There are sharks where?

The great thing about fishing is there is always another level to take it to and there is always someone who has more knowledge on the subject and who is happy to pass on what they know.  There is a ceremony in that, moving to a higher level and learning, which I consider a sacred and mystical act, not something to be bastardized by the information transfer disorder so prevalent in modern communication, evidenced by the debasing of words into argument and debate.  If you want to be the best you can be you'd be wise to learn from the best.  Last night was the synthesis of information I received and it really changed the way I view the water around me!

Doug and I set out our live eels.  I was in a bitchy mood for some reason, but fortunately Doug was not and he was real cool because he expected nothing and was happy just to have a line in.  All I was thinking was the spring sucked (from the beach mostly) and if I just spent the last four hours, again, to stand and stare at a rod and catch no fish . . . And then my rod tip started really going.  That eel is scared!  Here we go.

Bam!  I picked up my rod and got the slack, but there was nothing there.  Wait for it.  Wait.  Boom!  I gave it a five count and set back.  Zip, zip, zip.  Break off.  I reeled in and had only a 1ft mono portion left of the Beach Shark Rig.  The shark had a chance to rub my line and that will break it.  The mono was even sandpapered a few feet into my mainline!  They're here!  It wasn't even dark yet and my eel was only in the water for 15 minutes.

I removed my roughed up mainline, tied back up, and baited a fresh live eel, taking about 10 or so minutes.  The bait was chucked out.  I don't remember how long it was, but it wasn't very long before the rod was going down to the ground.  I set up and was on immediately!  However long into the battle Doug and I shined our headlights on the water and saw a dorsal fin cruising back and forth.  Sick!  With some effort the fish was brought onshore for the standard hook removal and pictures.  Back in the water for a successful catch and release.  Awesome!

There is something different about this photograph I will tell you.  A nice sandbar a bit out of place from the sandbar.

Wow.  One for two sharks in about an hour.  Doug wasn't even fazed that they liked my rod more, he was just as stoked as I was about the score.  Unfortunately, that would be it for the night, which I blame on a snotty SW wind that picked up and the dying eels from my poor storage method.  Another hour of snot wind and elderly eels produced no more bites so we packed it up and called it a success.  The tide and moon 'sucked' so I won't factor that.  A snotty wind I will factor, as well as thunderstorms.  The liveliness of eels seemed very important, and I thought of a method for that today.  What this means is there is a good chance the drought will be replaced by a flood- kind of like the weather around the world nowadays.  It's all just so interwoven.  Success!