today was the last day of the greatest week of fishing i've ever had. i broke the ice on monday with two yellowtail, one 31 lbs and the other 21 lbs, from the kayak. we took our skipjack 24 out this afternoon for a possible afternoon YT bite and to just get out on the water. after throwing the iron on my new seeker jigstick (thanks santa) i felt something weird on the drop. line started peeling like a fish, so i set the hook and felt something, then it went slack. i started to crank in faster and all of a sudden the line got tight. fish on. thought it was a solid yellow with a constant pull, peeling drag, and was relatively vertical. then the line started moving all over the place, and i started thinking he was trying to dodge a seal! i continued thinking as i fought the fish and remembered that threshers will bite the iron. 10 minutes into the fight the thing jumped, and i saw a beautiful thresher shark fully airborne off our starboard gunwale with my jig in its mouth. after a 30 minute battle my first ever thresher was next to our boat and we had our hands on its tail. it was just a pup, maybe 80 lbs, but was definently an awesome experience. tyler, fishinkid2010, who helped me land my first yellows earlier this week, was also there to help handle the shark as we prepared it for release. had to cut the jig but it looked pretty good as she slowly swam away after the release. after today i really understand the beauty and prestige of these amazing sharks, and the importance of conserving this fishery, especially in la jolla.
12-26-2009, 08:30 PM
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