Our fish...

Julian: Do you think I should {insert something that would make us more prepared}?
Amanda : No, we won't need it!
Julian: Ok, if you're sure...

***

That is how most of our adventures have started these days. Catching this fish was no exception. We took the kayaks out last Sunday as a way to get out since we were having a "rest day" from our regular 5k training. Julian's been reading a great book about sea fishing, and he said, "Nick says to never go fishing without your 'priest'." {'Priest' is the tool of choice for whacking your fish on the head to accomplish a speedy and humane dispatch.} "Should I take one?" I replied that he shouldn't worry about it because he probably won't catch anything and if he does, we will release it. Then I'm pretty sure he asked if I was sure and I said yes, and he said oooooohkaaay. It's clear to see where this is going.

Julian didn't take the priest but he did every other thing Nick - cause we're apparently on first-name-basis with awesome British sea fishermen now - said to do, from watching the current to picking his bait. Lo and behold, in less than 30 minutes, he landed a hybrid striped bass.

 

The only problem was that, just like all the reading said, the striped bass is an "aggressive feeder" and it swallowed the whole thing, hook, line and sinker. There was no catch and release for this bad boy. So we made an executive decision to dispatch him and take him home so as not to leave him to die in the river from a terrible fate. But we didn't bring the priest.... or any ice/cooler/anything helpful for dealing with a caught fish.

We dealt with him by using a 21-in-1 type fisherman gadget tool which I'm pretty sure was a hand-me-down from his dad. Then we went home as fast as we could manage, and we decided this whole experience would serve as a great practice round, should we decide to actually fish for food someday. I made a homemade de-scaler and we consulted the fish book again to disassemble the fish as best as possible. The long and short of it - we had NO plans to spend our Sunday evening this way but it was super fun to do together, and even though it sounds cheesy, a big confidence boost. Waste not, want not, and even though this was just "practice," we DID eat it.