Sunday we left the dock, got part way to the reef and lost a circulating pump on one engine. Yesterday the mechanics put the new one in and today we were finally up and running again.
It was a little bumpy this morning but got better as the day progressed, the fishing was just OK with the kings biting early and a one legal mutton and a tuna showing up late morning.  Lots of pulled hooks throughout the day to give the day a little frustrating edge but not a whole lot we could have done differently.

Another great family today. Delilah and her brother Desmond were a joy to be fishing with today  as they were enthusiastic, helpful and following direction well throughout our morning charter.
Caught the yellowtails well at the start until the current changed and then kept them busy with a bunch of mutton snappers (all but one were short), grouper and kingfish.
Look forward to seeing them again in the near future.

We started strong, getting a bunch of bites by muttons and kingfish in the first hour but after that it tapered off some. Not much sailfish action on our morning half day but enough bites to keep Rich and his fiance Rachael happy. They will be back!

Second time this year we have had fog and that's the most I have seen in any year and it was dense. Made fishing difficult where I was most of the morning although farther to the west I heard it cleared a lot  earlier. We caught some nice kings on our short day but never saw a sail or tuna. Dan and his group enjoyed the day and plan on coming back to the KK next year. See you then guys!

Nice fish Ed!

Probably the last day for the Jersey boys this trip but today was a beauty. The wind was down and so were the waves, which made for a ideal morning to catch a sailfish.
We hooked the 1st one shortly after putting out the baits near a bait shower, Eddie got two jumps out of him and the hook came out. The second fish was also on a bait shower but this one stayed hooked and Eddie did a really nice job of catching him after a 15 minute fight.
Things slowed down after that and we headed out to the deep water to catch some meat for the boys. The almaco jacks were biting as well as the silk snapper but the current was just a little too strong and so after catching some fish (including a mahi) and losing a bunch of weights we decided to go somewhere less sticky.
As always Dave and I enjoyed our days fishing with the guys and look forward to next year.

Woody is a trooper, the high winds were mostly gone from yesterday's blow but we still had some rough water and Woody couldn't quite stomach those big waves but he never complained even after 6 hrs of it. Dad finally had to throw in the towel for Woody and we got him back to the dock. Saw probably 10 sailfish that either wouldn't eat or we couldn't get baits to, caught a few muttons, tuna and kings.

Didn't get this report up on the second day the Jersey boys fished because things got a little busy for me after we fished, so here it is now. The wind was up and so we stayed shallow and caught 6 or 7 muttons, all undersized except one, additionally we caught a decent mahi and some king mackeral. Some of the boys were a little under the weather so it probably was just the kind of Lite  (Coors or Miller) day they needed. Tomorrow they fish us again and it is supposed to be a great weather day, just what these guys requested.

The annual NJ to the Keys PCED tournament  kicked off today and Dick, CP, Pat and Ed  were all in fine form arriving at the boat at the designated time all smiles and excited to be back in the keys AND even better they were ready to fish having gone to bed at a reported 8 pm last evening. They really did look like they were well rested and primed for a good day on the water.
We tested them with a little yellowtail snapper fishing to start but after catching a few under less than ideal conditions decided to head for the deep water and try the deep water snapper.This worked out well as the silk snapper were hungry along with the almacos jacks  and margate snappers. CP was the margate slayer catch three all by himself and was awarded top honors at the end of the day. Nice CP!
Tomorrow we do it again, probably different target fish but whatever we do it will be good fun!

Another great family that we fished with today. Seth and Lynsey knew all about fishing from watching you tube but didn't have much practical experience but under Dave's tutelage they soon were angling like pros. The tails didn't bite well again as they didn't two days ago  but we did catch a couple legal mutton and released a few throwbacks. The kings kept us busy while we waited and hoped for that sail to show itself but it wasn't to be this day. Next Time!

Kevin has done a number of evening trips with us and it is always a good time with his friends and family. Tonight we caught a red grouper and a Bermuda chub. had a spinner shark on and a tarpon, caught 3 nurse sharks and had a number a big mystery bites. Fun evening with plenty of action.

Joe told me today that it will be 25 years ago August the 5th, 2020 that Captain Rob and I aboard the Challenger pulled Susan and him out of the water. Their boat had sank and they had been in the water since early morning with the Coast Guard looking for them but unable to locate them.  We happened along, heard their voices and picked them up and hour or so before sunset. They have fished on the Challenger and now on the K KAY IV ever since that fateful day.
We started the day catching some yellowtail snapper, surprisingly not an easy bite with the good  conditions but we did get what they wanted for dinner. Saw a couple sails in the shallow water but could not get them to bite and then later in the day we had one eat a flat line and Joe got to catch our first sail of the new year.
Always a pleasure to have the Sachs on board and look forward to their next visit.