Just like the early bird catches the worm the early fisherman catches the fish proven as my trip begins at 6:30 in the Marina where I meet the vessel’s captain, a very exuberant man who greets me warmly. After the last member of our trip arrives, we leave in a long journey to the first stop 20 nautical miles off the stunning North Queensland coast.

Once we reached the spot, we went to the back part of the boat where the crew prepared the equipment for us and those who brought their own prepared theirs. From there the silence reigned in as we all froze and concentrated on the water below. Not long the first yell of excitement happened as one of the tourists, a man from Melbourne, got his first catch of the day. Then it was my turn as suddenly the rod jerked abruptly. Moving the rod up and down I rapidly pulled in the line and a color could be seen on the water surface, silver one. In next to no time the struggle was over and I had a white fish with yellow fins but I still don’t know the species.

After all of us got tired of fishing, our captain moved us to the second spot and on the way the crew lit the grill and the fish the crew caught was cooking for us.

The second spot was a repeat of the first: catching fish and then comparing who got the best between us but unfortunately the fun was over and we had to return to the mainland. While I was making small talk with the others, I noticed the crew cleaning and preparing all our catches, which was very thoughtful as it is a very hard task. Arriving on land, good-naturedly, the captain pointed out to us a restaurant that cooked caught fish for a small fee and with that I finish my story with my wish that those wanting to relax partake in this activity as it is most delightful.

Enzo Valentim