March 1- The Biggest Suprize in a Long Time

Things can change fast when fishing. Your luck can do a 180 in a split second. Doesn't matter if you are trolling in the Gulf Stream or standing on a Sea Wall in the middle of a cold winter.... I know its easy to envision a quick turn around offshore.... Hours with no action and suddenly you hook up 5 Yellowfin Tuna at once. Or a Blue Marlin shows up! What about the cold, windy Sea Wall in the dead of winter? Well, the Ocean is Full of treasures and they can take many shapes.... Tonight, in order to be thrilled, I first needed to be disappointed.... And only a hardcore "fish person" could understand my anxiety. It all started with a school of mystery fish swimming around the Hatteras side at high tide. A group of small, silvery fish that had an incredible burst of speed and nearly became airborne when panicked..... After much observation, I theorized that they were a small group of fishes that belong to the Shad or Herring Family... There are at least 4 species that "run up" our Rivers to spawn in the Spring and these species are just now finding their way into our Inlets and River Mouths right now.... I also figured these guys were too small to be American Shad or Hickory Shad, therefore they had to be Blueback Herring or Alewife. I had a similar encounter with Blueback Herring on the old Causeway Pier back in Morehead City in February of 1989. I wanted to catch one bad, but when we got back 2 hours later and I was rigged up, they were gone.... I was a little disappointed.... Little Kerry and I hooked up the fuel and started to fuel up the Ferry.... Then I saw a sight that shocked me. At first I thought it was a small Sea Turtle... Then I saw what it was.... A sight that I have patiently waited for since my last encounter which was in March of 2002. A Monkfish. And a big one at that.... Too make a short story short shorter (it is 3am) Let's just say Capt Marty got him. I'm guessing him to weigh about 25 lbs. He liked the gulp bait we'd been using for Red Drum and as a fighter, he was very sluggish. Plenty of structure around and he didnt take advantage of it. Also, I keep a gaff in my truck just for this reason. Mr Monkfish was gaffed before he knew it! And, by the way, it's proper name is Goosefish and it is a member of the Anglerfish Family. And this awesome fish actually has a "fishing rod and lure" attached to it's head and is visible in the bottom picture..... Finally, it is supposed to a GREAT GREAT Food Fish, so I can't wait to try it! Total Catch for the Day: 25 lb Goosefish