Took the early morning flight from NY (got up at 4:30am EST...ugh) and got home around 10:30. Went to work for a few hours but my computer is in the hospital so not much to do. Got to the launch around 4:00PM to find Jim with his three nice fish and a low tide. Motored straight out around the corner where, as I anticipated, the bite was done and the slack tide had the bait holed up somewhere else. Paddled around for 2 hours looking for bait or a boil, but nothing but sabiki resistant smelt and thunderstorms:shock:. WTF, this is San Diego, I thought I had escaped the afternoon storms! Pretty dramatic lightning but fortunately it stayed either inland or further out, though I did get rained on a bit. Tired, wet, and frustrated, I decide to head in early but as the tide turns, the bait comes storming off the kelp. A pair of nice greenies and I'm in business. Knothead got one, but whopper spanish were everywhere by now. Paddling in I enjoyed a beautiful sunset.
Reminding me of why I escaped the concrete jungle back east. Then the sunset got even nicer!
Fish hit somewhat tentatively but was not shy at all about running into the kelp. 35lb spectra is slicing stringers left and right, but finally we get really wrapped up. Had to do the ole bite through the kelp routine on a big mass that got tangled. Get to the leader but he's still stuck and I can't see squat in the dusk. A few forward paddles and I get enough slack on the kelp to raise the fish to gaff. Paddling in I had another strong runoff that took 100 yards of line before the leader snapped at the hook. Must have been nicked up from the first fish. Damn. Met Doug at the beach, who was kind enough to snap some more pics.
One of those weird afternoons where it sucked sucked sucked, then a late reward.
09-20-2005, 08:56 AM
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