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I only had two trips during the week. The weather was cold and miserable, and the fishing was very tough.
The first trip was Wednesday with Chuck Clayton, and his buddies Mike Williams and Jim Madsen, of Huron, South Dakota. Chuck had called me the night before for last minute details, and I warned him to layer up and dress appropriately for the Florida cold. We were expecting to see a low of around 36 with the wind howling out of the north. Chuck reminded me that they were from South Dakota, and I reminded Chuck that they were not used to the wet Florida cold that can cut you right through to your soul. At the ramp the next morning the boys told me how surprised they were that it was actually colder here than it was when they left home. Although they all had on jackets, they quickly found that they had not dressed warmly enough for our damp cold, and I think they were cold for most of the day.
To add insult to injury, the only game in town was ladyfish up the river. There were plenty of those, and they provided some fun. But once we left them, we couldn't get a fish to eat anywhere. In fact, I poled up on redfish and trout that refused to move until I was nearly on top of them with the boat. You're not going to get those fish to eat. We fished hard, but only managed to catch one redfish for the rest of the trip. I asked the boys to please not judge our fishing here based upon that cold day.
A cold couple of days later, I had a trip with Charlie Shelton and his wife Cathy. He is here vacationing for a while with his 24 ft. boat, and was worried about how to get around on the super low winter tides. So, a big part of what he wanted to do was learn, and maybe learn something about how to fish here, as well.
I began with showing him where he could catch enough ladyfish to entertain himself and friends for hours on end. But, from the ladyfish it was a straight drop downhill, as the fish just wouldn't eat in the super cold water. We did manage two big speckled trout that morning, and that was it. We were thankful for those two fish, too!
We desperately need to see an extended period of warm weather, which will allow our water, now below 60 degrees, to begin to warm. Once it does, the fishing should begin to bust loose. Until then, it will be slow. The downturn in business because of the slow economy, and now further because of the attrocities of September 11, has had me and some of my friends brainstorming how we can generate trips, generate cash flow, and therefore stay in business through the tough times we have ahead of us. Here are the first two ideas I will put forward. First, since December and January are normally my only slow months of the year, I am fearful of just how slow they could be this year. I am going to roll back the cost of my half day trip to last year's rate of $325 for anyone booking in December and January. Further, if you would like to prepay your trip, no matter when you have it booked, either in lump sum, or in three or four installments, I will discount the trip by $25. Your trip must be paid at least a month in advance to earn the discount. With the market in such a slump and interest rates still declining, that's a much better return on your trip fee than leaving it in the bank until trip time.
So, come on folks. It's time to get out and enjoy your favorite pastime, in your favorite vacation destination. Let's show Osama Bin Lunatic that he can't beat us with economic terrorism, either.
I have now posted the final thumbnailed pictures on the Talon Page of this website, for those interested in seeing how one of these jewels goes together.
If you want to be able to continue to fish Florida waters please follow this link, "Manatee Zones: How You Can Help" and please take the time to become involved, even if you don't live in Florida. Let the politicians know WHY you come to Florida on vacation!
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