10/11 Blacks/ Mustelus californicus

[Iceman]

Launched solo into one footers just before grey light. No bait under the pier light, but tons of it the rest of the morning. I had a smorgasbord of sardine, greenback, spanish and smelt in the tank and bait was everywhere, on the surface and the meter. I started out in 20 feet and got picked up early on the sardine, a very fat sandbass. No skunk anyway. I made my way up to TP reef and set up my first drift on the outside edge of the flotilla of buoys. Got picked up on the sardine again and felt like a heavy fish before it wrapped me up in a buoy line. It may have just been a big bass, but it was able to break off 20# on its own. Tried a repeat drift for nothing. Went to the inside of the reef and set up. This time the greenback is picked up. Just as I am swinging on that one, the sardine goes off. I am big bendo and line peeling, with the light drag I have set for halibut. I started to button it down and was getting pulled pretty good, then the fish just started sulking on the bottom. There was a little redtide up north and at first color I thought I had the mother of all WSB, until it came into view. I was trying to pull it up a little more for a picture when it finally broke off. The biggest smoothhound I have ever seen. Dissapointing, but I enjoyed the excitement and having miles of ocean all to myself all morning. Surf had diminished to legitimate ankle slappers for the landing. Hope to try north again Thursday.

http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/fish/Gallery/Descript/GreySmoothhound/1966.JPG

[madscientist]

Don't you just hate when the big 'but or WSB transforms into a shark at color? Happens all the time to me :P .

[lamb]

From the pics, it is shaped kind of like a WSB… Great report, sounds like some excitement there…

But hey, that’s a Carcharhinus limbatus (blacktip shark) on your picture, potential predator of Mustelus californicus! :)

[Iceman]

Adi, you are correct, that is a black tip. When I did the image search that pic came up as a grey smoothhound. The front angle looked like the right one to me.

Brad, I am always the optimist when fighting that mystery fish, glad I confirmed ID or it would have haunted me.


Tomorrow there will be no mistaking the Californicus flattipus humungamus. :D

[pimikem]

iceman, using the pier as a reference, where is tp reef?

[madscientist]

Brad, I am always the optimist when fighting that mystery fish, glad I confirmed ID or it would have haunted me.
:D

No kidding. I actually had a dream (nightmare) about the one I broke off Sunday evening. I am determined to believe it was sharky, but my gut is it was flat. :cry:

[Iceman]

Here is a link

http://www.dfg.ca.gov/mrd/artificialreefs/torrey2.pdf

There are tons of lobster buoys marking it.

[lamb]

Lamb, the shark expert… 8) I caught that accidentally... :)

So they say the 2 pts love structure on the sandy bottom.

Only when I saw those maps, sunken boats, is when I related dots to places where we snagged butts here and there… Right in front of MB jetties…

http://www.dfg.ca.gov/mrd/artificialreefs/

I am thinking about paddling out one of these days, launching from Dana. I measured, there are good 3 miles to get to the grounds. But that’s no less than what we go when hitting LJ on the yak.

My question to you ol’ guard is – why is it fished so rarely by yaks?!? :?

[Iceman]

Adi,
It has been 5-6 years, but I used to paddle to the MB Reef alot. That is only 1/2 mile NW of the jetti. I did the paddle once, with a friend, to the PB Reef in my Scrambler. The paddle back seemed forever. It took me awhile to figure out that timing the coming and going through the channel with the tides made for a lot less dropping of the F bombs. :D I always found pretty good bass around the reef and barracuda.

[kurt]

I've fished the MB reefs and the tower and the paddle is pretty easy if you go with the tides, like Andy said. I've never caught anything big, but always pick up some fish. Mostly sand bass, sculpin, and rock fish. Sometimes calicos suspended over the structure.