July 4 SWAT Trip, perch, corbina, and first legal of 2010!

[bsp]

I was lucky enough to get a PM from JerryG last week to join him on a surf fishing tradition, July 4 4:30am corbina fishing! Mike (bones), also was going to be joining us along with some of Jerry's friends, so we had a great group of guys. Dad and I knew this was going to be fun, even though getting up insanely early wasn't sounding too appealing. I made some final preparations the night before (ie, get the coffee maker set up) after my graduation party, and finally fell asleep around 1am.

Gear used:

Corbina- Phenix 802 trout rod with a Shimano Slade 1000 spinning reel. 4lb P-Line CXX and 5lb Toray Bawo Finesse leader. 1/4oz egg weight and a size 6 Hayabusa hook.

Halibut: Phenix 706M Dropshot rod with a Stradic 2500 and 8lb fluoro to a Zoom White Ice Super Fluke with 3/8oz Skinny Bear dropshot weight.

Cell phone goes off, coffee gets made, a few choice words about how early it was, and we were out the door.

WHY?!?! :LOL:

http://i225.photobucket.com/albums/dd185/ghost2u/4th%20of%20July%20Surf%20Fishing/CIMG1403.jpg

We got to the meeting spot, and surprisingly we were the first there. I'm normally the last one, so this was odd. Called Jerry for an update, and he joined us 5 minutes later along with his friend. I feel like a jerk, but I forgot his name. EDIT: It was Andrew, sorry man. Needless to say, really great guy to talk to, and I hope he forgives me for this. He slayed the YFC, perch, and corbina today as well.

After we get our sand crabs, Jerry casts out a BENDO! First cast hook up on the right kind. No pictures but the fish was about 14in. Jerry's friend hooks up a few casts later for his own corbina about the same size. Dang, I need to get on the leader board. Jerry also introduced me another surf fisherman named Bill who was very nice and had done pretty well on the perch and corbina the past few days.

At this point we walk off to meet Mike, Jerry and I catch perch on the way, and once we meet up we go back to where the corbina came from. After some expert corbina tutoring from Jerry, I cast out and get freight trained. Major bendo and some nice runs result in a solid 16in bean hitting the beach. Not a monster by any means, but it's my first corbina of the year!

http://i225.photobucket.com/albums/dd185/ghost2u/4th%20of%20July%20Surf%20Fishing/CIMG1405.jpg

I make a few more casts, but am noticing that the trench is starting to look really halibut-y (it's a new word). My hunch is proven when I watch a short come up and attack some bait in front of me. Jerry and his friend have been chucking LCs trying for one, but have only come up with perch. I look at Jerry and say, "I'm thinking drop shot." Jerry looks at the water, looks back at me, and says "There's definitely some halibut here, go for it!"

2nd cast, twitch, twitch, thump. No movement, just a lot of dead weight.... so I hammer the hook home. This fish realizes it doesn't like going closer to the beach, and the back and forth ensues. I'm honestly not sure who was more excited at this point, me or Jerry. I get the fish up to the lip of the trench, Jerry goes for the grab, and it explodes back down. Jerry gets in position with the Lip Gripper again, and once the next wave comes up he grabs it and the fish is beached. Not my PB, but a very solid legal regardless, and my first of the year!

http://i225.photobucket.com/albums/dd185/ghost2u/4th%20of%20July%20Surf%20Fishing/CIMG1407.jpg

Only sad part is that she inhaled the White Ice Zoom Fluke and got the hook through three gills, so she had to come home. Still, not going to complain, halibut is tasty!

http://i225.photobucket.com/albums/dd185/ghost2u/4th%20of%20July%20Surf%20Fishing/CIMG1406.jpg

I jogged down the beach to show Mike, but I don't think I motivated him like I intended as he had just dropshotted a large area for nothing and tied on a LC.

With a legal halibut on the beach, I decide it's time to head home. Jerry and his friend meanwhile are rapidly switching to dropshotting as my dad and I pack up while talking some more to Bill. Got off the beach around 8:30am to clean the fish.

