| Fish Migrate Like Birds Do | | | | fingers and palm. They used to laugh at me for |
| The migration of different species along the eastern | | | | wearing gloves in tropical weather until the first time |
| U.S. seaboard kept me going on regular trips | | | | one of my mates nearly lost a hand like that. Now I |
| throughout most of the year. Spring meant smaller | | | | chuckle each trip as I watch them put on their gloves. |
| Blues and Weakfish. Summer offered Tautog with | | | | They look at me funny when I chuckle, but then they all |
| their bait-stealing expertise and tasty fillets. Fall almost | | | | know why I smirk. |
| always meant big, "slammer" Blues. Early in December, | | | | The Sharks |
| I watched for the full moon. Why? Because that was | | | | Then, there are the sharks. The Bull Shark is the worst. |
| my cue to go for night Whiting. Often, this would be | | | | They come up very near to the surface when you've |
| my last trip of the year until the following spring when | | | | hooked one. They want to look at you, you see. They |
| the annual cycle would start all over again. Then I went | | | | size you and your boat up - and then the fight is on. |
| tropical. | | | | They try to spin your boat if it's small enough. Or flip it |
| Going Tropical | | | | over with a casual "bump" or two. They'll swim under |
| But those, for me were the "Good Ole' Days" from | | | | you, around you, dive, surface, swim in patterns or |
| more than a dozen years ago. Now my lines parts the | | | | make runs. They twist, roll and execute all manner of |
| waters of the South American Pacific Ocean and the | | | | maneuvers to foul your line, tangle it, break it or cause |
| turgid depths of Amazon River and Orinoco River | | | | your boat or you to capsize, flip or sink. If that happens, |
| basins. Now the razor-sharp teeth of several species | | | | you're dead - literally. |
| of the Piranha family greet me as the rise above the | | | | Savvy salt-water fishermen almost never fish alone |
| water's surface. Or at other times I play a three and a | | | | and use the largest boat available. That way, at least, |
| half foot long Dorado on eight to twelve pound mono | | | | you'll have a fighting chance at surviving a hookup with |
| as it leaps, rocks and rolls along with all other type of | | | | a Bull Shark. Heck, who knows, if you hang in there |
| aerial acrobatics in a sometimes successful bid for | | | | long enough, you'll even have a fair shot at boating the |
| more time gorging on schools of small bait fish. At | | | | shark. That is if you're stupid enough or knowledgeable |
| least you'll have some great stories about "the ones | | | | and brave enough to want to. |
| that got away". | | | | Don't be put off though. A world of exciting adventure |
| Yet again, a muscle-straining tug-of-war ensues when | | | | fishing awaits any hardy enough to tackle these |
| I've latched into an underwater, runaway freight train | | | | dangerous denizens on their own turf. Prepare well, |
| called an Albacore which hits your bait or deep-running | | | | have a knowledgeable local guide and pack a |
| lure with such force your rod can be snapped as you | | | | water-proof video or digital camera. Then get set for |
| wince in pain while the line makes hamburger of your | | | | enough thrills to last a lifetime. |