SD Bay outing july 5, '10
 

First - avoid eating a myoplex energy bar - avoid at all costs - trust me on this. Wife was kind enough to offer a bar so I could skip breakfast and get on the water sooner - never again will I eat one of those.

Decided to get to the water early to avoid traffic (bay traffic) since it will be my first time in SD bay. As I trolled to an area not far from the Shelter Island pier I pulled up mac - should have kept it for bait. Once I found a spot I did a drop shot with squid - very quickly felt something tugging at it - took my bait, ok, more squid on the way down - a number of bites, but nothing took the hook. while that was going on I was throwing a plastic grub, pulled up a 14" bass, (pic later) - was going to keep it, but could not figure out what to do with it - do I tie it up and let it drag along side the yak - with the risk of harbor seal grabbing it and causing problems with it tied to the yak? do I get an insulated bag and throw it in there? Do I bring a cooler with ice (no too heavy, too big...).

Short session - promised wife time at the fair - got off the water just in time to deal with the myoplex bar (never again).

Releaseing that bass seemed to have cleared your mind with all those questions going on within you. What would you do with a small bass like that anyway? Probably get half a taco worth and a lifetime of toxic contamination...:doh:

Thanks for the bay report. I wouldn't sling it over the side. Last time I was out the seals were following us and got a little too close. As for an alternative :dontknow:

bay bass are tasty, harbor seals won't steal them, but sea lions will and so will the navy trained killer dolphins.

either throw it in the yak, or put it in a kill bag.

a game clip will work too.

True - it was only one, but if I had 3 or 4. Hmm - yeah, there is that thing about toxins - was wondering what everyone's take is on that.

Google found this for me:

http://www.environmentalhealth.org/P...igns9_5_06.htm

Warning sign in English:

X2 what D said.....shelter island and san diego bay is surrounded my a huge navy base and leaky fuel tanks that have been there for 70 or 80 years....not to mention all the ship yards in the area...ohh yeah and the strand and most of S.coronado (the kays) are built on an old city dump....I would not eat anything caught in any southern californa bays.

Those spotties and sand bass are great fighters and fun to catch but just not something you want to eat more than once in your life. Instead wait until you go out to LJ, keep a calico or two....or better yet go for some rock fish, they are much tastier! or even better WSB and YT!!!

As for your fish storage problem, for bass I would keep them in my live well, or gut and gill them and put them in my beer cooler...burlap sacks always work too!

or
u can just fillet it on the spot
take all of 5 seconds
and put the fillets in a baggy
and toss the baggy in my (beer) cooler
dont ferget to keep a frozen water bottle in there with it
and leave a patch of skin for id

That's my ultimate goal.

Dump the excess in the water for the crabs?

If there is any doubt that the fillets came from a legal size fish, you'd better keep the carcass, just in case you get checked by the dfg.

FYI-- Here's some of the fillet minimum sizes for our local fishery from the 2010-2011 Ocean Sport Fishing Regulations booklet (pages 38-39).
Note: some details were omitted.



