Gone Fishing >=^:> >=^:>

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Bruno (an ISD HS math teacher) and I went fishing, chartering a pirogue from a fellow located on Plage de Ouakam, just down the street from us.  It's a good deal, 8000 CFA (about 16USD) for a half day, 15000 CFA for a full day, all bait, tackle, and good advice included.

The pirogues are traditional boats here, found all along the coast.  They are made entirely of wood, powered by small outboards (in the 10-20 hp range), sleek, slicing through the water, narrow in the beam, and tippy.

Momodou, the friendly boat operator, brought his dog along with us in the pirogue.  It was one of the highlights of the trip, watching his pup lean against him in the stern, eyes closed, as a dog might riding in a car with its head out the window, taking it all in.  The pup is a fish eater.  Momodou would occasional offer him a snack from the cut bait.

We began by trolling along the bluffs, beneath the Mamelles lighthouse, not far from the shore.  Tuna can be found there, and thiof, a species of grouper, that migrate south from Mauritania during the winter months, timed with the seasonal upwelling.  (See migration for more information.)  We trolled up the coast to the Almadies, without luck, save several strikes, then anchored to bottom fish.  

Bottom fishing is done with hand lines of perhaps 50 lb test monofilament baited with mullet (or what I recognize as mullet from my childhood in south Florida).  We had some luck, smaller fish, of course, including grunt, again familiar from my youth.  It's interesting the correspondence between fish species here and the ones found of the coast of Florida, with exception, given the cold upwelling.

Momodou demonstrated his prowess with the handlines.  The photo2 above shows him with a line delicately cradled in each hand.  He was literally pulling fish out of the water left and right, while Bruno and I waited patiently for a single nibble. 

I had some good luck as we were heading in, again trolling just meters off the Mamelles bluffs:  three passes, three thiof, two of nice size.  Fishing is always more fun when you catch something, and this was an exciting way to close our day our.  A half-day charter ran several hours longer than expected, thanks to Momodou's willingness to repeatedly troll the bluffs when the action picked up.

Being an avid snorkeler, and a spearfisherman in my teens, I was intrigued by the number of snorkelers out hunting along the coast, in full, hooded wetsuits, long spearguns.  They are working divers, where spearing thiof can draw a nice income, being a prized, expensive fish served in restaurants.  I realized that I've not taken advantage of the diving here.