pathfinderboats – Captain Greg Peralta

March Madness

For me, March is the most difficult month to fish. This March, will be especially difficult as Brody (the amazing fish finding and stock trading dog), is taking the month off. A few week ago, Brody crushed the GameStop trade. Now, all he wants to do is eat steak and nap in the early spring sun. Trade stocks? Been there, done that. Find fish? Nope, but another steak sounds good. Thankfully, before completely checking out, Brody put together a list of March fishing tips.

Fishing tip number one. Take a moment to look around. It is spring in the Lowcountry.

Fishing tip number two. It is important to have a plan. On sunny days, mud minnows and finger mullet will congregate around oyster bars in shallow water. Trout and Redfish will be there as well. Looking for an easy meal. Plan to fish around shallow oyster bars on warm and sunny days. Speaking of plans, the best time to shop for steaks is first thing in the morning.

Fishing tip number three. Buy some insect repellent. The fish may not be hungry, but the gnats always are. I am feeling a little hungry was well. Can you make a reservation for one at the club? I promise to bring you a doggie bag!

Fishing tip number four. If you do not catch any fish, refer to fishing tip number one.

It has been my hope that Brody would tire from living a life of leisure. Things are not looking good. It seems steaks and naps agree with him. So, Brody’s time on the boat will be limited. As for me? I am going fishing but first I need to go shopping for some steaks.

Fishing vs. Catching

Fishing and catching are not synonymous. Sometimes, I get to believing that they are. But Mother Nature always steps in to remind me they most certainly are not. Saturday was one of those days. The tide was wonky. The wind was howling. The water clarity was abysmal. It was a tough day for fishing. Wait, tough is not a suitable description. Awful, that is a better word. Simply awful. To tell the truth, I was not even having fun.

The search for synonymous took me from Daniel Island, throughout the harbor all the way to the end of the jetties. After catching no fish, I ran the Pathfinder back up the Wando past the Highway 41 bridge. Still no fish. It was frustrating to say the least. With literally no place else to look, I let the boat drift along the edge of the marsh and told my crew, David and Andrew, we should call it day. They readily agreed. As we got ourselves situated for the ride back to Daniel Island, I spotted a Redfish tailing in the marsh and it was moving toward us! As quietly as possible, I nudged the bow of the Pathfinder into the edge of the Spartina. To our amazement, the Redfish swam within easy casting distance of the boat. Andrew cast a Z-Man 4-inch PaddlerZ into the path of the Red. We held our collective breath and were elated when the fish ate the lure. Our hoots and hollers could be heard from miles away.

After landing the fish, taking a few pictures and letting it go, we could not stop smiling and laughing. That fish changed the day from awful to joyful. It also served as a reminder that fishing and catching are most certainly not synonymous.

Dog Days

Brody, the amazing fish finding and stock trading dog

With Memorial Day in our rearview mirror, the dog days of Summer are just ahead. However, when your fishing partner is Brody, the amazing fishing finding and stock trading dog, every day is a dog day.

In warm weather, the best bite is typically at first light. So, Brody and I get out early. Around 5:00 AM on Saturday, I was having a wonderful dream about being kissed by a Victoria’s Secret super model. As it turns out, Brody was licking me on the face to wake me up and go fishing.

On the way to the boat landing, we stopped at Refuel for coffee, chicken biscuits, drinks and ice. Brody’s job was to grab the drinks while I picked up everything else. Upon meeting at the cash register, Brody had a 12-pack of Coast Island Lager. After explaining that beer is not adequate for warm weather hydration, he reluctantly agreed to return the beer and select something else. In the blink of an eye, Brody came back with Truly Hard Seltzer Berry Mix. With daylight rapidly approaching, we agreed to disagree and paid for our stuff.

