Fish Catching Travel
Never Forget
Both Nancy and I are former Paramedics and today is a day of reflection and remembrance. We had a vacation scheduled in New York City for 2 months following 9/11, and instead of canceling like many folks, we went. Being at Ground Zero was a humbling experience. People still walking the streets with pictures of missing loved ones was heartbreaking. The temporary walls surrounding Ground Zero covered with posters, pictures, flowers, and handprints. Watching as the trucks went in and out with the workers as the public clapped and cheered was a testament to the American spirit. A steam shovel digging at the pile of rubble that was still smoldering 2 months later looked like a toy compared to the rubble enclosing our hero’s. I thought I understood the size of Ground Zero until we walked around the whole site, the sheer magnitude of the attack was overwhelming. Ground Zero is hallowed ground and my life was forever changed by being there.
We know the families of those brave police, first responders, and firemen will never have real closure, how could they? 9/11 was a case of mass murder plain and simple. And now the world is once again threatened by radical Islamic animals. I will never label them as anything less. The mass murder of captured soldiers, beheadings of American citizens who have done nothing, and the rape and genocide of Christians and others who are simply living their life is reprehensible. As we remember those fallen hero’s who were murdered in the name of Islam we are confronted by a new enemy – ISIS. The threat is real. We must hunt them down to the last man and kill them with no quarter given.
It is time for mainstream Islam to take a stand against rape and mass murder done in the name of Islam. Where is their public outrage with what is happening in Iraq and Syria ? Where is the condemnation by the mainstream Islamic community at what I hope is seen by them as a hijacking of Islam by killers in the name of their God? Now we even have American (and it makes me sick to label them as such) Muslims leaving the US to fight for ISIS. I hate to say the world is at a tipping point, but this has to stop. The silence emanating from mainstream Islam is telling. George Bush said it best, “You are either with us or against us.”
No one anywhere on the face of this earth, no matter race or religion, should live in fear of homicidel maniacs raping and killing in the name of any religion. We must never forget or become complacent. Those brave men and women who sacrificed their lives in an effort to rescue total strangers deserve our respect and must never be forgotten. So if you see a medic, cop, or fireman today, just say thanks. They have earned it.
God Bless America
(Please excuse this deviation from the fishing. We strive to keep on point, the fishing. But this fishing is not all there is to life. So while you will not see other posts of this type, I will never forget 9/11, and every anniversary I will remember and honor those folks.)
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I am so happy when someone responds to a post. Sharing of information is a good thing, and each of us who loves our sport knows something that can help others catch fish. So I was really happy to get the following comments.
I heard from Jeffery who commented on the catfishing trip and definitely provided a way to sack them up.
We used to get those hatches big time at medina lake and I can remember swamping the boat with cats, whites and blacks. I went to a half-ass fly rod set up and just let my bait land on the boat! Take about four or five of those babes and skewer them onto a 1/0 thin shank or like hook and flip it out in front of you as far as you can. Best on a medium spinning reel, lots of fun!
Thanks Jeffery, we did discuss the fly rod, and it is good to hear we were headed in the right direction. And we definitely realized we should have been using spinning gear. So folks we all learned something, spinning equipment, in fact I would use a light action long rod just to help throw it farther, a fine wire hook, and a nice gob of bugs. So folks if you encounter that set of circumstances again you will be in business. I can tell you that if we had been doing it that way it would have been ugly.
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After posting about catching a few on the MirrOdine I got this piece of good advice from Brian.
“Love the site. Great reports. I’ve been fishing POC for 25 + years and enjoy the details in your reports.
Funny, you should mention the mirrodine. I fished the surf in Galveston on 9/9/14 and was met with ultra clear conditions. As you know, fishing artificial in those conditions can be tough. I love that bait in the natural (silver) color those conditions. It was the only thing that would work. My friend fishing next to me had no bites on top water and various colored tails. I scratched out four nice keepers in an hour and a half while the live shrimp guys around us zeroed.
Keep the reports coming.”
From what I know that particular bait was specifically designed for really shallow water, which if the fish are there is usually clear. As a slow sinker it can effectively be fished from 6″ to 5′. I have fished it on spinning and casting gear, with no difference in success. So if fishing is tough and the water is clear don’t forget to throw the MirrOdine. It works. Thanks Brian, I am heading to fish the surf in South Padre soon and I won’t forget to take one.
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I was going to do an evening trip to Coleto yesterday but at 4:00 it was 99 degrees, a heat index of 109 degrees, and the wind was gusting to 25mph. I admit it, I flat woosed out. Sometimes it is just hard to get motivated when it is that damn hot. As soon as I write this and get a couple of things done it will be off to the lake. I forgot to mention in my catfish post while we were drifting waiting for the catfish to surface I threw a buzzbait and ended up losing one at the boat and missing the other. Since they are on both the frog and the buzzbait I will attempt to accommodate them this evening. Then next back to the Gulf. Oh, so many fish, so little time. Keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.
Good Luck and Tight Lines
