So here I am, stuck on this Island somwhere on the striper coast, nothing but sand,rocks and a huge pile of "sea junk" I begin to sort through the rubble and find a twisted mass of line and a dump turkey ( sea gull) with its head stuck in a soda can.... the bird is still fairly fresh so I use some of the debris to dig a hole in a sand and bury the gull to preserve it..
Out of the rubble I salvage a ball of line thoughtlessly discarded by some careless fisherman, but it turns out to be my good fortune.
also amongs the rubble (eventualy attached to the ball of line) is another piece of line with a SS hook ( Ha I didnt tell ya's it was stainless, it was just surface rust)
After patiently untangeling the mess ( a skill I learned mating on party boats as a teenager, then honed by raising 4 children) I wrap the line for safe keeping on the soda can that will be used as a reel later.
Now I go scouting, after searching the island at low tide I find a nice bar that is running at a right angle to the pile of rocks to my east, a sea breeze has a nice ground swell working with white water off the bar, on the back side of the rock, is a nice tide pool, lots of crabby patties to be had here... so I go back to my burried bird and fishing line, I dress the bird, skinning it out just incase I need the feathers for plan C, I use a piece of drift wood sharpend on a rock to acomplish the feat, seeing as per usual, I have misplaced my knife....
Now with the tide filling, the night coming on, I bait the hook with a chunk of gull (burrying the rest in the event I fail with plan A, I get a re-do.. plan B) I toss it in the tide pool and head back to gather fire wood, My plan is to light a big fire on the rock, not only will this be my companion, keep me warm through the night, but it will also (hopefully) attrack baitfish, that willl attract my dinner!
Back at the tide pool,I've got several crabs munching on my chunk of deceased flying rat, I slowly work them in and I have some live and kicking live bait.... I wrap them up in a ball of rock weed to keep them moist and keep them from escaping..
My fire is bright and cheery, casting a glow out on the water that is almost full tide, I swear i see bait flashing in the suds.... I get one of my crabbie patties, remove one leg( suck the meat out of the leg for sustanance) and place the hook through the cartilage in the body and out the leg hole, I break off a small section of the removed leg and gently push it over the hook point and past the barb, this will keep my hook from falling out and me loosing my hard earned bait...
I slowly wade out into the rip, I gently toss the crab into the flow ... in no time at all I have a bite... my heart races.. I set the hook... something doesnt feel right, this fish isnt fighting,, its twisting and spinning... &*$#@^! dogfish!!!!! I wade back, after much cursing and swearing I get my hook back and leave the green eyed devil on the beach... if i have to... I guess I could eat it....
I rebait and wade back into the rip, only now the sea is flat, no wind, the swell has deminised, the rip barely moving, my heart is sinking.... there is just enough current to float my crab 10' away, thats it, the bait is virtualy at my feet, and then I feel a bump, the line slowly pays off my "spool" my heart is pounding... how long do I wait before setting the hook, this could be my last chance tonight, the fire is dieing, the tide ebbing, the moon is high in the sky, dawn cant be far away, the line is now flying off the spool.............