La Jolla Sunday, a gentlemanly start time
 

After a couple of years (yes that’s right, years) I finally go myself off the couch and decided to go kayak fishing in <?XML:NAMESPACE PREFIX = ST1 /><ST1:place w:st="on">La Jolla</ST1:place> again. I had completely run out of excuses such as the finishing grad school, Navy Reserve weekend, travel for work, home repairs (the gift that keeps giving), Grandson’s tee ball practices and games, etc. So I told my wife that I was going fishing Sunday and that was that!! That is, if it is OK you sweetie?
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Armed with a valid kitchen pass and a new fishing license, I putzed around finding most of my gear together in one or two big piles. I set the alarm for 0500 only to get up and shut it off. 0700, bright and early I got up and started loading the truck. On the road by 0800, <ST1:place w:st="on">La Jolla</ST1:place> here I come. After a stop at McDonalds for breakfast, I got to the launch spot and unloaded my gear. The funny thing is that I had not forgotten anything, the surf was small and the water looked great.
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I got on the water, out through the Reserve and caught 5 nice sized greenies for bait by 1000. Put the two bleeders on and slow trolled them out to about the corner before they died and stated to spin up my line. The water was very calm, with a light wind out of the northwest. Porpoise were breezing though, birds were diving and the dogs seemed to be staying in near the kelp.
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I was in about 80 feet of water and north of the kelp. I stopped, changed bait and tossed one to each side and started to slow troll west northwest again. Got a pick up and the clicker went zzzzz, then nothing. Reeled in the bait and it was crushed and had teeth marks in the middle of its back and belly. Rigged my next to last greenie and tossed it out to the portside. Started to rig my starboard rod with a big spinner bait. Cast it to the starboard side just then my portside rod started singing that old familiar tune.
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I grabbed the rod out of the rod holder, took off the clicker and pointed it at the fish. Slowly pushing my lever drag on, I felt some solid weight at the end of the line. I increased the lever drags pressure and swung, hard once, twice and one more for good measure. Now it gets interesting, the line is still singing off the reel, I get spun around 360 degrees to the port. I have the drag set to strike. With 30 pound line, and a big bend in my rod, I am off on the sleigh ride of my life. My kayak has the bone in its teeth, white water spraying up both sides of the bow. I straddle the kayak, dragging a leg in the water on both sides to increase the drag and lower my center of gravity. Line is still singing off my reel, I increase the drag past the strike position to full on. The lines stops singing, but the kayak is going though the water faster now. White water is now spraying off my knees and my feet are digging in the water.
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The bow is starting to wander from side to side. I am getting worried that I will broadside and broach. I could control the wandering somewhat by pointing the road to one side or the other. This absolutely the fastest I have ever moved in a kayak, faster that when I was towed by a boat from one spot to another. My line is almost gone, I am heading due north towards the canyon and what ever I have hooked is not slowing down. My kayak is still riding on a plume of white water and I don’t know what’s going to happen when I get down to my knot on the spool. Will it break nice and clean or will it hold tight and jerk the rod out of my hand. Not wanting find out, I got my pliers out and cut the line. I had about 8 foot of line left.
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I never saw what I hooked, it was a great ride and I hope whatever it was, that it is able to shake that hook and line. Statistics are below;
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Bait: – Greenie (Pacific Mackerel)
Line: 30 lb Ande, pink colored
Rod: Okuma Catalina MH, 20-40 lb
Reel: Okuma Titus Gold TG-10S Cap 460/15, 380/20, 280/25
Kayak: Cobra Marauder
Paddler: old, fat and ugly 53, 220, 5’11”<O:p></O:p>

Sounds like you hooked a Thresher...Great Story! I personally would have put my drags so tight that I would have broken off before I let something take that much line. Good job on the catch and release though:).

TL-Matt

Thanks Matt,
By the time I realized that I was into something that big, it was too late.

Ed Whited

I'll have to remember the leg drag technique. Great story.

You and me both. The more I read on here the more I'm eager to get out on the ocean. I'll give the Bay some more love before I get out there.

My guess was going to be that you found the Red October. But I think Moyer's idea of a Thresher makes a little more sense. Either way, I would recommend that you either get new drag washers for your reel or at least clean them so you don't get spooled next time. :doh:

Thanks, Nice story. Better safe than sorry. I have never thought of being pulled out of the yak after reaching the end of the spool. Too bad it didn't come to color so you could ID it. I hate when that happens!

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by your desription could you be my long lost twin?

Cool report!

sure sounds like a T, but still - it would have been nice to ID it underneath. ;)

This winter I had something on early, in the dark, that I could just not stop... Emptied out my spool in leisure slow but super powerful run, like it didn't even know it was hooked. Ended up breaking it off at the swivel as I totally locked the drag when I figured it can't be anything I could eat. :)

Strange.... A very similar thing happened to me on Sunday as well... towed me for 5 mins or so, but I couldn't slow the darn thing down, whatever it was. After letting it take 300 yds of my line I tightened up and it snapped off on a 30# leader. I was thinking thresher too, but who knows!

This is the time of year the big threshers start to come close to shore to breed, so very likely it was a big T. The big ones sound like a submarine when hooked.

'Ya never know...
 

I believe the spearo' record is close to seventy pounds for Yellowtail in La Jolla. A seventy pound Yellowtail could easily drain a spool. So could a fifty pound Yellowtial, with ease. There's eighty pound White Sea Bass here, too. Next time, put your feet in the kayak so you don't get spooled.

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My advice: Don't break a fish off unless you know what it is...thought this was a Black Sea Bass at first.

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that thing needs a license plate

You know its large when Darkness is smiling :D

waders and wetsuit together as one. what a sight.

That's not a smile, it's a grimace!