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JapanRon
06-08-2007, 10:10 PM
Feast Or Famine On Barracuda


Hi there guys,


1)Thursday’s Report

Went on another am ½-day-trip on the Southern Cal, out of Pierpoint Landing to fish local waters i.e. Horseshoe Kelp then Huntington Flats with 29 anglers. Southern Cal is now on it’s Summer schedule and has a daily am run departing at 6:30am and a pm run leaving at 12:30pm. Rayan was the skipper, while Ryan decked, and the Galley Gal Amy.

Note: Countdown Done: Most landings should be on their Summer schedules.]See Asides for further details.


Note: Countdown 1: It will be ONLY 8 days, now until the limit for White Sea Bass goes from the present1 fish per angler per day to 3 fish per day June 16th Saturday!! I think everybody has just about got used to the WSB bite shutting down when the more liberal bag limit increases (ha ha ha irony) so don’t wait too long. To compound this trend, we’ll have a new moon around June 15th and the bite may be off anyway …….. if you believe in the lunar thing!! Still …….. 3 fishys per angler !!!!!


Note: Countdown 2: Next countdown will be when the Sand Bass are expected to show in substantial numbers. According to my past 2 years records…. (and looking at water temps) It’s about 14 days till we can start fishing for them in a ‘gold-rush’ atmosphere.


Target Fish:Barracuda


Short Report-Thursday 06/07

29 guys caught 61 Barracuda and some rays ….. er …. sunshine. We did ok for the day compared with other am ½-day boats.

Two other am ½-days boats counts:
13 anglers got 51 Barracuda (had twice the fishing time we did)
36 anglers got 1 Sand Bass, 11 Sculpin, 6 Calico Bass, 4 Barracuda

(Please widen your view to fit monitor if word-wrap looks off)


06/07 Jackpot

The Weigh-off ………………………Winner!
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h313/tsurikichi/FROM1229/FROM0422/0607weighoff.jpghttp://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h313/tsurikichi/FROM1229/FROM0422/0607winner2.jpg

Barracuda Wins It

Nice going Fernando! A Barricuda was the winner today. The breezing 8-lb fish was caught at Huntington Flats on the iron. Pretty sure the iron was a Tady blue and white. Other hot iron colors were the black and white of Wednesday as well as …… that burnt orange, brown, and white model. Does that color combo have a name?


Long Report

Baiting Up

Hit the Boat ……………………………….............. ............Bigger Scoop!
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Nice Bait

Got some great Anchovies. Not too big and not too small. Guys that were albacore anglers were cryin’ their eyes out!! Rayan was one happy camper with the quality bait.


Out the Gate
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h313/tsurikichi/FROM1229/FROM0422/0607widoutgate.jpg


The Days Fishing


Out, Down, and Back

Fishing Area ……………………………................. .................Crazy Current
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Grazing in the Pasture

Last 2 Days- Moo-moo’s

First ……………………………................. ..Second …………………......................... Third!!
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Fourth ………………………….................... ..Fifth ………………………................….... Sixth!!
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h313/tsurikichi/FROM1229/FROM0422/0606sportking.jpghttp://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h313/tsurikichi/FROM1229/FROM0422/06074windows.jpghttp://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h313/tsurikichi/FROM1229/FROM0422/0607patriot.jpg

Seventh ……………………….................Eighth ………………………….................... Ninth!!
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Tenth!!
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Extreme PBer!
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Fishin’ Funnies
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Round-Up

3 Rounds


Horseshoe
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Round 1

Pretty much ran about Horeseshoe kelp looking for promising water and current conditions where the bite had been GREAT the day before. Moved fairly quickly as the day before looking for birds but alas even though we metered a few fish …. The bite didn’t materialize.

Setups were both dropper loops for trying to bring fish up a little as well as fly-lining or Carolina sliding-egg sinker rigs on the bait side of efforts while others were throwing iron … and of course your’s truly trying to get them to hit the plastics. Fished for an hour or more but with the water temperature plummeting and positive radio reports saying fish were biting a little down south, we bit the bullet and gambled our fishing time ….. trading it for travel-time and potential good fishing. Good call. Fishing was slow to start once we got in with the fleet. Took off a little after mid-morning.


Huntington
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h313/tsurikichi/FROM1229/FROM0422/0607widhunt.jpg



Round 2

It seemed like it took a good 40 minutes to arrive at the fleet and happily got our gear ready to chase the slimers. Picked away at the fish .. with a max of 3 hookups going at the same time occasionally. Very good quality grade of fish. I’d say most of the bigger fish were caught on the iron but some good bait-fish came over the rail as well. I was continually being short-bit in the plastics. Got my ‘pants pulled down’ a good dozen times but no fishys stayed stuck today. Unlike the fantastic day I had before on plastics. We moved around quite a bit in the middle-grounds and probably had mud under us.



