About Fishing Headquarters

Just a mile into the waters off Fort Lauderdale Beach, the currents churn with migrating kingfish, tuna, marlin, sharks, and other fauna. With 40 years of experience on this crowded expanse of slate blue, Paul Roydhouse knows how to catch them. Aboard their 85-foot boat, he and his crew lead trip groups in drift fishing, a method that entails letting the boat float with the wind and current like a depressed seagull. They load up the drift-fishing vessel or a 48-foot sport-fishing boat with everything from bait and tackle to licenses and rods. Passengers cast lines from fighting chairs, buckling themselves in to battle mahi-mahi and sailfish in jeweled veils of spray. On the Mary B III, up to 50 patrons sprawl in the sunshine, clicking together beers brought from home; chartered vessels also can slip through the water toward the Bahamas. During nighttime swordfish cruises, Paul and his crew shut off the engines, letting lines baited with squid and glow sticks hang in the dark until the massive fish grab them and thrash through the water.