Lessons from 40 Miles Out in the Bay
When’s the last time you truly disconnected?
I mean no laptop, no texts, no notifications, no scrolling… just open water and open skies.
This week, I went bay fishing with a few old friends near Port Aransas, Texas. We’d head out before sunrise and travel 40 miles into the bay. From about 5 a.m. to 3 p.m. each day – no signal. No distractions. Just boats, bait, a cooler full of sandwiches, a radio and our stories.
It was glorious.
We baited hooks. We reeled in trout. We told tales. We harassed each other every time someone lost a fish. And with each hour, something else started to loosen: the constant tension of being always on.
A Cast Back in Time
It got me thinking…
➡️ When’s the last time I even went fishing?
Turns out – probably around 15 years ago. My daughter (1st photo) was little, holding a pink Zebco reel, beaming as she caught her first fish. Love that memory! (It was the Frio River by the way. #IYKYK.)
➡️ What about truly disconnecting?
Yes, I go down to our ranch all the time. But, I’m “reachable.” Wi-Fi, cable, Slack, inbox pings, conference calls. But out in the bay? This is my new sacred space. No notifications, no noise.
➡️ And the friends I went with?
One I’ve known for 50 years (I know, I know – I don’t look or act like that is possible! 😂) The other two – since grad school, 29 years ago. Collectively we’ve seen each other through marriages, divorces, kids, layoffs, and now… a kid’s wedding. I’ve been told it’s a rare thing to go through life with people like that.
Here’s What I Realized Out There:
- Your mind needs still water. You don’t even realize how loud the digital world is until you get away from it. And then you realize how much of your thinking was reaction, not reflection.
- Friendships that last decades are like good tackle – built to withstand the pull. The kind of friendships where you don’t need to fill the silence. You just exist side-by-side, sometimes with a line in the water, sometimes with a joke in the air.
- Business doesn’t stop – but burnout can be delayed. Taking a mid-week adventure wasn’t irresponsible. It was restorative. I came back better – clearer, calmer, more human.
- Time away makes you better at what you do. Creativity, perspective, even leadership – it all gets sharper when you leave the echo chamber of constant digital hustle.
So, ask yourself:
- When was the last time you went off-grid, even for a few hours?
- What memories are waiting to be made – or revisited?
- Who in your life has stood the test of time, and have you told them lately?
You don’t need to wait for retirement or a once-in-a-decade vacation to recharge. Sometimes, all it takes is a boat, a rod and reel and a few good friends.
And maybe…
just maybe… letting the big one get away isn’t the worst thing.
