Fish Stories

It’s always better to be on the boat than it is to be overboard. Especially during Shark Week.

Sometimes there’s simply no explaining the things that happen out there.

Sometimes the fish do the schooling. It’s amazing what a feisty tuna can teach a callow, young mate.

Bimini isn’t very big, but it gets even smaller when Bob Knight comes to town to do some bonefishing

For one angler, a typical day shark fishing turned into a toothy, bloody, hand-to-hand fight to the death in the blink of an eye.

There may be no greater challenge in the fishing world than landing a giant bluefin. Our author can tell you that from experience, as he recounts a fish he landed years ago, and the crew’s skill and bravery in getting it to the boat.

Opportunities come and go, but how you play the game is no fluke.

An Interview with John Patnovic, the man with the plan to resurrect Post Marine.

Some Jumps Have No Joy...

An angler goes Down Under in search of a record grander.

“It’s only an island if you look at it from the water.” —Chief Martin Brody, JawsThere’s something to be said for surrounding yourself with water for as far as the eye can see. Most of you know what I’m talking about. The physical separation of getting out, getting away, and changing your perspective is a big part of the sea’s

Lightning is not my friend. Sure, cloud-to-cloud bolts can be a spectacle to behold; they’re like a Fourth of July display but without the cleanup afterwards...

Middle-Aged Man & the SeaIllustration by Brian RaszkaForty-five miles off Marina Pez Vela, Costa Rica, I was recently fortunate enough to witness one of life’s intimate and constant dramas. Onboard were marina executive Juan Montalto, his sons Esteban, age 15, and Jose, 13, and the crew. We were trolling the

Book Review: A Passion for TarponThe title of this wonderful book says it all.During the long phone conversation I had with Lefty Kreh, he mentioned a recently released book he’d just written an intro for, a book that in his opinion

On Greatness and AgonyIllustration by Scott PollackThe sea was glass-calm. A mid-summer’s sun shone bright over cobalt waters that featured hints of purple. Our Blinky IV fishing team was trolling a 500-fathom contour line that lies about 65 miles offshore of Ocean City, Maryland. The scene was set for magic to

How many anglers does it take to catch one 70-pound yellowfin? On some days, it takes all of them.Illustration by Scott PollackIf you walk into any seaside pub, you’ll probably see fishermen chatting amiably as cold pints slide across a scarred bar top, each nick in the heavily varnished wood representing a beer

Richard DeMarte is an old salt—at only 15-years old.It's not unusual for professional anglers to be sponsored by gear manufacturers and boat companies. But typically those anglers aren't 15-years old. Meet Richard DeMarte. DeMarte has caught and tagged more than 550 striped bass.Like many

Cindy Garrison never let adversity keep her down.Garrison has fished from Alaska to Africa.If you want to succeed as a professional fisherman, all you need is the dream and a cow. Or two.Okay, maybe there’s a couple of other ways to go about it, but for adventure angler, TV show host, and

Florida fisherman hooked quite a haul in June: Instead of reeling in a red grouper, he snagged himself an air-to-air missile that had been fired by an F-15 fighter jet.Longtime commercial fisherman Rodney Saloman says he was longlining in the Gulf of Mexico when he snagged the corroded missile about 50 miles off Panama City, Florida. He said he wasn’t

Photo courtesy of Michael BarryBarry and one of his foes gettin’ cozy in the cockpit of his kayak.Angler Michael Barry’s line came tight as he sat on a kayak just a few inches above the bathwater-warm Pacific Ocean. He literally came eye-to-eye with his foe: a Costa Rican sailfish. The road to

Photo by FurunoWant a razor-sharp image like this 17" Furuno’s? Then you’ll need a top-quality sounder module.Everyone’s familiar with fishfinders; they’ve been around for years. But if your boat operates in deep water and you need outstanding resolution for, say, serious offshore fishing, your

Photo by FurunoWant a razor-sharp image like this 17" Furuno’s? Then you’ll need a top-quality sounder module.Everyone’s familiar with fishfinders; they’ve been around for years. But if your boat operates in deep water and you need outstanding resolution for, say, serious offshore fishing, your

We ride east in a black Mitsubishi SUV. This part of Grand Bahama Island is desolate. The sun cuts through low-lying conifers, scrub brush, and burnt forest. Oil-depot casks, rusting and caked in beige paint, are one of the few intrusions among the sparse growth. A few gravel driveways leading to bonefishing camps diverge from the southern road, down to the

Part 1: The HuntWe ride east in a black Mitsubishi SUV. This part of Grand Bahama Island is desolate. The sun cuts through low-lying conifers, scrub brush, and burnt forest. Oil-depot casks, rusting and caked in beige paint, are one of the few intrusions among the sparse growth. A few gravel driveways leading to bonefishing