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Off-Topic Lets see some summer fish shots

This fishing post keeps getting new life and I don't want to let Thanksgiving get too far out of sight before I post this Peace River Tarpon we caught off the dock Thanksgiving Night, 2016. Right as the Cowboys were running off the field I told my boys to go reel the rod in with a big whole mullet on it - it had been out for six hours. Just then the reel starts singing - first run made it half way across the river before it slowed down.

Length and girth accordhing to Pro-Tarpon Series had it at 245lbs - biggest Tarpon I've ever seen actually caught - there was one 211 when I was Tarpon Guiding in Boca Grande Pass in the 80s. Has to be a **** world record from a dock. There was a big Gator on the surface hanging near the neighbor's dock, and twice in the hour long fight, the fish was heading that way and she would have broke off. Both times when she got near the Gator, she quickly turned back for the deep water in the middle of the river. It was a Miracle we landed it, revived well and swam off like a champ. From the local Mullet Wrapper:

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swampcougar1 said:
Have fond memories of Punta Gorda in my grade school years. Charlotte High played basketball games on the block south of where highway 17 hit 41. That was real street ball..Finally built a gym when I was going in 6th grade. At that time 5th through 12th grades were in the same building
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That was a while ago, playing in the streets! It was 7th-12th when I started there. Where in town did you live?
 
Silver King said:
This fishing post keeps getting new life and I don't want to let Thanksgiving get too far out of sight before I post this Peace River Tarpon we caught off the dock Thanksgiving Night, 2016. Right as the Cowboys were running off the field I told my boys to go reel the rod in with a big whole mullet on it - it had been out for six hours. Just then the reel starts singing - first run made it half way across the river before t slowed down.

Length and girth accordhing to Pro-Tarpon Series had it at 245lbs - biggest Tarpon I've ever seen actually caught - there was one 211 when I was Tarpon Guiding in Boca Grande Pass in the 80s. Has to be a **** world record from a dock. There was a big Gator on the surface hanging near the neighbor's dock, and twice in the hour long fight, the fish was heading that way and she would have broke off. Both times when she got near the Gatr, she quickly turned back. Was a Miracle we landed it, revived and swam off like a champ. From the local Mullet Wrapper:

View attachment 136491
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Caught 3 Tarpon in my life (Largest was 50lbs) all 3 in the Caloosahatchee River....
 
swampcougar1 said:
Have fond memories of Punta Gorda in my grade school years. Charlotte High played basketball games on the block south of where highway 17 hit 41. That was real street ball..Finally built a gym when I was going in 6th grade. At that time 5th through 12th grades were in the same building
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A friend of mine in HS parents owned Bay Marina in Charlotte Harbor...used to go tubing there in the Mid 70s...
 
caneinorlando said:
A friend of mine in HS parents owned Bay Marina in Charlotte Harbor...used to go tubing there in the Mid 70s...
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Great little Marina. It's funny Tarpon around the I-75 Bridge are smaller 15-35lbs, but you get a couple miles up river and the big ones who don;t waste any energy migrating hang there - I hear its the same in the Caloosahatchee.
 
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Silver King said:
This fishing post keeps getting new life and I don't want to let Thanksgiving get too far out of sight before I post this Peace River Tarpon we caught off the dock Thanksgiving Night, 2016. Right as the Cowboys were running off the field I told my boys to go reel the rod in with a big whole mullet on it - it had been out for six hours. Just then the reel starts singing - first run made it half way across the river before it slowed down.

Length and girth accordhing to Pro-Tarpon Series had it at 245lbs - biggest Tarpon I've ever seen actually caught - there was one 211 when I was Tarpon Guiding in Boca Grande Pass in the 80s. Has to be a **** world record from a dock. There was a big Gator on the surface hanging near the neighbor's dock, and twice in the hour long fight, the fish was heading that way and she would have broke off. Both times when she got near the Gator, she quickly turned back for the deep water in the middle of the river. It was a Miracle we landed it, revived well and swam off like a champ. From the local Mullet Wrapper:

View attachment 136491
Click to expand...

Lifetime fish
 
swampcougar1 said:
Lived other side of shell creek to the right off 17. About a half mile from where shell creek, prairie creek and myrtle slough merged. Great deer and turkey hunting when I was young
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It was sure a beautiful place back then, still has its charm, but changing - freking Allegiant Air came in, thought Florida was going to legalize gambling and started building a hig end condo unit on Charlotte Harbor near where the Bay Station was. Then it just stopped. Here's what we get to look at now.
DSC_0984.webp
 
Silver King said:
You're a beast - I hate to ask did did the Covid economy catch up with you? Wherever you land, you'll be turning them up buddy.
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Covid hasn't hurt me at all. GF is a Critical Nurse and has been working ungodly hrs...Bought a place in Ft Myers 3 weeks ago....GF is now at my place here in Orlando until sale of home in approx 6-8 weeks...Saves her a fortune in what she was paying for her place...She'll follow me to Ft Myers upon completion of sale. As far as Indian artifacts in Ft Myers....None really...there's no Lithic material south of Sarasota...you might get lucky finding one due to trade...mostly shell and pottery stuff....
 
caneinorlando said:
Covid hasn't hurt me at all. GF is a Critical Nurse and has been working ungodly hrs...Bought a place in Ft Myers 3 weeks ago....GF is now at my place here in Orlando until sale of home in approx 6-8 weeks...Saves her a fortune in what she was paying for her place...She'll follow me to Ft Myers upon completion of sale. As far as Indian artifacts in Ft Myers....None really...there's no Lithic material south of Sarasota...you might get lucky finding one due to trade...mostly shell and pottery stuff....
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Yeah I found a few in the Peace River and up on the banks, but it is mostly sandpaste pottery. I had a place you could find bucket loads pottery and the occasional cool shell tool or deer antler awl. I pieced togeter 7/8 of a pre-Columbian bowl. Well, when you get bored and need to run up north for a hunt, I'm usually available.
 
