Lossely related to kayaking but Non kayak Report

[Fiskadoro]

Offshore Sunday 8-30

Short version: Fished down in Mexican waters and caught a few Yellowfin Sunday. Not wide open but we were able to scratch up a few fish playing with some tricks I usually reserve for the kayak.


Long Version: Norm my old fishing buddy has been twisting my arm trying to get me out of the yak and on to his boat for some tuna action. With the recent reports and SST's We figured we had a good chance at some quality YFT, on some assorted current breaks down near the 1010 trench roughly fifty to sixty miles out of Point Loma.

Met in Culver City Saturday night and headed down with Khanh of KPN lure fame.



He and I had a blast talking about stripers and plugs all the way down to the Ramp. Launched somewhere around 3:00 AM. at Shelter, and some beat up dines at the receiver (they were very generous) and headed out into some choppy seas. By the time it got light it started to flatten down, and we had our baits in the water in pretty short order. Must of trolled for three or four hours for nothing. Patty's were covered in bait but nothing else, and it started to look like one of those days when things just do not go your way out there.

Decided to try some new stuff so I put out a little clear lipped Rapala one of my favorite kayak trolling lures tight below a couple of daisey chains. After a while it got ripped by a skippy, then a nice fat YFT, and while fighting that one Norm and Khanh hooked baitfish as well.

Maybe fifteen minutes later it got ripped again, and this time we kept the boat and gear and turned it into a double when a second fish ate a cedar plug.

Things slowed down and it got glass calm so I climbed up on the mini tower I made for Norms boat, and we baited maybe half a dozen patties for nothing.

At this point I decided to try a second Rapala a x-rap that I use on the yak, but instead of close I decided to put it way back maybe 50 feet behind the spread.

After a short while it got attacked and eaten by something that burned almost 300 yds of forty off the reel in less then a minute. I was thinking Bigeye or big bluefin till I turned it but then it came to the boat almost dead with hardly any fight and turned out to be a smaller grade of YFT. The thing just knocked itself out on that first run.

Since it was now getting later we started working up the line along some breaks and scum lines towards the 371. Norm took a nap, I took the wheel, Khanh got up on the tower. Some Sporties started coming through on their way in to point Lama. I was just about to cross behind the Morning Star when Khanh called out out breaking fish three O clock. I turned and saw three YFT on some pinheads. Swung the rig so the long rod crossed right over them and got this solo fish.



A little while later he said: Fin!! at 200yds!!! I was expecting a shark but it turned out to be a sword maybe 200 pounds.

Since we did not have any heavy gear or even bait for him I decided to just drive by for a look. At the last minute I realized he was not a sword but a Marlin and he had two others with him. By then I was right on top of them and spooked them before I could react. Bummer!

So some fog started building inshore and by the time Norm woke up it was a heavy gray bank maybe a few hundred feet tall and thick by the looks of it. We decided to run up the line outside it and did that for a while baiting patties along the way.

Baiting is kind of a relative term here as by then we'd gone through all the good bait we had got that morning and were left with some zombieish red headed half scaled dines that could barely make the trip around the bait tank.

I just gave up on the bait and went to another of my kayak standbys a sardine megabait. We must of hit another half dozen pattys, but with lure or dead bait there was nothing going on.

After a while I saw Neal run by in his Aluminum beast doing what we were doing. (trying to beat the fog and get a few patties in on the way) Waved hello. They waved back and we went or respective ways.

Maybe a hour before dark we saw some birds working between the 302 and nine, but whatever they were on it was gone by the time we got to it. At that point I saw two patties maybe 300yards+ away both huge, drifting together.

Pulled up I dropped the mega bait and Khanh and Norm soaked their half dead sardines. I was ripping my mega back to the surface after a deep drop when Khanh and I hooked up. My fish was on spinning gear a new slammer 560 with thirty braid, and a 25 invisa-X fluoro topshot. His was on a Calcutta with straight twenty mono.... he almost got spooled, I stopped mine in it's tracks and decked it in short order. We both got our cookie cutter fish, but I have to add that I do like these new stronger spinning reels.

Here's mine with the megabait.


It was getting pretty close to sunset and the fog was almost on us, so we headed in.




We found that the fog was thick as soup, but there was some kind of weird separation where there was thick fog above but a low band of clear air below it.

I've never seen anything like it. It's like we were in a room with a low white ceiling with a huge diffused light source above but for maybe ten to fifteen feet below it the air was crystal clear tight to the water.

That lead to this picture:


Weird weird weird....a setting sun underneath the fog bank ceiling the way to the Point.


Down hill relatively still and clear enough under the fog Norm kicked it up to thirty knots and we just flew in in less then an hour.

By the time we got to Shelter I was beat, but I stayed awake to keep Norm company on the way up to LA. What can I say we've caught a lot of fish together over the years. Kahn said we act like an old married couple and it is probably true, tired maybe were a little grumpy, but Norms a good buddy, and good fisherman. Thanks for the trip Norm, twist my arm any time. Kahn it was cool.. First time I have fished with him, good fisherman, and good eye as he spotted the majority of the kelp..

Now on a sad note we saw Niel and his rig on the side of the road with Sheriffs and a bunch of flares staked out. I don't know what the deal was because we were two lanes over and unable to stop. I just hope everything was alright!

At Culver city we divided the catch, nine fish, three a piece, here's a pic of me with the fish. I got by this by setting the camera on the ground and setting the timer:


As you can see I'm just beat tired.

Here's a better pic of the catch.



Back at Shelter I went down the line asking about the guys trips. We were the only ones with Tuna I talked to so I guess we did OK. I'll tell ya I have seen those days before out there where they just do not want to eat jigs. Too many of them.. LOL!! I'm glad the Rapalas got some action, or we'd of probably had a pretty slow day.

So there you have it nine fish total (if you don't count skippies) to maybe 25 pounds, four on Rapalas, three on bait, one on a cedar plug part of a double, and one fish on a mega bait jigging deep under the a patty. A little slow but still a great day on the water.

Jim