11/08/14

And it continues. Big fat skinnies, real deal wahoo just like the "good old days", were still in a biting mood. Flat calm seas, glorious, were an accent, a final flair, that sent this day into the realm of perfection. Not a complaint could be mustered , except perhaps from a few anglers that had their lunch handed to them by the big, wily wahoo's, but even those instances were taken with a grain of salt, a high sense of humor, as the momentary offense was eclipsed by the next opportunity soon to come..

It doesn't happen this way too often, but it's magic when it does. On the topic of wahoo oddities, magic, and unbelievable luck a quick story from today is in order. As I referenced in yesterday's narrative the list of firsts out here is infinite in potential. Royal Star angler Walt Baird is the subject today. Walt broke the wahoo ice back in late September on the Baja Fish Gear seven day with a rather extraordinary catch. He landed his first and only wahoo prior to this run by snagging one, about a thirty pounder, directly through the tail. Today's tale included far more adventure.

Floating along toward the end of a stop Walt was enjoying a peaceful respite fly lining a sardine up in the bow. His bait, a good distance out from the port side, fooled one of the many wahoo lurking afar. Simple math at this point: put the reel in gear, set the hook, and start grinding. The cagey wahoo had other ideas; he wasn't going down that easy. In a flash, and I do mean a flash, perhaps one second, that crazy S.O.B. turned, ripped straight across the bow, then headed down the starboard side at Mach fifteen.

No big deal: pass the rod over the bow then head down the side in hot pursuit - unless the line gets hung up on the anchor that is raised, sitting in it's resting position on the roller. At the same time poor old Walt is hung up, and crewmen aware of his plight are racing toward the bow to assist, the hooked wahoo, showing no inclination to give up the advantage, continues to scream down the side making it to at least twenty or thirty yards off the stern. Mind you Walt's line is still hung up on the anchor gear at this time. Walt's spectra at this point is strung all the way down the starboard side cabin, past the galley entrance, all the way out to where the fish is mid stern, about neck to head high. As the fish then began to rip across the stern, now heading up the port side, the only thing that kept the line from sawing off a few heads were the gaffs in the holders around the bait tank.

In itself this rather extraordinary sequence of events is just nuts. Add the fact that the whole thing occurred in less than five seconds, with twenty five combined anglers and crewmen fishing, working, catching, and contending with mini drama's of their own, and the flavor of unpredictability, for which wahoo are so well known, is fairly conveyed. It's still difficult to believe and/or envision, one of those "you had to have been there" type occurrences to fully grasp and appreciate, but the story is in no way diminished because.

And the closing note of triumph should not be ignored: the fish was landed; some quick work by Walt and the boys earned a resounding victory. A little banged up from his wrestling match with the ground tackle, Walt was ecstatic nevertheless. He is now a seasoned wahoo veteran with another incredible tale to share among fellow long rangers on his next run.

Photo today features a man on fire in the wahoo fishing realm. Steve Bernd was stacking them like cord wood in the RSW tank yesterday and today. Get ready with the coolers boys! This sixty three pounder, and plenty more like it, go a long way past the fillet table.

Tim Ekstrom

Photo Here...