Pacific Adventure 6/25/08 Catalina - Kayak Fishing Adventures on Big Water’s Edge

LocoKayako · 06-25-2008, 10:14 PM

A little tired here, but here it goes.
I've been wanting to get on one of these trips like this for a while. I finally was able to get some time off of work and made my reservations. For tackle, I packed everything I thought I would need for this trip, then I went through it a second time and got rid of some more stuff, trying to pack light.

Got to LA Harbor Sportfishing at 5 AM on the dot, as requested by the landing. The boat was scheduled to leave at 6 AM, and we had a couple stragglers get to the landing at 5:57 AM. We got a littlle later start then we wanted, but we were gonna fish catalina during the week. We started launching the kayaks around 9:15-9:30 AM.
Here is a shot of our drop off spot:

Bait was a mixture of 95 to 5 chovies to dines. My first scoop of bait did not have any dines, and Andy was generous enough to hand me a dine. The result was a small calico. So went out to deeper water and started throwing the blue and white salas 6x Jr. Long story short, nothing. Ended the day with 4-5 short hali's.
Here is a pic of the swim step the crew made that hangs on the rail for loading and unloading, and is easy to get on/off:

And here is a pic of all of us after a day of kayaking catalina, of course once I took the pic I had to join in nap time:

The crew worked hard to leave on time and get things done in a timely manner. We didn't catch any big fish but it was nice to be out there instead of being at work.

Gabe

bajadog · 06-26-2008, 05:40 AM

Thanks for the 411 Gabe.

What does that trip run $?

mc08066 · 06-26-2008, 08:21 AM

Cost for trip was $75.00 and it includes lunch. Great deal.

Grego · 06-26-2008, 08:41 AM

To bad for the slow day of fishing....hopefully gets better as the summer moves on.

I was starting to think of wearing a hard hat while I paddle also, those stink'n sea-gulls are getting accurate and fellow fisherman are getting danger close with those irons lately. The swim step looks pretty cool and user-friendly. By the way, looks like a bunch of sea snakes mating in that yak

Zed · 06-26-2008, 09:02 AM

Looks like a bunch of sealions sunning on deck, too.

Thanks Gabe.

Once you become "The A-hole" that causes the boat to be late it's hard to escape that title. Trust me. Hope they got a sardine in the boots, at least.

Iceman · 06-26-2008, 10:00 AM

Gabe, good fishing with ya. Pretty sure I will be signing on for the next one on the 9th. There were a couple yt and a wsb caught by another sportie in our area. The chance was there, just did not happen for us........next time! There was a nice halibut lost at gaff and Josh's legal 'but took the pot.

Gabe fishing one of the lil beaches along the way.

Iceman · 06-26-2008, 10:35 AM

I was informed that trips toward end of July and august will likely leave an hour earlier and stay longer.

lamb · 06-26-2008, 10:40 AM

Thanks for the report Gabe!

I'm sure it's just the matter of time one of these CAT trips will produce some quality "lap-load".

Look at Masta' keep hoping on it... Nice pics!!!

cabojohn · 06-26-2008, 10:47 AM

reminds me of the movie..."The Life Aquatic",
You know when Steve Zissou is wearing the yellow helmet with an antenna that has music piped in. Then he starts dancing...That's what I'm talking about.

thanks fer the report Gabe.

btw- I don't see any speedos & Glocks...must be Interns?

LocoKayako · 06-26-2008, 11:30 AM

Quote:

There were a couple yt and a wsb caught by another sportie in our area. The chance was there, just did not happen for us

Andy, I saw a report with some Yt's and a WSB, but I thought they were further west of us. In any case, hopefully you'll get'em on the 9th

Zed,

Quote:

Looks like a bunch of sealions sunning on deck, too.

That's funny. It's a good time to nap though for the ride home

gabe

EFISH · 06-26-2008, 12:36 PM

Great trip with a good crew! Fished for 6hrs or so, with good views and a steady pick on calicos kept me buzzy. Caught 3 halibut, two that were short and one that looked to be 10-15lbs. As I tryed to rush the gaff shot I ended up tangeling the gaff with my line just above the hook and as the fish freaked out POP goes my line and there went my keeper..

