"It was pitch black when we arrived at the docks at 4 a.m., ready to head out on The Momentum with one of our oldest friends, Captain Pat Havlik. The early morning was dark and quiet as everyone boarded and stashed their gear. Once we cleared the inlet and headed east, the group huddled in the cabin, seeking shelter from the lingering northerly breeze that had been howling the day before.

After a solid steam offshore, the stillness broke as people began stirring, catching the faintest sliver of light creeping up on the eastern horizon. It was time to gear up for a solid day of fishing. With bait cut and rods rigged, Captain Pat set his mark and gave us the green light.

Everyone onboard had spent countless days fishing through the summer and fall, so to them, it was shaping up to be just another day on the water. But for me, as I dropped my line off the port side and watched the horizon, ready to explode with light at any moment, a wave of nostalgia hit. It had been far too long since I’d done this."

"Fall in Montauk, especially on the water, demands that you be ready for anything. We left the dock bundled in long johns and our most element-friendly Whalebone gear, but after pulling in a pile of seabass and watching the sun climb above the horizon, even tough guy Capt' Pat was down to a t-shirt—and it was mid-November. What we’d expected to be an overcast, breezy day turned into a head-scratcher, with the sun shining like it was midsummer.

As we steamed west toward Montauk, we swapped out rigs for tog fishing and cut up some crabs for bait. The action was slow at first while Pat worked the changing tides, maneuvering to keep us on the numbers. Then, deciding to show us how it’s done, he dropped a line himself and, like clockwork, pulled in the catch of the day. Once Pat dialed us in, we landed several more beautiful fish, sticking it out until the sun started dipping toward the opposite horizon.

Just as we began packing up, all eyes locked on a feeding frenzy far off between us and the lighthouse. Aggressive, fast splashes broke the water everywhere. Tuna? Maybe. Before I knew it, the tuna rigs were out, and with a little hope and a prayer, we aimed for something big—an unexpected bonus on a bottom-fishing trip. Wishful thinking! While we marked a few, there wasn’t any action, but the sight of whales and pods of dolphins following us all the way to the lighthouse made for a fitting close to an epic day with old friends aboard Captain Pat’s Momentum."

- Jesse Joeckel