copeyboy
07-19-2008, 05:37 PM
My wife and I went camping at San Clemente State Park the last couple of days and I talked my bro-in-law into trying out surf fishing with me. We got our gear together Thursday night and went down to the beach at about 6:30. I set up a pole with a two-hook set up with squid and cast it out. Dammit, went the wrong way and didn't land where I wanted it to. I began reeling it back in to re-cast when the tip started twitching like crazy. I kept reeling and pulled in a little barred sand perch. Not too big, but still my first surf fish and on the first cast! So, I check out my rig and cast again. This time my 20 lb. test Spiderwire f'ing snaps and I lose my whole rig. WTH???? I get pissed and decide to set it up Carolina style and just fish that way. So, I go back to my tacklebox and I re-rig the pole. I no sooner finish and I realize that I rigged it with the line missing the top two eyelets. AAAGGGHHHHH!!!!! I put the rod down before I break it and I pick up my lighter line set up, with 8 lb. Cajun Red line on it. I set it up Carolina and throw a chunk of squid on there. I throw it out and let it sit there for a few minutes while I rap with a kind surfer who was there, hanging out. All of a sudden, my line goes tight and takes off to the left!! Right on, another hookup!! I pull it in and find a little sand shark on the line. Nice. I take a picture and send it off. I finished the night off with a leopard shark caught, pictured, and released. My bro-in-law scored a little while later with a nice little YFC to break his skunk.
The next morning, my bro-in-law and I got up early and headed down to the beach once again. We walked down the trail this time and made it down in about 10 minutes. Unfortunately, as I was going over the berm to the beach, my sandal slipped and I came crashing down, twisting my left foot underneath me. My ankle is now fairly swollen, but doesn't hurt, thankfully. Did I let this little setback compromise my fishing?? Hell no. I went out into the surf anyway and hooked up pretty quickly with another leopard shark. Pulled the hook, took his picture, and sent him on his way. That was my only fish for the day, as the conditions were quite a bit rougher than the night before and I was having trouble keeping my bait in the zone. My brother-in-law, Ernesto, however, got into a good fight a little while later. He felt a tug and pulled on his rod. It didn't move an inch. It just bent. He looks at me and says, "I think I'm stuck on something." I stared back at him and asked, "Like what, sand?" He just kept pulling and nothing was happening. Finally, after pulling for about five minutes, he starts to make some headway. He pulls and the thing pulls back. Nice, now we know it's alive. He manages to pull it in and I tell him that I'll go for the grab. I wade into water up to my knees and this fish thrashes its tail about a foot from me and scares the **** out of me!! If my ankle hadn't been messed up, I might have ran away. Anyway, I finally get close enough to grab the tail and pull out a nice-sized Shovel-nosed Guitar fish. This thing was about three feet long and ugly!! We took a picture of it and Ernesto let it go. The sucker just sat in the shallow water until it all ran out, then he thrashed around!! I told Ernesto that he caught a retarded fish and then I grabbed it by the tail again and let it go in slightly deeper water. All in all, a good couple of days in the surf. I just got home and I already have the urge to do it again. Next time, I'm going to find some sandcrabs to try out. I have two pictures on my phone (which I haven't been able to get off yet) and Ernesto has the rest. Unfortunately, the pics he took on Thursday night didn't get saved to his phone, so we have no evidence of my first leopard and his first YFC. The rest are on his digi camera and I'll get them posted once he returns (he's still camping) and sends them to me. Later.
The next morning, my bro-in-law and I got up early and headed down to the beach once again. We walked down the trail this time and made it down in about 10 minutes. Unfortunately, as I was going over the berm to the beach, my sandal slipped and I came crashing down, twisting my left foot underneath me. My ankle is now fairly swollen, but doesn't hurt, thankfully. Did I let this little setback compromise my fishing?? Hell no. I went out into the surf anyway and hooked up pretty quickly with another leopard shark. Pulled the hook, took his picture, and sent him on his way. That was my only fish for the day, as the conditions were quite a bit rougher than the night before and I was having trouble keeping my bait in the zone. My brother-in-law, Ernesto, however, got into a good fight a little while later. He felt a tug and pulled on his rod. It didn't move an inch. It just bent. He looks at me and says, "I think I'm stuck on something." I stared back at him and asked, "Like what, sand?" He just kept pulling and nothing was happening. Finally, after pulling for about five minutes, he starts to make some headway. He pulls and the thing pulls back. Nice, now we know it's alive. He manages to pull it in and I tell him that I'll go for the grab. I wade into water up to my knees and this fish thrashes its tail about a foot from me and scares the **** out of me!! If my ankle hadn't been messed up, I might have ran away. Anyway, I finally get close enough to grab the tail and pull out a nice-sized Shovel-nosed Guitar fish. This thing was about three feet long and ugly!! We took a picture of it and Ernesto let it go. The sucker just sat in the shallow water until it all ran out, then he thrashed around!! I told Ernesto that he caught a retarded fish and then I grabbed it by the tail again and let it go in slightly deeper water. All in all, a good couple of days in the surf. I just got home and I already have the urge to do it again. Next time, I'm going to find some sandcrabs to try out. I have two pictures on my phone (which I haven't been able to get off yet) and Ernesto has the rest. Unfortunately, the pics he took on Thursday night didn't get saved to his phone, so we have no evidence of my first leopard and his first YFC. The rest are on his digi camera and I'll get them posted once he returns (he's still camping) and sends them to me. Later.