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Volume 9, Issue 7 |
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Page 5 |
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On April 21st six anglers left Ballantrae for an Islamorada , in the Keys, fishing trip. The driver was Mike Olver, you know- the English guy. We were concerned that he would drive on the wrong side of the road, but were pleasantly surprised that Mike knows his right from his left and his U.K. from his USA. Actually, his driving was, as Mike would describe it, “lovely”. Accolades for Mike for renting a van and doing most of the driving. Other anglers were Jim McLain, the backup driver, Dick Mandaro, an Italian who knows food and how to, and did, prepare breakfast and lunch, George Liss, Chuck VanAssche, and yours truly, Bill Scalia, the trip coordinator. We stayed at the Caloosa Cove Resort, ate at the Lazy days and Uncle’s restaurants and enjoyed two great meals. The second dinner was at Uncle’s where our “catch of the day,” yellow tail snapper was prepared to perfection. Now to the reason for the trip-fishing. On April 22 we boarded the “Tiki,” captained by Roy Lindback, with his first mate Luke Bryhill. Both were highly praised by the Ballantrae anglers, without exception. On Tuesday, April 22 we fished the reef. We caught 18 Yellow Tail Snapper, 2 Kingfish, 1 Mangrove Snapper, 1 Mutton Snapper, and 3 Sailfish. The Sailfish were caught and released by Olver, Mandaro and Scalia with the largest being approximately 70 pounds. On Wednesday, April 23 we went past the reefs; approximately 25 miles offshore. We first caught bait fish and then headed out trolling for Dolphin without success. The captain then changed rigs and we fished for Tuna; catching 10 Black Fin Tuna. The Captain, Roy Lindback, was not happy with our catch. He explained that the high winds were affecting fishing. We were ready to quit, but Lindback wasn’t. He was determined to find a school, and he did. We caught 8 Dolphin on the way in. It was a long day; 7AM to 5 PM, but well worth it. We also caught a number of fish which were either not tasty or too small and were returned to the seas, or used for bait. We had a great time. Good friends, good fishing, good times. See you on next years Keys fishing trip. Bill Scalia
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