Hanna and I worked consecutive trade shows – first the Chicagoland Fishing Show and then the Safari Club International. Re ran into numerous friends, some of whom have traveled with us, some of whom we’ve only corresponded with, and every permutation in between.

Get ready to dive into my 2024 goals and planned accomplishments. I continue to cast my curiosity into the fishing industry and hope to reel in more and more curious-but-perhaps-anxious travelers to join us on our spectacular fishing journeys.

Plenty of NBA superstars love fishing, too — either as an escape from the grind of the road life or as fuel for their competitive nature. Check out some of their stories.

I always thought that being unusually tall would be helpful, and in some cases it is, but short fishing travelers have several distinct advantages when it comes to comfort, effectiveness and memories.

Every year provides new opportunities to increase the breadth and depth of my fishing, writing and travel experiences. If all goes according to plan, 2024 will be the best year yet.

We’ve had a lot of success stories throughout 2023, including great fish catches of our own and helping others enjoy amazing on-the-water experiences, but our greatest achievement may have occurred while we were nearly 1,000 miles away. 

Running our own website and business has been a learning experience and we’ve stumbled along the way. In the interest of transparency, here are some mistakes that I made in 2023. I’m sure there will be more mistakes every year hereafter – ideally they won’t be the same ones.

Minnesota outdoorsman escaped the cold and went to Casa Vieja Lodge for single anglers week. He scratched the sailfish itch, enjoyed the hospitality and made a bunch of new friends. You can do the same.

I’ve increasingly learned to really appreciate our great and diverse group of traveling angler friends. Accordingly, as I look back on my days on the water during 2023, I’m fortunate that I have a lot of great memories on the water with friends to remember. Here are four friends’ catches that stand out.

We are fortunate that the Half Past First Cast family includes lots of women — of all experience levels — who love to travel and fish. Here are a few of the ones who’ve gone on the most trips with us.

The next generation of great sailfish captains and mates at Casa Vieja Lodge — rocking a Half Past First Cast onesie. We cannot wait to meet her.

Twenty year old bass pro and educator Wyatt Wimberley of Texas is working with The Bass Tank to bring detailed electronics education to interested anglers across the country.

Hector Garate draws from multiple influences to smoke meat to perfection, including some cuts that others won’t try. Check out his pop-ups or his upcoming restaurant in Charleston, South Carolina. It’s more than worth the trip.

Craig Lamb has been in the trenches of the bass fishing world for over four decades in a variety of capacities, and has been a consistent witness to fishing history.

Travis Burns is an incredible outdoorsman — he guides on Choke Canyon, leads hunters to some of the biggest whitetails you’ve ever seen, and with his partner Kenny Witek recently won the Brandon Belt Team Championship.

Deion Sanders, AKA Coach Prime, believes that he could have been a three-sport superstar — with bass fishing as the third platform for excellence. Here’s some of his fishing history.

How do we know that we’re doing a good job of leading you to your best fishing life? We’re aware that we’re biased, so we consulted an independent panel of experts to find out their favorite fishing travel website. Here are the unfiltered results.

Reuben Hastings has been guiding at Bear Trail Lodge in Bristol Bay for 13 years — and we’ve been lucky enough to fish with him on the Naknek as well as on several flyouts. He’s an amazing person and enthusiastic angler.

We traveled across the continent to Bear Trail Lodge and ended up fishing with a guide who hails from 90 miles away from our house. Cooper Neblett made our return to Bristol Bay exceptional. He has a great future in the fishing industry.

After over 20 trips to Lake El Salto and Lake Picachos, Hanna and I have a solid routine in the boat. We understand each other’s tendencies and while we’d rather catch the big ones ourselves, we still celebrate when the other succeeds. We’ve recognized that in the long run working together produces far better results for everyone than competing with the other person.