, he noticed that at the end of the drift he waited a short while leaving his nymph in the water. A good trout hit the fly and he was able to land it rather quickly. He mentioned the situation to me and it made me think. When you are fishing a nymph, you have to concentrate on a perfect drag free drift and quickly set the hook when there is the slightest movement of the strike indicator. Yet here is a take on a fly that is not drifting and there is no hook set.
Since the strike occurred at the end of the drift, I surmised that, when the drift ended, the fly began to ride up in the water column and the trout took it as a rising nymph. As I was standing there in the run discussing it with David, my fly ended its drift and began riding up. I felt a strong take and instinctively lifted my rod. A couple of minutes later I had landed a fat sixteen inch rainbow. I was amazed when the exact same thing happened again a few minutes later.
As a result, we amended our fishing style so that we hesitated at the end of our drifts and purposely let the fly rise in the current. We caught trout after trout. Maybe half were taken on the perfect drag free drift and the other half were hooked when the fly began to ride up. In essence, we were fishing nymphs as emergers and experiencing great success, while doing it.
The rain continued off and on for the rest of the afternoon as did the fishing. We didn’t count but we both did well. It seems like one or the other of us was into a fish all of the time. About five thirty, I glanced at my watch and realized it was time to head home. Lori was cooking beef tenderloin and it is bad form to miss a great supper like that. I reluctantly bid adieu to David and waded back to the access. I took off my waders, loaded my gear and headed back to Cotter.
I had ignored weather conditions that would concern others and been flexible in the choice of my fishing technique. All I had to show for it were the memories of a great afternoon of fishing!
(870) 435-2169
berrybrothers@infodash.com
www.berrybrothersguides.com
EDITORIAL: Bill to lower hunting age misses target | Wausau Daily Herald
June 12, 2009
June 12, 2009
State Sen. Jim Holperin of Conover wants to get more kids away from their televisions and computers and out enjoying the great outdoors.
At the same time, he wants to breathe new life into one of Wisconsin’s biggest industries: hunting. The annual nine-day rifle season alone is calculated to pump as much as $1 billion into the state’s economy every year.
Both are laudable goals. But his strategy for addressing them is off the mark.
Holperin has introduced legislation, already passed this week by the Senate, that would allow 10-year-old children to hunt in Wisconsin. That’s two years younger than current regulations allow.
Holperin says his legislation is “just replete with safety requirements,” but we’ve read the bill through several times and safety requirements are about as scarce as 30-point bucks.
True, the proposal requires a 10-year-old hunter to be accompanied by a mentor — an adult who holds a hunting license and always must be within “arm’s reach” of the student hunter. And the pair can share only one gun between them.
But that’s about it.
The bill doesn’t require the 10-year-old or the adult hunter to complete a hunter’s safety course. Nor does it restrict the type of weapon the 10-year-old can carry — a .22-caliber plinker, .30-06 high-power rifle or .44 magnum pistol all are allowed.
Under current law, a 12-year-old is allowed to hunt with adult supervision — the parent or guardian must be within visual range of the child — and the child must pass a hunter’s safety class.
The state should not allow 10-year-old learners to hunt without proof they’ve been taught proper firearm handling by a certified instructor.
Furthermore, there’s scant evidence that reducing the legal hunting age will achieve the underlying goal of the bill.
We’re an increasingly urban society, and many kids who already have the option of going outdoors to enjoy nature, get fresh air and exercise choose instead to play video games or chat with friends on the computer. Lowering the hunting age isn’t likely to change that. The Department of Natural Resources estimates that about 9,000 additional hunters will take to the woods if the bill is passed — but that’s a tiny fraction of the more than 650,000 who already hunt here every year. Click Link Below for Full Story!
via EDITORIAL: Bill to lower hunting age misses target | wausaudailyherald.com | Wausau Daily Herald.
People Feeding Bears Lead Biologists to Destroy Three of the Animals This Spring
June 10, 2009
It was the third bear euthanized in Kentucky by department biologists in less than two months.
Another 190-pound, 10-year-old female bear that approached people in campsites, bluffed them away from state park picnic tables and ate the abandoned food was euthanized April 19. That event occurred just one day after a 220-pound male bear was put down near Prestonsburg after exhibiting the same food-conditioned behaviors.
“Situations like these are unfortunate, but entirely preventable,” said Steven Dobey, black bear biologist for Kentucky Fish and Wildlife. “People must learn that the intentional, or unintentional, feeding of bears creates behaviors that are not acceptable for such powerful animals. “
Wildlife biologists say people feeding bears are condemning the animals to a bleak end.