Last Stops!!
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Round 3

Went a little further South. Continued to pick at the fish but there were no real flurries and not much of a feeling that things would get much better. Tons of moo-moos and PBer around and I can imagine that the waters down there have been pounded to a point that any respectable fish would have been scared out of it’s wits by now!!

It experimented a bit and actually started to fish more for Sand Bass than Barracuda at the last … hoping to find out just where the biters might be lurking. A couple of anglers had gotten their fish right on the bottom so I had hoped things would get better for plastics … not!


Conditions: Had quite a bit of current and some wind. Check out the graphics for the water conditions. Skies were clear and sunny. Air temp stayed in the 50º~60ºs during the fishing day. Constant breeze made things feel cool. Jackets felt good on the way back.


Gallery


Beauty of the Trip

http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h313/tsurikichi/FROM1229/FROM0422/0607winner2.jpg

Fish

Kid’s Fish ………………………..Jig Fish …………………..Nice Trio
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More ……………………………............. Bags ………………………….................... ....More Bags
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Let Them Know

The photos above are just a sample of the fish and things of interest, at least to me, on this trip.Note: If you see a friend in the pictures, let them know they can copy the photo off the report.Directions: Click the right button with the ‘cursor’ on the picture, then click on ‘save picture as’, next choose where they wish to copy the picture, and lastly click ‘save’. Later, they can edit and print the picture at their leisure with a simple photo-editing program.


Tweeking Plastics #29

The Caddy!
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h313/tsurikichi/FROM1229/FROM0422/0607lureholder.jpg


Rail-side Plastics Caddy

As I’ve already got confirmation of receipt of my ‘intent to patent’ paperwork, you are welcome to make one of these for your own (not for sale) use! Home Depot or Lowe’s will have all the components that you don’t have in your garage to make this little jewel !! Eliminates the hassle of having to go to your tackle box every time you need to replace a swimbait, leadhead, etc. Especially useful to hold lures you plan to use ….. then switch if they are not the right flavor ….. right at the rail!! Works with either tension-cable or open rail designed boats.

Parts: 8~10-inch length of PVC ¾� pipe, 2 butt caps, 2 3/16�x1-1/2� hooks & eyes, washers, extra nuts, 2 rubber washers, 2 short, latches w/spring closure, 2 screws to retain the Butt caps, a length of tubular Insulation foam, and lastly a tube of Goop® plumbers or marine glue.


Plastics


Skunked Again

My Buddy …………………….......................... ...Tried These
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No Squid .................................................. ................No Scent!
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10~Bumps

Concentrated on 5 plastics colors from 3~5-inches and ¼ ~ ¾ oz. Leadheads in red, yellow and green. Red seems to be a really hot Barracuda color for leadheads at the moment …. especially for guys fishing Blams. Fished both Red and Green Blams and a couple of the pearl colored swimbaits. Rainbow trout model Kalin swimbait got a few hits too! Came back dozens of times with my pants pulled down and half the time I never even felt the hit! Leader went from 30lb-test down to 8lb-test when fishing the bottom for Sandies but that was not the key either.

Last cast of the day got a follow and take 2 feet down and 5 feet from the starboard corner. Fish grabbed the swimbait, did a half-twist gainer, where it swung its head in an arch half …. Yes…. half the length of it’s body and the leadhead popped out of it’s mouth. Ha ha ha


The Usual Colors

1st … 2nd . 3rd . 4th ..5th .. .6th
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Thursday Out There

Lunar …………………………………………†¦â€¦..Wind Direction and Speed!
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h313/tsurikichi/FROM1229/FROM0422/0607moon.jpghttp://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h313/tsurikichi/FROM1229/FROM0422/0607Windmap.jpg

Tides …………………………………………†¦..............................…Water Temps!
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Thursday’s Conditions

Fishing Grounds: Above Says It!!

Wild Creatures: Saw tons of Sealions. Cormorants, Pelicans, and Seagulls pretty much stayed away until it was time to clean fish. Lots of false activity by the gulls.


Asides

Aside: Details on Departures: You will find that some landings have two boats that will make daily ½-day trips. One boat will run earlier then followed by another ½-day boat that is staggered to leave a little later. This is done, I’m thinking, to pick up some late-comers and sleep-ins! Anglers being people …… a patron preferring a boat and skipper over another may also be in play. Please understand … I don’t mean to say one boat or skipper is better than another it is just that some skippers have a preference on areas to fish and or species to target and the savvy angler that knows this can match their own preferences.