Better ruler shot and before pic. 25in and 8lbs!
http://i225.photobucket.com/albums/dd185/ghost2u/4th%20of%20July%20Surf%20Fishing/CIMG1410.jpg

Big tail.

http://i225.photobucket.com/albums/dd185/ghost2u/4th%20of%20July%20Surf%20Fishing/CIMG1414.jpg

After!
http://i225.photobucket.com/albums/dd185/ghost2u/4th%20of%20July%20Surf%20Fishing/CIMG1419.jpg

http://i225.photobucket.com/albums/dd185/ghost2u/4th%20of%20July%20Surf%20Fishing/CIMG1420.jpg

Shot of how deep the Fluke was.
http://i225.photobucket.com/albums/dd185/ghost2u/4th%20of%20July%20Surf%20Fishing/CIMG1417.jpg

Halibut have sharp teeth.
http://i225.photobucket.com/albums/dd185/ghost2u/4th%20of%20July%20Surf%20Fishing/CIMG1413.jpg

Even the fat cat got a halibut.
http://i225.photobucket.com/albums/dd185/ghost2u/4th%20of%20July%20Surf%20Fishing/CIMG1399.jpg

Happy 4th of July everybody!

[fisherman from long beach]

a wtg on the beach flattie.i asked my father inlaw to fillet the one i caught,and he's gonna bring it over later for the eats.happy 4th of july

[BrandonFish]

wtg out there~! nice butt , he inhaled your fluke:Twisted:
Thanks for the report and pics

[Swank909]

Sucks he inhaled the fluke, but i'm glad the flattie didnt go to waste! Good job on a short session

[flyngby]

Nice work out there Marc!

Jerryg's PM invite was certainly enticing but my work schedule did not allow me to join the short "SWAT CREW"

Looks like you and the gang had a fun day out there!

Steve

[murrieta angler]

Very nice job out there Marc.
I am getting really itchy reading all the reports from today.
Thanks for the report and pics,
Robert

[DockRat]

Nice job on the Hali.

Nice to see some corbina posted. What where the corbina numbers ? How many and biggest ?
Thanks DR

[Jaysuuun]

Congrats on your first legal of the year. That's goin to make some good fish tacos. BTW there's still a good portion of meat on that carcass.

[bsp]

a wtg on the beach flattie.i asked my father inlaw to fillet the one i caught,and he's gonna bring it over later for the eats.happy 4th of july

Thanks man! They're pretty easy to fillet, and I kind of enjoy it. Hope you had a good 4th!


wtg out there~! nice butt , he inhaled your fluke:Twisted:
Thanks for the report and pics

Glad you enjoyed it!

QUOTE=Swank909;470781]Sucks he inhaled the fluke, but i'm glad the flattie didnt go to waste! Good job on a short session[/QUOTE]

Yeah, it's bad to waste anything. No point in CPR if the fish is going to die. Thanks!


Nice work out there Marc!

Jerryg's PM invite was certainly enticing but my work schedule did not allow me to join the short "SWAT CREW"

Looks like you and the gang had a fun day out there!

Steve

Steve,

My dad and I were both sorry to hear you couldn't make it, but I totally understand as I've missed out on plenty of SWAT trips because of school. It definitely was a fun way to start my 4th of July, and hope to hit the sand with you sometime soon!

Marc


Very nice job out there Marc.
I am getting really itchy reading all the reports from today.
Thanks for the report and pics,
Robert

Thanks Robert, you've done pretty well this year, and the fishing is only getting better! Looking forward to your next report!

Marc


Nice job on the Hali.

Nice to see some corbina posted. What where the corbina numbers ? How many and biggest ?
Thanks DR

Thanks DR, it was definitely good to get that hali and the corbina. I know at least 8 were caught. I caught one, Andrew caught one, JerryG caught one, BabyKiller got one, Sharkbait got one, and Bill got 3. There may have been more, but that's what I remember. Sharkbait's was the biggest with a fat 20in that you can see in BabyKiller's report.


Congrats on your first legal of the year. That's goin to make some good fish tacos. BTW there's still a good portion of meat on that carcass.

