Shrimp, Specks, Sheepshead .......

[Ice Cream Man]

Got the early morning call " You want to go fishing ..... "
It's never a question, it's a statement, but more like a command with my fishing buddy David C .......
So I run out without breakfast or any time to make lunch .....
This poor decision will catch up to us later ........

Now a little back story is needed here .......
My Wife is really good chef - we always have some kind of great
leftovers & my friends know this .......
We owned a deli for several years & I pride myself on taking
great sandwiches - stuffed with meat, cheese, crisp lettuce,
vine-ripened tomatoes on freshly baked bread & a Fuji apple .........
Not one of those prison sandwiches you get in the gas station when you
pick up a bag of ice ............
You know the kind - a single slice of bologna & a single slice of cheese
on white bread - cut on the diagonal, shipped & packed last month.....


Spent the better part of the morning finding Shrimp ......
The 2 of us, throwing 2 cast nets, must have thrown at least a 100 times each - sometimes netting only 1 small Shrimp - think we ended up a 7 or 9 dozen - to tired to keep count ........
Could have used a nap & a bite to eat after that, but no time to rest, we wanted to fish & were determined to catch fish .........

Checked out all the local spots that have been productive in the past - no takers, not even bait stealer's, not looking good .....
Starting to hear David C complain about something - not sure what he's saying, because we are running hard to the next spot.

We tried topwater, grubs, Pogies & Shrimp ........
We traveled & trolled for hours without a hit .........
David C's complaining is getting worse, the worse part - it's getting near lunch time & we have no lunch - not good!
Wish we had some prison sandwiches right about now.....

He keeps on getting hung on the bottom & he's becoming hostile ......
Puts down his rod, starts throwing tackle bags around to get into a hatch that's covered with my rain gear, looking for something ........
I am thinking a new secret lure he's been hiding from me ........
He turns, smiles & shows me what he got - a zipped lock full of food, sweet .......
A few packages of out of dated Lancer's Crackers, a fruit cups, a oatmeal breakfast bar & single serving of Nacho chips ........
I was surprised not to find any Vienna sausages to make this a fine dining experience - turns out he ate them yesterday .........
A bounty of good food it's not & we devoured it as it was a gourmet lunch, maybe better ?????

Then after our feast the bite starts, we let out our anchor line several times to stay on the bite ..........
We lost at least 4 Sheepshead & a few Specks at the boat ........
All caught on fresh Shrimp as well as 5 of the smallest Reds I have ever seen - Mini Me Reds with a big aggressive attitude .....

Fishing with David C is never dull & who needs prison sandwiches when you got year old Lancer's Crackers .......... ICM