Finally caught a fish!

It was an extremely early start to the morning with Rowan’s anchor alarm going off just after 5. The tide had turned and our swinging around had moved the anchor. Good to know our alarm is so efficient and that it is connected to R’s phone so we can have it right nest to our bed. We waited until 6am to depart so that we could do it in the light and see what our way through the shallow channel. We were pleased to pass through Farmer’s cut in calm-ish water out to the windy Atlantic side of the island. Sails straight up and with the wind at our back we could sail all the way back to Georgetown. Big waves but very comfortable going, although not for Clint who was feeling very seasick.

Xavi has been valiantly fishing for the last to days using both the trawling and casting rod. Rowan has tried on numerous occasions but with no luck. As soon as the sails were up they put both the trawling rod and the bungee trawler out with some cute pink feathery lures (that Xavi has had great fun with in Rowan’s well stocked fishing box). We were roaring along and suddenly heard the rod clicking, they tried to reel in but with no success, and more and more line was going out. We turned into the wind to slow down and the great battle began! We thought we saw it jump and then realised we also had a fish on the bungee. That poor old fish must have been fighting the boat for a while as Xavi was able to pull this 3 foot MahiMahi into the boat. It was chaos for a few seconds as I was feeling so sad for the beautiful creature, Clint was manhandling it in the grippy gloves to get it into the bucket, Xavi was trying to keep everyone free of the hooks and Jan was camera man. Rowan had read that the easiest way to kill a big fish is to squirt tequila into their gills, as having a sharp knife in the flapping pandemonium was out of the question. Half a bottle of tequila later we had this enormous fish in the bucket. Then the battle continued on the rod, that fish finally weakened, and Rowan managed to reel it in until it just came out the water, but with one final fight and flap it managed to get off the hook to safety. Secretly I was pleased for the poor warrior, it deserved to be free after a fight like that, and God knows where we could have kept that amount of fish.

After so much excitement it was a long but pleasant sail to Georgetown. It was all so familiar coming back to Choppy’s chaotic marina, the McAfee campaign HQ in exile! We had to moor in the fuel dock as we couldn’t raise Choppy and with the north wind blowing us away from the dock there was a tricky big gap. Poor Clint managed to not quite make the gap and fell between the dock and the boat. He really hurt himself with quite a cut on his knee and a lot of pain, feet and both knees. My medicine chest came out for both him and Rowan who gave himself a nasty cut filleting the fish!

After a provisioning shop for the arrival of Phoebs and Sam tomorrow, Xavi bought an early supper take away, as Clint was in no real fit state to move. It’s got very cold with the north wind and we are exhausted after our early start, so early to bed tonight……. a pretty pathetic last night for Clint and family.