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View Full Version : Abalone hunting with Diamondbear in Mendocino County 6-5-08



one_leg
06-08-2008, 07:08 AM
I forgot to post the pics last night so I added a thread of my own.
Here is the link to that thread. Not like there are too many of these threads around here these days, ya know what I mean? ;)


http://fishingnetwork.net/forum4/showthread.php?p=199859#post199859

Here is the stuff from that thread so you don't have to go there and read it too.

http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w270/one_leg_photos/Untitled-Scanned-02.jpg

Here is the cove where Diamondbear and myself dove for our abalone. MacKerricher State Park in Mendocino County.

http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w270/one_leg_photos/Diamondbearreadytogo.jpg

Steve just prior to our rappelling down the cliff. Next time maybe we should just toss the weights down there?.....lol.....j/k

http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w270/one_leg_photos/Otter_Leg.jpg

The weather was perfect up there with sunshine all day on Wednesday and Thursday.
Friday saw the clouds come in right about the time we were leaving. We left around 1600 hours.

http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w270/one_leg_photos/Abouttogetitallwet.jpg

Here I am just prior to getting it all wet for the first time in nearly 12 years.

http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w270/one_leg_photos/Abs.jpg

We didn't take many u/w shots because of the particulates in the water due to the surge.
The abalone were thick up there. Nothing like the sparse populations down south.
I used to feel lucky when I'd find a rock with one legal and a bunch of empty scars on it.
A scar is the depression left by an abalone from years of living in the same spot.
We slipped in right between two periods of pretty rough weather.
Friday and Saturday there were supposed to be gale force winds.

http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w270/one_leg_photos/One_Leg.jpg

The yellow straps are part of a harness I need to wear to hold my weight belt in position.
The belt had slipped off wwhen this pic was snapped. I need to get a custom suit made now.
The extra bouyancy required me to wear 20 lbs. of lead to get down. I think I could have gotten by with 18.
http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w270/one_leg_photos/Legal.jpg

Diamondbear using his ab iron to gauge how much bigger than the minimum size.
Although the abs up there were huge you still need to measure them before you pluck them off the rocks.
Abalone are hemephiliacs and will die if you tear their skin while removing them.
If you hold an abalone up to its scar it will try to reattach itself to the rock.
It takes about a minute or two sometimes to reattach an abalone after removing it.
You should always measure an abalone prior to popping it off the rocks to be sure it is legal.
Just to be clear on this matter, Diamondbear had measured all of his abalone prior to removing them.
In the pic above he was measuring it to actually determine how much larger than 7" it really was.

http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w270/one_leg_photos/Limitsallaround.jpg

They were a LOT BIGGER!!! Thanks for the choice spot Steve.:cool:

http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w270/one_leg_photos/Abreportcard.jpg

The DFG reporting requirements are very strict now in order to make it much harder for the poachers.
Here is Steves Abalone report card prior to his filling it out.

http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w270/one_leg_photos/RangerLady.jpg

This nice gal checked our Abalone within minutes of our scaling the cliffside.
She was real nice. Very polite and helpful. And armed to the teeth too......LOL. I like that in a woman.

http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w270/one_leg_photos/Limitsfor2.jpg

The daily bag and possession limit for abalone is 3. Here are both of our limits.

http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w270/one_leg_photos/homesweethome.jpg

I am seriously considering moving up there to do a little gardening, ranching, and hunting.
They got it all up there, including the nicest people on earth. We saw lots of deer on this trip.

Thanks for reading my report. I hope you liked the pics. Next time I'll make sure to get a lot more for you.

I rented all the gear I needed to safely complete my dive at Sub-Surface Progressions dive center.
Great store with extra helpful staff. Here is their website address.

http://www.subsurfaceprogression.com




abalONE_LEG

diamondbear
06-08-2008, 04:46 PM
Alan , the pics of the two abs under water turned out pretty good as Iam surprised anything turned out as it was pretty cloudy under water . WHERES the pic of you Ottering back and resting after our dive . I'll have to get a water proof camera box for my camera next time . Theres another low tide in 2 weeks , ha and again in 4 weeks // db

yamafish
06-08-2008, 06:37 PM
Unreal Alan!
Correct me if I am wrong.. But I would suspect that those 6 Ab's probably have a market value of well over $300.00 :Shocked:
Those thigs are so expensive! IF you can get them anywhere!
Great job!
I like my prepared as a steak please... LOL

Nice pics and report

cappo
06-08-2008, 08:11 PM
Cool report alan. Looks like it was a blast. Ya up north is a totally different world.

