My deepest condolences. This whole situation is very sad. I will pray for his family.

I am so sorry for your loss and hoe that you can find peace in the face that he was doing what he loved when it all happened, my thoughts are with Dave's family.

This is very tragic to hear about Dave and something no parent should have to experience. Those that fish from a kayak have a special bond with each other and the sea. My thoughts and prayers are with Dave's family and our kayaking community.

In life, one may know a man by his words and deeds, his handshake and his smile. In passing, these measures disappear, and are not for consideration of those who did not know him in his days.

As such, we may only know him in the love and grief of friends and family, the good works he leaves behind, and the nature and spirit of those who mourn his passing. By these measures, never having had the privilege of meeting him, it is clear that Dave was an exceptional individual.

We grieve, not only for the loss and suffering of those that knew him, but also for the community, any time one of its members falls away. We are weakened by his absence and strengthened in our unity of grief, a final gift from a kind soul.

John, may your family's suffering be no more than is necessary to honor Dave, and may his memories and gifts remain as blessings in your lives.

I hope our community's heartfelt outpouring of condolences bring you some comfort. Sending prayers of peace to you and your family.

John so sad and sorry you lost your son...
 

Thanks for giving us a report.

Well said, FoodGeekFish.

I have been witness to many simple acts of kindness and consideration that has made a huge impact on me since I have fished La Jolla and elsewhere such as:

-That time when i was done offloading my kayak and proceeded to get my truck hopelessly stuck in the sand on the way to parking it. A few kayakkers who were all ready to launch saw me spinning my wheels and came by to help me push my vehicle out of the sand while another provided tow straps to successfully tow me out. I realized that the sun was already coming out and they came over and started helping out before I got a chance to ask. Half an hour later, I was on the water fishing.

-Or that day when I broke off my one and only sabiki off kelp and didnt have any other means to catch bait. One yakker offered up some bait while another offered his one and only spare sabiki and refused to take money for it. I, of course, proceeded to lose the sabiki on the next patch of kelp. I found out later that week that that same person caught a yellowtail on that very day. (Good karma for a good deed )

-Or last Saturday when my helper on the water (and my now new friend) told me about how, the week prior, he had met Dave on the water after my friend also broke off his last sabiki. He told me how Dave also offered him a sabiki. On top off that, every time Dave caught bait, he offered my friend half of his catch.

Sometimes, it's the simplest acts that make the biggest impact.

Deepest sympathies to Dave's family and friends, I cannot imagine the pain you are experiencing... to the kayak fisherman who responded to this tragedy, much respect.

Eternal Tight Lines
 

Heard about the accident while at the Heroes On the Water event last Saturday. I prayed that there was a positive outcome. Deepest sympathy to Dave's family. Eternal Tight Lines Dave.

Hydronaught

Very sad.
Condolences to family

From all of us here at AQUAHOLIX, we are deeply saddened that this tragic incident ever occured. We all have been & will continue to pray for you, your family & of course your tremendously beloved son to find peace during these most painful times...

Tragedy doesn't have an alarm clock. There's no way to ever really prepare for these type of things. All we can do is be prudent in our daily life practices of expressing our love to whomever that may be. Tomorrow is never promised.

I personally pray to God to bless all of you with peace, love, protection & guidance...

Lastly, to Dave, you do not know me personally, nor did I know you brother. One thing I do know, is the same love for the Sea & fishing was definitely a shared addiction between us, as well as many others both near & far. And through that similar, shared passion we are all connected. You've touched many with your passionate acts & gestures of love & kindness. And even though I could be considered as a stranger to you & your family, you (Dave) & your family will forever be in my heart, my mind & my prayers... See ya on the other side brother, leave some fish for the rest of us! 🙏

Again, as many have previously stated, we are here for Dave's family in any way/capacity we are able to be. Please let us know how we may be able to help. If any kind if memorial paddle out or anything similar is being planned I would love to be a part of that...

& to those who were the first responders out there in LJ that day, good on you fellas for lookin out for eachother out there, it could have been any of us. Much love to yall & I pray as well that you all find some peace through all this... May God bless all of you.

I am pretty much the new (but old looking) guy out at La Jolla and unfortunately I never met Dave. I plan on fishing tomorrow, hopefully I will get a chance to meet Davesdad and family. I would like to say that I will go out and catch something grand in Dave's honor, but the fact of the matter is, I'm just not that good...yet. So, I'll make it a nice day on the water and take the chance to reflect on Dave's well lived life.

just saying hello
 

my family will bring flowers to the beach Saturday .

John,

I am so sorry for your loss. I wasn't too close to Dave, but knew of him. We would pass each other on the water occasionally and I would usually say good morning in the early am as I passed by his truck, parked near the launch.

My deepest condolences to you, his family and friends.
Much love to all.

Todd

I'm at a loss for words with all this support guys.Hope to see some of you in the morning.

I'll be launching tomorrow around 6:20 to fish for a few hours, since the wind is going to pick up and be strong before 11am. The surf report is for 1' wave and should be very easy. I usually don't fish Saturdays because of the crowds, but tomorrow it will be to Honor David. Tight Lines David

My heart has softened and I am lost for words. My prayers to Dave and his Family.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I am sorry for your loss. I never met Dave but saw him out there often. May you find peace and acceptance during this difficult time.

