Can One Fish Change Your Life?

As I arrived in Cancun a day late due to the March ice storm, I knew from my many years of traveling to Boca Paila, someone from the lodge would be there to meet me and take me to one of my favorite fishing destinations. After the two hour drive down the familiar road, I was greeted by Chico, the lodge manager and went to find Francisco, my favorite bartender, who would make me a Margarita-the type you can only get in Boca. 

My Husband, Jerry, went a day earlier and as we parted in the Philly airport, I assured him we would meet for dinner on Monday evening to celebrate his first Grand Slam of the week and he didn’t disappoint me After a wonderful meal, we fell asleep to the sound of the ocean waves and the wind blowing the palm trees outside the window. I am sure you can tell, I truly love this place, but back to my fish story….

We went to the dock early on Tuesday to meet Alfonso, who is a fantastic guide with most likely the best eyes in the place. I was quite nervous as I did not want to disappoint him. I was certain after Jerry’s Slam the day before, he might see me and think “Oh great, here comes the wife and she wants to fish…” I did feel confident that I had prepared, that I had done this before and most importantly, I was not going to let what anyone else (including my husband) thought, bother me. We generally take turns on the front of the boat and today I went first. I hooked a Bonefish right away using a crab fly.

Hearing the reel sing as the fish took off relieved some of my “first day out” anxiety and I started to relax. Shortly after landing the Bonefish, Alfonso’s tone changed and got a bit rushed as he said, “Permit coming.., 10 o’clock.., cast now.., more left.., shoot it!” As anyone who has fished saltwater knows, there is nothing more exciting than a Permit within casting range and nothing more unnerving. Permit have a magical ability to turn your cast into something unrecognizable, your line into a large knotted mess in the bottom of the boat and generally wreck havoc with your entire nervous system. I did however manage to make a decent cast about 40 feet out, wait and start stripping in long, slow and then faster strips just as I a felt the unmistakable tug. Alfonso said, “Set it!”, I did and off the fish went! He ran far out ,very fast and I would only allow myself to think ever so slightly that there is a P-E-R-M-I-T on the end of my line. I kept repeating to myself, “Its only a fish.., Its only a fish…” After several runs and a gentle coaxing in, I GOT IT IN THE BOAT! I won’t repeat exactly what I said, but I am shaking now as I write, because this was my first Permit on a fly. Jerry caught his first one last May in Honduras, both of us trying unsuccessfully for 8 years . He tried to explain to me the feeling that washes over you when your first Permit lands in the boat; a life changing feeling. I now understand . Something absolutely washed over me that morning . It wasn’t that the fish was big (he was only about 3 pounds), it was because he was a Permit and I caught it on a fly!

Our day went on to be completely amazing, as Jerry soon after, boated a Bonefish ,a 10 Pound Permit and a Snook. After lunch, we went deep back into the Mangroves and both caught small Tarpon to complete my first ever Grand Slam and Jerry’s first ever Super Grand Slam. Even better that we did it in the same boat on the same day! Life just wasn’t going to get any better…..

The next day started out very much like the previous one. We headed far to the South, to the same flat where we picked up the Permits and Bones the day before. Jerry caught his Bonefish right away and I took over the front of the boat. Suddenly, Alfonso‘s tone changed and the energy in the boat was electrified, “Permit.., Big one.., 11 o’clock.., 100 feet, coming closer,…….go now, 50 feet.., its castable.” I thought “Oh great, I had a good day yesterday and now he expects more…(note the extra 10 feet)” ; however in the same instant, I thought, “ I did this yesterday-I can and will give it my best shot.” I made several casts, finally placed the fly to the fish’s liking and HE TOOK IT! He sped off well into my backing while I anchored the butt of the rod into my stomach and decided I had just better hold on. After fighting for about 15 minutes, in what was very much a battle of wills, I landed a 14 pound Permit. After the photos were taken and the fish released, it took a good half an hour for me to quit shaking. Jerry landed an 18 pounder later that morning and before the day was over, he had another Super Slam and I, another Grand Slam. Clearly the “Fish Gods” were smiling on us.

Catching not one, but two Permit and Slamming with my Husband in the same boat, two days in a row has quite a Wow Factor, but it all started with the first little 3 pounder. Often times now when my “new self” arises in our daily lives, my husband mutters to himself, “damn fish”, but always with a wink and a grin. It could be years before I catch another ,but nothing can take away the feeling of completing an achievement that was much more than I imagined. Life after Permit is good….

-- Cheri Poole  --