Ladies – Let’s go fishing
I’m not one to go out of the way to go fishing, however every girl/lady should learn what it’s all about. The main reason is that the boys LOVE to fish. The second reason is that men complain that girls don’t like us. Third and most important reason: Women get jealous if their man goes fishing and other women are on the boat paying attention to their man. Alternate solution? Take a class with/through Ladies Let’s Go Fishing (LLGF)! It’s the best of both worlds. Most of the classes are for ladies only; except for one or two male instructors. There are no yelling or insults. Nobody tells you that you are stupid. There is no stupid question. Just ask my friend Rebecca who took this class with me…
Captain George Mittler taught us about baits and trolling speeds. He commented that he wants the bait to be constantly swimming with a natural presentation. Trawl speed is important when it comes to sea weather conditions. On a flat day you will be sailing about eight knots to keep the bait swimming or just skimming the surface. In a 2 to 3 foot sea, possibly down to six knots. If you go faster than that, your bait will fly. If there are 4-6 foot swells you are going to be low and may only go 3-4 knots. With that, Rebecca asked if that live bait is dead. Everyone laughed and she not only made our day but helped smooth out the learning.
The week before class begins, Betty Baum (owner of LLGF) sends you a wealth of information for you to review. This includes: agenda, fishing terminology, knots, Friday Party Potluck Master Chef Appetizer Contest information, event instructions and recommended lodging, silent auction, optional Sunday fishing, and cancellation policy. Basically everything you need to know before the class starts.
The event kicked off Thursday night with an appetizer contest and silent auction. Appetizers included: mini meat patties, simulated oyster sauce, chicken, sauces, stuffed cucumber and a watermelon boat with gummy fish; at the Stuart FL event. Buckets full of fishing tackle, fishing trips, clothing, rods, and jewelry were just a few of the items in the silent auction. It’s a great way to network with classmates.
On Friday morning at 8:00 am the class begins with an introduction to fishing. Captain George clarifies that a fishing pole is actually called a fishing pole. Companies make fishing lures for anglers. If they fish with them, that’s an advantage. The best place to buy your rod and bait is at a local tackle shop. You gain knowledge of what you bite and the correct type of bait to use. A great way to learn what works best with bait fish is to open up the guts of the fish you catch and look inside their stomachs. For example, if you see squid or shrimp, then you know they are sinking overnight. Cobia love crab and shrimp.
“You have to learn what to fish with and how to fish with it,” says Jodi Girourd. “There are three different types of reels: bait caster, conventional, and spinner. The waters are the same as how you catch a fish because you need to know the waters and how to read them.”
A bait caster reel is a type of conventional reel for casting lures or baits in both salt and fresh water. On the conventional real, the biggest mistake we make is to press the brake. To control the drag on a conventional real use your thumb. For a spinner, use your hand. For example, if the fish wants to take off, release your thumb on the conventional reel or your bale hand on the spinner. According to captain Melinda Buckley, the moment you let go of the tip, you’re releasing the tension in the line. That’s why you lose fish. Without tension, the hook keeps bobbing in the fish’s mouth and falls off. So keep your tip up and relax.
Plus, you’ll learn how to: back up a trailer, gaff and shoreline fish, keep room, and remove the hook. Plus, how to put a line on a reel, put the reel on your rod, and how to dress for successful fishing.
On day two, you can take what you’ve learned and put your new skills to use on a boat. So if you’re still not sure if this class is right for you, Jodie would tell you to start small and give it a try. One bite at a time. LLGF takes the stress out of fishing and puts the fun back in it. Also, the girls support each other. They are all trying to do the same.
In Stuart’s class, everyone who went out on the party boat caught a fish. They caught red snapper, kingfish, lamb snapper, and bull (orange) snapper. This is what some of the ladies had to say. “Don’t get a bird’s nest,” says Denise. “All these years I’ve been fishing, I thought you didn’t want the fish to see the hook, so I’ve been covering it all these years. This trip I didn’t cover it and I caught two snappers.” Dorothy learned to cast a net, catch bait, and met a lot of nice people. Gail said that she loved casting the nets and the fly fishing skills she learned in class. Mary commented that although LLGF did not catch the kingfish or the 18 pound mutton snapper, everyone in the group of ladies on the party boat caught a fish. They used the upper dorsal fin of an 8- to 9-foot hummingbird. very thinly sliced calamari and cut into strips as bait which was a new experience. They then used the grunts they caught as live bait and began to actually fish. In general, everyone had a great time.