“When bears are allowed to feed from garbage cans and dumpsters, or especially when fed on purpose, they inevitably lose their natural fear of humans,” said Dobey. “Most people simply do not realize how fast and strong these animals are. Bears are opportunistic feeders and those that have been feeding around people are looking for the easy food they’ve come to expect. However, these are wild animals and their tolerant behavior can change in an instant.”
Black bears are native to Kentucky, but their numbers dropped significantly about a century ago due to logging and unregulated hunting. Bears have been returning to a largely reforested east Kentucky for the past two decades. And as their numbers are now growing steadily, people enjoy watching them.
However, people who leave food out so that they can see the bears are creating a problem.
“People are signing the bear’s death warrant,” said Dobey. “When a bear’s diet consists of easy pickings left out by people who simply want to watch it or take its picture, it begins to associate people with food instead of listening to a natural instinct to avoid them.
“That’s when they approach homes, populated picnic areas, and open garbage dumpsters,” he said. “While it can be a tough decision to euthanize a bear for another person’s irresponsible actions, it is human safety that is our ultimate concern in these situations.”
Department personnel sometimes trap and relocate bears exhibiting nuisance behaviors, but relocated bears often find their way back to the original site or continue their nuisance behavior in a different area. When it becomes clear that their behavior threatens human safety, the bear will be destroyed.
Jayson Plaxico, a wildlife biologist from Prestonsburg, said the 480-pound male bear he euthanized this week had recovered completely from a serious injury that was noticed last summer, when it was captured as a research animal.
“It was missing the last one-third of its lower jaw, probably from being hit by a vehicle,” said Plaxico. “We caught it in a trap last year and it weighed 300 pounds. It had become so dependent on eating garbage in Kingdom Come State Park that it allowed a woman with a small child to come within four feet of it last weekend.”
“One swipe from a powerful paw and that could be a tragedy,” said Dobey. “It can happen in an instant.”
It is illegal to feed bears in Kentucky. Persons doing so can be cited.
“We hope to get the message out that feeding bears only encourages behavior that will require us to kill them,” said Dobey. “We’ve had to kill three this spring already. And in all three instances it was because they were fed by people.”
Incident at Jenkin’s Creek
June 2, 2009
By John Berry
Recently a couple of my neighbors, Mike Wilhelm and Scott Berringer, were up for the weekend from Memphis. They both have weekend homes in Cotter and come over to fish and relax whenever they can. Mike is a retired business executive and Scott is a school teacher. They are both avid anglers and are really nice people to be around.
The day was nearly perfect. The temperature was around seventy three degrees with a light wind out of the South East. The Corps of Engineers were running one and a half full generators or about 4500 cubic feet per second (CFS). This is an almost perfect flow for drift fishing. It is deep enough for easy navigation but shallow enough to use the same rigging as you would for no generation. You are not required to use massive amounts of lead, heavy flies and huge strike indicators that the higher flows require.
They were fishing in the area of the White River just above Jenkin’s Creek near the Rim Shoals Catch and Release section. This section had a lot of work done to it in previous years. The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission brought in tons of big rocks to create fish habitat. It has had a positive effect and it now holds quite a few trout. Though it can only be accessed by boat, it receives a bit of fishing pressure.
There was no insect activity on the top, so the guys were fishing the bottom. They were concentrating on deep pockets and structure. Scott was fishing his version of the Y2K. When he ties them, he trims them in a round shape. Not the conical shape, to which we are accustomed. He gave me a box of them for Christmas and they are deadly. Mike was fishing a high water San Juan worm in cerise. This is one of my go to flies and I fish them often. This was the perfect tactic for the conditions and they were having a great day, catching trout after trout.
Mike hooked a really good fish. Most of the fish they had been catching were in the twelve to fourteen inch range. This one was different. He was quite a bit larger and was fighting ferociously. The guys figured that it was at least an eighteen incher and settled down for a protracted struggle. They were in Scott’s river boat and were dragging a short length of chain drifting backward. This is a common way to fish on this section of the river under these conditions. The idea is to carefully play the fish as you drift and to gently release him after the struggle to avoid any damage to the trout. They were at a critical point in the struggle where you cannot make any erratic movements with the boat or you can easily lose the fish.
About the time they drifted down to Red Bud Shoals, they heard the roar of an engine up stream. They glanced up and saw a boat quickly approaching and seemingly headed straight toward them. It was obvious that the guys were into a good fish. Proper boating etiquette gives the right of way to the boat that is not under power and certainly a boat in the midst of an active battle with a good fish should be given plenty of room. To Mike’s amazement, this rude boater roared past him running right over his line and fish, in the process.
