Nov. 20th..... Unfortunately I had to miss church today to accompany Paul,Kathryn,(which is now spelled correctly), Bud, his wife Carol, Burt and his wife Linda, and neighbour Susan out on the boat. We got underway around 9am and with a slight breeze and overcast skies, headed out to the first dive site of the previous day under the bridge. Paul used the hookah and Bud used his tank. The current was quite strong as the tide was going out. (Like you'd need a motor tied to your butt to maintain position). It was quite cool under the bridge with the wind out of the East but after an hour the sun came out,the tide changed, and we were again warmed up. Susan even informed me she was getting hot! Bad choice of words but then she doesn't know me. That's like telling a leopard you taste good.
Well the first catch of the day was a prop which was retrieved by Bud. Not to be outdone Paul brought up an anchor which was only topped by Bud's 5# hammer. (These are commonly carried by shark hunters to ward off hammerheads).
Down they went again and today there was food! 2/3 of a cooler of sheepshead which are different from our freshwater ones. Bud went back again w/o the gun and came back with a bag full of crab claws. Bud will probably be cleaning fish all day but at least there will be something to eat on Sat. night. Paul switched tips on his spear in order to nail a couple of grouper that were giving him fits but ended up being outmanuevered.
When Bud finally came up we pulled up the hook and headed into a dockside restaurant called the wharf. We even had two dolphins coming along for the trip. Arriving at the Wharf we were able to tie up and eat. Good food and a lot of ambience. Sign in the mens can....Employee's must use toilet paper. (I think that's what it said). It was a great lunch amid the screams of football fans watching a game in the other room. Paul being the nature lover that he is, also spotted a couple of manatee (tatooed on some chicks butt).
After lunch we headed off to watch the big boat races. Lots of noise between the boats and the helicoptors but not much of a spectator sport. This went on for an hour and at 3 pm we pulled out to head to Egmont Key.

Go Flipper Go!

Part of the catch of sheepshead

Kathryn throwing out the hook

Burt & Susan. Burt's wondering if it's somekind of intervenous that he could take advantage of. Actually it's the intake for the hookah so it's not pumping exhaust into your lungs. Note the sandbar in the background. This was around noon which was low tide.


The first sign of food!


The motley crew