First time at LJ 8/14

[cjthomas]

I live in Orange County so I mostly kayak out of Newport harbor or Dana pt. but I have been aching to go to LJ. I played hooky on Friday and was in the water by 6:30AM. I was kind of freaked out about going out without bait and not having a FF but I was able to spot some breaking the surface. My first bite produced 3 spanish macks at once and I got to break in my bait tube. I went down the line to the NW corner until I found a lot of bait in the water and tied off to rest (the mini-x stinks for long paddles). While trying to make more bait my flylined mack hooked up a calico. A little later, with a new mack, I was bit hard and taken for a run. I was making good head way on the fish until it wrapped me around the kelp. I asked a free diver to assist but he couldn't go that deep. It very well could have been the right kind and I was bummed I didn't have spectra. I threw out another mack and was bit almost instantly, I really put the wood to this fish, but it came unbuttoned. That was it for action and I made a great landing. I can't wait to go back!