As the other boater passed by, Mike yelled over to him and said “next time go around the other side”. He was answered with a few curse words and “I am not going out of my way just so you can catch a fish”. You could see Mike and Scott’s jaws drop. They could not believe what was happening. Needless to say words and gestures were exchanged. Of course, in the process of the confrontation, the fish was lost.
While this other boater was doing this, the two ladies and young man in his boat sat silent. Surely they were embarrassed by his behavior. I was raised in the Deep South many years ago and was taught not to use language like that, particularly in front of a lady.
The sad part of the story is that the whole mess could have been easily avoided. There was plenty of water for the other boater to just come around giving Mike and Scott plenty of room to land the fish. Or maybe, he could have just slowed down and given them a couple of minutes to clear the shoals.
Behavior like this on the river or lake is wrong on many levels. While I am sure there were no laws broken, conduct like this should not be tolerated. For locals, what we want is a nice quiet place to spend a sunny afternoon catching a few trout. Anglers from throughout the country will not spend their hard earned dollars to travel here and fish with people like this. Luckily this does not happen often. Most of the boaters I see are far more courteous than this.
To the rude boater, I ask that you reconsider your attitude toward other boaters and practice a little common courtesy. It could make the river a more pleasant place for all of us.
(870) 435-2169
berrybrothers@infodash.com
www.berrybrothersguides.com
Iowa pheasant harvest lowest ever
June 2, 2009
By Doug Smith
Pheasants in the Midwest are at the mercy of the weather, and nowhere is that more evident than in the numbers coming out of Iowa.
The Iowa DNR said Tuesday that hunters last year harvested an estimated 383,000 roosters — the lowest on record and only the second time since 1958 that the harvest did not reach 500,000 birds.
Hunters noticed. Based on the DNR’s hunter survey, an estimated 86,000 hunters — also an all time low — pursued pheasants there.
Recent winters rated among the most severe in Iowa’s history get the blame. Minnesota, of course, has avoided those severe winters, and pheasant numbers here have skyrocketed in recent years. Click Link Below for Full Story!
via Iowa pheasant harvest lowest ever.
Nine People Charged with Illegally Importing, Possessing or Selling Live Wild Turkeys
June 2, 2009
Frankfort, Ky. – Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife conservation officers served summonses today on nine people, seized 15 wild turkeys and 25 wild turkey eggs persons following an eight-month, multi-state investigation which resulted in 421 criminal charges of illegally importing, possessing or selling wild turkeys in Kentucky.
Officers obtained summonses in 11 counties spanning the state from Calloway in far western Kentucky to Pike in far eastern Kentucky. The investigation, termed Operation Toxic Turkey, documented 167 live wild turkeys illegally imported into Kentucky, including eastern and Rio Grande wild turkeys acquired from a New Mexico hatchery.
It is illegal for the general public to possess a live wild turkey in Kentucky, and a wildlife transportation permit issued by the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife is required of anyone bringing wildlife into the state.
Investigators were first alerted to possible illegal trafficking in wild turkeys last August, when they heard a broadcast on a Bardstown radio station advertising live eastern wild turkeys for sale. The investigation that followed quickly expanded beyond state lines and turned up similar violations in at least 13 additional states.
New Mexico Department of Fish and Game officers helped trace the eastern and Rio Grande turkeys purchased and imported into Kentucky from Privett Hatchery in Portales, New Mexico. Purchase and shipping records obtained by investigators led to the charges and summonses. The hatchery has a permit to legally sell turkeys.
Those charged include Stanley Hurst, 28, Bardstown, 168 counts of importing, possessing or selling wild turkeys. Others include Margaret Hamilton, 36, Pikeville; Allan Chaney, 45, Irvine; John Hester, 23, Henderson; and Thomas Murdock, 51, Murray, each charged with 30 counts of importing and possessing wild turkeys. Additional charges of importing or possessing wild turkeys were placed against Jeremy Ginn, 32, Mt. Sterling, 40 counts; Caroline Cox, 50, Turners Station, 20 counts; Elizabeth Patrick, 41, Cave City, 14 counts; and Julie Saling, 26, Bowling Green, two counts.
Wildlife biologists say importing wild turkeys into Kentucky puts the state’s native wild turkeys at risk of contracting diseases for which they’ve developed no natural immunities.
“There are many biological concerns when releasing captive-raised poultry into the wild,” said Steven Dobey, Kentucky Fish and Wildlife’s turkey program coordinator. “The potential for transmission of diseases and non-native parasites is increased due to their captive origin.”
