We arrived at the pier before sunrise. After parking the van, we grabbed our cooler and walked through the sparse grass in the parking lot to meet up with the rest of our party. After exchanging pleasantries, we headed over to the pier and stepped up to the stern of the Jeanie III. The captain welcomed us aboard and, after the mate finished loading supplies, we were off. The big diesels throbbed to life that you felt, more than heard. We crept through the sound at low throttle and then really opened it up when we hit the chop in the channel. At full throttle, the boat set up three large standing waves that merged behind the stern. The outboard trip took about two hours. As the sun came up, the light would flash and glitter as flying fish leapt from the wake, still thrashing their tails, and sailed above the waves for 5-6 seconds before plunging back in to the ocean with a splash.
As the passengers alternately chatted and nodded off, the mate checked the fishing equipment, tied leaders, sharpened the hooks and the gaff, and prepared the bait fish. A line of small fish called "ballyhoo" were thawed, lined up on a board, and covered with salt before being put onto a hook. The mate would carefully thread a hook through head and body of the fish with the barbs near the belly of the fish, place a weight under the fishes head, and carefully wind a rubber band around and around the front of the fish to hold it all together.
When we reached the gulf stream, we began trolling.