New Gear, More Fish?

[frankjz]

Hey Everyone,

I hit the surf this morning (Oct 11th) at grey light, north of Malibu. Foggy when I arrived, soon to break clear. Initial hard surf at about 2-4 feet as the tide crested at 7:00, then it calmed down and the sun came for near perfect conditions, little wind, little salad and great clarity.

I wanted to test out my new rod and reel combo...Shimano Clarus 9'0" Medium Heavy, Fast Action sprinning rod, with a Shimano Saros 3000FA reel.... Fantastic! Great casting, finesse feel, and good fighting power. I want to thank Dan, Bachiboy, for his input on the gear selection. So what did I catch? Well here's the list:

1 short halibut, 21 1/4" (dang! close but not close enough to keep)
4 BSP, 2 at about 6", 2 over 10"
2 jacksmelt at about 10-12" each
1 yellowfin croaker at about 15", a big dude and a helluva fighter (any of you out there eating yellowfin croaker?)

All fish released quickly and in good shape. I didn't have my camera or my tape measure, which is why I keep saying "about" in the length detail above. I guess I was too excited with the near gear to remember my old gear!

I also bought a dual pole holster off Ebay for $19.95. It's a straight-forward simple design that works just fine. Here's the link in case you're interested:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/BACKPACK-FISHING-ROD-POLE-HOLSTER-HOLDER-CASTING-SPINNING-FLY-/380707835543?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item58a3f48e97

Good luck and good fishing.

fz

[skunked4life]

fz,

Great report! It was almost the entire package there! A little bit about the conditions, a little bit about the gear, a little bit about the catches...don't forget the tape measure and camera next time!

As to your catches, you can't get any better than that! A near legal butt and a variety of other fish! Great fish count!

Kudos to you for giving thanks where deserved! I am sure that Bachiboy and SP Dan appreciate the shout outs! Keep the reports coming!

Skunked4life, aka Corporal Croaker, aka Ken

[5150fishn]

Congrats on breaking in the new gear with a multi species day! Thanks for the report!

[dlmoo312]

Way to break in the new gear with a variety of different fish!
Sounds like a really nice setup for the surf.
Thank for sharing :Big Grin:


-Daniel

[frankjz]

Thanks, I'm lovin' it. Seems like a perfect combo for me for the bigger fish. Now my back-up, holster setup is a Diawa DXS 862mfs 8'6" rod with a Shimano Sahara FD 2500, good for corbina and perch.

[Slickwill43]

In terms of YFC, they are a pretty tasty fish in my opinion, not sure on the recommendations for north of LA in terms of eating them, I tend to only keep a few of the biggest down here between OC and San Onofre. They aren't on the do not eat list, but as croakers they are bottom feeders so they are accumulators (correct me if I am wrong), so prolly not best to eat them a lot.

We have whole fried em (after cleaning of course) and that was pretty amazing, and I have also filleted the large models and sauteed/grilled with minimal seasoning with good results as well (Lemon, garlic, salt/pepper).

[frankjz]

Thanks, Slickwil43. Great to have first hand feedback. I checked out the Fish 'n Game site and it seems like above Malibu pier, one or two servings a month should be fine. Maybe fish and chips is in order!
fz

[SP Dan]

Hi ya frankjz,

Keep up the the work soldier .... that legal is out there waiting on you!

Thanx for the fish report and the great web site lead on the dual rod holster! :Cool:

SP Dan <"))><

[Jaysuuun]

That Saros is pretty sweet isn't it? Love the X-Ship.
Sweet session out there. Keep at it until you break the new gear on a legal.

[Wingnut]

Now that's the proper way to break in the new gear Frank. :Big Grin:
Sounds like a pretty good surf session, keep up the nice work out there. :Cool:

[frankjz]

Thanks, Arthur.

[bachiboy]

Sorry for the late reply. Nice job on the mixed bag! Looks like the new gear got a nice initiation and glad to hear that pole holder worked out...great find! Looking forward to hearing more about your sessions soon!

Don

[frankjz]

No worries on the reply timing. Thanks again for your advice, which guided my decision to go with the 3000. The right choice...
fz