5 species again, 2 new ones 9-4 Great day out

[tacklejunkie]

Saw Bill's surf fishing report the other day saying "Now is the time to get out there!". To top it off, Flyngby's and Wingut's recent reports of success had me itching to get out there. I don't get to "get out there" often so it's nice to hear things are looking good before I can go..

So this morning I'm tossing the sammy in TJ Sardine color first thing with no love. The water was fairly clear and I saw a fish or two jump, but I couldn't get them to go on the sammy :Razz: Maybe the water wasn't as clear as I thought, maybe the light wasn't enough yet and maybe I didn't work it slow enough. I'll figure it out eventually.

Threw a frozen walmart chovie out on a 2oz pyramid stinker C-rig and let it sit while I went to work with a freshly painted TJ Sardine American Shad. Didn't take long and I found a fish even in the rising currents. Fought good on on my medium light 6' GL2/ Sol combo even though he was a shorty. Man I love hali's!
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff280/tacklejunkie/beach%208-4-08/DSCN0611.jpg
Same fish after unhooked
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff280/tacklejunkie/beach%208-4-08/DSCN0612.jpg

Next the chovies got hit so I had to set down the LC. Brought in a little slippery stingray. Species #2!
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff280/tacklejunkie/beach%208-4-08/DSCN0613.jpg

I actually brought some frozen squid today too because I wanted to try my hand at my first leopard shark! Threw a chunk of tentacles and eyeballs out there and got a nice solid hit but missed. Rebaited with eyes and tentacles and got a run. Nursed it out before I reeled down and set the hook, and this time I landed it. Wiley suckers! I was stoked..
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff280/tacklejunkie/beach%208-4-08/DSCN0614.jpg

http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff280/tacklejunkie/beach%208-4-08/DSCN0615.jpg

http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff280/tacklejunkie/beach%208-4-08/DSCN0616.jpg

http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff280/tacklejunkie/beach%208-4-08/DSCN0617.jpg

Released the shark happy as could be, rebaited the chovie rod, started back in with the LCFM110 and farmed one, then no more love on the hardbait for a few. The current started to pick up so I tried to fish the bottom. First up was a white d/s flashtrix minnow.
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff280/tacklejunkie/beach%208-4-08/DSCN0618.jpg

And before I knew it the chovie pole got hit again. Fed out some line, reeled down and swept it back. Another good squabble with a leopard. :Surprised:
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff280/tacklejunkie/beach%208-4-08/DSCN0620.jpg

Check out the sensors. These things are coo!
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff280/tacklejunkie/beach%208-4-08/DSCN0621.jpg

started throwing the LC again and saw a big ol YFC follow it in but didn't take it. It must have been a few pounds. I tried and tried but couldn't get it to follow again. Threw a squid leg on my drop shot and casted it out. Got a little baby YFC instead!
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff280/tacklejunkie/beach%208-4-08/DSCN0622.jpg

The chovie pole started to bounce again. I don't use bells so I missed a lot of hits here and there. It was a busy session!
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff280/tacklejunkie/beach%208-4-08/DSCN0623.jpg

The current was now getting pretty tough to fish. I managed one more on the drop shot in blue flash trix of all colors that didn't stand out at all :Shocked:
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff280/tacklejunkie/beach%208-4-08/DSCN0624.jpg

When the current went to complete crap just before high tide, nothing was biting. I decided to try some funky contraption I bought from Big Fish for some unkown reason. I thought to myself "Wow, it's be neat if I could catch something on this loud piece of plastic!" Started medium retrieve, nada. Slow retrieve bouncing the bottom.. bingo! He hit it hard! Pulled some drag on the Sol/Gl2 :Twisted:
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff280/tacklejunkie/beach%208-4-08/DSCN0625.jpg

Still hoping for a bigger fish in the harsh current, I slipped a fluke on the my drop shot and tossed it out. Got hit hard by something but missed and snagged up. Retied with another one and took a few more minutes but I got one. Biggest of the day around 19" or so. Very fun on 6lb test.
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff280/tacklejunkie/beach%208-4-08/DSCN0627.jpg

got this hali on a chovie..
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff280/tacklejunkie/beach%208-4-08/DSCN0629.jpg

And another battle on the fluke
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff280/tacklejunkie/beach%208-4-08/DSCN0630.jpg

A YFC on the chovies
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff280/tacklejunkie/beach%208-4-08/DSCN0631.jpg

