Big news today. — Cupcake Afloat

Another splendid sail today. But the big news is not the 56 mile offshore run where we averaged 6.5 knots all day long. The big news is not the peak speed of 8+ knots we hit periodically. The big news is not the marlin (or was it a swordfish?) we saw leaping out of the water as it chased a dorado. The big news is not that we are now safely anchored in the Abacos. No, the big news is the two (TWO!!) fish we caught today.

We caught two fish today!

As soon as we hit the deep water off Eleuthera, we put the lines in the water. Within about 45 minutes, we caught a fish with our little green and pink squid-looking lure. Pulled it in and found a little barracuda on the end of the line. I hauled it up to the rail, Ellen anesthetized it with vodka in the gills, then she pulled the hook out and turned the fish loose.

Hours later, when we were in the super deep water between Eleuthera and Abaco (11,000+ feet deep, yow!) Ellen had just pulled in the line to clear some seaweed from the lure and was letting it back out when a fish struck.

Ellen hauled the line in until the fish was just behind the boat, then I managed the line while she got the dorado (Coryphaena hippurus) (aka mahi-mahi) with the vodka. Then Ellen wrapped the catch in our fish towel, hugged it to her torso, and carried it to the side deck where the fish pail was waiting.

Once she had it at the pail, Ellen really doused the dorado with vodka. Then, using her fillet knife, she chopped off its head and proceeded to fillet the rest. We got two huge, beautiful fillets from the fish and now Ellen is researching recipes. That’s enough words for today. Pictures are even better.