Aug 24- Taylor's Creek Flounder Flurry

Taylor's Creek caught Flounders

Well, I'm crippled..... The old back injury has reappeared..... But fishing has been great and I can't stop...... Let me take a different angle for a moment. Back in 1972, my Aunt Joyce dated and eventually married a man from Beaufort, Richard Chadwick..... Chad, as we called him, was a BADASS retired Highway Patrol Captain..... BADASS..... Thus, my family, who always stayed over at the Morehead Ocean Pier, started to visit Beaufort on a regular basis..... Then in 1976, My Dad bought a House over in Beaufort... An old, historical House built in 1871. It was a half block from Front Street and funny, he paid about $18,000 for it..... Anyway, Chad's sister Evelin lived in the probably Beaufort's most famous dwelling, the House built by Capt Sloo on Front Street, right on Taylor's Creek... In the Old Town Cemetary, Capt Sloo's daughter is buried in a Keg of Rum.... Dying far out to Sea, Capt Sloo wanted to preserve her for a proper burial..... So the story goes...... Now I didn't care about history, but for years (Decades) she had the only Dock on a long stretch of shoreline from Barbour's Machine Shop to the Turn Table at the west end of Front Street..... I learned pretty young that DOCK STRUCTURE PLUS LIGHTS EQUALS FLOUNDER..... Granted, as a 7 year old Garner Boy, I wasn't crushing them... I remember my cousin Danny catching a 5 lb Flounder off this Dock in the late 70's..... I fished off this Dock extensively..... My 1990 I was "On this Flounder Bite Big Time"....  I renmember not working one summer and fishing all night and selling my Flounders..... We also went to the Trawler Bouy everyday ib a 18 ft Boston Whaler and sold our King Mackerel..... I remember the guys at Gulfstream Seafood looking at my Flounders and saying "no net marks, no gig marks, Boy, where are you getting all these Flounders?" As the years went by, my skill on big fish improved.... My first NC Citation Flounder was a 6 lb 14 oz Doormat from this Dock.... My career largest Flounder came from this Dock, a 10 lb 11oz Monster..... Marc Rouse and I caught 70 Red Drum here on Election Day of 2004! I caught 6 Flounder over 6 lbs on 6 drops in about 16 minutes here on Halloween Day of 2006. I caught back to back Cobias here one day a few years ago. I caught a 2 lb 10oz Croaker here, my closest ever to the elusive Croaker Citation..... For 20 years, Tony Englehardt and I hooked things here and never saw them, never turned them, never stopped them..... Even on 130# mono on a 12/0 Penn Senator..... I caught Ladyfish here by the dozen but got strikes and jump offs by the thousand!

YOU GET THE POINT----- This Dock was one of the Most Important Places in My Life..... Well, last year, Hunter Chadwick whom was Itney's son, sold the house.... Thus ending my 42 year Love Affair with this Dock..... Oh My God, just like a good friend had died.... I can't put into words how this affected me. And will until the day I die.....

Anyway, on Sunday afternoon at high tide, I slipped down to the little beach at the foot of the Dock and caught some Flounder. I was surprized at the lack of Red Drum..... But, oh Lord, this was emotional..... I caught enough Flounder for my Mom and Dad and we gave Jennifer's Dad a bag of Fillets as well.... All these Southern Flounders were caught on White Gulp. Some were too small and some were 2 lbs.... They all got eaten.... WQe loved the old days at Capt Bill's.... That place sucked. Then and Now..... Except for Friday Nights in 1980, 1981, and 1982.... They had all you can eat whole fried baby Flounder.... Pretty much 12" to 14" Flounders headed and gutted, then scored and fried..... Delicious..... Total Catch for the Day: 8 Southern Flounder up to 2 lbs and 4 Inshore Lizardfish up to 1 lb