Back in the late 1960's as I grew
up, I started fishing in the area of
Thomas Point at the mouth of the South
River, about 15 miles south of Annapolis, Maryland on the Chesapeake
Bay. We lived right on the Bay at Thomas Point in a small community
named “Oakwood”. My first motor boat was a 7.5 h.p. Sears
& Roebuck outboard motor
- (I called it a "Sears Run out and Row Back" motor)
which I fastened on the back of a MFG 12 foot tri-hull skiff. I
also fished from
a 14 foot AMF Sunfish sailboat when I couldn't get the Sears
motor to work and my intended fishing spot was too far to row.
In 1969, I got my first
Charter Boat job as a 1st Mate with a Captain out of
Selby Bay - just across the South River from my home.
Ironically, and perhaps
through some odd sort of Chesapeake Bay fishing destiny, that
same year Odell Jones custom built what was to be my first Charter
Boat - the "Charlotte K".
She was a 43’ x 13’ custom wood Chesapeake Bay
Built dead rise. At that time it was known as the
“Scuttlebutt” and was
built for Capt. Cecil Kenney. In 1969 I had pestered every
Captain within rowing
distance (my motor truly lived up to its nickname) for a job
as a mate aboard a Charter Boat. Of course, no Captain would
take me because I was a
9-year-old scrawny kid. However, I considered myself quite
an accomplished fisherman at that point, having mastered the fine
art of fishing from a Sailboat with 3
rodholders, between crabpots and rockpiles,
and occasionally hooking a Rockfish, White Perch, Flounder,
Bluefish or Gray Trout. The truth was,
those fish must have been suicidal,
because looking back to the way I started out fishing I didn't
have a clue. Or, maybe, it's true what other fishermen say about
me - "He must have a horseshoe up
his ass, or something!"
When I finally got the 1st Mate job
back in the summer of 1969 I
started learning how to fish "The Charter Boat Way". During
those years, the Rockfish
were plentiful, but on the decline, and many Captains
(including mine) took great pleasure in catching large amounts
of fish of all types. Some things
never change! The rest of my life I have
spent continuing to learn about fishing. I have been a 1st
Mate aboard several vessels
and ended up getting my own Charter Boat - The "Charlotte
K" in 1992. I moved to Deale, MD in 1995 where I still live
with my beloved family: Jil, Little
Jimmy and Baby Sarah. I suppose that
my biggest dream in life is that Little Jimmy will follow in my
footsteps, be a Maryland
Waterman, and share in my love of the Chesapeake
Bay. There is a picture of all of us on the front of this
Home Page!
The “Charlotte K” was named
after my sister, Charlotte Katherine. Next, I
purchased the “Diana W”I in 1993 (which is still my only work
boat). To this very day, I
crab and oyster from the “Diana W” when I am not fishing.
It is a 1965 40’ x 12’ Abbotts custom wood Chesapeake Bay
built dead rise and is berthed here in
my home town of Deale, MD. She was
named after my mother. Back in 1997, I commissioned a 50’ x
16’ custom Chesapeake Bay
dead rise wood hull covered by fiberglass from a shipwright
in Crisfield, MD. I traded him the “Charlotte K” and cash
for the hull. Then I assembled a
group of Captains, Carpenters and Mechanics,
and together, we all built what is now the “Jil Carrie”.
Obviously, she was named after Jil
(first and middle names). A lot of people
ask about the name and I tell them that Jil decreed to me that if
I didn’t name the new boat after her,
she would extract an appendage! I still
enjoy recreational fishing as I did when I was a kid, but I have
had to balance my passion for fishing
with my business. I'll tell you that
working the front of the boat is sure a lot different than working
the back of the boat.
The most important thing that you
need to know about me is that I love to
fish - more than an obsession, it is my life. It doesn't matter
whether it is Charter or Recreational
trip. I just love to fish. I hope that
this passion comes out clearly in my Home Page and I hope you enjoy
this page as much as I have enjoyed
putting it together. I pray that I remain
a better fisherman than I am a “Computer Geek”.
There's an old story I tell my
parties about God standing on the
Dock telling me - "You won't catch any fish today" - I would
still go fishing.
That’s probably how I got my nickname “Croakerhead”. I
tell everyone I got that nickname
because I like to catch Atlantic Croaker.
However, it is far more likely that I got the nickname because
I am a little bit hardheaded. The
nickname for a croaker is a “Hardhead”.
By the way, Jil tells me that it’s a whole lot more than a
little bit!
Return to
Capt. Jim's Fishing Page
Welcome to my Home Page. I am really happy to see you have come to visit. I want you to know more about me, the “Jil Carrie”, our crew, and our wonderful fishing excursions on the Chesapeake Bay and in the Atlantic Ocean. More information about me is just one click away in the "About Capt. Jim" section right next to this one.
