Yesterday morning on 6 lb

Part two:

After our first two fish yesterday on 6 lb, one of which was large enough and neither of which stayed buttoned, Aaron saw two fish sliding high in the water and pushed me over. My line had been oddly coiled up, and I had just attempted to clear it. When I began casting, I realized that my running line had spun itself into some sort of knot. I let the cast go and dealt with the issue at hand–with a fish hooked on six pound, a knot in the running line is as good as a death sentence (I know, I’m in Florida, unintended).
After I de-plaited the twist and the fish had passed well beyond my cast, I stripped the fly over them again. Same cast, same fish, but literally with a blind 10-second gap in the middle. The pair turned when they saw the boat, and the rear fish opened its mouth and gobbled. All Aaron said was “you’re lucky that fish ate that.”

Off to the races, though it was apparent that this fish was not quite 6 lb record material. We chased and pulled, and after about 20 minutes the fish was fairy beat.

We kept the fish next to the boat for a good 5 minutes while Aaron took the picture below. As you can see by the leader this fish was, while not extremely loud, incredibly close.

After the photos and a bit more pulling, Aaron grabbed the 12 inch shock tippet and I pulled back. We broke the fish off, and when I shook Aaron’s hand afterward I could feel the tarpon slime.
A pretty unreal day after three in the glades, and it goes to show what’s possible on six.

Next Friday and Saturday with Doug–no fishing until then, though I may head out at night for a look.

Regards,

ncl/tac