Hello, friends! Much has been written about sunrises and sunsets. Many people will argue about which the most beautiful is. I suppose your preference might depend on which area of the country you’re from. The folks who live in places like Key West get the best of both worlds. However, here on the South Georgia coast, we get gorgeous sunrises and of the two, it is my preference.
Now, I know you are asking yourself, “What do sunrises and sunsets have to do with a fishing report?” The answer is everything. There is much more to the fishing experience than the act itself. The sounds, smells and sights around you — plus the camaraderie with friends — make up the entire experience. If you are not in tune with your surroundings, you’ll miss out on a truly exciting event.  
Throughout the course of a lifetime, we are rewarded with a limited number of both fishing excursions and sunrises; therefore, I plan to enjoy as many as I can before my last breath.  
I have two reasons for writing this article. The first is because I adore my memories of standing on the misty beach at St. Catherines Island early in the morning with a fishing pole in my hand, watching the huge, fiery orange sun rise over the ocean. That is a sight like no other, and it allows you to feel like you’re standing on the edge of the world with your toes dangling over the side.  
And second, I recently formulated a plan with my dearest friend Neal Patterson and his daughter Catherine to combine an upcoming three-day camping and fishing trip to McQueen’s Inlet. It’s been a long time since I’ve been on the ocean side of the island and watched a sunrise and even longer since I’ve fished McQueen’s Inlet. My old pal Neal is a pro at maneuvering through the treacherous waters in and around McQueen’s, so I’m confident that the trip will be fun and successful.
My heart flutters with excitement when I think about the upcoming trip. We are waiting for a favorable weather report before we begin our adventure. Undoubtedly, I’ll have many memories of this trip — some I will be able to share with you and some I probably won’t (if you know what I mean).  
I’d like to send out a sincere thank you to all my loyal readers. I truly love each and every one of you, and I wish you much happiness in the future.  
And now some news from the dock: Fishing with Capt. Hippie this past weekend, we hit the big ones again. As we stood there on the dock looking at our catch we realized that the three 22-inch spottails were enough, I could not help myself from throwing out there one more time. Well, as soon as my cork hit the water, down she went.  At first, it felt like a smaller catch than the first three.  To my surprise, when I got to the walkway with the big daddy, it went under the dock. My rod was all the in the water bent under the dock.  We never laid eyes on the big one, but it sure was fun taking that ride.
During the weekend before that, the dock tour produced 14 spottail bass. We caught eight on Saturday and four on Sunday. Up-and-coming angler Copper Mobley also had a good time fishing with his grandfather, Mike Flatt, and his father, Travis Mobley.
If you need bait, Yellow Bluff has live shrimp and minnows. The Sunbury Crab Company has live shrimp and minnows. Half Moon also has live shrimp. It sounds like the fish are biting so get out there and wet a hook.
Merry Christmas to Mr. Big Red.  Three times out from under the dock, and the third time in he broke my line. I was not upset; I was proud to have known him for a short while.
Remember what Old Tight Line always said: “Get out there and go fishing and if you do, always remember to keep a tight line.” That’s it from the coast.
Your buddy,
Tight Line Jr.