Prehistoric Soul - 2024
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Quote from: Latimeria on March 13, 2022, 06:18:50 PM
Donfish left this morning and I had a bunch of things to do to get ready for the new job tomorrow. My wife wanted to take a walk down at the lakes, but I needed to fish and more accurately, catch to wipe the cloud away from my only fish yesterday, a 3' guitarfish.
So I set up to fish and my wife walked around all the lakes a few times. She even stopped at the Tin Fish and picked us up some mimosa's as she was actually hanging out a little in the beautiful weather while I was trout wishing.
I had a big bite on the inflated night crawler, but as I started to get the line tight on him, the hook popped out. Most likely just had the end of the worm in it's mouth.
Not long after and I missed one on the powerbait! The bait was smashed, but never got a barb near it. I was thinking that I wouldn't get one but my wife said "I think you're getting bit" and this time I got him! 19" trout!
I got a second not too long after on the powerbait and it was a little smaller in length, but pretty damn thick!
That was enough for me, so called it quits by noon. I cleaned the trout up and to my surprise, they too were also a beautiful orange!
I also noticed that the smaller one had half a senko in its belly!
Well beautiful meat to add to the other few and the smoker will be going sometime this week for sure!
Time to get some Bat Fight pictures up on the site and then prep for the new job tomorrow.
Thanks for reading!
Quote from: Latimeria on March 23, 2022, 06:27:52 AM
I was able to get out early enough to meet Steve at the bar for some drinks and food before heading down to the surf. I stopped by beforehand to gauge the conditions and found the beach packed, with plenty of string and thong bikinis!
This hour shift is a real pain in the ass, but we decided to head down a little early and fish a less packed part of the beach before sliding down to the shark spot.
The thongs were gone as the sun dropped, but bikinis turned into yoga pants by this point.
Steve gets a SCREAMER! He finally gets to his rod and after a few cranks, it drops the bait! That got the blood pressure up! It's been a while since we heard a screaming clicker like that.
He rebaits and tosses it back out to the same zone...
Total repeat with ANOTHER SCREAMER! Same exact thing happens as the last lost fish... and I haven't even got a sniff yet! Well, I did reel in a few missing baits, but never had my line start peeling out.
A little later and I see Steve stand up and walk down to his rod. He starts reeling in a ton of slack line and it seems apparent that he's finally on. Just then I hear the Scream of MY reel this time! That's a sound I haven't heard in all of 2022!
I was trying to hope it into a Leopard Shark, but knew it was a bat ray. Realized we were a week out from the SNBF and they were finally out to play.
Not bad as they were in the low to mid 40" mark which would have crushed a win for SNBF-XV! LOL
I realized that Squatch was on also as we fought a double header from the surf. Spittin images!
Things started to cool down, or I should say, people left and I was itching to move down to the shark spot. Steve and I leap frogged a few surf spots down for nothing. Plenty of red tide out there making the waves blue, but nothing in the way of bites. If we didn't head down early to fish, it would have been another night of a skunking!
Cop pulled someone over and those bright lights were really annoying. I think they must be using High Beam Cherries/Blueberries these days.
They finally left after what seemed like a 20 minute traffic stop, but that didn't change our luck. We stuck around until 9:30 and called it quits.
It was a successful night even though we didn't get any sharks. It just felt great to hear a screaming clicker again and actually fight something that could pull back!
Thanks for reading!
Quote from: Latimeria on November 30, 2021, 08:51:23 PM
Steve's back from up north and ready to resume Tuesday night fishing trips. I got to the beach first to check things out and looked fishable, but pockets of chopped salad around, so I went to the bar for Taco Tuesday and a beer to wait for Steve.
Steve showed up at the beach and said he was going to take a look. Before I knew it, he didn't show up at the bar, so I texted him if he was fishing.... No reply.
I drove down to see his truck on the side of the road and all his fishing gear gone, so he was trying to get a head start on me! LOL
Well, I got baited up as soon as I could and cast a nice chunk of mackerel out there. It was finally getting dark, thus the chance to finally take a piss without a bunch of onlookers. Steve went DIH hoping it would give him some luck... well, it sort of did as my reel started screaming out line! Fish on! Steve yelled "DIH supposed to give me luck, not you!". As he was reeling in his line, he realized he was on also! Double Header!