27.65. Filleting of Fish on Vessels.

(1) Kelp bass, sand bass, spotted bass, and ocean whitefish: All fillets shall be a minimum of six and one-half inches in length. Each fillet shall bear intact a one-inch square patch of skin.
(2) Barracuda: Fillets must be a minimum of 17 inches in length. Each fillet shall bear intact a one-inch square patch of silver skin.
(3) Lingcod. Lingcod fillets must be a minimum of 16 inches in length.
(4) White seabass: Fillets must be a minimum of 19 inches in length. Each fillet shall bear intact a one-inch square patch of silver skin.
(5) Pacific bonito: No more than 10 fillets of any length may be possessed. All bonito fillets possessed shall be considered a part of the allowable undersized tolerance of five bonito per day less than 24 inches fork length or weighing less than five pounds as provided in Section 28.32 of these regulations. All fillets shall bear intact a one-inch square patch of skin.
(6) California halibut taken from or possessed aboard a vessel south of Point Arena (Mendocino County): Fillets must be a minimum of 16 and three-quarter inches in length and shall bear the entire skin intact. A fillet from a California halibut (flesh from one entire side of the fish with the entire skin intact) may not be cut in half fillets. However, a fillet may be cut lengthwise in a straight line along the midline of the fillet where the fillet was attached to the vertebra (backbone) of the fish only if the two pieces of a fillet remain joined along their midline for a length of at least two inches at one end of the fillet.
(7) Yellowtail: Fillets must be a minimum of 17 inches in length, except not more than 10 fillets may be less than 17 inches. Each fillet shall bear intact a one-inch square patch of skin.
(8) Rockfish: Fillets must have the entire skin attached. Bocaccio fillets must be a minimum of five inches in length.
(9) California scorpionfish (commonly termed “sculpin”): Fillets must be a minimum of 5 inches. Each fillet shall bear intact a one-inch square patch of skin.
(10) All other species except those listed in sub-section (c) of this section: Each fillet shall bear intact a one-inch square patch of skin. The fillets may be of any size.
(c) Fish That May Not be Filleted: No person shall fillet on any boat or bring ashore as fillets the following fish: cabezon, greenlings of the genus Hexagrammos, salmon, striped bass, sturgeon, and any species of flatfish, except California halibut may be filleted or brought ashore as fillets south of Point Arena (Mendocino County).

good goal
calicos and rockfish are both great love catching em just take what you can have for dinner and leave a couple of biggies for spawning :)

had no idea halibuts have such a pain in the butt set of rules
when u want to filet onboard

figured 1 inch square skin and typical size min
guess there is more

thanks for posting that

And if I read it right, you can't fillet fish in the bays.

Pictures as I had mentioned

http://www.flickr.com/photos/2945660...7624323002821/

This topic was discussed on BloodyDecks in March and the best response was:
"I remember this question came up a few years ago after someone posted they had been told by DFG that it was illegal. Well........there is nothing in the DFG regs specific to Mission Bay. I called the chief lifeguard in Mission Bay and he said there is no problem with private boaters cleaning fish in the bay. He even checked with his contact at DFG and reaffirmed that it is legal as long as we are not talking about industrial type quantities. Having said that.......filleting fish in Sea World Marina is prohibited but that is the marina policy not DFG."

Take it for what it is worth as it is heresay, but it sounds reasonable.

oldrookie,

hello. i'm the guy that was just going out that morning, when you were going back ashore.

here is a report of my outing that day....

http://forum.kayak4fish.com/viewtopic.php?t=12705


as others also suggested earlier in this thread, i release all bass in the bay.

that water is certainly somewhat polluted with gas & oil from all the years of moored boats & active boats. plus the bass are fairly mediocre eating fish any ways.

for fish to eat.... go to LaJolla and get some rockfish, halibut, lings, or YT, etc. ALL these are SOOOO much better eating, than the bay bass.
.

H-P,

Read your report from the link - wow - 45 fish!!! outstanding.
Good to see another kayaker on the water.

Yes, LJ is on my radar - for some reason it seems to be a huge hurdle for me - it could be that I wear prescription glasses, and have had them knocked off - but to do that in the water if a wave hits or flips me over - they could be lost forever. I do have a strap that goes around the back of my head to keep them in place - will be doing a test in the pool this weekend to see how well they stay in place.

i went out in the LJ surf today for the first time just to practice before i commit to a fishing trip. the waves were pretty small but it was easy to get out and back on the outback.
it's not as scary as you think once you tried it. i feel confident enough now to try a fishing trip.

a strap for your glasses (or store them if you can) would be a good idea, just in case. maybe a strap and a leash to your PFD may work for you??


when you get ready and want company let me know, i'll go with ya if i have the time off

I plan to go Saturday morning the 17th - provided my schedule (wife and work) allows it. It will be low tide at 8am, did not check any other predictions, wind or swell. I'll be doing exactly what you did, practice before committing to a morning of fishing. Did you flip coming back in?

went out 4 times that day and didnt flip once. the first couple times i timed it wrong and ended up surfing it in. it would go sideways only when i lifted the rudder by then i was in knee high water and needed to jump out anyways its fun!

i did learn that if a keep my rudder cord in my hand pulled back and release when needed is easier then trying to find it then releasing it. i think the hobie guys will understand??

going out through the surf your going to get wet and i dont see anyway around that