Thanks man, it grilled up nicely. As for the meat, my personal preference play it safe with the gut pouch and leave quite a bit around it. I actually cut through some organs with that cut, but I definitely could have kept trimming around to get every last bit. Funny you should mention it as I could chewed out in Arabic by my grandmother for ditching all that meat and the head. :LOL:

[Wingnut]

Hey Marc, was this a sanctioned S.W.A.T. outing? :Wink: lol
You sound so excited on my voicemail... congrats on your first of many legal Flatties of the year. :Envious: Sometimes I wish that I would gill-hook more legals... :LOL: Glad to hear that Dad made it out there with you. :Cool:

[Porkchop5420]

hey Marc, Andrew here.
It was a pleasure fishing with you and the rest of SWAT. You were on fire that day. You had a legal Butt and a nice size Corbina. We will have to fish again soon. Congrat again.

[jerryG]

Marc,

I had a great time fishing with you, your father, and the rest of the of the gang (Mike, Andrew, Anthony, John). Also nice seeing you again Bill, Anthony showed up later not sure if you saw him down there. Our 4th of July trip never fails to produce corbs for all in attendance. Great job on catching halibut. I knew they had to be there. Anthony (Sharkbait) also lost a nice halibut on the hard bait.

I returned the following morning for another shot at the halibut only to find the conditions had taken a turn for the worse. The swell had increased over night and the high surf made for some tough conditions. However on my third cast I hooked a very solid fish. It stopped my LC in tracks and took a few feet of drag before returning to the bottom with my lure. I put pressure on the fish and it came up off the bottom and made parallel to the shore along the trough. I chased the fish down the beach about 10 yards and then started with the violent headshakes that halibut are notorious for. It shook for a few seconds and spit my lure. I shouted for next 30 seconds “ NOOOOOOOO… ARRRGGGHHH….. F**&jlaK…. and I was over it. I fished a while longer for a few jumbo perch on the hard bait before calling it a day. I didn’t bother with the corbs on day 2… I should have got there earlier. I got a late start about 9:00 am and was done by about 11. Looking forward to fishing with you guys again soon and that goes for Wingnut, Flynby, and Blackwater too.. Time to plan a yak attack.

Jerryg

[bones]

Sorry for the late response Marc....Life's been running me over the last few days. Great job in the trenches there young man. I was very excited with anticipation of the corbina bite but a little disappointed with the numbers in the skinny. Did manage one small corbina and a few perch but you found the ever so elusive dropshot flattie. You just gotta NOT wait 10 minutes to set the hook dude.....LOL
Just kidding there brotha... :ROFL:
I know how hard it is to tell the "HIT" so to speak when there is soooooo much current and you only felt the weight of the fish. OH well......next time invite us over for some halibut tacos!
Swells are dying down right now and it's expected to be real flat by this weekend. Time to plan another attack on that beach and south of there for saturday.

Always a pleasure fishing with you guys!

<><------------MIKE-----------><>

[blackwater]

Hey, I didn't get any PM's??? :Envious: Nice legal Hali Marc, congrats. I have yet to get my first this year, but then I've only hit the surf once. lol :LOL:

[gletemfeelsteelgary]

BlOOooooooooD !

oooooh....I like it !

Dinna time...

Congrats !

[bsp]

Hey Marc, was this a sanctioned S.W.A.T. outing? :Wink: lol
You sound so excited on my voicemail... congrats on your first of many legal Flatties of the year. :Envious: Sometimes I wish that I would gill-hook more legals... :LOL: Glad to hear that Dad made it out there with you. :Cool:

....... probably? :LOL:

Yeah, I definitely was a little more stoked than usual after going through a nice legal drought Arthur, and thanks man. I've still got to catch up to you guys though. I think there will be room for a few gill hooked legals in the coming trips, so maybe Poseidon will reward your CPR efforts. Let's hit up "The Spot" soon! :Wink:


hey Marc, Andrew here.
It was a pleasure fishing with you and the rest of SWAT. You were on fire that day. You had a legal Butt and a nice size Corbina. We will have to fish again soon. Congrat again.