Normally a ½-day and ¾-day boat will not leave at the same time. This is commonly done so as not to overload the office personnel processing anglers as well as (I suspect) putting a little time between the boats’ visits to the bait receiver. Skippers that communicate between one-another can use this time to their mutual advantage too!


Another Aside:

For Barracuda
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h313/tsurikichi/FROM1229/FROM0422/0607BarrHang.jpg

Quality Control

Barracuda tastes great …. I’m told. My parents used to BBQ it …… to mask the smell. One of the ways to reduce the strong taste of cuda is to care for it properly from the time it comes off the hook! Similar to Bonito, if the fish can be bled, the meat will not retain the blood (Doh .. really) that creates a ‘blood line’ through the fish and thus causes all the stink … so to speak!

I recently read of an angler hanging up his fish by the tail after dispatching it and initiating it’s being bled. This was done using mono tied around the tail and hung on the same hanger hook as are fish bags. I think this is a great idea but I’ve added the following for my own convenience … if I were to keep the nasty things.

I acquired a bunch of stainless steel Siwash hooks that I use for alternate hooks on jigs. I taken 5 of them and some unwanted 20lb-test mono to make some ‘cuda hangers’. It was very easy to braid 3 coils of line into a ring and secure it to a hook (close the eyelet). I could now simply pin the hook in the meatier or gristle part of the tail.

Bleeding should be more complete, fish handling and cleaning should be easier, and the quality of meat better. The only thing that one needs to remember is to get a feel if the deck is ok with the bleeding of fish. They might refrain from saying anything but still!!


Yet Another Aside: Landings Strategies: Interestingly …… Some landing have their departure times off-set a half-hour or hour from other close-by landings. I will leave it up to my esteemed readers to consider why this is planned ….. er ….. just happens …..er ….. is simply coincidence!! Whatever the case, from an anglers point of view …. It can be considered a plus as options for trip planning are increased. Again …. A savvy angler that has a number of options from which to choose will, in the end, have a much more satisfying trip. A happy, self-satisfied angler is the best advertisement in the world.


Yet Still Another Aside: Landings- With Summer Schedules:

http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h313/tsurikichi/FROM1229/FROM0422/0607TWlist150.jpg

Landings Presently On Summer Schedules: Although the boat/fish counts sometimes give you a hint, the best thing to do is to check with the landings by phone as …… their websites don’t always reflect the latest changes. Be aware that ages to qualify for discounts vary by landing! Fares change !! Disclaimer[: Be sure to check the times, fares, and restrictions at the time you make your reservation.


Close To Last Aside: Got myself a new Sand Bass stix. Had it made from a Pac-Bay® 9-foot blank (PRSC1087 marked T2SC1087), nice cork handle, fuji trigger reel seat and average-quality ceramic guides. Got it to throw plastics and it casts nicely. If interested on it’s backbone, be advised a 5lb fish will take it totally ‘parabolic’ right up to near the top hand-grip.


Last Aside:

DYI Rod Holder
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h313/tsurikichi/FROM1229/FROM0422/0607rodhold.jpg

Easy to Make Yourself

[font=3]Made this puppy by going to an old style hardware store in the neighborhood and getting the rubber clip/retainer’holder. The material is harder than the commercially made rod-holders so it should last longer.

The rubber retainer can also be easily found at most marine retail stores. A couple (2) of standard length (12 to 14-inch) Velcro® straps complete the parts list. I used a Dremel® tool to make a slit in the retainer piece just barely the length and slot-size for the Velcro straps. The slit should be small so that the strap should be difficult to push/pull up to it’s halfway point. The second strap is an extension so that the contraption can be wrapped around the boat rail.

The holes shown were drilled so that things can be hung on the retainer for a quick lure change at the rail.


The Boat

The SoCal (Nice Lettering)
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h313/tsurikichi/FROM1229/FROM0422/0522socalstern.jpg

Stern Numbers!
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h313/tsurikichi/FROM1229/FROM0422/sternSoCal2.jpg


Crew

Ryan file photo....................... Deck-Ryan ............... Amy
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h313/tsurikichi/FROM1229/0314ryanwhouse.jpghttp://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h313/tsurikichi/FROM1229/0319ryancutbd.jpghttp://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h313/tsurikichi/FROM1229/FROM0422/0607galleygal.jpg


End of the Day

As usual, it was great fun to fish with a familiar bunch of anglers and great crew. If you’re never ridden the SoCal or haven’t ridden her in a while, you might want to do so. I know ….. the present bunch has grown on me the last 3 months and that’s after ……. riding her off and on for the last 20 years!!


Wednesday’s Report 06/06


First Things First

Tradition Watching

Tradition !!
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Coming Back Home!
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Buddy’s Charter Trip

Saw Jimmy Hon was getting his Tradition ready for another charter again today …….. upon boarding the day’s ¾-day ride. Although I wasn’t on the Tradition …. the boat I fished was within sight of them …….. and about 20 other boats at any given time……. pretty much the entire fishing day.