Man, it's tough fighting two big soupies side by side and not wrapping, but I was fortunate to get mine in first... Once again, solo landing sucks! But I got her!
As I was measuring her and unhooking her as well as trying to get some pictures, Squatch landed his cookie cutter twin of mine! Both 73" Females.
I was drenched by a wave and whooped from the solo landing and Steve was pretty beat after doing the same, But we went for a fast release and rebaited to see how many more were in the area. Not bad for only fishing 30 minutes into the sesh!
The next hour and a half had a lot more chopped salad and purple death starting to roll in. Besides that, the surf was also picking up, so we called it early at only 7:00. I have to say, it was nice getting it done early, so I don't have to hit the sack so late.
Congrats Squatch! The best part was you got one, but didn't do any catching up.
73" Females, Incoming Tide, Waning Crescent, 2'-5' swell, Mackerel
Quote from: Latimeria on November 24, 2021, 05:58:34 AM
I packed my truck for a surf session as the surf was supposed to be non-existent, like maybe even a negative tide! lol.
I texted Squatch, but unfortunately got the reply that he couldn't make it. The truck was packed and conditions were unbelievable, so I was going to go after work. I drove a few beached and saw minimal salad in the water or on the beach. Actually barely saw a bump in the water from any type of wave or swell!
My plan was to hit the bar and come back down, but there were no people on the beach and even better, no surfers in the water! I decided to save my bar money and just try a daylight session and call it early. My work has sucked balls as of late and I needed to have a clear head the next morning anyway.
The conditions were epic!
Literally, the waves and swell reminded me when a kayak would make a wake in Mission Bay at night and slap the shores with the tiny curlers.
It was deader than dead... Then all the people came out of nowhere! I guess having to be Thanksgiving week had something to do about it, but JEEZUS! This is why we hit the bar and wait until dark...
So, Not a nibble, so I hiked back to my truck in the parking lot to get my hoodie. I wasn't worried that I couldn't see the rod, but felt safe leaving all my stuff because there was a huge family gathering next to me.
As I was walking back, everything looked status quo, then I thought I saw a bounce from 100 yards away. Then I saw people all running up to my rod, so I bolted as fast as my old as could run to the rod. I had about 100 yards left on my spool from a screamer, and in the daytime! I had him hooked up and and started to fight him when everything just went limp. I guess there was too much line out that their was too much stretch with 300+ yards of line out and the hook never sunk in? I have no idea, but everyone was disappointed, but none more than me. The head came back with what looked like Soupie Teeth, and it ran like a soupie. Ugh
New bait out and nothing for the next few hours. It was finally dark and everyone finally left the beach. I put on a new big bait. It was a huge mack head with a huge chunk of the body. I bait threaded it on and cast it out, but it went way short from where I was trying to go. Only probably got it out 40 yards at best, so I just left it.
I was a little depressed with the lack of action and my missed opportunity when I thought I saw the lightstick give a big wobble. I grabbed the rod just as the line tightened up and started screaming out! This thing had a lot of weight to it. One second I thought it was a Great White because of the unusual fight, until the next second where I was sure it was a 100"+ Sevengill because of the sheer weight and the slaps in the distance. Once again, solo landing a shark for this old guy is not easy. I finally get it into my headlamp and see it was not a Tax Man or a Sevengill, but a huge Soupie! It was long and on the skinny side, but trailing a kelp stringer which would explain the weird fight and weight.
f@cking thing would keep twisting out of my hand and it was a bitch to land. Finally got it on the sand and went into action. I kept trying to take a normal picture, but my camera's AI kept automatically putting it into night mode, which is good for landscape pics, but sucks for shark pics. Finally turned everything off and tried to do it the old fashioned way.
It seemed as tired as I was, so I went in for a selfie. Damn thing took a swipe at me and realized to just be happy with whatever picture I got. LOL
The good thing with him being tired, is I got a great and easy tape measurement! The bad thing was I had to spend 5 minutes reviving her in the water before she finally got her wits about her and took off. She was pretty beat up with bite marks and other wounds that I couldn't tell what they were from.
Low tide. Mackerel. Waning Gibbous. 0-1' surf. 77" Female
Thanks for reading and "PLINK"!
Quote from: Latimeria on November 06, 2021, 07:36:54 AM
RIGHT ON DRE! Congrats boss!
I just saw your PM, but see you figured it out. I didn't check the site yesterday as I was out fishing myself, but hell of a catch. Bullet tuna is some of my favorite bait to use when it's available.