This was my first mother ship trip and will not be my last for sure. To say fishing was slow I will not. Just no yellows or whites. I can't wait to get back out there!!!!!!!
I only would like to ask one thing: If you are heading out on one of these trips please show up early!!! Rember you need to unload your car and get all of your gear to the boat then load the boat. Everyone has different boats and gear so this seems to take some time. Don't hook up your seat or other gear to your yak in the morning, yaks ride on the racks on their sides so all that stuff gets in the way as the crew loads the yaks on the rack. Saw a deckhand almost get hit in the head a few times by seat buckles and other stuff falling from yaks. Ok one more thing when your yak comes down and it's time to get in the water be ready to load and go as fast as you can. It's not the beach, only 4-5 yaks can be set up at once so that means there are people waiting to to get on the water.

Peace Out
EFISH

yakrider · 06-26-2008, 01:49 PM

always a bunch of cool people on these trips...
always good to put more faces to some of the names...
bunch of cool cats joined us...

fishing was on the slow side (compared to my last two Cat trips)...
could not buy a bite on the plastics...
live bait was the only producer for me today...
10 minutes after launching, my flylined dean gets ripped by this
jackpot contender...3lbs 8 oz...

was thinkin the day was gonna be good based on that first fish
right off the bat...nope...got a handful of just barely keeper sized calicos
the rest of the day...
as we cruised across the beaches...
I couldn't help but try for a butt...got 5 or six shorts on the day...
20...18...21...etc...then finally...minutes before our time ended...
not a whopper...
but a winner just the same....23"er...
turns out it was the exact same weight as the calico...
JACKPOT.....

when I got home I found a stow away....
this bone hitched a ride home with me...
howdhedodat?
(Andy's Boner)

made me laugh, Thanks Andy....

mc08066 · 06-26-2008, 01:58 PM

Will probably get bombed on this but here it goes. I use the hard hat for a couple of reasons, it is very comfortable and airy. Second it's plastic so water can not soak it (floats also). During hooping season it's easy to attach those red bike lights to the side of the hat so as to avoid the hell I can't see you from boaters

. The dread locks (towel) is a harder one. I us it to avoid getting sun burned

. So much for that now the Catalina trip.

This was my second trip and although the two trips have produced zero YT or WSB the fishing has been good through out. I caught several calico bass and , one good sized bonita (should of kept for JP) and a mackeral that was pushing 3 lbs (JP maybe, was not going there). All released. The trip had 18 kayakers on it. I was surprised that there were not more returnees from the first trip, only Andy, Eugene and myself. Water was smooth and conditions looked right for future bites. While on the water, I spoke with two guys in a power boat that were down from Apple Valley. Thanks for offering and giving me a couple your live squids. I caught the large mackeral with one and got raked with the others.

The Captain and his team did a great job and thank you for the pictures from the first trip.

Great group of guys and gals on this trip.
More Pictures.

Kayaks loaded and ready to go, see what happens when a guy brings his lady, he gets hugs and kisses during the boat ride. I guess I will ask the wife if she wants to come along in the future.

Gear at the back of the boat, big plastic containers are the way to go. I need to remember that for next trip.

Eugene, Josh and Andy discussing their fishing options at launch.

Beautiful backdrop of Catalina, picture does not do it justice.

Pretty easy loading as you can see, and a calm day similiar to first trip.

thanks,
Jimmy

Dan · 06-26-2008, 03:37 PM

looks super. The mid and late summer trips could really be the ticket!

yakrider always wins!!! WTF!

dpliska · 06-26-2008, 04:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mc08066

Will probably get bombed on this but here it goes. I use the hard hat for a couple of reasons, ...Jimmy

I remember you. You were the kid down they block that got picked up each day for school wearing all your hockey equipment. You know, the little yellow bus with all your team mates. Ironically, I don't remember hearing about any hockey games.

Just kiddin'. I like it. Maybe on the next trip you could get Gabe to wear a police hat and Grego an Indian headdress.

Snork · 06-26-2008, 05:45 PM

First off what a pleasure this trip was to fish with some seasoned veterans. Not only that but great ppl. Gabe was nice enough to break some conversation with me recognizing my stamped forehead reading "Rookie Yaker". Not exactly knowing the ins and outs I observed and sponged in a wonderful experience. Helpful tips, great weather, eXcellent crew. Only thing missing were the big boils, diving birds and hungry YT's which catalina is known for this time of year. Maybe next time. Cant wait for the next trip. What an awesome deal.
Ray