It’s incredible how bitter sweet someone’s passing can be. We will never know the whys of what happened, but to see how it brings people closer together is amazing. I didn’t know Dave but can tell he was a great person and this tragic event has changed my outlook on the way I go about my daily routines. We will never know when it’s our time to go, so try and enjoy every moment to the fullest. Rest In Peace Dave!!

very sorry for your loss.

Some of Dave's family got to meet some of you guys yesterday.Thanks for supporting us and talking fishing.Thanks for letting me brag a little about my kid and what he's caught recently at La Jolla.The person that put up a picture of Dave and a nice Yellow on the wood poles near the launch.So kind of you.I'm wondering if you guys caught anything ? Seeing all of you paddle out and gather outside was cool to see.:you_rock:

It was good to be able meet you and your wife, John. I liked the fact that your family was able to experience some of the LJ kayak fishing community, that Dave was part off. I for one did not have much luck yesterday. All I talked to after coming back in around 1 pm said they didn't either. Bait was hard to catch, even guys in boats with bait did not seem to be having any better luck. It unfortunately has been that way for a while now at LJ. Some days it's more about being at the right place at the right time. I keep thinking things will change soon.

John,

Thank you and bless Dave, friends, family, yakkers and non-yakkers as well.

Out on the water, my line started to scream as I reached back and grabbed my pole to start to reel in but after 5 seconds, the fish spit the hook. I must not have let he fish swallow my bait......farmed!

My friend Ash on my tandem also hooked onto a nice fish that was taking drag sporadically until it realized it was hooked and went berserk when it got close to the yak. I could see that it was a huge barracuda as it turned its body to run. Ash tried to tighten the drag on his reel and that's when the tension on his line relaxed and......farmed! Fish gone!.

Minh didnt have much luck either. Ws were dipping into his bait bucket and he ran his solo skiff back and forth to resupply bait but by then it was getting late and water was getting choppy.

Saw a couple guys on the water with yellows taking pictures and a few on boats hooked up also.

We all had a blast, fish or no fish.


Our quest for our first yak yellow remains.

Our journey continues, in fishing, and in life

I encourage anyone that has fond fishing memories, past or present, fish or no fish, to share and post on this page.

Levi, myself, John, and family

My buddy Daniel trying to release a shark without getting bit

My personal best fish, a 27 lb halibut at Redondo, happened to be on a yak

Thanks for that picture Chen.You'll get em next time.

Did not get lucky yesterday, just had what I thought was a sea lion but was probably a barracuda take my swim bait at the end of my sabiki for a good 3 second run but did not get hooked. So here are some pictures from the last few Yellows caught at La Jolla. The first picture is the sun coming up and shining through the clouds yesterday morning a short time after meeting Dave's family at the beach launch. The next one (siting on my lap) was released unharmed. I often release some and don't always take their picture. The one I'm holding and on the way back is sticking out of the fish bag made for a couple of my favorite pictures.

Wow. Yellowtail pictures give give goosebumps and inspiration.

http://www.pbase.com/image/168161328.jpg

It was a beautiful morning and a beautiful sunrise. It was very nice to meet Dave's family, and to enjoy being with kindred spirits. I hope that sharing the beginning of this new day together can help to bring some healing and closure.

So sorry for you and and your family's loss Sir. Prayers for you all during this unimaginable time.

I am deeply sorry for your loss John.

I’m not sure what I’m doing cause I to like John a second father to me in my younger years am new to this page so please bare with me. I have no idea what to say I’m so lost for words at this moment after reading everyone’s comments. Dave and I met in our early teenage years and from that very first day first fishing trip together we were inseparable I can recal that day like it was yesterday. We had alarms set for 3 am at my own fathers house so we could get up and sneak onto Carlton oaks golf course in santee and slay some mega large mouth well back then they were mega to us lol needless to say we caught some nice fish that morning and he introduced me to the sinko aka French fry worm and we fished till sunrise when we got busted by the golf course employees and asked to leave man those were the days Dave I’ll miss you brother and I’m so sorry I failed to stay in constant contact with you after I moved to Montana but I’m so glad I decided to stop by when I was down there for a family deal just to say hi I was so happy to see you and John (dad) still at the same ole house we use to get into so much trouble at.

John (dad) I hope your holding in there cause I’m not I’m losing my poop right now while typing this and just can’t hold back the tears anymore I’m gonna miss him so much and I want you to know that I think Dave was right beside me this last Saturday when I was bow hunting and I could almost hear him telling me to wait be patient that buck will come and as it drew closer I pulled back and I could here Dave say “ now it’s the perfect shot and it’s the biggest buck you’ll have ever shot” needless to say I got him and boy Dave was right it’s by far the biggest mule deer and measures out at 172 and 6/8 inches that technically if I wanted qualifies for pope and young record books. Sorry I’m probly talking a different language to most haha John I just want you to know I’m always here for you and the family you are my second family even though we haven’t spoken much in some time now but mom has my cell number now so please feel free to call or text I miss you guys so much you and Dave will always be in my prayers

Dave and I as kids
 

This is a photo of Dave and I at Lindo lake park in lakeside catching some carp something we did quite often when we got bored haha Dave is on the right I am on the left not sure who took the pic but mom (Dave’s mom) found it in his room the other day and sent it to my phone I’m afraid it’s a rare photo to have cause we were to busy to pose for the camera there was fish to be caught and that was way more important to us