tacklejunkie
06-08-2008, 10:42 PM
Man that's awesome! Killer follow up report O_L! Great pictures.

chris
06-09-2008, 11:18 AM
that's an awesome report those abs look great

crappiemike
06-09-2008, 06:42 PM
Great Report, Dive Shots To...

one_leg
06-09-2008, 06:52 PM
Next time there will be lots more pics

diamondbear
06-09-2008, 07:27 PM
Next time Alan we'll dive our first day and get one to eat that night and dive the fallowing morn. for our take home limit . those abs costs about $25.00 PER BITE ,lol we'll do the water camera thing a little better next time , I hope . // db

Troutman65
06-12-2008, 04:23 PM
Thanks for the report Alan. It would of been nice to try some of the Albs. Next time I guess.

TM65

steve092
06-13-2008, 06:24 AM
Cool report.

How do those taste? I know they are pretty expensive.

one_leg
06-13-2008, 09:55 AM
Yeah, they ain't cheap buy nearly anyones standards!!!


Sorry about the delay in posting this lil bit of our trip up north.



I know I ain't no John Ford, or Steven Speilberg. :p


Turn the volume down, it was a bit windy up there!



http://www.youtube.com/v/p1KOWijMUGc&hl=en



Maybe next time we'll waste a couple hours driving through the city?
I might have gone over the bridge as a child, but I cannot remember if I did.




One_Leg

pokerface12
06-16-2008, 08:48 PM
Very nice and informative report. Looks like you guys had a great time. Thanks for sharing.

one_leg
06-16-2008, 09:38 PM
Cool report.

How do those taste? I know they are pretty expensive.

The stuff from the cans ain't cheap, and it sucks compared to the fresh ones.

And if you have to ask..........:LOL:

Troutman65
07-04-2008, 11:51 AM
Cool report.

How do those taste? I know they are pretty expensive.



Yeah, How did it taste ? I missed out and did not get to try some. Maybe next time.:Rolls Eyes:


TM65

diamondbear
07-04-2008, 08:20 PM
TM65 , I have abalone for you if we can meet some time , maybe at the irvine thing in aug. Alan is a abalone hog , lol it happens to anyone who hasn't gone for a while , I bet he ate 2/3rds. of it in the first week , ha snorkling for abs is so easy any girl can probably do it . // db

Troutman65
07-05-2008, 02:23 AM
TM65 , I have abalone for you if we can meet some time , maybe at the irvine thing in aug. Alan is a abalone hog , lol it happens to anyone who hasn't gone for a while , I bet he ate 2/3rds. of it in the first week , ha snorkling for abs is so easy any girl can probably do it . // db



Very :cool: offer Diamonbear. Thank you so much. I would like to just be able to taste some abalone to know what it tastes like. I will be at the Irvine thing in Aug. and look forward to finally meeting you. I hope to fish with you sometime as well. You are highly spoken of. Thanks again. See you at Irvine Lake on Aug. 25 th.


TM65

one_leg
07-06-2008, 02:42 PM
ha snorkling for abs is so easy any girl can probably do it . // db

Ladies, please direct your comments via FNN to diamondbear. He said it, not me!!!............LOL



I had a 12 year jonesing going on for abalone when I ate mine. It wasn't around for very long. :)

diamondbear
07-06-2008, 08:56 PM
I'am just trying to be funny , three abs really don't go far after cleaning them . next year we'll go twice , ha [ maybe if gas is under 10.00 dollars a gallon ]

one_leg
07-06-2008, 09:06 PM
I am sure somebody will want to spend 20+ hours talking with me on the way up and back!!!

Anyone?

Hello?

Is this thing on?

Hmmmm?

Oh_Well

O_L

BIGRED KILLA
07-06-2008, 10:18 PM
Thanks for the great pics and report Alan it looks like you guys had a blast thanks for not showing us the pictures of them cooked i always get hungry after looking at them lol.






Bigred

Beeracuda211
07-15-2008, 07:32 PM
Nice report guys! On a personal note for one leg... i'm glad you were able to get wet the first time in 12 years as you describe... lol

B/C

one_leg
07-15-2008, 07:34 PM
Thanks man, you gotta join us dude! They got two nice lil trout ponds right next to the ocean there.
Really nice looking ponds too. I wished I had brought a rod. Next time for sure.