And last but not least! My first Bat Ray :Cool: Very cool little creature.
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff280/tacklejunkie/beach%208-4-08/DSCN0632.jpg

Here is the lures I used. The ones that worked are marked with red. The ones that didn't are marked with black. The pyramid sinker was for the C-rig with bait (squid/chovies) and the pencil sinker was for the drop shot.
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff280/tacklejunkie/beach%208-4-08/DSCN0633.jpg

shamelessly stole this pic array from WN.
12lb Ande main
6LB Vanish D/S
10lb Vanish leaders
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff280/tacklejunkie/beach%208-4-08/DSCN0635.jpg

On the way home I passed by turners to get some more smallie beavers and then I hit Fisherman's Access to see the new store and check if they had any spiffy LC's in stock. As luck would have it I picked up a new LC for the collection.. my first Zebra Sardine!
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff280/tacklejunkie/beach%208-4-08/DSCN0636.jpg

Man it was a great day to be out in the surf. I couldn't do much moving around with my sore knee so I was hoping the fish would show me some love and come to me today, and they did just that! Just about every goal I wanted to hit today I did, accept that topwater hali. I'll try again next mission though and couldn't have asked for more today. For once it seems as though the fish gods are starting to spread a little love my way :Big Grin:

Thanks to Bill Varney, Wingnut and Flyngby for the encouragement to get down there and remind myself what a good day in the Salt can do for the soul.

I don't know how many fish I caught today. But it was fun!
I do know that I lost one 3 foot leopard right at shore as I Was about to grab him.
Thanks for reading and enjoy the pics.
-TJ

[legacy1]

I love those multi-species days. Great report, and thanks for sharing the tackle pics, I am always looking for new things to try.

[klocked]

Looks like you had yourself a great multi-species day out there!!

It's amazing how different fish are with there specific adaptations to the role they play in the water. It looks like that leo has little flaps that cover its nostrils?

Must have been fun with both poles going off at once!

Great job out there TJ!!:Cool:

[jrockn]

dude that is aswome! Can't wait til i get started on surf fishing agian. thanks man

[Wingnut]

Impressive day Casey... FIVE species! :Big Grin:
Now that's a fun outing. :Cool:

$21.99 for a LC 110?!? :Shocked:

[supasportkid]

another great day out there. good job

[Granny Fish]

Not much for size but 5 species, sounds like a good day to me. I need to get back to the surf.

[fishmounter]

Casey, I love your shots of all these beautiful fish! I pulled several to put in my reference files for any future mounts. Great Leo shot! That little Bat ray is awesome! I remember seeing and petting the BRs at Seaworld years ago. They are actually quite "freindly". Makes you not want to hook any! As always, I look forward to your reports and especially your photos!

[BassEngineer]

Very nice job out there!!

[sh1nynewlove]

nice day of fishing... now i'm want to go out and fish..

I can't wait to go pick up some of those lcs at fishermans access..

[Troutman65]

Nice going T.J. where were you fishing? Thanks for the report.

[steve092]

Good job TJ!

I need to make a trip out there now!

[Sinjin Kim]

Nice going out there Casey. The fishing should get better and better daily as the fall approaches. I am almost certain it will be lights out on halibut up and down the coast 3-5 days after the 15th of this month (full moon). Just keep your fingers crossed for some cooler weather.

The next time you decide to head out and want some company, give me a call or send me PM.

BTW, looks like Wingnut has everyone adding dots all over there hardbaits, lol. Does it make a difference? If you have more confidence by adding the dots, then by all means do it. Confidence is so important when using any type of lure.

One last thing. If you were to fish the opposite (south side) of where you were standing, that corner where the sand and jetty meets is killer before the beach crowd moves in. Fish a hardbait in 2-5' of water and you should be able to pick off some really nice fish. Fishing the Flashminnow 110 in the deeper channel area has never been productive for me and generally do better with plastics as you did this day. Great job!

[tacklejunkie]

Thanks for all the kind comments folks. That was a blast! I don't think I went more than a half hour without a bite. It's nice to see the surf a bit less crowded now with school back in session.

Legacy1:

I love those multi-species days. Great report, and thanks for sharing the tackle pics, I am always looking for new things to try.
I have heard those swimbaits in creme/brown work good. I heard something about spotties in the bay biting orange stuff, so I picked up that swimbait. The water very cloudy and I threw it out. I didn't expect anything and was very surprised when I got hit! He hit it very hard too. I think he had to gobble it up when he hit it making it seem like he hit it harder?

klocked:

Looks like you had yourself a great multi-species day out there!!