Quote from: Tim524 on November 05, 2021, 03:50:30 PM
That looks like a chore to land by yourself, congrats !
Quote from: sasquatch on November 05, 2021, 03:26:46 PM
Nice one.
Quote from: jrodda on November 05, 2021, 02:44:20 PM
Looks super thick, good getting out.
Quote from: vdisney on November 05, 2021, 12:36:00 PM
Very awesome my brother, you were way overdue
Quote from: Latimeria on October 20, 2021, 05:32:51 AM
Conditions looked too good to pass up and I was sure Squatch would have been too beat to fish after his 3-day. Unknowingly, Steve had to drop a loaner rod back to Mike and since he was down here, decided to hit the surf. I have a state audit at work, so there's no way I was fishing late. Plan was to stop at 9:00pm, and 9:30 at the absolute latest. All we need is 2 hours of soaking, right?
I bring my OG surf rod I got from Bill Batson this trip (It was Bill's personal Ulua Rod). Heavier line and shock leader on this rig... 50# main and 100# shock to deal with some of Solana's pain in the ass reefs.
I brought a single perfect bait sized bonito and a couple of big macs. I went straight for the bonito first.
About 20 minutes into the soak and I see my rod slowly load up. Then the clicker started going really slow, so I was sure it was just a kelp monster. I grab the rod and then it wakes up! There might be kelp on it, but there also was a shark!
After a good battle (It felt much bigger than it was with a big kelp stringer attached to the line), Squatch gets his hands on it and drags it up.
Incoming, Bonito, Waxing Gibbous, 2'-4', 70.5", Female
Not long after and Steve's hooked up! He fights it half way in and it pulls the hook.... Damn.... The funny thing is the steel leader was clean, but the sinker mono, and the shock leader was frayed to hell. Not sure what happened here.
We make a few recasts as there was some bait stealers out there and I see my rod not bending at all, so got up to check the line to see it hanging limp. I reel in as fast as I can to catch up the slack and finally get the line tight on him. It went straight to the surface and started thrashing. Felt like my first Sevengill of the year! I forgot what a pain it was to have them rolling in your line and slapping the line with the tail the whole time. In any case, I don't think I got a good hook set when trying to catch up with it in the beginning, so off it went.
Right afterwards, Squatch had a good run and was on! Definitely shark and ran like a smaller soupfin.... He got it in close, and then the saddles appeared! Wow!, It's been a while since I last grabbed a big leo from the suds. I think Squatch was happy, but also disappointed with this catch as it keeps him at 66.
Well, that was it. We had some more critter bites and called it at 9:30. Not bad going 2 for 4 on sharks in a few hours. I'll take that anyday.
Thanks for reading.
Quote from: sasquatch on November 12, 2020, 05:00:33 AM
Tuesday the beach looked like crap after the storm so we gave it a day to clear up. That and a completely different beach seemed to do the trick.
Got set up just after sunset and waited for Tom to show. He was running late due to a lackadaisical kitchen staff, but he made it before too long.
Not a whole lot of action from the bait stealers. I did get a little round ray on a big chunk of skipjack though.
Drank a couple beers, perused the internet on my phone.
I noticed a small bend and release in the rod so I focused my attention where it should have been to begin with.
Good thing I did because the small bend was followed by a hard take down and run.
The fish took off straight away ripping line, then turned and came back in classic leo style. It also thrashed about on the surface. Not sure what is going on here.
Finally got it close enough for Tom to grab and lay eyes on a nice soupfin.
The rest of the night was a complete cluster. Just as we were ready to leave, Tom gets a subtle bite. His fish gets all in my line before I can clear it. Turned out to be a nice fish. Hopefully he can add a pic here or maybe his own report.
Edit to add it was 71 1/2" at the top of the tide on mackerel in 2 foot surf on a waning moon.
Quote from: sasquatch on November 18, 2020, 05:02:56 AM
Like Tom said, I'm on a roll.
Started off the day thinking I wouldn't be fishing, but got some good news and was able to make it.
Got to the beach while there were still a number of people but just after sunset so it usually clears out pretty quick. This time the last person on the beach as it got dark was a surfer directly in my zone. Ugh.
Meanwhile Tom is stuck in traffic and can't even get to the beach.
