the one that got away

[Anonymous]

Also from the saltwater.
This story is a little different take on the one that got away. In 1988 and 1989 I was in the Navy and stationed on Adak Island Alaska. Recreation Services ran a fishing boat out of Adak called the Kuluk Clipper and fishing trips were won using a lottery system. I was able to take many trips aboard the Kuluk Clipper because we had a system. The boat could carry six people plus the skipper and his mate out for a full day of halibut fishing in calm weather. If you won the lottery you could pick five friends to take with you out on the trip. Five of my good friends and I would enter the lottery every month with the stipulation that if any one of us won the trip/lottery we would take the other five. The cost for a full day guided halibut trip was $50.00 per person for a total of $300.00. If you won the lottery it also included the day off from work so many times our police department was left short staffed for a day. The Navy purchased/provided all of the bait and fishing gear so needless to say, fishing on the Clipper was a great deal. In the two years that I was stationed on Adak I was able to take over fifteen trips out on the clipper. We always caught a limit of two fish each and it’s the only time in my life that I would consider throwing back a 45lb (Chicken) halibut because it was just too small. The trip in question here was my last trip aboard the clipper. It was a beautiful day on the Bering Sea with only very light winds. We left port at about 7:00 am for a short trip out to the fishing grounds. By 8:00 am we were into the fish. My friend Bryan caught the first of many fish that day and decided to keep his little 70 pounder. I still give him crap about keeping such a small fish. I had thrown a 40 and a 47 pounder back early in the day because I was waiting for a bigger fish. Later toward the end of the day I was running out of time so I kept a 49 pounder and it could have been my only fish for the day because we were heading back to port. On the way back to port the skipper counted fish and decided to stop one last time because as he stated “I’m never taking this boat back into port without a full limit onboard.” All six of us dropped our lines over the side in an effort to catch the last fish of the day. My friend Bryan hooked up again and because he already had his limit he passed the rod to me and the fight was on. It took me 45 minutes to bring the 190 lb halibut to the side of the boat. I was physically wasted and every muscle in my body screamed out in pain. It took every last ounce of energy that I had left in my body to muster enough strength to look at Bryan and smile. Now twenty years later my friend Bryan lives in Florida and we talk often. He told me just last week that he still remembers that smile. He calls it my evil smile and swears that he saw little horns pop up out of my head that day.