Lost a PB in LB

[bsp]

My dad and I decided to hit up Long Beach this morning to get in a trip before my finals start. We got to the beach at around 8:30am and the conditions looked perfect. No swell, bright and sunny, and a few schools of baitfish darting around. Things were slow for the first two hours with only one hit between us as we worked our way down the beach. We ran into another fisherman who said that he had spooked some shorties in the area, so we knew we were in the right place. We continued walking to give him some room, and started casting again. My dad gets bit on the dropshot and brings in a little shorty, not even a foot long. I get a hit on the LC, but it comes off.

While I continued to wade along, I came across what I first thought was a huge pit in the sand. Then I realized that it was a halibut. I couldn't believe that I was seeing this thing lying in only 2ft of water. My dad comes over and tells me to cast to it using his dropshot rig since it was not showing any interest in the LC. I twitched the dropshot rig in front of its face and then BOOM! There was a huge explosion of sand, I set the hook, and line started to fly off the reel. Then, nothing.

I brought the rig in only to see no teeth marks on my dropshot minnow. My dad and I looked at each other and then paced out how big the hole was. Our conservative measurement was 32in give or take. The hole it left was bigger than that, but we figured that the fish would have disturbed alot of sand when it attacked the lure. We waited for 30 minutes after that, but the fish never came back. We called it a day after that.

Sorry for the lack of pictures, but I can't transfer photos to my computer anymore because my friggin flash card reader doesn't work anymore.

[Seng90806]

yeah u'll be surprise how close those fishes are to the shore.....i see them all the time in the shallows...give it a couple more weeks and its going to blow up

[Wingnut]

Damn, been there... done that. I bet your heart was beating like crazy. Don't worry, you'll get another chance soon enough.
Glad to see you getting out there and thanks for the report.

[hoosierfisher]

Man, I know that feeling... that betterfly going off like yellow jackets all over your lungs. Especially when you see that fish take the bait and you know that its a "NICE" one. (been there before)

I think its the moments like that that stays with you longer than the ones you brings in - because yu alomost had it...

Good job being out there.. You'll get 'em next time...

Man, I am getting that itch... I need to skip my work on Monday ... "YES!!!"

[bsp]

It was a fun experience, but it all it does is make me want to get out there again. I am pretty sure that I'll find another one.

[carpinator]

If you don't mind me asking,did have the plastic nose hooked with the hook exposed or did you have the hook buried like a weedless setup?

[bsp]

The hook was exposed b/c I could see the fish. Normally I rig it weedless.

[fish_sauce]

I've had a few experiences like this at LB before, and trust me, i know exactly how it feels...the first time i saw a 30''+ laying literally within inches of where my feet were, my heart felt like it was going to jump out of my chest cavity!

on calm days, if you really pay attention, you'll be surprised of all the fish you see swimming alllll the way in (small bat rays, croakers, beans, sand sharks)...or halibut that seem to just chill under a thin layer of sand within literally a foot or two of water--i truly believe that most of the time, we're just not keen enough to key in on their presense--but they're there. There were even times when i would bump the lures on the fish's lips and it wouldn't even budge!

what you may get out of this encounter is...a stronger resolve to land that big fish that got away...The first time something like this happened to me, i had nightmares about it! But it pushed me to fish harder, pay more attention to detail and technique, and ultimately spend more time one the water...Landed my PB exactly a week later.

Better luck next time!