Hey Andrew, sorry about forgetting your name. You were slaying the fish too, and you scored some nice YFCs too! Definitely looking forward to fishing with you again.


Marc,

I had a great time fishing with you, your father, and the rest of the of the gang (Mike, Andrew, Anthony, John). Also nice seeing you again Bill, Anthony showed up later not sure if you saw him down there. Our 4th of July trip never fails to produce corbs for all in attendance. Great job on catching halibut. I knew they had to be there. Anthony (Sharkbait) also lost a nice halibut on the hard bait.

I returned the following morning for another shot at the halibut only to find the conditions had taken a turn for the worse. The swell had increased over night and the high surf made for some tough conditions. However on my third cast I hooked a very solid fish. It stopped my LC in tracks and took a few feet of drag before returning to the bottom with my lure. I put pressure on the fish and it came up off the bottom and made parallel to the shore along the trough. I chased the fish down the beach about 10 yards and then started with the violent headshakes that halibut are notorious for. It shook for a few seconds and spit my lure. I shouted for next 30 seconds “ NOOOOOOOO… ARRRGGGHHH….. F**&jlaK…. and I was over it. I fished a while longer for a few jumbo perch on the hard bait before calling it a day. I didn’t bother with the corbs on day 2… I should have got there earlier. I got a late start about 9:00 am and was done by about 11. Looking forward to fishing with you guys again soon and that goes for Wingnut, Flynby, and Blackwater too.. Time to plan a yak attack.

Jerryg

Jerry,

It was great to finally meet and fish with you after all those PMs, and meeting your friends. Once again, I am truly grateful for having the chance to pick your brain, learn a few new techniques, and listen to your stories about CA fishing in the past. I unfortunately didn't run into Anthony, but I am sure we'll meet up with him eventually.

Sorry to hear about the nice fish lost for both of you guys. That feeling is really aggravating at the time, and it's impressive that you got over loosing it so quick. I would have spent at least another 10min cursing it and all it's friends. :LOL: Like I saw with my fish, it's really tough when they get stuck in that trough as you don't have much power over them with the waves and current. I was down there in the evening with a friend of mine and he had something on, but lost it in the massive shore pound that had developed. I'm really looking forward to giving that area another session this week though. Definitely looking forward to our next trip, and thanks again Jerry!



Sorry for the late response Marc....Life's been running me over the last few days. Great job in the trenches there young man. I was very excited with anticipation of the corbina bite but a little disappointed with the numbers in the skinny. Did manage one small corbina and a few perch but you found the ever so elusive dropshot flattie. You just gotta NOT wait 10 minutes to set the hook dude.....LOL
Just kidding there brotha... :ROFL:
I know how hard it is to tell the "HIT" so to speak when there is soooooo much current and you only felt the weight of the fish. OH well......next time invite us over for some halibut tacos!
Swells are dying down right now and it's expected to be real flat by this weekend. Time to plan another attack on that beach and south of there for saturday.

Always a pleasure fishing with you guys!

<><------------MIKE-----------><>

Now worries Mike, I know you've got a lot going on right now.

Dad and I had a blast talking and fishing with you again! Glad to hear you stuck one corbina to break your massive surf perch count. As for setting the hook man, I swung as soon as I felt the weight (like you said), but she just wanted it. You know how badly those girls want the Ice! :ROFL: Taco time was good, and I wish I could have put out a SWAT invite but the family inhaled the fish too fast. A SWAT BBQ might be a fun idea in the future though. Hmm...

Let me know what's going on this Saturday Mike. I'm ready to stick some more fish!


Hey, I didn't get any PM's??? :Envious: Nice legal Hali Marc, congrats. I have yet to get my first this year, but then I've only hit the surf once. lol :LOL:

Sorry Phuong, but thanks for the props! We still need to fish together soon, and hopefully your first legal of the year will hit the sand once we do. :Thumbs Up:


BlOOooooooooD !

oooooh....I like it !

Dinna time...

Congrats !

Thanks Gary, I knew you'd appreciate the blood pictures. Not quite a striper slay though!