Good morning all. It's 4:00 AM. here in Floridayz and I just got in from fishing. Surprised?.....I think not. We started the night fishing early at the beach in Juno. Big Kev, Michele (aka: The Remora) and I attempted to locate some spinner sharks along the South Florida coast line at around 5 PM tonight, but the bite just wasn't there. So off to the Juno Pier we went.

We fished the Pier for a few hours with no bites either. The wind was howling, the waves pounding, and the current was way too strong. The water looked like "ChocolateThunder!" Terrible conditions here boys and girls. So we ordered a pizza before we left the Pier to try and locate some of the backwaters elusive snook. Off to Anchorage Park we went, located in North Palm Beach. You know what I always say: "It always leads back to heads and middles," (that's mullet heads for any of you non-dead bait fishermen and women out there. And man did we have some "Stinky Bob" fatties in the cooler. Speaking of Stinky Bob: (He's selling bait to Jim at Juno bait and tackle now).....and Henry if I told you once I've told you a thousand times.....Get your damn head out of our cooler! (LOL)

Well, back to the story at hand; Once at Anchorage Park, we set up base camp and tossed out some freshy-fresh mullet heads and middles, then sat down to relax and wait on the bite. (Doing what I do best I might add). Well, it wasn't long before Big Kev was controlling the bite for about the nine hundred and thirty-fifth time in the past two months. The first fish took the bait and screamed out on clicker but Big Kev whiffed badly, and pulled the hook and bait right away from him. The bait came in totally scaled. (With no sail-cat slime on the leader).

The next fish came, and Kev lost that one too! The third bite arrived shortly there after, it was around midnight, and once again on Kev's rod. He slammed the circle hook home and the fish took off dumping him on his TLD-25, with 50 pound test line. The fish turned and burned! Then the fish ran south along the pilings towards Lott Brothers Marina. The fish ran right along in front of the moored boats and was down around the corner of the river with a quickness. And Kev thought he had hooked a giant Snook. We all did. But, we were about to find out just what it was on the other end of the fishing rod.

Kev stood on the wall with a bent rod looking like a kid who lost his puppy dog. The fish was too far off to turn and now Kev's line was rubbing up against the barnacle infested pilings that held the boats in place. I ran down to where I thought his line was up against the pilings and climbed on a boat and walked to the bow to try and assess the situation. Situation assessed; "Bad news Kev....it ain't good pal, you need to swim the gauntlet of boats and maybe....just maybe...you'll be lucky enough to land the big fish."

Kev didn't even think twice, and never once hesitated. There was no other options, and he knew what he had to do....so he did it. He took off his pager and handed Michele his rod and reel. Kev jumped off the seawall into the water and Michele handed him down his fishing rod. I quickly ran and got the camera to get some great blow-by-blow, action shots of this total insanity (or as I like to call it) "Mass Chaos at High Volume"! I wouldn't have missed this photo oppurtunity...NO WAY! Definitely "Extreme Fishing" at it's finest hour. 

Now, Kev was swimming along the pilings in front of the boats and reeling at the same time. Oh, it was quite the scene. At zero-dark thirty, is he nuts swimming where we have caught many a bullsharks? Well, like I said I had to get a few pics of this before he was eaten by a shark. Another PierRat original moment, just a typical five minute period of craziness and extreme fishing with Team Pier Rat. So, I took several good pictures as Big Kev kicked his feet to stay afloat and keep the line tight to the fish as well. A great job I must say. He looked like a water logged muskrat; not to be confused with a Pier Rat.

PierRat \'rat\ n : A scaly-tailed destructive Rodent larger than the mouse; Known by my friends as a "Psychotic Rodent", who is obsessed with fishing on the Pier.

And the fight continued; Big Kev rounded the last piling and then swam to the beach where he crawled from the cold dark, murky water still with a bent rod I might add. The fish was way out there in the center of the river. I just couldn't believe how much line this big fish had taken, and just how tired, wet and funny Kev looked.

Kev peered over at me and smiled, he said, "This fish ain't beating me"! Kev put down the hammer on the fish and brought him to within several feet from the shoreline. We could see it now, it was a giant spotted eagle ray! Yes, folks Big Kev's giant snook had turned out to be the elusive "pain in the butt", known to us locals as "Ray Charles." I took a few pics and released the big stingray. Kev was wet, whipped and tired! I knew that he would sleep well tonight. Dreamin' and whish'in that stingray was a world record snook.

I think I'll sign up Big Kev for the synchronized-fishing and swimming in the next Olympics. And I don't think anyone can beat him!