By Captain Mike Farmer:
After many days of messaging back and forth, Spencer Kenny of Reel Jedi and I made plans to spend the day on the water and do a little filming. But before I get started with that let me just tell you a little background. The beginning of this trip hat roots that were laid many years before, actually back when I was much younger. Spencer’s dad and I had fished many Bass Tournaments together back when I was about the same age as Spencer, well in reality I was quite a bit younger than he is now.
Ok now that I have told on my years, much water has passed under the bridge since that time and many changes have occurred in my life since that time. My days of tournament fishing have passed by and I am now a full time Inshore Charter Captain in Steinhatchee, Florida.
I was quite excited to work with Spencer after he first contacted me and I put all of the pieces together about who he was. After much anticipation and a night with very little sleep it was time to spend the a day on the Gulf with Spencer. I arrived early at the marina as I normally do to load the tackle and prepare the boat for a day on the water. Just as things were all getting completed I looked up the dock and saw 
Spencer and Jackie trying to carry on a conversation with the resident macaws on the back porch of River Haven Marina. I called out to them asking if they wanted to fish or play with the birds.
It didn’t take long to make a decision and they came scurrying down the walkway where we all met for the first time and hastily loaded the boat with their belongings. It was now time to cast away the lines and head down the river towards the gulf. It was a beautiful morning as we idled out the river and watched the sunrise delivering the beginning of what would be a wonderful day. An otter made himself visible just off the shoreline and we paused for a few moments to watch as he frolicked around in the water as if he didn’t have a care in the world. By now we were to the end of the no wake zone and it was time to lay down the throttle and get to where we needed to be. The boat planed out and the cool air blew in our hair and across our faces as we headed across the shallow grassy flats.
Finally we reached our destination and it was time to begin. I readied a rod for everyone and prepared fresh fillets of cut bait for everyone’s hooks. Over the next several hours we boated some nice speckled trout and redfish. Many were released to fight again another day but several were placed on ice for our supper later that night.
As the day came to an end it was time to put the tackle away and head back in as all good things must come to an end. Once again the boat was up on plane and headed back to the marina. As we rode back in we all gazed around and soaked up the beauty in nature that is so plentiful in Steinhatchee. Sometimes the rides and taking in the sights can be as memorable as the fishing itself.
By the time we arrived back at the dock, the no-see-ums were out in full force and ready to feed. If you have spent much time around the coastlines then you know all about these little creatures which some describe as nothing more than a set of flying teeth. A good spray down with some bug spray and we were ready to fillet the days catch. By this time my girlfriend Charlene had arrived, just in time to help out. She and Jackie drew the short straws and cleaned the boat while Spencer and I cleaned the catch.
The girls finished up with the boat cleaning detail just as we finished with filleting the fish. They arrived at the cleaning table just in time to take the last of the remaining scraps and feed to the pelicans and herons which were hanging out in wait for a meal.
Now with the day of fishing behind us it was time to enjoy the spoils of our day. We arrived at Kathis Krab Shack with our bag of fillets in hand and sent them off to the kitchen. It wasn’t long before they returned from the kitchen with a platter full of golden brown fried fish fillets, hush puppies and gooey cheese grits. A fresh from the Gulf meal fit for a king!
With our bellies full of the days fresh catch and memories of the day that would last a lifetime it was time to say goodbye. Originally the plans were for Spencer to come and do some filming of our days fishing. There is a video to document some of the days events but as fate would have it film work wasn’t really the the main focus of the day. It was more of a day of building friendship, sharing stories and just having a great time. Spencer spent a little more time with a rod in his hand than a camera this day. But that’s OK too, it’s not always about the fish, the film or anything else like that. Sometimes it’s just about friendship and a great day on the water together, and that’s just what this day ended up being. Sometimes you just have to take time to lay all of the other stuff to the side and spend some time living life.
You can reach Mike and make a reservation with Salt Addiction Charters through his website at http://saltaddictioncharters.com/ or his email at mike@saltaddictioncharters.com.
If you would like to see more of Spencer in action, you can visit his Youtube channel located here: https://www.youtube.com/reeljedi
