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Fishermen often talk about the big one that got away.

Karen Cleveland can talk about the one she didn’t catch, but still ended up in her fiancée’s boat.

“My fiancée, Andy Singer, and I are avid fishers on the waters of Marco Island,” she says. “Well we were in for quite a fishing trip recently.”

Singer had a client in town to go on a fishing trip. He and Cleveland took Brett Bonomo and wife Alexia out for a day on the water.

They all headed to Ben’s Barge out in the Gulf, aptly called that day, “Brett’s Barge,” for offshore fishing.

“We made bets on the person to catch the first fish bought lunch,” Cleveland says. “Andy had the first hit and just as I said, ‘Baby it looks like you are buying lunch,’ I had a fish on and was reeling it in.”

Just as Cleveland was pulling the fish out of the water a huge barracuda came flying into the boat after her catch.

“It came flying at me and into our 21-foot Paramount,” she says. “I, of course, started screaming and jumped up on a seat, screaming even more as the barracuda was flopping below me, between the console and the seat. In this size of boat there is not a lot of space.

“Andy rushed for me to save me from the barracuda and carried me to the front of the boat as both Alexia and I are now screaming. We could not believe what was happening.”

Singer did manage to get the fish out safely.

“I did end up landing my mackerel,” Cleveland says. “A boat of six to seven guys watched all this happening. Their parting words were that they were headed back to shore to bring their wives out for good luck.”

Unfortunately, with all the excitement, they didn’t get a photo of the barracuda.

Cleveland wasn’t all that lucky on a night fishing trip.

“I am actually from Seattle, Washington and come from a fly fishing, salmon-fishing background,” she says. “I had only recently learned about catfish. Andy told me they were bad fish.”

Cleveland thought the fish was cute and had a cute name. She learned they weren’t so cute when caught. As she tried to unhook a cat fish it stuck its barbs between two of her fingers and out her hand.

“I was bleeding all over the place and apparently they are venomous as I could not move my fingers or hand for about two hours” she says.

Cleveland told of her adventures because she wanted readers to be aware of what can happen with a barracuda, but also how dangerous catfish are, particularly if you are fishing with small children, she says.

Cleveland and Singer are getting married on Aug. 8, on the island.

“My family back in Seattle is happy that I am marrying Andy so he can save me from all of our Marco Island fishing adventures,” she says.