@Silver King @RVACane @JeddTheFisch. @1LuvCane ....and others, little story about this...
In 2003 I was Hunting artifacts along side a Central/North Fl River....where the Limestone/Karst is very close to the river bottom....above the Limestone was a 2ft layer of Peat....then approx 2ft of water to the surface...
Whenever I walk...I take a walking Stick...the one I have I made out of a Cypress branch. This particular day I was walking in 1ft of water, and jabbing through the Peat with the stick, and the stick hit something odd feeling, so I stopped...and started groping through the Peat to see what I hit....and find this Skull laying upside down, on top of the Limestone, with the Peat above it....after pulling the skull up through the Peat...(it was covered and embedded with it) I took it up to the shoreline and started cleaning it off. As I turned the skull over to continue cleaning off the Peat....I find this.....A 5,000yr old Spearhead sticking out of the skull...To make a long story short, after pulling the spearhead out (came out easily)...I took it to an Archaeologist friend of mine at UCF...who was completely blown away....The Skull was Carbon Dated to be between 4,500-5,500 yrs old...He went on to say that although the Spear wound is what killed the Gator....it most likely got away, before eventually succumbing to the wound (since spearhead was still intact, and still lodged in skull) Without question....my most extraordinary find in 27yrs of hunting.....
1842609992_(1).webp
 
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caneinorlando said:
@Silver King @RVACane @JeddTheFisch. @1LuvCane ....and others, little story about this...
In 2003 I was Hunting artifacts along side a Central/North Fl River....where the Limestone/Karst is very close to the river bottom....above the Limestone was a 2ft layer of Peat....then approx 2ft of water to the surface...
Whenever I walk...I take a walking Stick...the one I have I made out of a Cypress branch. This particular day I was walking in 1ft of water, and jabbing through the Peat with the stick, and the stick hit something odd feeling, so I stopped...and started groping through the Peat to see what I hit....and find this Skull laying upside down, on top of the Limestone, with the Peat above it....after pulling the skull up through the Peat...(it was covered and embedded with it) I took it up to the shoreline and started cleaning it off. As I turned the skull over to continue cleaning off the Peat....I find this.....A 5,000yr old Spearhead sticking out of the skull...To make a long story short, after pulling the spearhead out (came out easily)...I took it to an Archaeologist friend of mine at UCF...who was completely blown away....The Skull was Carbon Dated to be between 4,500-5,500 yrs old...He went on to say that although the Spear wound is what killed the Gator....it most likely got away, before eventually succumbing to the wound (since spearhead was still intact, and still lodged in skull) Without question....my most extraordinary find in 27yrs of hunting.....View attachment 138645
Click to expand...
That’s wild man. Aren’t you worried about gators when you go through those places?
 
caneinorlando said:
@Silver King @RVACane @JeddTheFisch. @1LuvCane ....and others, little story about this...
In 2003 I was Hunting artifacts along side a Central/North Fl River....where the Limestone/Karst is very close to the river bottom....above the Limestone was a 2ft layer of Peat....then approx 2ft of water to the surface...
Whenever I walk...I take a walking Stick...the one I have I made out of a Cypress branch. This particular day I was walking in 1ft of water, and jabbing through the Peat with the stick, and the stick hit something odd feeling, so I stopped...and started groping through the Peat to see what I hit....and find this Skull laying upside down, on top of the Limestone, with the Peat above it....after pulling the skull up through the Peat...(it was covered and embedded with it) I took it up to the shoreline and started cleaning it off. As I turned the skull over to continue cleaning off the Peat....I find this.....A 5,000yr old Spearhead sticking out of the skull...To make a long story short, after pulling the spearhead out (came out easily)...I took it to an Archaeologist friend of mine at UCF...who was completely blown away....The Skull was Carbon Dated to be between 4,500-5,500 yrs old...He went on to say that although the Spear wound is what killed the Gator....it most likely got away, before eventually succumbing to the wound (since spearhead was still intact, and still lodged in skull) Without question....my most extraordinary find in 27yrs of hunting.....View attachment 138645
Click to expand...
That is an awesome find.
 
caneinorlando said:
@Silver King @RVACane @JeddTheFisch. @1LuvCane ....and others, little story about this...
In 2003 I was Hunting artifacts along side a Central/North Fl River....where the Limestone/Karst is very close to the river bottom....above the Limestone was a 2ft layer of Peat....then approx 2ft of water to the surface...
Whenever I walk...I take a walking Stick...the one I have I made out of a Cypress branch. This particular day I was walking in 1ft of water, and jabbing through the Peat with the stick, and the stick hit something odd feeling, so I stopped...and started groping through the Peat to see what I hit....and find this Skull laying upside down, on top of the Limestone, with the Peat above it....after pulling the skull up through the Peat...(it was covered and embedded with it) I took it up to the shoreline and started cleaning it off. As I turned the skull over to continue cleaning off the Peat....I find this.....A 5,000yr old Spearhead sticking out of the skull...To make a long story short, after pulling the spearhead out (came out easily)...I took it to an Archaeologist friend of mine at UCF...who was completely blown away....The Skull was Carbon Dated to be between 4,500-5,500 yrs old...He went on to say that although the Spear wound is what killed the Gator....it most likely got away, before eventually succumbing to the wound (since spearhead was still intact, and still lodged in skull) Without question....my most extraordinary find in 27yrs of hunting.....View attachment 138645
Click to expand...
Bro, this has to be close to an academic funded type of find. You've reached pimp status in the Fl. Archaeologiass.world. Completely bad ***...
 
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