The Sea Samurai's Message To All On the Shark Sightings

[Mr. NiceGuy]

Too much suck-up for something we probably have noting at all to do with will embolden bureaucrats, busybodies and politicians to make more stupid rules.

Stop pretending we are guilty and will clean up our act in advance of doing anything wrong.

What explains the presence of hammerhead migration where there are no kayaks? Probably the same thing that explains why we are catching so many other kinds of fish so close to shore.

[iethinker]

Originally Posted by Mr. NiceGuy

Too much suck-up for something we probably have noting at all to do with will embolden bureaucrats, busybodies and politicians to make more stupid rules.

Stop pretending we are guilty and will clean up our act in advance of doing anything wrong.

What explains the presence of hammerhead migration where there are no kayaks? Probably the same thing that explains why we are catching so many other kinds of fish so close to shore.

...yeah...tell it like Donald Trump!

[swinginFish]

Kevin,

Good on the lifeguards (LGs) for coming to us with "the problem."

Albeit poorly defined, i.e., "kayak fishermen's behavior attracts sharks," we should be back slapping LGs for finally noticing the increased shark activity in the area (which kayak fishermen keep bringing to their attention), and offering ourselves as the best group of folks to keep an eye on - and informing LG's about - increased shark activity in the area. What's happening now, unfortunately, is "killing the messenger," and our taking a argumentative position is only strengthening the accusations.

In my less-than-humble-opinion, there's absolutely no need to get defensive about killing/bleeding/stowing fish outside the preserve. This is what we do, period, and this is what we promote amongst ourselves. What needs to be emphasized is that a) there does seem to be more notice of sharks in the area, but then there are a heck of a lot more kayak fishermen eyes on the water these days. That said, the water's not only unusually warm, there's an absolute increase in the local seal population which, while hammerheads have been seen around for years, the increased sightings of GWs is far more concerning. What I'm suggesting here, amigos, is we spin this so that we a) become "deputy LGs" and help protect beach goers from sharks through our ability/willingness to help in early warning, and b) engage LGs in the fight against those who, through misguided sympathies, have protected seals over humans. Got the picture?

Avery

[TekkaYaker]

Harumph!!

[GregAndrew]

I am blaming it all on the MLPA. Too many fish in the reserves draws in the predators.

[makobob]

Greg, I like your thinking. If it could just be proven.

Originally Posted by GregAndrew

I am blaming it all on the MLPA. Too many fish in the reserves draws in the predators.

[Mr. NiceGuy]

Is it the fault of kayakers that some of us are catching bluefin tuna, dodo's and sleigh rides off the kelp beds this summer?

Blame it on El Nino!

Whales were all around me all day long today, leaping out of the water, and making tail-slaps that sounded like canons.

Kayaks didn't create this situation.

[alanw]

You don't need to prove it, all you need is to have the media report it

[roosta]

Hey guys, I want to build on what Kevin has mentioned. The city of La Jolla will be forced to take action if there are more occurrences of sharks following kayakers to the launch site where people swim if the shark was deemed to have followed the kayak in to shore due to a chum or blood trail. Anything we can do to prevent this from happening is being proactive to avoid a situation arising that none of us would ever want to see. So let’s do all we can to eliminate that chance and take every step we can to prevent any ocean going predators from being drawn to the launch ramp. Sharks have an acute sense of smell, so let’s stop them from having anything to smell, especially in the area close to shore where swimmers may be. Like Kevin said, bleed your fish and get rid of any fish smell, carcass or bait well before you get close to the launch. There are several decent kill bags on the market and we should encourage people to use them, especially during this time where there are a lot of hammerheads around. We must be proactive to spread the word about this and protect where we all enjoy to fish.

[RK]

Im just glad "Jack" made a cameo.........

[dpasinli]

Any good recs on a good yet cost effective kill bag....?