Thrown a Bone

August 17, 2012 was the most successful bonefishing day of my career. I eclipsed my personal best in size and amount of bonefish. It was exhilarating fishing! Whenever school or work gets tough, I take myself back to that place and everything seems better.

Flash forward to 2013, on the anniversary of that special day. Same flats, similar conditions, Team Jigalode, geared and prepped. The stage was set for a repeat of the previous  year.

With the sun just peaking over the ocean we began wading. A  receding high tide challenged us, but slowly became more  favorable. The morning saw very little action and slowly  became somewhat frustrating. Complications with my gear and multiple barracuda cut offs took a considerable amount of time and line. I felt like that memorable day was not going to have  its sequel. Two-thirds of the team was already headed out of the water to  pack up. I was considering calling it quits too.

Casting off of a long, narrow sandbar towards a grassy  patch, I let my line cross into a deeper area. As I  did this, I observed a kiddy-pool sized stingray combing right  over the same spot. I feel a strong tug at my line and I  pulled the rod back and set the hook.

The stingray took off to the right and my line starts to run in the opposite direction. The fish heads straight into the  deep on a 20+ second sprint. Spool already depleted, my line started turning into bare metal and I was forced to run  after the fish into the deep to prevent the fish from breaking off.

I had about 3 revolutions of line left around the spool when the  fish decided to finish its sprint. I quickly tried to bring in line but the creature was not budging. Rod bent and arms flexed,  I arm wrestled until my forearm burned. I continued reeling  and walking towards it gaining some slack.

Without warning  the fish sprinted again and I was able to redirect it towards the  sandbar. With a change of trajectory and momentum, the fish started  down the sandbar like a plane landing on an airstrip. The  silver of the fish cut through the water and I finally set  eyes on the beast.

The bonefish cut through the water like a  torpedo and once it approached me I was shocked at how big it  was. Exhausted from the fight, we both moved slowly in the  shallow water. I carefully secured the fish and removed the  hook. Holding the fish I was exuberant! I admired its beauty and  size. We snapped a few pictures and took a release video. The  bonefish took off strong, and left me with a smile from ear  to ear. Persistence paid off and everything that had happened  before that was worth it at the end.

Any question on what I’ll be doing August 17, 2014?