Shorty · 06-26-2008, 07:40 PM

Is this the same place where Great Whites like to bump woman out of there Yaks, if so a good wire trace might be handy next trip

cabojohn · 07-14-2008, 02:00 PM

bump

06-25-2008, 10:14 PM	#1
LocoKayako Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Posts: 91	Pacific Adventure 6/25/08 Catalina A little tired here, but here it goes. I've been wanting to get on one of these trips like this for a while. I finally was able to get some time off of work and made my reservations. For tackle, I packed everything I thought I would need for this trip, then I went through it a second time and got rid of some more stuff, trying to pack light. Got to LA Harbor Sportfishing at 5 AM on the dot, as requested by the landing. The boat was scheduled to leave at 6 AM, and we had a couple stragglers get to the landing at 5:57 AM. We got a littlle later start then we wanted, but we were gonna fish catalina during the week. We started launching the kayaks around 9:15-9:30 AM. Here is a shot of our drop off spot: Bait was a mixture of 95 to 5 chovies to dines. My first scoop of bait did not have any dines, and Andy was generous enough to hand me a dine. The result was a small calico. So went out to deeper water and started throwing the blue and white salas 6x Jr. Long story short, nothing. Ended the day with 4-5 short hali's. Here is a pic of the swim step the crew made that hangs on the rail for loading and unloading, and is easy to get on/off: And here is a pic of all of us after a day of kayaking catalina, of course once I took the pic I had to join in nap time: The crew worked hard to leave on time and get things done in a timely manner. We didn't catch any big fish but it was nice to be out there instead of being at work. Gabe __________________

06-26-2008, 05:40 AM	#2
bajadog I eats what I kills Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: San Diego Posts: 393	Thanks for the 411 Gabe. What does that trip run $? __________________ Please release bill-fish.

06-26-2008, 10:00 AM	#6
Iceman Administrator Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: 1-2 miles off the point Posts: 6,948	Gabe, good fishing with ya. Pretty sure I will be signing on for the next one on the 9th. There were a couple yt and a wsb caught by another sportie in our area. The chance was there, just did not happen for us........next time! There was a nice halibut lost at gaff and Josh's legal 'but took the pot. Gabe fishing one of the lil beaches along the way. __________________

06-26-2008, 10:35 AM	#7
Iceman Administrator Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: 1-2 miles off the point Posts: 6,948	I was informed that trips toward end of July and august will likely leave an hour earlier and stay longer. __________________

06-26-2008, 10:40 AM	#8
lamb Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Posts: 2,568	Thanks for the report Gabe! I'm sure it's just the matter of time one of these CAT trips will produce some quality "lap-load". Look at Masta' keep hoping on it... Nice pics!!! __________________ [------------------------ <)))< ....b-a-a-a-a

06-26-2008, 08:21 AM	#3
mc08066 Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: San Diego Posts: 51	Cost for trip was $75.00 and it includes lunch. Great deal.

06-26-2008, 08:41 AM	#4
Grego Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Posts: 445	To bad for the slow day of fishing....hopefully gets better as the summer moves on. I was starting to think of wearing a hard hat while I paddle also, those stink'n sea-gulls are getting accurate and fellow fisherman are getting danger close with those irons lately. The swim step looks pretty cool and user-friendly. By the way, looks like a bunch of sea snakes mating in that yak

06-26-2008, 09:02 AM	#5
Zed BANNED Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: W of 5 Posts: 1,265	Looks like a bunch of sealions sunning on deck, too. Thanks Gabe. Once you become "The A-hole" that causes the boat to be late it's hard to escape that title. Trust me. Hope they got a sardine in the boots, at least.

06-26-2008, 10:47 AM	#9
cabojohn PROBATION Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 656	reminds me of the movie..."The Life Aquatic", You know when Steve Zissou is wearing the yellow helmet with an antenna that has music piped in. Then he starts dancing...That's what I'm talking about. thanks fer the report Gabe. btw- I don't see any speedos & Glocks...must be Interns? Last edited by cabojohn; 06-26-2008 at 11:06 AM.

