A great Friday

[thorhammer]

80 degrees, flat calm, my awesome wife gets first topwater stripers.  

[ReelFishingProblems]

That looks like a good time. That's a lifelong memory
Gotta convice Thea we need a boat!
Nick

[STRIPER LOU]

Lookin good Bud. Nothing beats a good day on the water. I think the Mrs. enjoyed herself!

..................Lou

[Alto Mare]

Awesome John! Nice to share a day on the water with your loved one, the fish is an added bonus.
Good job!

Sal

[coastal_dan]

Nice John, mild weather we've been having!

[Bill B]

Congrats to the Mrs.   Good looking fish....Bill

[David Hall]

Congratulations to the missus.  Great times are yours.

[Shark Hunter]

Where are yours John?
Tell Paula she is Awesome!
You are a lucky man.

[Vintage Offshore Tackle]

80 degrees, flat calm, my awesome wife gets first topwater stripers.  

Well now we see where the angling talent lies in the family, but good job putting her on the fish John.

[Crow]

Nice fish ! And great that you two can both enjoy the time , together !

[swill88]

Nice John!

What topwater lures are you using?

Steve

[Dominick]

Okaaaay John.  Dominick

[thorhammer]

Thanks, folks. Will post some more pics later, but short story is  this: we were just hanging on an island with a couple friends because it was so nice Friday. I had stuck a rod on the boat, intended to go back out later: my go-to popping rod, a 550SS (that's for you Daron and Sal!) I replacd the torpedo with EVA BB knob and love it on the 7'8" Tsunami, so much I set up two more identically...which did me no good in the shop...

We head back, the other two boats went ahead a bit as we wanted a pic of the sunset (to follow). Well, the fish came up in a three acre school busting shad all over, so we ran over to them. They were moving but massed up to push bait to the bank, and I was able to get the popper to them. This outfit with 20 lb PP with eight feet of 30 Fluoro leader is the ticket to make a long cast...if not you put them down. Paula drove the boat like a boss to get me on the school and get a hookup for her. She loved it! Had I had more rods we could've easily limited; I must have missed ten on the larger 7" Cordell popper (Steve) and those hooks aren't the sharpest anyway. They are feeding on butterbean gizzard shad right now and were short striking instead oh inhaling it as during the summer; I prefer the Williamson 5.5" popper; more flash at dusk and sharper hooks also. At one point the school came within 20 feet of the boat.

She actually has her own pontoon boat which she will take out, and came to me a few months ago and says "I just want to know where your head is, because when we retire I want to buy a sport fisher and cruise the East Coast and Carribean. If that's not your plan, I want to know, lol". Wedding gift: Lifetime Sportsman's license. Ten year anni: matched Everol Waterproof Super 50's. 20 year anni: humored me in a half dozen pawn shops in Charleston on anni trip buying all kinds of reels and rods. Yup, got a great one.

She is a nurse, as is Daron's wife,

[Tiddlerbasher]

Shes a keeper John