Photo above taken during the 2017 Ladies Day Tarpon Tournament held in Boca Grande.
“Green on the tip,” he said.
For those that are not familiar with that term, it
means to drop your line in the water and let it drop
until a little green string, tied to the main line at 42
feet, shows up. There is also a red string which is 60
feet from the swivel.
So when the Captain says, “Green on tip” that
means for you to let your line drop into the water
until you see the little green string come across the
tip of the rod. Then you set your reel, put the rod
across your lap, holding onto the rod with both
hands, and wait.
About five minutes into the drop, after feeling the
squirrel fish swimming around crazy down below, I
felt one BIG tug. In my mind I stopped, and
remembered one of the biggest rules when tarpon
fishing, a rule that I think I may not have followed in
past tarpon trips. That rule is - DO NOT PULL UP
ON THE ROD when you feel the first bite. It’s instinct
for other types of fishing to try and set the hook in
the fish’s mouth when you feel a bite. But in tarpon
fishing it is a big no-no!
So I didn’t jerk. I knew to yell “Fish on!” right away
as I saw the pole bend, and the captain threw the
boat in gear. But just as quick as the pole bent over,
76GASPARILLA ISLAND May/June 2019
the line slacked back up and was no longer
pulling straight down and hard like a tarpon hit. I
let the captain know and he told me to go ahead
and reel it in and see what it was, and that it was
probably a grouper or something else. Then ...
Wham!
Another hit. And this time it was definitely -
FISH ON!
I had hooked a tarpon once before on a
previous trip for about five minutes before it
broke off, so I was instantly reminded of how
strong they are. I set the rod in the gimble and
prepared for battle. The tarpon took one small
jump behind the boat and then proceeded back
down deep. I pulled up on the rod as hard as
possible, then reeled in the rod as you let it drop
down again. Pull up, reel down. Pull up, reel down.
Face the fish. Sounds a lot easier than it actually
is with 70 pounds of fighting fish on the other
end. I braced my legs against the back of the boat
and gave it all I had.
Then, just as I thought I was making some
progress, he took off running.
Pull up, reel down. Face the fish. Pull up, reel
down. Face the fish.