Yum-Yum from Key Largo
15 gallons of gas: $43.12
Fishing lures: $14.73
Sunscreen: $7.95
A woman who can catch fish, clean them, and cook ‘em up: Absolutely PRICELESS!
Sheree and dinner!
(No… sorry… she is not for sale or trade)
It would seem that while I’m overseas on a business trip my lovely wife Sheree has found herself in Key Largo hanging out with her brother, Capt. Robert Lovell. He is a professional backwater fishing guide in the Florida Keys, and my favorite brother-in law.
One of the wonderful benefits is that since we are family, we get to fish for free!
Robert does take some getting used to however. He takes most of the mystery out of fishing. I like to chunk a pretty looking lure out into the clear water. I generally make sure the hook is sharp by seeing how much blood I can draw from my fingers while tying the lure on.
I’ll throw it out, wind it back in and just enjoy the day. Ahhhh ~ Island time, ya mon…
Robert on the other hand, takes the scientific approach. You have to tell him exactly what kind of fish you want, how many, and what size, what color, how long and such, prior to leaving the dock.
You ride along to the ’spot’ and wait until receiving further instructions. Robert will subsequently point in some direction and firmly state, “There, there he is, do you see it now?”
Capt. Robert Lovell ~ he knows where to go!
Any answer other than, “Yeah, WOW, I see him,” will only reward you with a sneer and look of, ‘you’re such a failure.’
Chunk your lure into the direction indicated, start reeling back in. Adjust your retrieval speed until you no longer hear, “reel it faster damn it,” or “for God’s sake, slow down… you have to let the fish see it!”
Then simply follow the hook setting instructions, “Pull harder, aw come on… you got to set the hook,” or “what are you trying to do, rip his lips off???” You will eventually find the happy medium in there somewhere.
As the fish appears next to the boat Robert will bring it on board. To avoid the ‘you idiot‘ look, make sure you have the appropriate amount of slack on the line, but not too much or you will still get the ‘you idiot‘ look…
Sheree and the baby Sheepshead
Roberts methods do seem to work though. I’ve never caught so many fish in my life as when we are on his boat. I’ve learned a lot from him, he knows where the fish are, and one day…
I’ll even see that fish in the water.
http://www.flkeysflyfishing.com/
Filed Under: Travels
About the Author: I'm a retired deputy sheriff turned sailor and author. Please feel free to leave comments and suggestions for anything you might like to read about. Hopefully I'll see you out on the water!
I see them holding the bait, getting ready to fish evidently. I hope they do well. Sounds from the article like they take something as leisurely and relaxing as fishing and make it a lot like work! I put one lure on at the dock and caught 3 fish in about 7 minutes. Bill was standing there watching. I said, screw this and changed lures. Didn’t have any more problems….
Oh yeah… for you kind folks calling the Florida Wildlife Commission and attempting to collect any reward for turning us in for the grouper, go ahead and hang up now.
The grouper was catch and release ~sigh~ The sheepshead however…
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