Post by skywaypa on Jul 1, 2022 15:23:02 GMT -5
Spent Sat-Wed in Cape Coral this week. Rented a boat Mon/Tue and had a huge dock right on the <not even going to try and spell it> river. The plan was to try and chum up a nice bull shark from the river, and then head out to a near shore reef for snapper/grouper during boat days. Some of that happened.
Saturday:
We got there a bit after noon and hauled two trucks worth of fishing crap back to the dock. Started fishing with squid and dead shrimp. First fish we caught were (surprisingly) sea mullet/kingfish/whiting/whatever you call them where you are. Decent sized ones too, from 10-12 inches. Caught both types of catfish (yay) and a bunch of blue crabs (landed a few nice ones). No pinfish or other small fish and no bait to speak of anywhere. Went to get live shrimp for the evening. They were TINY. Average an inch long. The bait shops said they were "summer shrimp" and the fish wouldn't hit big ones anyway. Managed a keeper mangrove and a baby one before the first of FIVE consecutive late evening storms chased us off the dock just as it got dark.
Sunday:
Woke up at 6am to get in on the "sunrise bite" which was not a thing. In fact we didn't get a hint of a fish until a few hours later. I'm a bit fuzzy on what all we caught that day, and here's why. Around 9am I caught a small stingray on a shrimp. Pretty normal for these waters, really anywhere. Picked it up and hucked it back. I've done this countless times. From docks, piers, the beach, boats, etc. Stingrays are generally very docile. Caught another one shortly after that, same spot. It was sitting face up on the dock pointed at the water. About the size of a dinner plate. Reached down under its face (just like the last one) and went to lift it into the water. Like lightning it whipped its barb into and out of the heel of my left hand. It felt like what I imagine being shot is like. Instant insane pain in my hand that traveled up my fingers and up to about my armpit. Didn't bleed much to speak of but I can't even explain how much it hurt. It was 1000x the worst wasp sting. Felt like someone stabbed me with a smoking hot knife and the fire stayed inside my hand. That went on for the better part of 2 hours. Made it through the second hour by soaking my hand in the hottest water I could stand for 5 mins at a time. That dulled the pain for 5 mins or so each soak. After two hours or so passed I could function but it didn't feel great. Sitting here typing 5 days later and it is still not right. When I make a fist my pinky and ring fingers tingle and there's a sort of pain in my knuckles.
As of that moment stingrays are dead to me. I will NEVER chance that again. If I'm going to harvest one I am chopping the whole tail off before I touch it, and if I'm releasing one I'm cutting the line or using a de-hooker. If I get one onto a pier or dock it is in for a bad day. NOT AT ALL WORTH THE RISK. The only reason I didn't spend Sunday in the hospital was one, it hit me in the meaty part of the hand and two, it didn't break the barb off. Every time in the past I handled one of these I was an idiot, just expecting that it would not be a dick while I released it. I feel like that was all dumb luck. There is NO SAFE PLACE on a stingray to grab it. I was way out front of it. The thing went 180 with that spike to get me. Bad times.
Managed to fish the rest of the day until around 3pm but didn't catch anything worth talking about. We went to a buddy's house to cook dinner and then fished a bit off their dock into a canal. Put 4 big mayan cichlids in the cooler there. These things are fun and great eating. Minor win.
I'm going to post Mon/Tue adventures a bit later. Zeus is in Ruskin right now throwing mad lightning at me.
Saturday:
We got there a bit after noon and hauled two trucks worth of fishing crap back to the dock. Started fishing with squid and dead shrimp. First fish we caught were (surprisingly) sea mullet/kingfish/whiting/whatever you call them where you are. Decent sized ones too, from 10-12 inches. Caught both types of catfish (yay) and a bunch of blue crabs (landed a few nice ones). No pinfish or other small fish and no bait to speak of anywhere. Went to get live shrimp for the evening. They were TINY. Average an inch long. The bait shops said they were "summer shrimp" and the fish wouldn't hit big ones anyway. Managed a keeper mangrove and a baby one before the first of FIVE consecutive late evening storms chased us off the dock just as it got dark.
Sunday:
Woke up at 6am to get in on the "sunrise bite" which was not a thing. In fact we didn't get a hint of a fish until a few hours later. I'm a bit fuzzy on what all we caught that day, and here's why. Around 9am I caught a small stingray on a shrimp. Pretty normal for these waters, really anywhere. Picked it up and hucked it back. I've done this countless times. From docks, piers, the beach, boats, etc. Stingrays are generally very docile. Caught another one shortly after that, same spot. It was sitting face up on the dock pointed at the water. About the size of a dinner plate. Reached down under its face (just like the last one) and went to lift it into the water. Like lightning it whipped its barb into and out of the heel of my left hand. It felt like what I imagine being shot is like. Instant insane pain in my hand that traveled up my fingers and up to about my armpit. Didn't bleed much to speak of but I can't even explain how much it hurt. It was 1000x the worst wasp sting. Felt like someone stabbed me with a smoking hot knife and the fire stayed inside my hand. That went on for the better part of 2 hours. Made it through the second hour by soaking my hand in the hottest water I could stand for 5 mins at a time. That dulled the pain for 5 mins or so each soak. After two hours or so passed I could function but it didn't feel great. Sitting here typing 5 days later and it is still not right. When I make a fist my pinky and ring fingers tingle and there's a sort of pain in my knuckles.
As of that moment stingrays are dead to me. I will NEVER chance that again. If I'm going to harvest one I am chopping the whole tail off before I touch it, and if I'm releasing one I'm cutting the line or using a de-hooker. If I get one onto a pier or dock it is in for a bad day. NOT AT ALL WORTH THE RISK. The only reason I didn't spend Sunday in the hospital was one, it hit me in the meaty part of the hand and two, it didn't break the barb off. Every time in the past I handled one of these I was an idiot, just expecting that it would not be a dick while I released it. I feel like that was all dumb luck. There is NO SAFE PLACE on a stingray to grab it. I was way out front of it. The thing went 180 with that spike to get me. Bad times.
Managed to fish the rest of the day until around 3pm but didn't catch anything worth talking about. We went to a buddy's house to cook dinner and then fished a bit off their dock into a canal. Put 4 big mayan cichlids in the cooler there. These things are fun and great eating. Minor win.
I'm going to post Mon/Tue adventures a bit later. Zeus is in Ruskin right now throwing mad lightning at me.