O_L

fishndrinknsmokin
07-30-2008, 04:42 PM
Alan , the pics of the two abs under water turned out pretty good as Iam surprised anything turned out as it was pretty cloudy under water . WHERES the pic of you Ottering back and resting after our dive . I'll have to get a water proof camera box for my camera next time . Theres another low tide in 2 weeks , ha and again in 4 weeks // db

If you do much underwater photography you may want to check out the new waterproof Pentax Optio. It's a great digital that you can take underwater (up to 15 feet now and for 2 hours on the new model). It shoots pretty good pics underwater (8 mp's) as well as video. I have an older model that I swear by for my snorkeling trips.

HBJapo
07-31-2008, 03:33 PM
Great report O_L. Those are some really cool photos.

Japo :Envious:

one_leg
08-01-2008, 11:11 AM
Thanks Japo!

They will be much better if I break out the Nikonos V on the next trip. :Cool:

It's kinda hard to do both at once though. I wanna eat something, not shoot pics.

It isn't as hard as some of you might think. Like DB said, it's more like an Easter Egg Hunt.

Come on people, the abalone season is open again because July is over.
Lets get a bunch of people together and get a trip planned.
$35 covers all you need to bag some abalone. Wetsuit, Ab iron, float, personal dive gear.
The water is still pretty warm up there and the abalone are everywhere.

I'll check the tides to see when the best opportunities will occur in the coming months.

One_Leg

chrislxf
08-01-2008, 07:26 PM
Thanks Japo!

They will be much better if I break out the Nikonos V on the next trip. :Cool:

It's kinda hard to do both at once though. I wanna eat something, not shoot pics.

It isn't as hard as some of you might think. Like DB said, it's more like an Easter Egg Hunt.

Come on people, the abalone season is open again because July is over.
Lets get a bunch of people together and get a trip planned.
$35 covers all you need to bag some abalone. Wetsuit, Ab iron, float, personal dive gear.
The water is still pretty warm up there and the abalone are everywhere.

I'll check the tides to see when the best opportunities will occur in the coming months.

One_Leg

nice report. and I really want to go. One_Leg let me know if u guys are planning anything later. i will bring my underwater digicam. we can maybe make a video report. anyway, thanks in advance

diamondbear
08-02-2008, 12:04 PM
I'LL GO , count me in Alan

Gmoney
08-03-2008, 05:55 PM
man o man
this sounds like fun
i am interested in rolling up north
i have never done the abalone gig but your reports really opened my eyes.
keep me posted

G$

Jester
08-07-2008, 12:48 AM
Hey guys,
Thats just awesome. Sounds like you two really had a great time. Beautiful scenery. Oh and BTW Steve, I saw a few really nice deer this weekend on 1n09 just as you go in from seven oaks. must have been 6 or 7 they hauled *** when they saw me.

~Jess

one_leg
08-07-2008, 01:04 AM
Now were getting somewhere!

HBJapo
08-07-2008, 12:22 PM
Go kick some axe guys.....and be sure to get lots of photos for us!! Digicam action would be off the hook!

Good luck y'all,

Japo :Envious:

one_leg
08-07-2008, 12:27 PM
Hey guys,
Thats just awesome. Sounds like you two really had a great time. Beautiful scenery. Oh and BTW Steve, I saw a few really nice deer this weekend on 1n09 just as you go in from seven oaks. must have been 6 or 7 they hauled *** when they saw me.

~Jess


Steve saw a pair of really nice deer on a hillside along the freeway up north on the way back home from our trip. It almost broke my heart having to tell him they were tree stumps! I will make sue to wear my Blaze Orange vest when we go hunting together.

O_L

Hitts0n
08-07-2008, 02:11 PM
hello.justwanted to be in the thread

diamondbear
08-10-2008, 03:13 PM
people from the southern cal. just dont realize how beautiful or [ HOW FAR , lol ] the north coast is and abalone chasing is really way to easy , Alan got his limit from a can from Stater Bros. market , ha

one_leg
08-10-2008, 08:55 PM
people from the southern cal. just dont realize how beautiful or [ HOW FAR , lol ] the north coast is and abalone chasing is really way to easy , Alan got his limit from a can from Stater Bros. market , ha


Ha Ha, don't be hatin' just because I can outswim you with just one leg. :LOL:
At least I never mentioned that I got the biggest ab of the trip. :Big Grin:

Lobster Season gonna be real fun next time around. Who needs Hoop Nets?

Troutman65
08-11-2008, 12:05 AM
man o man
this sounds like fun
i am interested in rolling up north
i have never done the abalone gig but your reports really opened my eyes.
keep me posted

G$



Ditto for me too

deanhall32
08-19-2008, 02:36 PM
Alan,

Sorry it took me so long to read your report but that was an awesome trip!!! Putting all that gear on does look like it would tire someone before they even get in the water. Thanks for the pictures