It was opening day of Florida’s Red Snapper season.  Our hopes were high but our expectations were realistic and we had pretty much resigned ourselves that any fishing would have to be done on Sunday because Saturday was just going to be too windy.  And that’s exactly what Saturday had in store – wind & Lots of it.

SO – we headed for West Marine to get the hardware we needed to tackle this little boat project that Ned has been working on.  It was definitely a two man job & the short story is that we got it done.  It took all day and half the night to accomplish and was akin to rebuilding an engine through the muffler!!  But the hard part is done and after the rest of the pieces are in place – the boat should automatically hold itself in one spot regardless of the wind conditions or water movement.

On Sunday morning the prediction was that it would be okay in the morning but the afternoon held another small craft warning.  We grabbed a quick bite on our way out the door and were on the water, headed for some of Ned’s most coveted fishing spots. 

Many of these structure points are just C-12 or B-4 on the plotter, but some of them have names like Oktoberfest or Christmas Tree.  These are secret spots and while fishing, you are also watching to see if any boats are headed your way.  If anyone starts coming toward you and your secret spot – you pull your gear and leave so they can’t steal it.  We ended up leaving a couple spots and not even trying some more just to be safe.

While we were fishing, this loggerhead turtle popped up to check us out.  I was kind of surprised to see barnacles on his (or her) back, I’ve seen big turtles before but never seen one with barnacles.  He wasn’t too impressed with our fishing ability and headed back down into the clear blue water.

Opening day should have been a day to really catch a lot of fish, but we weren’t having much luck.  Ned thinks that the Lionfish infestation is at least partially to blame for the lack of Red Snapper.  They eat what the snapper eat and additionally, they eat snapper fry.  Nobody around here has anything but disdain for the Lionfish.

We picked up a couple fish here and there but nothing great then this guy hit the end of Ned’s line.  He was pulling drag and we were hoping to see a big snapper – however this is a Trigger Fish; and they are off limits for all of 2017.  I’m told that Trigger Fish are excellent on the table but we tossed this one, and his twin brother, back hoping that they will still be around when the season opens again in 2018.

These fish have front teeth that look almost like human front teeth that they use for crushing crustaceans & mollusks.  Next time we’ll be taking him home for dinner.

However – we didn’t go home empty handed.  In fact, at our last stop we finished off a limit of red snapper.  It was just in time too.  The weather folks were right about the wind coming up in the afternoon.  The ten mile ride back inside the bay was bone jarring at times.  And after we got back to Ned’s getting the boat back up into the boat house with the wind blowing that hard was more than a little challenging.  But at the end of the day it was “All Good” and the fish were prepared for consumption.

Ned’s not just a good Captain, Guide, and Fisherman; he can also cook a little.  His wife Joan is also a wonderful cook.  Between the two of them, this was the feast I was treated to at the end of the day.  Red Snapper prepared two different ways, asparagus, and sweet potatoes – how good does that look!!  My plate was clean, even after seconds.

Ned and Joan will be up in Canada with us this year and you can be sure that we will be on the water, catching lots of fish and enjoying more fish dinners in just a couple months.  Thanks again for such a delightful last stop on my 2017 spring ride.