As dusk cast its silvery fingers across the Gulf of Mexico, my father and I donned our fishing gear, swim trunks and t-shirts, and waded into the Gulf in search of finned prey. Chest deep and two fish later, a sudden splash 10 feet away sent a shudder through the two of us as earlier a five foot shark was seen plying these same waters. Alas, the familiar dorsal fin of a bottle nose dolphin was spotted and our bladders remained full. Moments later several more dolphins made a silent entrance and together, man and dolphin, we formed the perfect fish net. Trapped between us, the blue ruuner and pompano desperately hit anything thrown their way. Two pound fish suddenly had the strength of fish 3 times their size, as only a brush with death can illicit. With bowed rods and zinging drags we battled our finned quarry for an hour in waist deep water, while the dolphin plied the slightly deeper water to catch any fish foolish enough to run for it. In the course of an hour, we caught and released more than 20 fish and relieved ourselves of 5 lures in the process. It's the kind of fishing madness that makes time suspend and one forget what's going on around them. Normally, just the sight of a dolphin is enough to make my pulse race, but in the heat of fishing all was blotted out but the rhythm of my casts and the simple joy of catching fish. Without the video, I wouldn't have realized how many dolphin were assisting our efforts. Pure joy is the only thing that can describe this hour. It's one I know my Dad and I will never forget. We entered the water as father and son and for a brief hour we transcended this relationship as our lures flashed in the twilight and our forearms ached. Only when it was too dark to see did we relinquish the moment and retire for the night, not as father and son, but as two fishing buddies with a great fish story to tell.

See link for video -