JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Kids from around northeast Florida got to throw a few lines in the water Wednesday at the 43rd annual Greater Jacksonville Kingfish Tournament.
They competed in the dock tournament and offshore tournament with kids hauling in kingfish that weighed over 20 pounds.
The weather was hot and steamy with a slight breeze but the fish were biting off the coast of northeast Florida and right at the dock along Sisters Creek.
Malachi Bunker showed up for the junior anglers tournament with his fellow summer campers.
Bunker said he waited about 45 minutes to an hour before finally landing a redfish.
"It was amazing. Like, I didn't think I caught it but when it came up it was so cool to finally catch a fish," Bunker said. "I really wanna go fishing now. It's exciting to like see the fish come up and then when I go fishing I'll be able to eat it. Dinner."
Greater Jacksonville Kingfish Tournament chairman Mel Hammock said you can't beat seeing the kids come out to enjoy the great fishing northeast Florida has to offer.
"Most of them have never even seen a fishing pole before so it was great to see them...when they would catch a little croaker or grunt or something they were yelling, running down the dock with it. 'I caught one! I caught one!' That's the best thing in the world to see," Hammock said.
The 43rd annual Greater Jacksonville Kingfish Tournament runs through Saturday, July 22 at the Jim King Park and Boat Ramp at Sisters Creek located right off Heckscher Drive.