My first cast comes back with a bunch of weeds, so I make a small move only to coe back with a bigger bunch on my second. I wasn't thinking it was going to be a good night, but things worked out okay.
Pretty slow overall. I got a couple bass, then a nice clicker run. Thinking big thoughts, I commenced to drag whatever it was straight in.
Not a bad leopard, but not what I was thinking from that run.
Things were quiet after that. Tom, once again is stinking up the place. Not sure whats up with that lately.
He did get a pretty solid bite that got wrapped in kelp and came off, but for him, that was about it for the night.
I was reading my phone, not really paying attention when I hear Tom shout. Can't hear what he said but I check my rod, Straight up, then a bounce, then straight again, then another bounce. I take my time thinking I've picked up some weeds and reel up to check my bait.
The line comes tight and tghe surface of the water just explodes. Thrashing, splashing, running, it's on.
It's a nice fish, definitely a seven. Got it close to shore and battle it out in the nearshore trench. Back and forth multiple times.
Tom finally gets close enough to get the rope on its tail, tightens the loop and I hear "Oops, it came off" Great. Well second time is a charm as they say and he got the rope on and pulled the fish to the edge of the water. No farther. When I got close, I saw why.
106.5" of power. Very misty so the release pic is the best pic. Not bad, we work hard to get a good release. This time she curled up on the way out and pulled me toward the shore. Lots of power.
After that I was taking a break when the fog rolled in like a freight train. We packed it up and left soon after.
Guess this one is a new personal best. Hurray.
Rising tide on skipjack waning crescent moon 2-3 surf.
Quote from: 1morecast on July 23, 2020, 08:50:47 AM
Normally July isn't a great month for shark fishing but with the cold water reports and a need to get out I went out a couple of days ago to see what might be going out there. Got to the spot and casted out my mac and was hit within ten minutes. Long story short, the fish pulls off but I get my rig back. Definitely was the right kind, I bait up again and another ten minute soak and I get hit again, this time it's a longer tug of war and I see it in the breakers since it's still day light out. It's a Soupie and it does a head shake and tail slaps my line breaking my 40lb mainline. Lost my rig so I need to put everything back together again. The next bite is a 40" bat ray not even picture worthy anymore. The next bite happens around 8:30pm on the incoming tide. This shark takes off and I feel like it's the right kind too. After a couple minutes of back and forth somehow it breaks my mainline again too. Upset that I couldn't seal the deal and an early appointment the next day, I call it at 9:30pm before the high tide at 10am.
I text Mike what happened and of course he wants to see for himself. So we make plans to hit it yesterday 7/22 which also happens to be my b-day. I get there after Mike and he is doing the light line and long rod thing when I get there. As I am walking up to him he gets a nice run on the long rod. It was fun watching him try and put away the light rod while also trying to set the hook on the long rod. Think Chinese fire drill
By the time I put my things down, he is able to pull in a nice 55" Leo. We get to chit chatting when Mike lands the smallest bean I have seen in a while. It's about 8" but Mike believes in fresh bait so he pins it on the long rod and sends it out. About 30 minutes later he gets another nice pull down and it's got shark written all over it. We both though it was the right kind but it turns out to be another nice Leo (57").
I decided to downgrade the size of my Mac bait to get a little more distance on the cast. I get a nice center cut Mac out past the breakers and let it do it's magic. After 20 minutes I get a nice pull down, I pick up my rod to investigate since there was no initial run after the hit. I slowly wind in the slack line but I don't feel any weight on the line, so I wait hoping the fish will come back. Since it's a center cut mac it's easier to come off, so I decide to slowing bring in the line to check the bait. As I am bringing the line in I feel something on the line, I tighten up the drag and crank down on the reel. The fish realizes it's hooked and takes off, not much head shakes and my initial though was Batray, but as I get it closer I get side to side action. Turns out that it's a soupie in the 73" class. Mike does an impersonation of me sandhanding as it tries to take off his wrist a couple of times with his twisting.
Another 30 minutes goes by and I am talking to Mike and I look over at my rod to see it bent over and line screaming off the reel. I look at my reel and I am half way into my braid backing. No time to play around with this fish, so I crank up on the drag on my reel. I slowly gain back my line and it turns out to be another nice Soupie in the 74" class.
It's getting close to my departure time, but Mike wants to get in one more cast, so I rebait and cast out again. While we chit chat my rod goes down again! Mike is feeling a little left out at this point.
