Robalo Quest phase 138

I love a challenge, after all most of my life has been one....But, trying to catch that big Robalo to go with the other trophies in my office is getting ridiculous, This morning we mobilized Shark Team X and went to our most favorite place for Robalo and once again for me, nadda. I'm personally on the side or earning them and so today should have been the pay off. We struggled to get there. As any of  you old clam diggers know the soft stuff at the top of the beach is the scariest but once you get through it down to firmer sand it's duck soup. Well with high tide at the same time of morning darkness as we're headed up the beach and we have a 3 mile trek of nothing but the soft stuff....and never mind all the stumps, flotsam, jetsom and general garbage to dodge along the way. To put it in short version, you haven't really adventure fished until you have the 4X4 buried up to the axel on a secluded beach, not once but 3 or 4 times.....But Team X is good in a pinch and we arrived to find slow fishing. Now I'm nobody to have fish envy and lord knows I've dished out my fair share through the years but my buddy Ernie is killing me, just killing me. In the 5 or 6 years since Team X baptism by fire he's caught 5 or 6 or maybe even 8 huge Robalo,,,,but who's counting. Me, that's who. It goes like this. Ernie has one bite....fish stays on and it's perfect. Jeff has one bite, fish spits the hook and back lashes the reel....

But I always say the joy is in the pursuit so I'm just gushing with joy right now. On Saturday I got to fish the very most scenic destination of my life. Ron picked me up at 3:30 in the morning, then into old town to change rigs and then 75 miles south with Ern, Slah and Ramon to Chamleta. It's a gorgeous estuary area which is full of smaller Corvina and some Snook. It's exactly the kind of fishing that I've always wanted to do. wading and casting through the mangroves, sighting the fish and then tracking them down. At this place we are totaly isolated again, just us and nature.

The guys are used to catching a lot of fish here as it really needs to be worth a maximum effort. So everybody was a little hinky as the morning wore on with no fish. But as me and Ramon made our way to the mangroves we started to see some fish and after I caught one at the very edge of my cast I put on a castmaster for extra distance and walla, we're in the game. These ain't the biggest Corvina we've caught but for me Honorary Captain and Morale Officer for Team X it was the very best fishing trip I've ever had. Wading thigh deep and looking, hearing the birds in the mangroves behind you and being....alone...in a new wonderful place.

I did pretty darn good at Chametla despite being a little hobbled. It kinda reminded me of my dad when he was about my age. He was traveling for work a lot and was sleeping those tremelous dreams in a pitch black strange to him motel room. Well he got up to take a leak and rammed is big toe squarely into a cinder block that was holding up the corner of the bed, By the time I saw the toe several days later it we 10 shades of black and blue with the nail curled up and seeping a weird looking fluid....I remember saying holy**** that looks like it hurts...and he said...." really, ya think". They say the apple don't fall far from the tree so as I was break dancing through the rocks in the dark the other morning in my bare feet I replicated old Wally's accomplishment. He'd be proud.

That baby was a little tender, I'm here to tell ya, But it wasn't all in vain as I caught this nice Pargo that same morning. So like I said before, if you're fisherman that feels like you've worked hard and earned your fish well with a toe like that this fish got me vested in the union and I should have a pension coming as well.

So I really needed a day off my feet when my friend Kiki invited me to his house in Colonia Pradas Del Sol to play some music. I'm a lucky guy. Kiki likes the heavy metal so the duets didn't work out so good but we did a little blues alright and just had a great time. Old Kik being a bit of a computer wizard cut a You Tube track for me that I think really turned out nice. If you want to hear the 6 foot man with the 10 foot voice just go to You Tube and search Jeff King, We were in Love. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KGxtkqiF00E

As I was scrolling pics for this blog I came across Santa's helpers and was reminded to wish all of a you a Very Very Merry FISHMAS.....I appreciatte all of you reading my blog and it's my biggest hope that it brings you pleasure. All the happiness and good health to you all in 2015....we'd love to see you in Maz or at Mile 14, we'll leave the light on.