Summer of 72 Dolphin Pier Topsail Island Just before sun up
I was about 12 yrs old and a beginning king angler just learniing the ropes. A friend of the family was taking me with him on weekends and furnishing my anchor rod. He arranged for me to borrow a 6/0 reel from Larry Lee of Johnston County. Larry was a respected king angler and his name was all over the big fish boards at Dolphin pier. I took every opportunity to ask him questions about kingfishing. He was my idol. One evening while we were eating supper, I, popped a far fetched question. " Larry, would it be possible to see a sailfish from the pier?" He looked over at my friend Crip and smiled and then thought a second or two. "Maybe, but it would be once in a lifetime"
The next morning,while Larry was eating at the pierhouse, I had my bait out and was watching a school of menhaden in the predawn twilight. The school was about 400 yds north and about 50 yds past the breakers. All at once mehaden were in the air and a HUGE SAILFISH rocketed into the air. My shouts gathered a small crowd and we watched it slash thru the school with sail raised and bill coming clean out of the water at times. After that he balled them back up and made one more jump up thru the center of the school and was gone. As excited as I was when he returned, I doubt Larry would have ever belived me if the others there had not told him the same thing. Now folks that story about the guy catching a king on a 202 was incredible beginners luck but I feel like I had a large dose myself. Both stories are as true as I could tell them, just like Larry's answer. (so far!)
AL