Kayak Fishing Adventures on Big Water’s Edge - View Single Post

roby · 06-26-2012, 02:33 PM

Short Report:

I caught a yellow tail (18lbs), two halibut (17lbs & 14lbs), and a bunch of calico bass.

Video Report:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FUpPyjFwDRU

Long Report:

The Islander left San Diego Friday night at around 9pm. We had a packed boat with over 26 kayak anglers and spear-fisherman. We were told it would be a bumpy ride out to San Clemente and it was. Captain Shane went over the particulars and said he expected the conditions to be windy. I got all my gear together that night and was in bed by 10:30pm.

I woke up a bit later than I wanted to at 6am. The boat was still moving around looking for a good place to anchor (China Point). I had an awesome breakfast and was the 10th yakker or so out on the water. The first thing while rigging up that we all noticed were the birds working some bait outside the kelp line. When I got my sardines, I headed straight for the birds. My first cast got me hung up on kelp and I had a nice 15 minute battle to save my jig.

I got out a little ways outside the kelp and casted my jig for a nice 2-3 lb calico bass. On my next 7 cast I connected to 3 more bass; I was metering bait all over the drop off. Stan (BentRod) and George cruised on by also for some calico fun when Stan had a nice bend on his rod and was pulling on something serious. At color he hollers out, "Yellowtail!!" and I started to frantically cast out and grind my jig. 15-20 minutes goes by and Bob (Kobra) goes bendo about 30 yards from me and it looks like the right kind. I finally get bit on my jig and feel the beautiful pull from the yellow. I go through the most awkward gaff scene and eventually get the gaff in it.....I was whoopin' like I had won the lottery

There were 4-6 yellowtails caught that morning if memory serves me right. By now there were more kayakers working the same area, but it seemed as if the bite had died out.

I made my way into Pyramid Cove since the boat had moved there and decided to hunt for some calico bass. I got several more bass on the yak, but nothing too big. The wind picked up a bit at lunch, but it was manageable.

After lunch, several yakkers hit the beach and were searching for halis. I decided to do the same and got my first halibut for the trip on a sardine. There were several more halis caught by anglers. The wind laid down considerably and we ended up have a nice sunset heading to the boat which was now anchored at Pyramid Point. I picked up a couple more calicos on plastic, but couldn't get another halibut to play.

The next morning I got up at 4am hoping to get a crack at the yellows again, but unfortunately the wind was howling. The Captain looked for a safe place to anchor and decided we would work the same area that we did the day before. I got out to the spot, but the conditions were just absolutely terrible. The swells were up and the wind was fierce. Several of us stuck it out for 2-3 hours. I got one hit that stayed with me for about two minutes before getting hung up in the kelp. It felt like the right kind, but who knows...

I ended up following George to a rockfish hole he found and caught some dinks while George made a big dent in the rockfish population. After watching George get taco meat we decided to go drift for some halis. I was fortunate to nail a second halibut along the beach again. The wind by now was absolutely bearing down on us (20-30mph). There were 4 kayakers on the water at this time (noon) because most of the yakkers had gone in for lunch. George, Ryan and I decided to head in for some grub; the drifts were just too fast because of the wind. After lunch, Captain Shane decided to check out the front side to see if the weather was any better. The wind did lay down a bit. Unfortunately, the front side for me only produced one mack.

The trip ended with a nice pedal towards the Islander and the sun disappearing over San Clemente Island. The Captain, crew, and company were just amazing. This was my second trip with the Islander and I was once again impressed with the effort they put forth. Catching my first yellowtail ever will be a memory I won't forget, but the laughs I shared with friends on board is what really made the trip great.

* I know I left out alot of non-fishing related events, but as the saying goes....what happens on the Islander stays on the Islander.

06-26-2012, 02:33 PM	#2
roby CEO of Team Roby Join Date: Sep 2010 Posts: 905	Short Report: I caught a yellow tail (18lbs), two halibut (17lbs & 14lbs), and a bunch of calico bass. Video Report: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FUpPyjFwDRU Long Report: The Islander left San Diego Friday night at around 9pm. We had a packed boat with over 26 kayak anglers and spear-fisherman. We were told it would be a bumpy ride out to San Clemente and it was. Captain Shane went over the particulars and said he expected the conditions to be windy. I got all my gear together that night and was in bed by 10:30pm. I woke up a bit later than I wanted to at 6am. The boat was still moving around looking for a good place to anchor (China Point). I had an awesome breakfast and was the 10th yakker or so out on the water. The first thing while rigging up that we all noticed were the birds working some bait outside the kelp line. When I got my sardines, I headed straight for the birds. My first cast got me hung up on kelp and I had a nice 15 minute battle to save my jig. I got out a little ways outside the kelp and casted my jig for a nice 2-3 lb calico bass. On my next 7 cast I connected to 3 more bass; I was metering bait all over the drop off. Stan (BentRod) and George cruised on by also for some calico fun when Stan had a nice bend on his rod and was pulling on something serious. At color he hollers out, "Yellowtail!!" and I started to frantically cast out and grind my jig. 15-20 minutes goes by and Bob (Kobra) goes bendo about 30 yards from me and it looks like the right kind. I finally get bit on my jig and feel the beautiful pull from the yellow. I go through the most awkward gaff scene and eventually get the gaff in it.....I was whoopin' like I had won the lottery There were 4-6 yellowtails caught that morning if memory serves me right. By now there were more kayakers working the same area, but it seemed as if the bite had died out. I made my way into Pyramid Cove since the boat had moved there and decided to hunt for some calico bass. I got several more bass on the yak, but nothing too big. The wind picked up a bit at lunch, but it was manageable. After lunch, several yakkers hit the beach and were searching for halis. I decided to do the same and got my first halibut for the trip on a sardine. There were several more halis caught by anglers. The wind laid down considerably and we ended up have a nice sunset heading to the boat which was now anchored at Pyramid Point. I picked up a couple more calicos on plastic, but couldn't get another halibut to play. The next morning I got up at 4am hoping to get a crack at the yellows again, but unfortunately the wind was howling. The Captain looked for a safe place to anchor and decided we would work the same area that we did the day before. I got out to the spot, but the conditions were just absolutely terrible. The swells were up and the wind was fierce. Several of us stuck it out for 2-3 hours. I got one hit that stayed with me for about two minutes before getting hung up in the kelp. It felt like the right kind, but who knows... I ended up following George to a rockfish hole he found and caught some dinks while George made a big dent in the rockfish population. After watching George get taco meat we decided to go drift for some halis. I was fortunate to nail a second halibut along the beach again. The wind by now was absolutely bearing down on us (20-30mph). There were 4 kayakers on the water at this time (noon) because most of the yakkers had gone in for lunch. George, Ryan and I decided to head in for some grub; the drifts were just too fast because of the wind. After lunch, Captain Shane decided to check out the front side to see if the weather was any better. The wind did lay down a bit. Unfortunately, the front side for me only produced one mack. The trip ended with a nice pedal towards the Islander and the sun disappearing over San Clemente Island. The Captain, crew, and company were just amazing. This was my second trip with the Islander and I was once again impressed with the effort they put forth. Catching my first yellowtail ever will be a memory I won't forget, but the laughs I shared with friends on board is what really made the trip great. * I know I left out alot of non-fishing related events, but as the saying goes....what happens on the Islander stays on the Islander.