It's amazing how different fish are with there specific adaptations to the role they play in the water. It looks like that leo has little flaps that cover its nostrils?

Must have been fun with both poles going off at once!

Great job out there TJ!!:Cool:Great day out there by my standards :Big Grin:
I think those little tiny pinholes all along his nose are sensors too. And there is a line of them coming off each corner of his mouth. I think I saw on TV somewhere that this is how they detect food from far off distances?

jrockn:

dude that is aswome! Can't wait til i get started on surf fishing agian. thanks manNo problems, just doing what I do best! (Writing!) Hope you have fun when you get "back out there" as I did.

Wingnut:


Impressive day Casey... FIVE species! :Big Grin:
Now that's a fun outing. :Cool:

$21.99 for a LC 110?!? :Shocked:Thanks man! And thanks for the encouragement as always from your sweet reports.

Unfortunatley I don't have any "hookups" for them spiffy hard to get LC's so I end up paying retail out the yang. I didn't know, but it looks like their having a sale on those LC's for $13.99 on saturday and I missed it by a few days too early. Oh well.. that's life! Now I need to find me a candy sardine for my sealed collection :Cool:

supasportkid:

another great day out there. good jobThanks buddy! A fun trip indeed.

Granny Fish:

Not much for size but 5 species, sounds like a good day to me. I need to get back to the surf.Yeah I lost the bigger 3' shark at the shore. They start thrashing all over when you get them to the surface ad he came unbuttoned. Missed that toad YFC too. I'll try and get some bigguns on the line for ya next trip :Wink:

fishmounter:

Casey, I love your shots of all these beautiful fish! I pulled several to put in my reference files for any future mounts. Great Leo shot! That little Bat ray is awesome! I remember seeing and petting the BRs at Seaworld years ago. They are actually quite "freindly". Makes you not want to hook any! As always, I look forward to your reports and especially your photos!
Glad I could be of help dude. I have petted those rays at Sea World as well. I thought it was the same kind. They are very friendly. For some reason this ray was swinging his tail all over though like he ment business. I tried to keep nice and clear of him..

Bassengineer:

Very nice job out there!!Thanks mang!

sh1nynewlove:

nice day of fishing... now i'm want to go out and fish..

I can't wait to go pick up some of those lcs at fishermans access..Those LC's are expensive, but they are tough to find and they work so good that the high price is worth it! I hope you get your hands on some and land some nice fish with them! They're good for all kinds of fish!

Troutman65:

Nice going T.J. where were you fishing? Thanks for the report.Thanks Patrick. PM sent as soon as I'm done with this post..

steve092:

Good job TJ!

I need to make a trip out there now!"Get out there" when you can dude! It's starting to pop off! Squid and chovies are getting hammered!

Sinjin Kim:

Nice going out there Casey. The fishing should get better and better daily as the fall approaches. I am almost certain it will be lights out on halibut up and down the coast 3-5 days after the 15th of this month (full moon). Just keep your fingers crossed for some cooler weather.

The next time you decide to head out and want some company, give me a call or send me PM.

BTW, looks like Wingnut has everyone adding dots all over there hardbaits, lol. Does it make a difference? If you have more confidence by adding the dots, then by all means do it. Confidence is so important when using any type of lure.

One last thing. If you were to fish the opposite (south side) of where you were standing, that corner where the sand and jetty meets is killer before the beach crowd moves in. Fish a hardbait in 2-5' of water and you should be able to pick off some really nice fish. Fishing the Flashminnow 110 in the deeper channel area has never been productive for me and generally do better with plastics as you did this day. Great job!Thanks man. I owe you some props as well for things you have tought the forum. Those flukes do the trick pretty good even moderate to heavy current with the right D/S weight. For some reason I used to think I could only get the hali's to bite in the clear water, but plastic are proving very effective at drawing the strike in just about any condition.

That orange swimbait was a real shocker :LOL:

I think I drew some of the first dots on the Aurora black LC when I couldn't find a real Metallic Sardine. It worked out pretty good. Then I think Wingnut started putting dots on all his LC's to see what would happen, and they all got hit! Now I just slap the dots on there for the heck of it as it doesn't seem to matter if they are there or not and any extra little help that might work is worth it :Razz: I guess it's just a mind game as I'm sure the fish don't really care after seeing them eat that orange thing :LOL:

We've also been doing red gills on the LC's that don't have them. I think that one was Wingnut's idea. That one may actually help improve the look of the lure to the fish..