His 15 anglers got easy limits (150) of Barracuda ranging from 5~9lbs, 42 Calicos, and a bunch of Sculpin. Man ……… lots and lots of room for 15 guys !!! (urayamashii- Japanese for ……… I’m envious) ha ha ha


Wednesday’s Trip Report 06/06


For My Trip

Went on a ¾-day-moo-moo trip to Horseshoe Kelp and the joined the fleet!!


Short Report- 06/06

Caught about half-limits of Barracuda for about 30 angler as well as a few Calico/Sand Bass and Sculpin. No Whitefish !! ha ha ha


06/06 Jackpot

Last Call …………..... Robert …………......... John!
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2 Barracuda Win

It was a dead heat! Musta weighed (stilled the bar) the 2 fish 6 or 7 times!! The 7 or 8-lb fat Barracuda were caught on fly-lined bait and iron respectively. Many thanks to deck George …. who had a busy day both at the ready with a gaff and at the cleaning table. Good job buddy!


Fished Area!
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Summary

Methods that the Barracuda were caught with can be broken down into 3 different baits. Fly-lined baits accounted for 70%, while 30% were taken on iron …… and lastly … heh heh heh…. 10% were caught on plastic. Caught 12 fish and not a single bite off ….. not one!!


Plastics Worked

The Catch ………………...............Plastic Fishys …………………............................. .. Plastics Mayhem!
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h313/tsurikichi/FROM1229/FROM0422/0606ron.jpghttp://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h313/tsurikichi/FROM1229/FROM0422/0606fewoffish.jpghttp://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h313/tsurikichi/FROM1229/FROM0422/0606plasmayhem.jpg


Fishy Plastic

Now …… guess who was throwing plastic and caught almost all (95%) of the plastics fishys. Fished 20lb-test Izorline XXX clear for a main line, 4~5-foot length of 30lb-test Seaguar fluorocarbon, and a 1/4oz swimbait leadhead w/red and clear or green and clear with silver metal flakes, 3 ½-inch blam or were they whams !!


End of the Day

Had a great bunch of guys to fish with and enjoyed the wide-open fishing. The boat tied up around 3:30pm due to the rough water and ever-increasing blow that was developing. Skipper gave everyone a 10% off chit for the short day. Very generous …. overly generous in my opinion, when you consider we had a good days fishing and catching and the weather turning is just something that happens on any given trip and just part of the game. Oh ya …. As usual ….. I was ready to go home about 2 hours before we finally pulled ……. well …… broke off the anchor and headed for home!

JapanRon

npdes
06-08-2007, 10:23 PM
Serious report! Great pictures, hints, and info. You should write a book.

one_leg
06-08-2007, 10:34 PM
JapanRon, Thanks for whetting my appetite for the salt.

I like your tackle caddy. Everyone who has ever fished with me knows I spend an inordinate amount of time rigging and re-rigging lures, leaders, baits, etc.

One_Leg

Wingnut
06-09-2007, 02:39 PM
Great report, thanks for taking the time! :wink:

halo16
06-09-2007, 03:13 PM
Japan Ron,

Thanks for another fantastic report, I always look forward to them.

I also like the point of the staggered times at the landings.

Kimochou
06-09-2007, 04:21 PM
I've been reading your reports for some while now and am a fan. Thanks for the reports and the respite from work here in Hawaii. I think the name for the iron you mentioned is Scrambled Egg.
Was always my 3rd or 4th choice for barraccuda when I used to live in So.Cal. (Blue/White and Blue/Chrome the top two)

phish
06-09-2007, 04:43 PM
Great report as usual and I concur with kimo...it is scrambled egg...just picked one up.

ish...

JapanRon
06-09-2007, 05:01 PM
Hi Kimochou,

Well yes ........ the colors are there for sure. What's happened is the Brown is actually so dark it's almost a purple and the yellow is so vibrant it also has tinges of red and the white is pure white straight down the middle. The color lines are very defined and quite different from the scrambled egg design I am used to seeing.

Sent an email to the jig maker for their imput.

thanks for the suggestion,

JapanRon

4g63power
06-09-2007, 06:55 PM
nicely done Ron..good to see that you nailed some slimers on plastics..thanks for the report again..

Greg Madrigal
06-09-2007, 07:04 PM
Damn JPRon. You must work this posting thing FULL TIME here on FNN!

Awesome info. Thanks again for taking, what I am sure was a significant amount of time, to share with us landlubbers. :D

GM

xahx
06-10-2007, 11:58 AM
Thanks JapanROn for filling us in! great report and very informational!