4-21-14 LJ Ding Dong Ling
 

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Short report:
Weather- kinda sucked. Gloomy, windy, and very choppy beyond the point.
Water- 60-61, clear.
South-southwest current, a bit strong but fishable.
Bait- Mini-macks, iron and squid

Full report:
Hit the shores with my friend and his new PA in hopes of finding some big game fish. Unloaded my kayak and realized I forgot my mirage drive...:doh: Sucks but I wasn't gonna call it a day just because of that, so I drove back to Carlsbad while my buddy made bait till I got back.

We saw some bird activity but they appeared to be liars. No marks or bites.
Went over some great structure and rock fish marks in 180-230ft. When life gives you rock fish, fish for rock fish.

Current, swell, and wind was getting nasty but we were able to pick up a few. I was hoping for a ling and have been trying to get a respectable one out of la jolla for over a year. So I dropped a mac down while my friend pulled up rock fish with frozen squid. Eventually I got tired of no hits and wanted to pull in some more fish so I grabbed the biggest squid I had and sent it down. Almost immediately I got slammed and the thing pulled drag... could it be:confused: Felt like I was reeling up a bucket and then I saw a mouth lol.
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The ling was 30'' and weighed a little over 8lbs. PB ling for LJ :reel:
-pictures on the water didnt turn out good :/ This one doesn't do it justice but oh well.
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Coughed up a big octopus. I tried using it for bait during a few drops later :D


Dinner:
My friend and I harvested one of the large spanish mackerel for sushi, never tried but figured why not.
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It was awesome!

The spread: mixed rock fish and ling
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I call this the Trifecta: Ling, barber pole, and vermillion- in one taco
http://i1133.photobucket.com/albums/...psc776cbbd.jpg

One word, Tasty

Excellent and timely report, thanks. :drool5:

Sounds good. I need to get back out to my rock pile.

Hell ya Zac! Nice ling!

Looks like a good day to me, nice Ling!

Way to go man! :cheers1:

three words
 

You The Man . :party:
congrats on the the ling .
one day i will catch a legal :cool:
thanks for sharing your spread .

awesome ling! How did the mac taste? A buddy was tellin me on the water to filet it and eat it on the spot. I was hesitant and still didn't do it. :cheers1:

The Spanish Mac was awesome! It's gotta be the same species they use in the sushi restaurants. Not oily or too fishy like the greenback. I will be loading up on a few of them next time. Might even bring a tube of wasabi and soy sauce for a OTW snack :D

It's aji aka jack mackerel; family Carangidae.
Not sawara aka Spanish mackerel; family Scombridae.


Nice spread.

TT! Tasty Tacos man! I knew that was your report just by the pictures of your kitchen counters and beer before I even noticed your username. Never would have thought to try that mackeral sushi though... We will have to try that this weekend!

Looks like enough for Taco Monday thru Friday! What's the best way to drop a Mac down that far?

nice!! wondered about those spanish macs

I have had them and they can be good. But I definitely recommend bleeding them when you first catch them helps them have a nice mild flavor not real fishy. Trim off any "dark meat" and your good to go!

Glad you got something. Nice to meet you on the water. Another example of persistence paying off.

Nice catch!

my mouth is watering and I just ate!

I used a squid but put the mac on a dropper loop with a 8oz torpedo.