Hey reloading friends.
I thought I would tell You about my fishing trip last week. We left the hotel in la Paz , Baja California Sur about 4:45. We made the 45 minute trip over to in English " the sea of the dead " named that because there is an old cemetery there. It was day break and you could see the calm bay that leads out to the Sea of Cortez. myself , Steve and the captain Efrain boarded a small boat called a Panga. About 22 or 24ft, narrow boat with no luxuries only a 2 way radio and ice chest and tackle. I made it known Marlin was on my bucket list. That was all that mattered to me. As we exited the bay out to sea with about 10 other boats the sun began to come up over the horizon. Calm seas it was a beautiful day. We had squid aboard for bait but the captain said we need bait for Marlin. So we begin fishing for bait. It seems a fish called Bonita was easiest to come by. Steve landed about a 3 pounder and the captain took it off his hook only to put it on mine and told me to start fishing. I laugh now thinking about it because it seemed giant for bait. We fished till about 11 am catching various fish but still no Marlin when a call came in on the radio from his buddy in another boat. We reeled in our lines and headed their way. As we pulled up beside them the captain grabbed a bucket and began putting sea water in the front bow of the boat. His buddy netted 2 fish about 1 or 1 1/2 lbs each and he put them in the front of the boat. This was the bait we were wanting. once on the hook and in the water it only took about 3 minutes and the line was ripping of the reel. Omg. For about 30 minutes all I could do was hang on. We had to chase it in the boat to recover some line. You would think it was pretty close to the boat then it would jump out of the water about a city block away. Lol. What a site. After 30 minutes or so I told Steve it's your turn as my arms were about to fall off. He reeled till he couldn't anymore then Efrain the captain took his turn. Around and around we took our turns reeling in and watching him run away. The strength this fish has is unbelievable. After about 2 hours of chasing and reeling I began to wonder if I really wanted a Marlin lol. We decided not to quit as we looked around and all the other boats had gone in. We knew that 2 other groups were waiting for us to make the 45 min trip back to the hotel. We began to really tighten up on the drag of the reel over the next 2 hours to wear the fish down. After the 4th hour we had the drag as tight as it would go. You couldnt even pull the fishing pole up from the rail of the boat and yet this monster was still not giving up. It continued to peel off line. After 4hrs and 20 minutes several blisters all over my hands, arms cramped up , burnt up with no strength left I told him to cut the line. Lol I was whooped. Steve gave up about a hour and a half before and was laying in the front of the boat. This fish won. Efrain said it would be at the least 450 lbs and probably more. I would have never dreamed these fish have so much power. I would have to compare it to trying to bring home a totally wild buffalo with nothing but a rope. Wow. We never landed it but had it right beside the boat several times. Woke up this morning. My arms would even open up all the way. Back sore, hands sore, blisters. Lol. I am writing that on off my bucket list lol. What a fishing trip. I told Efrain God was going to give me a Marlin. Be careful what you ask God for. Lol. A day I will never forget.
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