Some Observations

from the Hill By HH (Hub) Brown of OwegoSome years ago, when Ag and I were younger and stronger, we used to like to spend some of the time when winter is changing into spring in Florida. The way this started, a middle aged couple had married eachother for their second time, and wanted Ag to help do the driving on their way to Florida. The truth is, the new husband drove some of the first day and then never touched the wheel until they were well into that state. The next year she took her sister with her and the next she took our granddaughter and finally, in 1969, our 12-year-old grandson and me. Ag had become acquainted with a man and his wife who ran a neat old motel. There was a modern home where they, the Dipples, lived, then there were two full-sized houses, and about 12 other units. Because several of these were of the older type of houses, set up on wooden blocks to discourage termites, we could afford to stay four or five weeks.

Mrs. Dipple, who really ran the place, had a brother named Carvel, but always called Buck by his father, who was in his later 80s. Buck owned a 23-foot boat which for its size was very seaworthy. By occupation, he was a farmer, corn and small grains up on Kent Island, Maryland. He also had a five-cylinder Diesel car and a small plane, but usually drove an old Chevy pickup which he would drive from the farm to his sister's house in Sebastian, Florida. He hoped that when he quit farming he would be able to invite three other fishermen and, with him providing gas, bait, ice, and tackle and by selling the more expensive fish, would be able to live the life that he really loved. In order to find out if this would be possible, he would take three of us renters out whenever the ocean was fishable. He always told us that sea bass never brought much at the fish house and they didn't even buy trigger fish so divided these among us. Small sea bass are one of the sweetest fish out there and trigger fish have pure white flesh and no bones, having a cartilage framework.

He used to take us out about 20 miles, find a reef, and then anchor or drift. One day, things had been quiet for some time and Buck asked me if I would like to try for a big fish. I told him, "You bet." So he took a four-inch sea bass, cut down each side of the sharp spines in the fins, and put that on my hook. I had a bite right away, and we landed a 21 1/2 pound red snapper. Buck said, "I'm going down and get the other one." Like they came in pairs. So he fixed another sea bass and he caught a 23 1/2 pounder.

Buck's father was with us that day and when we got back near the inlet which is always rough and tricky to navigate, Buck got a big pail, turned it over, and put it right in the center of the boat and told his father to hang on. There was a strong, rough current coming out of the inlet that day and Buck had just got into the worst of it and he looked back to see how his father was doing and here the old man was standing up, holding 45 pounds of red snapper up so the fisherman on the jetty could see what a real fish looked like.