Thanks again dudes. I love the beach more than ever now! My GF will never swim in the surf again though! :LOL:

[Airn33]

Great post man, that's funny it was kinda like mine withthe round ray and flattie but tens times better!!!!! WTG:Big Grin:
Hey what jetty were you fishing from? If its secret spot PM or you can keep it to yourself, just curious though. I like fishing structure like jettys, you can always catch a variety of fish. Once again nice going.

[Sinjin Kim]

Thanks again dudes. I love the beach more than ever now! My GF will never swim in the surf again though! :LOL:

This is too funny. The day I landed the big halibut, there were little girls in the water with their parents near by. When I brought the fish in, the parents came over to take look. Once they saw the teeth on the halibut, they screamed to their kids to get out of the water. :ROFL:

[bsp]

Good Job out there on the 5 species day! My dad and I will have to give that place another shot. When we have been out there we only managed to get one pancake. Guess we just did not hit it at the right time, since we were doing everything you were doing. Maybe tomorrow will be better.

Watch out for those friendly bat rays, they pack enough of a punch to make most lifeguards cry! The only rays around here that do not have a stinger are the thornback ray and the shovelnose guitar fish. Everything else can give you grief if you get barbed. Those leos are cool, especially because they do not have "teeth."

When you were there, did you notice any poachers? When I went there last time there was a guy with no license and giant spinning reels on trolling rods with roller guides. My first time there was a group of 5 guys without licenses and the same sort of set ups (huge spinning reels on baitcasting rods). Both times I called the DFG and they never showed up.

[GOTFISHUES]

excellent job out there,

multi-species, consistent action, not crowded, sounds like jetty heaven to me. congrats on a great day doing what we do, hit me up if you ever head down to s.d.

GOTFISHUES

[Wingnut]

Now I need to find me a candy sardine for my sealed collection :Cool:


Casey, PM me your mailing address. :Wink: :Cool: :Secret:

[kpn]

WN,
Do you want mine too? :ROFL::ROFL::ROFL:.

KPN.

[Wingnut]

WN,
Do you want mine too? :ROFL::ROFL::ROFL:.

KPN.

I think we can work out some kinda trade Khanh. :Wink: :ROFL:

[tacklejunkie]

I will order some KPN shads soon too! :LOL:

BSP:
Sometimes it's completely on there, others it's tough just to draw any followers. That place really has it's days though :Surprised:

Didn't notice any poachers this time but then again I didn't fish any sand. (I usually see them on the north side 50 yards up poaching Cangler's trench). The jetty was completely empty up until I left at 12pm, when a very content dude with some large gear and a gaff showed up looking for something I would think to be very large. It looked like he knew what he was doing..

[fish_sauce]

lovin' the details on the halibut pics! :Cool:

Thanks for the post TJ.

Andrew

[troutdog]

Nice job out there TJ, cool pics too!


TD

[ThemBastards]

Thats an adorable little bat ray there. :LOL: Im still looking for my first Leo:Sad:

Haha nice day TJ

[fishshep]

GREAT CATCHIN & GREAT REPORT!!!
You will certainly be catchin some
legal Hali,s on those new LC,s!!

[bsp]

I will order some KPN shads soon too! :LOL:

BSP:
Sometimes it's completely on there, others it's tough just to draw any followers. That place really has it's days though :Surprised:

Didn't notice any poachers this time but then again I didn't fish any sand. (I usually see them on the north side 50 yards up poaching Cangler's trench). The jetty was completely empty up until I left at 12pm, when a very content dude with some large gear and a gaff showed up looking for something I would think to be very large. It looked like he knew what he was doing..

That is really weird. When I have been there, there has been nobody on the sand (either side). The poachers were all on the jetty.

I saw some really nice leos swimming in the channel from the bridge when I last went, so that is probably what he was targeting.

[flyngby]

Nice Day Casey!!!!

Thanks for the comment about my last trip being some incentive for your getting out there and having a Great Day. I look at the photos and notice the times, not only did you get a nice quantity and variety but there were times when you were very busy on the short turn around of the CPR to CPR.

Great job out there.

Some day we will cross paths and get together!!!!!! Until then keep up the great trips and reports.

