gRAYt day to be Catchin'

Although the Locked-in FOG made both the drive over and the on-the-water negotiations very slow, the tentativity was soon abated. My very 1st cast awarded me a nice but just short(13.5") Flounder. Definitely forecasted a Great day of Chompin'! A couple dozen trout were fooled with artificials-only on med-light tackle, some undersized Reds were released to fight another dayAttachment 413974Attachment 413978 , a couple feisty (>12") Mangrove Snapper(Mangos) Attachment 413973, lizardfish, and the Surprise of the day. While fan-casting one of my favorite Snook areas, I caught a flash of White while feeling the take. It was OFF to the RACES as I held on with fingers-crossed:pray to hopefully at least see this Monster before it breaks my light-action 6" FENWICK loaded w/6 lb. braid/flouro leader. The drag serviced extremely well with numerous 45 - 50 yard Windsprints!! Had to chase after him a couple times with the boat to gain some line. If I hadn't seen him at all, my bets would have been on an oversized Redfish or over-slot Snook. What I did see and eventually slip my net under was this!:yikes Attachment 413971 a cow-nosed Ray/SkateAttachment 413972 of about 30/40#'s! Easily captured my Fish of the Year with all variables considered. Brought home 5 beautiful Trout(19"), super-feisty Mangrove Snapper and a treasure-trove of memories that won't soon/ever be forgotten!:highfiveAttachment 413975
Thanks for Ridin/Readin'/Reelin' on one of the finest solo-trips I've ever enjoyed on the Salt.

u2sAttachment 413977

That is one heck of a mixed bag

Good mixed bag report

Wow, quite a variety pack. Saltwater seems to always be a surprise. Great pics, thanks for sharing.

good job landing that ray. and the others too.

Some nice looking fish. I know you had some fun with that bag of species.

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Awesome salty experience, thanks for sharing

I’d like to have seen you and Ray tussle it out. It was a beautiful day to be out, one way or the other. Good job!

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Originally Posted by skeetbum

I’d like to have seen you and Ray tussle it out. It was a beautiful day to be out, one way or the other. Good job!

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Truly a Walk on eggshells! The added variables were KELP and less than 4 feet of Water= He could Burn Rubber and SMOKDE drag washers in a minute!!:yikes Extremely satisfying for the final net-mesh Belly Massage!!:highfive
Doug

They can put up a good fight.

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Originally Posted by DockShootinJack

They can put up a good fight.

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Truly STEROIDAL!! Have caught/experienced MANY since adolescence(Many more wing-snagged than mouth-hooked, as this one was!) Mouth-hooked have TOTAL unrestricted WING POWER!!:FireWhite Flag Icon. The wings are good eating cut up into chunks after skinning/fileting by either deep-frying or slow-simmer sauteeing a creamy-bisque over rice or noodles. Totally nixing the often heard theory/rumor that restaurants punch out the wings and serve them as SCALLOPS. The meat when fried does mimic the firmer texture of a scallop but MUCH coarser than a scallop. Slow-simmer creamy bisque produces a softer yield. Never tried to do my food processor pulse-technique for a faux scallop, but will be a future try!
u2s

I was about to say u shoulda boxed that ray. I've caught big skates like that and they always get the release to the grease. Good job bro [emoji16]

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some great fish, couple of them new to me