Saltwater Adventure in the Florida Keys An Introduction to Fishing for Kids

Fishing greats Lefty Kreh, Flip Pallot, Mark Sosin, & many others call Saltwater Adventure in the Florida Keys a well-written angling adventure & teaching manual that is realistic, accurate, entertaining, & educational.
Best loved for nearly two decades, Saltwater Adventure is the first fishing primer story for kids of all ages.
Hardbound. 52 full color illustrations. Interactive fishing record. How-to tie flies. Illustrated Glossary of fishing &
boating terminology.
***
When big city kid, Buddy, learns he must spend the summer with his cousin, Jason, Aunt Sara, and Uncle Joel in the
Florida Keys, the chip on his shoulder becomes a tree trunk!
“What’s so great about fishing?” Buddy asks.
Jason opened his tackle box.
“Wow! Buddy’s eyes grew wide. “What are all those things?”
***
“If I got a fish on,” Buddy bragged, “nothing could pull my rod out of my hand! I’m strong. Feel this!”
Buddy pushed his shirt sleeve up to his shoulder, bent his arm and slapped his muscle.
“Muscles are okay, but you need more than that to be a good fisherman,” Jason said. “You have to have patience & skill ‘cause sometimes you wait & wait & wait and you have to know when to strike them. And sometimes you can’t strike them too hard ‘cause you’ll pull the hook right out of their mouths. Other times you have to let them take the bait a long time before you strike them. Uncle Joel says that fish are like people. Each one is different, & if you want to get to know them, you have to be patient with them.”
***
“Did you really catch a tiger shark, Uncle Joel?”
“Sure did,” he said.
“Tell him the whole story,” Jason said.
“Well….”
“From the beginning,” Jason begged.
***
That night, Buddy lay very still in the bed beside Jason’s. He propped both hands under his head & thought about his first
day in the Florida Keys. The swim. The boat. The fishing stories.Maybe moving to Florida wouldn’t be so bad after all. Then he saw himself holding the spin rod & a huge sailfish leaping through the water, high into the air.
“Do you think I’ll catch a big one tomorrow?” he asked through the dark?”
Jason did not answer. He was already asleep.
***
Zizz. Zizz. Zizzzzz.
Something struck Buddy’s line & almost pulled the rod from his hand. Line peeled from the reel.
“Yippee!” he screamed. “I got one! I got one!”
Buddy held the rod with both hands as it bent into a wide arc.
Zizz. Zizz. Zizzzzz.
“Listen to him run!” Jason shouted. “Hold him! He’s a good
one!”
Buddy held the rod tightly. Suddenly, the fish stopped running. The zizzing stopped. He remembered what Jason taught him. He lifted the rod slowly, then reeled as he lowered it. He pumped and reeled. Then the fish took off again. Buddy clung to the rod.
“Oh, my gosh! He screamed. “What should I do?”
Uncle Joel & Jason laughed.
“You’re doing fine!”
“Keep the pressure on him,” Jason coached. “Pump him when he stops running!”
Buddy worked the rod. Tiny drops of perspiration ran down his face.
“Phew! He’s fighting hard!”
“That’s what he’s probably saying about you,” Jason laughed.
“Help!” Buddy screamed. His rod made an arc as he struggled to reel. “I can’t reel in & I can’t lift him. What’ll I
do?”
***
Uncle Joel started the motor & headed home. They talked about Buddy’s dolphin. How well Buddy fought it. How many fish they caught & how many fish got away.
“I’ll bet my grouper was even bigger than my dolphin!” Buddy said. Jason nodded in agreement.
The sun was low in the western sky. A warm salt breeze pressed their faces and parted their hair. This is the best day of my whole life, Buddy thought.
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