Kentucky’s wild turkey flock ranks among the nation’s top wildlife restoration successes. Statewide wild turkey numbers were estimated at fewer than 900 birds in the mid 1950s, and nearly all of those resided in west Kentucky’s Golden Pond area, now Land Between the Lakes.
The department embarked on an aggressive restoration effort in the 1980s, and today’s flock has rebounded to number about a quarter of a million birds. Gobbling can be heard in every Kentucky county and hunters enjoy liberal bag limits statewide.
“In our generation, wild turkey numbers have grown from fewer than 1,000 to well over 200,000 birds in Kentucky,” said Dobey. “Kentucky Fish and Wildlife has worked diligently toward these restoration efforts, and I am positive the sportsmen and sportswomen of Kentucky want nothing to threaten this success.”
“The wild turkey has become a major component of Kentucky’s tourism industry,” said Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Commissioner Jon Gassett. “The wild turkey’s economic impact annually in Kentucky is almost $230 million, and almost 2,200 jobs depend on it.
“It is critical that we not inadvertently introduce disease into our flock,” he continued. “That could be catastrophic.”
Phew! Nothing like tarpon fishing – Bradenton.com
June 2, 2009
BOCA GRANDE
We’re far from the herd now.
A mammoth tarpon has dragged our 23-foot Dorado tower boat away from the swarms of boats taking advantage of possibly thousands of tarpon that are feeding in preparation for their upcoming spawn.
Now, seated in a fighting chair, I have a decision to make.
I can only feel stinging pains in my hands that have clenched an 8-foot Billy Stick custom-made rod for a half-hour. My arms are shaking each time I dip the rod and reel 50-pound line into the spool of my Shimano Trinidad 20 reel. Each revolution of the handle, a sweat-spitting ordeal, gets the tarpon maybe a couple yards closer from the bottom of this deep water pass.
So I decide to lean back, straighten my arms, and put the burden of this beast on my back muscles. Then, once I’ve worn out that option, I cradle and cross my arms around the rod, my tense hands free to sweat in the sun.
“You can hand the rod off,” one of the anglers on the boat said — I’ll never remember which one after my dizzied state. “We do that sometimes.”
Not an option. I’d gone this far. The tarpon hit our standard tarpon jig and, after that, it was 30 minutes of heavy weight lifting. The pole would have to fall from my hands.
This, perhaps, is the addiction anglers have with tarpon fishing in Boca Grande Pass. Besides the camaraderie, the pods of tarpon that suddenly roll their great silver backs through the water, the whole spectacle of sometimes fishing 10 feet from four boats, this is the habit Boca Grande silver-king fanatics may never snap.
“It’s addicting, isn’t it?” one angler onboard said.
I struggled to say, “Oh, yeah.”
Finally, the tarpon was boat side. We managed to grab the leader — the closest thing to landing a tarpon because it is now illegal to boat one.
I wondered why I felt so crippled after this fish put it to me. A high-five to a fishing buddy felt like squeezing an over-pumped tennis ball.
It swam away and I watched its awesome girth part a wavy path in the choppy water. That’s when I found out why.
“That,” Capt. T.J. Stewart, “is the fattest tarpon I’ve ever seen.”
I had to ask if that was true.
“Really,” Stewart said, “it was.”
Later, Dave Stark brought a tarpon to the boat that a team of Florida Fish and Wildlife Research Institute members estimated was between 160 and 170 pounds.
“If that’s true,” Stewart said, “yours was probably 180 or 190.”
We’ll never know.
Regardless, it was an adventure of a lifetime. There were two hooked tarpon that escaped pursuing fish after either Dave Stark or Steve Fecher, on board from Daytona and fishing with Stewart as their team “MyELS.com/Castaway Charters” prepared for Sunday’s Professional Tarpon Tournament Series, opened the spool and let the silver king run. There were multiple tangles in lines where jigs were removed from other boats’ lines. There even was a swapping of rods.
This came when Stark’s tarpon went underneath another boat. On that boat, an angler also had hooked a silver king. Because their angler couldn’t get their line over our tower, we simply traded rods and fought each other’s fish.
Both fish got off and all tackle was given back to its proper owner.
In all, we hooked nine tarpon and “landed” five.
Looking back on this epic adventure, it seems there are two reminders that mark a stellar day of Boca Grande tarpon fishing — the memories of curling rods and the battered limbs that could cramp for days.
THE GUIDE: Capt. T.J. Stewart of Cast Away Charters can be reached at 737-5985. Web site is www.castawaycharters inc.com.
via Phew! Nothing like tarpon fishing – Sports – Bradenton.com.
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