Good morning from the Keys—this one’s a true solo offshore day for me, from that first cup of coffee at home to lines in the water under a HUGE full moon. Elizabeth was away, I was a little rusty from being on the road, and I honestly had “no freaking idea” what I was going to find. I’m watching weather, scanning for birds, checking weed patches (that were weirdly empty), and setting up a simple troll spread as I slide into the humps. Once it finally happened, it happened fast: the feather started producing blackfin tuna, and I even found tiny squid in the water—perfect “match the hatch” proof of why that lure was getting crushed. After icing a couple tunas, I switched gears and went deep dropping, which has fast become one of my favorite things because you truly never know what’s coming up. I talk through the whole “is this cheating?” debate (my take: it’s just technology, same as sonar and reels), then put a beautiful yelloweye snapper in the box for my mom, catch a vermilion, release a baby tilefish with a descender, and wrap the day with a mystery fish and a wild moon rise back at the dock. No shortcuts, no fluff—just real decisions and real fishing.