Steve

[Seng90806]

great job out there bro...i need to hit the salt soon since the fresh hasn't been so nice to me lately :LOL:

[ghetto dad]

great job out there bro...i need to hit the salt soon since the fresh hasn't been so nice to me lately :LOL:

hopefully its a lot calmer than the lake you fished that day on the kayak!!!:ROFL: great report TJ

[CrabMan]

Great report Casey,

I know the feeling when you see reports and it feels like you're going to come out of your skin if you don't go fishin right now! I feel that way everyday:LOL:

What a great variety of fish. It looked like the leopard was smiling for the camera and that the bat ray was ready to be beamed up to the mothership--aren't those fish cool looking!

It was cool to get the yellowfin on a chovey. I don't fish them that much but maybe I will use them a bit more. I'd like to keep some other fish off my hook that like the chovey (sharks) but maybe if I just use a piece they won't bite.

Were you just using a chunk?:???:

[tacklejunkie]

Great report Casey,
It was cool to get the yellowfin on a chovey. I don't fish them that much but maybe I will use them a bit more. I'd like to keep some other fish off my hook that like the chovey (sharks) but maybe if I just use a piece they won't bite.

Were you just using a chunk?:???:

Thanks Bill!
I've gotten into the habit of using a whole chovie whenever I use them. If I'm gonna use bait might as well go for something sizable enough to eat a whole piece of bait. (at least that was the theory until the croaker came along) :LOL:

Sometimes in the fresh water, if I'm not getting bit I will go to smaller pieces. They love the tail half of the chovie in the freshwater. I've been using #1 mosquito baitholders and #1 hayabusa octopus hooks for this rig. The hayabusa's are on sale right now at my loca walmart and I find them to work pretty good for a lot of my bait applications. You just have to pic out the thin wire ones from the heavy duty stuff.

I don't know where to obtain fresh chovies myself, so I am usually refering to the frozen bagged baits you can pick up the easy way in the store :Razz:

I usually run the line through the eyes first. This helps hold the bait on the line better as the head around the eyes is the hardest part of the anchovie. Then I wrap and thread the line and hook around the spine a few times, and then insert the hook in and poke it back out leaving the hook exposed, as shown in the quick paint sketch below. this seams to do the trick for catfish, striper, hali's, leo's and all kinds of fish..

If you are quick on your hookset and keep an eagle eye on your rod, you won't get many deep hooked fish because they get the hook the second they spring for the bait.
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff280/tacklejunkie/threadedchovie.jpg

[CrabMan]

Thanks Bill!
I've gotten into the habit of using a whole chovie whenever I use them. If I'm gonna use bait might as well go for something sizable enough to eat a whole piece of bait. (at least that was the theory until the croaker came along) :LOL:

Sometimes in the fresh water, if I'm not getting bit I will go to smaller pieces. They love the tail half of the chovie in the freshwater. I've been using #1 mosquito baitholders and #1 hayabusa octopus hooks for this rig. The hayabusa's are on sale right now at my loca walmart and I find them to work pretty good for a lot of my bait applications. You just have to pic out the thin wire ones from the heavy duty stuff.

I don't know where to obtain fresh chovies myself, so I am usually refering to the frozen bagged baits you can pick up the easy way in the store :Razz:

I usually run the line through the eyes first. This helps hold the bait on the line better as the head around the eyes is the hardest part of the anchovie. Then I wrap and thread the line and hook around the spine a few times, and then insert the hook in and poke it back out leaving the hook exposed, as shown in the quick paint sketch below. this seams to do the trick for catfish, striper, hali's, leo's and all kinds of fish..

If you are quick on your hookset and keep an eagle eye on your rod, you won't get many deep hooked fish because they get the hook the second they spring for the bait.
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff280/tacklejunkie/threadedchovie.jpg

Casey,
That's a great way to present the chovey as well as the smelt and grunion. what a great idea when fishing bait for halibut in the surf. I usually hook the chovey through the bottom lip and up through the nose. I then break its back bone and this helps to make it spin less and look more natural. But your technique is even better because the hook is in the tail of the bait and you'll have a much better chance of getting hooked up when getting a short bite. Thanks for the tip!:LOL:

I also like those hayabusa octopus hooks and used them quite a bit before finding the super thin split shot hook. Great to see you had a good day down there. The crowds are mostly gone and it's going to be a great Fall!:EyePop:

[sansou]

Great assortment of fish! I always love your camera work, you take good pics.

If you like fishing the frozen or salt cured finbait, you might want to consider those pre-tied hook & stinger setups (I think Owner?). I see guys around here using them with some success. Everyone claims they hold the bait much better.

[WARRIORMIKE]

Looks like you had a blast. Like I say every time, I really need to get out there and try that sometime:Twisted: