Big Fish that got us at Sombrero Light Key

Big Fish that got us at Sombrero Light Key; Bill DeWitt was a major figure in the fishing tackle trade from the 1930s through the 1950s. As owner of the Shoe Form Company in Auburn, New York, he opened Bill DeWitt Baits as a division of his firm and sold fishing lures and assorted tackle made of “pyra-shell,” a type of plastic. He also bought out a defunct hook making firm in Redditch, England and had the machines shipped to Auburn, where he manufactured fish hooks for over two decades. In this article, published in the Sporting Goods Dealer, he recounts a fishing trip to Florida. — Ed.

The Big Fish that got us at Sombrero Light Key

THERE is good fishing at Fort Lauderdale, Fla., but the far-off waters look the more enticing, and we had a yen for the blue
waters and the big fish around Sombrero Light. So, about half an hour before dawn, we slipped away from our mooring on the New River, tingling with excitement, using our running lights and spotlight to find the channel and the markers. Our party consisted of Mrs. DeWitt, my friend, Dr. R.F. Johnson, the skipper and myself. Our departure had been preceded by the usual five or six days of frantic work in checking our craft, the “Caroline,” to be sure that motor, hull, steering apparatus, compass supplies, and cooking utensils were all ship-shape.

About 9 a.m., we passed Miami and we were on 12-mile course S1/2W through choppy Biscayne Bay. As we approached Featherbed Bank, Doc, who was peering through the binoculars to pick up the shoal markers, observed a large yacht. She was about two miles to starboard, and her ensign was upside down. Doc called, “Hey Bill, there is a ship in distress! What’d we better do?”…………..

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