We reached the end of the jetties, just after sunrise. The wind light and the seas were calm. Spanish Mackerel and Bluefish were busting minnows on the surface. I deployed the trolling motor and spot locked the Pathfinder an easy casting distance from the end of the rocks. Brody was looking at a 15-pound spinning outfit rigged with a Shimano 21-gram Colt Sniper jig. So, I picked it up, made a long cast and began a high-speed retrieve. A big Bluefish crushed the jig. The Spanish Mackerel and Bluefish were fired up and feeding aggressively. We kept a few of the smaller Bluefish for bait to target sharks behind shrimp trawlers. When the incoming tide slowed down, the bite turned off.

It was time for sharks. I positioned the Pathfinder a good distance behind a trawler and cast a 30-pound class spinning outfit rigged with a small Bluefish on 6/0 circle hook. It only took a few seconds for a large Spinner shark to eat the Bluefish. It jumped several times before settling in for a punishing fight. It took 30-minutes to catch and release the shark. By then, I was hot and thirsty. The Truly Hard Seltzer was cold, tasty and refreshing. Sadly, I could only drink one because Brody refused to be the designated boat driver.

With shark checked off the list, we turned our attention to Bull Redfish back at the jetties. I began casting a Z-Man 5-inch Jerk ShadZ on a 3/8-ounce jig to the rocks. After several minutes and a couple of lost jigs, we checked Bull Redfish off the list and called it a day.

Other than the face licking episode, I love the dog days of summer.

Stock Trading Dog

Now that the Daniel Island boat landings are open, I am settling back into my regular routine. However, Brody (the amazing fish finding dog), is struggling a bit. When the Covid-19 shutdown began, to kill the extra time and have a little fun, I opened Brody an E-Trade account. It all started innocently. Every day, I would write two stock symbols on pieces of paper and set them on the floor with doggy treats. We would buy the stock that Brody went to first. As it turns out, Brody is a good stock picker and most days his portfolio would be up. Then, he set up watch lists and started doing technical analysis. This is when our problems began.

The first indication of the forthcoming catastrophe was Brody demanding that I mount an iPad on the console of my boat. This allowed him to stay in touch with the market and make trades throughout the fishing day. At first, it was kind of entertaining but quickly progressed into a problem. Brody became more interested in trading stocks than finding fish. It was a crushing blow that I still struggle to understand.

Things got even worse, when Brody converted one of our bedrooms into his trading office. There are so many computers and monitors in that room, I am afraid to look at my Dominion Power bill. Now, Brody stays in there nearly all the time. No time for fishing or me.

Now, I fish alone. Maybe, I pushed Brody to hard about backing up the boat trailer? Perhaps, this is Brody’s way of social distancing? Whatever the case may be, I miss my fish finding dog.

On a brighter note, fishing has been very good. Even without Brody’s help.

Best of People in Worst of Times

The best of people comes out in the worst of times. This is the bright side of the Covid-19 pandemic. While my biggest challenge is the inability to fish due to closure of our boat landings, I am amazed by the number of people that have reached out to help.

A few days into the boat landing closure, a friend ran his skiff across the harbor from Sullivan’s Island to Daniel Island and took me fishing in the Wando River. He joked that he was compelled to help because I was literally a fish out of water. The next week, another friend invited me to fish on his boat which was docked on Ralston Creek. It was good to catch a few fish. It was better to catch up with an old friend. Then, to my surprise, another friend offered to let me keep my Pathfinder at their dock. I am lucky to have such thoughtful and caring friends.

With my Pathfinder back in the game, I am making up for lost time and fishing nearly every day. The water temperature is approaching 70-degrees. Baitfish have returned to the rivers and creeks. Redfish, Trout and Flounder are feeding aggressively. It is great to be fishing again!

More good news. Brody, the amazing fish finding dog, has stopped trading stocks and returned to finding fish. While I am happy to have him back on the boat, I do have mixed feelings. Turns out, Brody is fantastic at picking stocks. Well, at least, better than me. So, after intensive negotiations, Brody has agreed to trade stocks during the day and then fish after the market closes at 4:00. Brody is also the new owner of my Pathfinder 2500 Hybrid. A small price to pay for an amazing fish finding dog that can pick stocks too!

Yes, the best of people (and fish finding dogs) comes out in the worst of times.