It Can't Get Any Better!!!

Today, was one of those days that was just to special to be referred to as "the best day of my life." I know that I am blessed and God has provided more than I deserve. I know that every day is a gift, ultimately I know that one should not allow himself to be defined by a single day in your life, but today may come close. There is something about spending time with your two sons, without the distraction of text messages and video games, on the water fishin'.

The anticipation of the coming day made it difficult to sleep.

We greeted the early morning buzzing of the alarm clock with enthusiasm. As we chugged down I-26 headed to Mount Pleasant, a hearty fishermans breakfast out of the way, off we go to meet our captain and guide for the day, David Sarratt of Searat Charters. Hoping that by the end of the day, we would be veterans of angling battles with the Red Drum on the sand flats from the mouth of the Wando River up towards Cainhoy.

All of the anticipation was energy well spent, because, my day could not be topped. Soon after departing from Remley's Point Landing near the mouth of the Wando River, our guide for the day, Dave began to educate JD and Noah about the subject of our quest, the Red Drum, affectionately known as old spot tail. He told them that this time of the year when many of the summer time bait fish have migrated from the waters around Charleston, the poirposes sought out the Red Drum to sustain them through the winter.

Consequently, according to the worthy skipper, the Red Drum liked to hang out in the shallows over top the sand bars and in the grassy areas that are covered with sea water during high tide. It was just past low tide, so we went straight to some flats where the water was just a foot or two deep and began slowly working them, up and back.

We spent most of our day fishing the flats with artificial grubs that resembled shrimp and JD even spent a little time with the fly rod in his hand, although he learned that he needs a little practice and a spare spool wouldn't be a bad idea either.

We saw some beautiful and amazing water and shoreline, we experienced the transition from low tide to high tide and we learned the different techniques for the varying conditions. Along the way we were amazed as a bald eagle soared above the maritime forest that lined the west bank of the Wando. I particularly enjoyed seeing the porpoises swimming the channel as we navigated up and down the river, and the various water fowl that seemed to be playing a game racing us as we zipped along the top of the water enroute to the next battlefield. One of JD's best memories will be the neat old house, that resembled an old school house, standing watch on a bluff overlooking the river. One can imagine roasting oysters in the yard and spending the afternoon in a hammock on the front porch or strolling along past the acres of man-made saltwater ponds that were on the property.

Speaking of our guide, throughout this post I have referred to him as "our guide" and while he was a worthy guide and skipper it is probably inaccurate to refer to him as just "our guide". We actually felt as though he was a friend with a boat and a bunch of fishing knowledge. We didn't feel like customers or clients, we felt like we were out on the water for the day with a buddy. To say this, in no way implies a lack of professionalism or ability on his part, it is a compliment to his service and will make a perfectly memorable day even more perfect and memorable.

At the end of our day on the water the poirposes had probably done a little better than the fisherman in the quest for the red fish, but, we had experienced a wonderful day with no cell phone calls, no text messages, no video games and lots of fun between a father and his two sons. It can't get any better than that...