06-26-2008, 12:36 PM	#11
EFISH Member Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: in my head Posts: 31	Great trip with a good crew! Fished for 6hrs or so, with good views and a steady pick on calicos kept me buzzy. Caught 3 halibut, two that were short and one that looked to be 10-15lbs. As I tryed to rush the gaff shot I ended up tangeling the gaff with my line just above the hook and as the fish freaked out POP goes my line and there went my keeper.. This was my first mother ship trip and will not be my last for sure. To say fishing was slow I will not. Just no yellows or whites. I can't wait to get back out there!!!!!!! I only would like to ask one thing: If you are heading out on one of these trips please show up early!!! Rember you need to unload your car and get all of your gear to the boat then load the boat. Everyone has different boats and gear so this seems to take some time. Don't hook up your seat or other gear to your yak in the morning, yaks ride on the racks on their sides so all that stuff gets in the way as the crew loads the yaks on the rack. Saw a deckhand almost get hit in the head a few times by seat buckles and other stuff falling from yaks. Ok one more thing when your yak comes down and it's time to get in the water be ready to load and go as fast as you can. It's not the beach, only 4-5 yaks can be set up at once so that means there are people waiting to to get on the water. Peace Out EFISH

06-26-2008, 01:49 PM	#12
yakrider Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2008 Posts: 611	always a bunch of cool people on these trips... always good to put more faces to some of the names... bunch of cool cats joined us... fishing was on the slow side (compared to my last two Cat trips)... could not buy a bite on the plastics... live bait was the only producer for me today... 10 minutes after launching, my flylined dean gets ripped by this jackpot contender...3lbs 8 oz... was thinkin the day was gonna be good based on that first fish right off the bat...nope...got a handful of just barely keeper sized calicos the rest of the day... as we cruised across the beaches... I couldn't help but try for a butt...got 5 or six shorts on the day... 20...18...21...etc...then finally...minutes before our time ended... not a whopper... but a winner just the same....23"er... turns out it was the exact same weight as the calico... JACKPOT..... when I got home I found a stow away.... this bone hitched a ride home with me... howdhedodat? (Andy's Boner) made me laugh, Thanks Andy....

06-26-2008, 01:58 PM	#13
mc08066 Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: San Diego Posts: 51	2nd trip & Logic behind hard hat Will probably get bombed on this but here it goes. I use the hard hat for a couple of reasons, it is very comfortable and airy. Second it's plastic so water can not soak it (floats also). During hooping season it's easy to attach those red bike lights to the side of the hat so as to avoid the hell I can't see you from boaters . The dread locks (towel) is a harder one. I us it to avoid getting sun burned . So much for that now the Catalina trip. This was my second trip and although the two trips have produced zero YT or WSB the fishing has been good through out. I caught several calico bass and , one good sized bonita (should of kept for JP) and a mackeral that was pushing 3 lbs (JP maybe, was not going there). All released. The trip had 18 kayakers on it. I was surprised that there were not more returnees from the first trip, only Andy, Eugene and myself. Water was smooth and conditions looked right for future bites. While on the water, I spoke with two guys in a power boat that were down from Apple Valley. Thanks for offering and giving me a couple your live squids. I caught the large mackeral with one and got raked with the others. The Captain and his team did a great job and thank you for the pictures from the first trip. Great group of guys and gals on this trip. More Pictures. Kayaks loaded and ready to go, see what happens when a guy brings his lady, he gets hugs and kisses during the boat ride. I guess I will ask the wife if she wants to come along in the future. Gear at the back of the boat, big plastic containers are the way to go. I need to remember that for next trip. Eugene, Josh and Andy discussing their fishing options at launch. Beautiful backdrop of Catalina, picture does not do it justice. Pretty easy loading as you can see, and a calm day similiar to first trip. thanks, Jimmy Last edited by mc08066; 06-27-2008 at 11:09 AM. Reason: Add pictures

06-26-2008, 03:37 PM	#14
Dan Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Posts: 1,053	looks super. The mid and late summer trips could really be the ticket! yakrider always wins!!! WTF!

06-26-2008, 05:45 PM	#16
Snork Junior Member Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Ghetto Posts: 2	Well Done! First off what a pleasure this trip was to fish with some seasoned veterans. Not only that but great ppl. Gabe was nice enough to break some conversation with me recognizing my stamped forehead reading "Rookie Yaker". Not exactly knowing the ins and outs I observed and sponged in a wonderful experience. Helpful tips, great weather, eXcellent crew. Only thing missing were the big boils, diving birds and hungry YT's which catalina is known for this time of year. Maybe next time. Cant wait for the next trip. What an awesome deal. Ray

06-26-2008, 07:40 PM	#17
Shorty Member Join Date: May 2008 Location: Perth, Wild West, Australia Posts: 65	Is this the same place where Great Whites like to bump woman out of there Yaks, if so a good wire trace might be handy next trip __________________ Proudly sponsored by Team No Fish and Instant Noodles Highly respected member of T.A.A (Tackle Addicts Annonymous)

07-14-2008, 02:00 PM	#18
cabojohn PROBATION Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 656	bump