Ladies Kingfish hits the water

PORT ISABEL - Hurricane Dolly may have delivered a stinging blow to much of the Port Isabel/South Padre Island area, but there is a determination to show that the area is returning to normalcy.
And part of that determination was the holding of the 27th Annual Ladies' Kingfish Tournament less than two weeks after the storm wreaked havoc on the Valley.
"It was important for us to get back and show we are recovering," said Roxanne Guenzel, president of the SPI Chamber of Commerce, which sponsored the tournament.
"We're so pleased that the community has come out to support us."
Dolly knocked out the Texas International Fishing Tournament and postponed the Port Mansfield Fishing Tournament until next week.
The tournament attracted 217 anglers in 88 boats with 52 fishing in the bay division and 36 in the offshore division.
"We're really pleased with the numbers, considering the storm and the economy," Guenzel said.
There were a number of first-time tournament anglers, including Leslie Wolverton-Zohrer of Port Isabel, who was fishing aboard the "Not Tellin'."
"This is a great way to de-stress," she said. "It was a wonderful day out there. The water was crystal blue. This was my first Ladies Kingfish, but I've been fishing my whole life."
Wolverton-Zohrer was fishing in the offshore division and caught a kingfish, bonito, blackfin tuna and dolphin, giving her a catch in all four categories and an offshore grand slam.
Lindsey Long and Ronnie Martinez, both of Mission, were also first-time anglers and were fishing aboard the "Team Wernecke."
"It was a lot of fun," said Long.
Martinez said the tournament was a step in showing that the area was coming back.
In the bay division, there were some good fish caught, including a 7.6-pound redfish and a 6.6-pound trout.
Guenzel was pleased with the number of flounder that were weighed in as some tournaments in the past have had a shortage of flounder.
With a salt tang on the breeze and a shrimp boat in the channel heading out to the Gulf of Mexico, it almost seemed that everything was back to normal.
Not quite but getting there, said Guenzel.
"I think that it's important to show everybody that it's starting to get back to normal," she said.