How did you get started and where? Fishing?

[LuckyLady]

How did you get started fishing and where did you start from?

Most have told me that you need to start at the bottom and work your way up.

Mine was my dad when I was 4 yrs old in West Creek, NJ , weakfish. Still in Jersey!

I have some cool pictures I have to scan of my dad. I would give anything in the world to fish with him today!

My father and I are spitting images of each other except the obvious differences.

Better yet where are you now? Recreational or Charter? State/Country?

[clt_capt]

My dad took me fishing at 3 - I had been bugging him to go... He is NOT a fisherman, but to shut me up he took me to Ballast Point in Tampa, gave me a cane pole baited with shrimp. I caught a speckled trout almost as big as me (length) - To this day my dad says he had never seen someone catch a fish there.

That was the beginning of the addiction.

[Seaker]

Began fishing with hand lines boloed from shore or off state piers here in Cape Cod.

I hear you on; wish I could have him with me now to see where it went

Now we charter with our specialty in the canyons for two day trips for blue water friends.

I believe you get a greater appreciation when you work your way up. I remember watching "American Sportsman" with Curt Gowdy as a boy thinking maybe just maybe someday I could get a chance to do that; go offshore and fish for big marlin and sails

Most memorable catch was my dad catching a three pound lobster that hung onto his hand line bait from the state pier at Mass Maritime and him rushing me to the car with the lobster in hand in the trunk for a family feast as he didn't have a lobster permit

[shoefish]

I grew up inland, so my addiction started in the fresh water. My family's house (until I was 4) was on a small pond. I grew up chasing little perch and pickerel that lived under the lilly pads there. From there I moved to streams and bigger rivers for trout. Once I got to college, my good friend's father bought a 19' Mako and we hit the saltwater...haven't looked back since.

[fmoore]

I lived right across the street from a pond that was only a few acres in size, but was responsible for a few state record (or very close) pike and muskie in MA in the late 80's, early 90's. My father satarted fishing at the age of four, and I started fishing "as soon as I could walk," according to my mom. I was blessed to live a 30 second wak to pike, muskie and bass fishing that was known throughout the northeast. I started makerel fishing on head boats so young, I could barely reel the fish in. I think I took my first all day groundfishing trip at around 6 years old. From then until I was 13, we did tons of freshwater in our 16 and 12 foot boats, and a few head boat trips every year. That's when it happened. A 21' center console sitting on the side of the road for sale. Dad and I had been talking, not seriously, about buying a boat for the salt. Well, we bought her, and the last two years have been absolutely wild. I have to thank my dad for letting me be the captain. Every trip. I love it almost as much as actually fishing....almost I have learned more in the past two years about saltwater fishing than I ever thought possible. Now we are looking to get into a 30 foot downeaster and my parents will be sorry they did. I don't think they have any idea how much I will be fishing that boat. The fuel bill

[OCcaptain]

I can remember fishing off the Fort Smallwood peir with my grandfater when I was 4 years old. We dug our own earth worms for bait and caught all the white perch, yellow perch and sunnies you cared to eat or clean! I met my wife when I was 16 and she lived near Rock Creek. Her brother had a boat and he got me hooked on boating. I've owned a boat of one sort or the other since I was about 17 years old (I'm 53 now). Of course back then they ran on steam! I fished the upper bay until I bought my Sea Ox in 1990 and started fishing out of Indian River. I still love fishing the Chesapeake but live in Ocean City now so I mostly fish here!

[FishDancer]

I grew up fishing off the beach in NJ. I used to drag the net at Ocean Beach in the bay for bait (does anyone remember all of the blowfish?) and spent much of my hard earned allowance at the Chadwick Beach Bait and Tackle store buying bunker for the crab traps or spearing to catch snapper in the bay (I often wonder if that place is still there?). One of my best fishing days ever was a fall day surf fishing when the bluefish had bunker trapped on the north side of the Shark River Inlet....I remember the water actually being red from the carnage and we slayed the blues all afternoon. In high school, I moved up to fishing from the charter boats from the Atlantic Highlands to Point Pleasant. I recall spray painting all of my hooks, swivels and wire leaders flat black in the garage to increase my catch while night bluefishing. I was lucky enough to marry a 'Jersey Girl' and headed out into the big world.

My professional career took us to AZ, GA and then FL where we live now. We purchased our first boat, a 23' Century and began fishing the SKA (Southern Kingfish Association) circuit in the 23 and under category. Today we are know as Team FishDancer (a name derived from the fishing village of Lapakahi on the Big Island of Hawaii) and compete on the SKA Professional Kingfish Tour.

Now we call bunker 'pogies', use bluefish for bait (sorry most in FL do) and fish from NC to Texas on the SKA trail. Thankfully they have produced black hooks, swivels and dark wire. In some sense I am still dragging the net as each day I fish I remain in awe of the natural beauty and bounty of our waters.

[Ace1st]

I started out with a cane pole and some worms we dug out of the swamp, I believe I was 4 or 5. First hookup was a bluegill, got a picture of him somewhere. Love to find that one! Then moved up to Largemouth in farm ponds. About age 7, I started going with Dad on our 24 Performer. Arthur Smith King Mackeral Tournament was my first trip offshore, what a change from today, all we pulled were drone spoons and rapalas. But they caught the kings. During high school I started going back to the outer banks on my own and thats where I got hooked on the Bluewater. Came home and begged friends to take me with them, I'd do anything, clean the boat, maintenance, what ever, just take me with you. Learned alot those trips to the stream. Finally, after working and saving I could afford one of my own, so I stepped out there and got something that could get me there. Still grindin those bluegills though. Been all smiles since.

[Captain Michael Buffington]

I can remember fishing at the ross barnett reservoir in Ms. where my grandparents had a condo on the water. I had a small inflatable rowboat and terrorized the crappie and bass in that thing. My goal was to hook a fish big enough to tow the boat. It took awhile but I eventually hooked a 35lb blue catfish and it towed it a little bit. I was allotted 50 crickets a day and they bought me a cast net. My grandmother still talks about me running out of crickets and using her begonia blossoms to catch rockbass to use for catfish bait. I guess it was a forgone conclusion I would do this for a living...

I started professionally on a party boat out of Port Aransas, Tx. That was a learning experience for sure! That would be my suggestion for anyone starting out. If you can deal with 40 morons with blackfins and bonito hooked up at once, the rest is a cake walk.

Now I am sitting in an airport waiting to board a plane bound for Puerto Rico to run a charter boat. Thats what I love about fishing. It does not matter ifyou are on a farm pond or the pacific ocean, you never know what you are gonna catch or what the next tide will bring

Michael