Fishing with my little guy on theAquarius out of Malibu Pier
I finally got the chance to take my 7 yr old son out on his first fishing boat trip. Boy was it worth it! Nothing like teaching your son how to fish responsibly and effectively.
We took off the Aquarius out of Malibu pier an hour later than scheduled. Boat left at 1pm, but made up the time upon return. First few spots we fished South of Malibu for not much action. I picked up a 14" Cuda and my son got a 15" Thorn Back Ray. We move to a few other spots for no love. At about the third stop my son picks up a Sea Slug that must have been the size of a Volley Ball.
Around 4 PM we head for deep waters. That's where the fun began. My son looks over at me and says, "I think I got something!" So I play the role of a cool dad who helps him bring it up and pretend it got away when there's nothing at the other end. To my surprise, it WAS a fish. I brought it up about half way and let him reel it up 'till we saw color. A nice Red! Yeah!!! So that's the first fish of the boat in deep waters. Re-bait him with two 'dines on his rig and on the drop he picks up the second for the boat. What?! This kid's on fire. So I let him reel it in on his own. Some time passes and then he's BENDO! He looks worried and a tad bit scared of the power on this fish. I help him up and don't see much color on its way in. Calico? Nope, as he rises we realize he's picked up an awesome 21" Ling Cod.
Notice I haven't said anything about my catch/es...that's cuz I had none since my 'cuda. My kid's on fire and he's loving it, so I'm very much pleased with how the day's going. At least can say, I got to reel in a few for him half way...still a workout.
The day winds down and Captain Tim says, "wind 'em up, we're heading home." So I bring my line in and ask my son to do the same. Now, it's been about 40 minutes since his last catch and he's kinda bummed out because he's going home with no more fish. As he's bringing in his line he goes BENDO on last time! This kid's got the last fish of the day. He reels it in and we begin to see color...lots of it. Another Red! Only this one's bigger than the rest...on the boat. That's right, my boy's got Jackpot! A unanimous one at that, as nobody dared enter a contender against his Red.
1 Sea Slug, 1 Thorn Back Ray, 3 Reds, a short Ling, and $28 dollars later he's the happiest kid in the world. As for me, you guys can only imagine how proud I must have felt. Even though I only picked up a short Cuda for the day, it certainly qualifies as my Best Fishing Day ever!
My son proudly pocketed his earnings. I matched the amount and left it with the deckhand, as he too earned it. Overall the crew receives an A+ for effort and efficiency.
Oh yeah, only 8 of us on the boat. Very Comfortable!
Here's some pix...hopefully I've posted them properly.
[/img]
Reply With Quote
