CAUTION! Josh tried to sink my kayak! - Kayak Fishing Adventures on Big Water’s Edge

computerguy · 05-22-2010, 08:34 AM

I’ve been lurking on this site for quite some time. Over the last couple of years I noticed a common thread with many posts, they all said thanks Josh, I learned so much. These posts are all followed by a picture of a trophy catch. I kept wondering who is this Josh (The Darkhorse) and how can I go fishing with him?

I started putting out the feelers asking some of the kayak fishermen that I know about Josh. I asked ffice:smarttags" />Jon Schwartz http://www.bluewaterjon.com and he went on and on about how great Josh is and how he can read the water like no other. I read an article about Josh on Jon’s site and my blood was boiling with anticipation.

A few weeks later I was talking with Paul, PAL (http://www.kayakfishingzone.com ) and he told me that I should definitely go out with Josh. That sealed the deal. My 51^st birthday was coming up and I decided to treat my self to some fishing lessons. I wasn’t too interested in catching fish I just wanted to learn the things that I could not figure out. What kind of line, what kind of hooks what size, all the nitty gritty details that I could not put together myself. I finally hooked up with Josh and gave him an inventory of my rods and reels and got recommendations of what kind of line to get and how to rig up my gear.

On our 1^st trip out, less than 10 minutes after we pinned on the 1^st mackerel, it was an instant hook-up

. I could hardly gain on this fish it was peeling drag like crazy, and Josh is barking at me like a drill sergeant. Reel REEL reel it was tough gaining any line on this fish. Finally I start making some gain and paused for a second to rest. Josh yelled at me, this is not time to rest, get it in this is a done deal. His concern was that a sea lion would steel the fish. I get the fish to the boat, swing it to Josh and he gaffs a beautiful Yellowtail

. After we bleed and secure the fish I thought that we would be doing the happy paddle back. No way, Josh wasn’t done, we were off to look for the next Yellowtail.

After fishing for a while without any more luck for Yellow’s we decide to target White Sea Bass

. Josh showed me some things that just blew my mind. I couldn’t believe what I saw. I did hook-up to a White Sea Bass, unfortunately it got away. But from what I learned I have the knowledge to got out and feel confident in catching one.

Here is a picture from my first trip with Josh

.

ffice

ffice" />>>

A few weeks later I’m feeling more confident and thought I knew what to expect from Josh. I got to the beach and started to rig-up. I could tell it was a really fishy day. There was a guy that just got back with 2 beautiful Yellowtails. Just past the surf zone we see Yani doing the happy paddle with a quality Yellowtail. The red tide was crazy dark brown water. As we get past the red tide the water was looking great.

I pinned on a Mackerel and put out about 50 yards, I didn’t even get the rod into the rod holder and I got bit. I was fighting this fish and it was dejaview with Josh barking orders at me, coaching me all along the way with the fight, followed by a successful gaff shot.
Sweet I was so stoked.

After catching two more large Yellowtails, my arms were like rubber. I didn’t have any more fight in me, but Josh insisted that we keep fishing. He said you can’t stop fishing now, you can’t leave while the bite is hot. I got another hook-up followed by Josh doing a great gaff shot and now we have 4 on board. I thought how epic is that 4 yellowtail on a kayak. I hardly had room to put my legs, with over 50lbs of fish on board. Now my arms are aching, I begging with Josh, can we now go back? He said we should try to get your limit of 5 Yellowtail. I was praying that I wouldn’t catch another fish, I was beat.

Josh now wanted to go after a White Sea Bass. With 4 very nice Yellowtails on board he now wanted to get a WSB, holy cow, this guy was trying to Sink My Kayak. Josh was very insistent in going for the WSB he said that he could just about guarantee that we would catch one, and I believed him. However I was beat, I didn’t have any strength left to fight a WSB. I pleaded with Josh to call it a day. I could tell that Josh was very disappointed. But I was delighted that we were headed back. We saw several others out there mostly with one Yellowtail but I was the only one with 4. What an epic trip.

>>

I really enjoyed meeting and fishing with Josh and what I learned was absolutely mind blowing. I caught more Yellowtail on these 2 trips than I have ever caught in total. But more important is the knowledge that I gained and the confidence that I now have to go back and give it a try on my own… Thanks Josh for the great time

.

This photo was taken by Jay.. Nice to meet you Jay, thanks for the awesome picture.

Normally I wouldn’t even dream of catching and keeping 4 Yellowtail and won’t in the future. One nice fish is plenty. This was a once in a life time experience for me. None of the fish went wasted. I gave a lot of the fish away. I have lots of happy friends and neighbors. I would rather have the fish eaten fresh than keep it in the freezer for 6 months. The Yellowtail have been excellent on the Grill. A friend of mine smoked some and it was out of this world. Another friend recommended making some cevichie, I’m looking forward to trying that next.
Tight lines.
-Jeff

Yakking101 · 05-22-2010, 09:22 AM

what are you talkin' about? You have PLENTY of room for a WSB on there!

That is awesome, congrats!! Another happy customer!

Im sorry Josh, but you are going to have to donate your brain to science one day... we have to see if its wired up like a fish in there.

dsafety · 05-22-2010, 10:40 AM

I just don't get it. Everyone knows and Josh is always among the first to say it. THERE ARE NO FISH IN LA JOLLA!

Good story though.

Bob

Rob929 · 05-22-2010, 10:55 AM

Wow! Nice report. 4 yellows and no sashimi?? Nigiri?? You are missing out my man.

Either way, congrats

roadx · 05-22-2010, 03:43 PM

blitzburgh · 05-22-2010, 03:48 PM

F N A!

umtduckhead · 05-22-2010, 04:01 PM

congrats!

T Bone · 05-22-2010, 04:08 PM

JOSH YOU SUCK ! oh no wait,I suck.Nevermind........

AWESOME !!!!!!

h2ofishfo · 05-22-2010, 04:22 PM

muther f'er im always there when people say u shoulda been here yesterday & this is one of those days shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiii!!!comgrats though i heard about that bite

herbo · 05-22-2010, 05:25 PM

That's totally awesome!!!!!! what a report and great pictures too! I'm going to have to enlist the services of the Master

one of these days.....

H

Aaron · 05-22-2010, 06:00 PM

Look at the weather in both of those pics...unreal. The fish aren't bad to look at either! I'm willing to bet the secret is chartreuse powerbait...

Whizz Bang · 05-22-2010, 06:57 PM

Nice fish, congratulations!!!
I was one of those unlucky guys with only one... it fed me and mine for a few days though. At least thru sunday until I caught another. That much fish at one time would send me into panic mode. Josh, however, said it best....these were transient bastards stealing food out of the mouths of OUR fish. Keep'em all until they flee back to Mexico or head up the coast. Again well done, you had the trifecta going on that day....great weather, tons of hungry yellowtail, and josh. You may not see a day like that again, savor it.

radastaff · 05-22-2010, 08:35 PM

epicness

The Kid · 05-22-2010, 09:18 PM

anything on da surface iron?

05-23-2010, 07:18 AM

Jeff,
It's a wise man who learns the right way. I know so
many bull headed kayakers, like me, know insist on
learning things on their own. They end up spending
oudles of time and gas money just to get lucky in
La Jolla. Learning includes a good teacher.

Josh is the best teacher out there. Brutal and unrelenting,
Josh sets you straight, yet gives you a foundational fishing
experience for life.

Like I tell my son: There are two kinds of people in this
world. Not-so-smart people and smart people. Not-so-smart
people learn from their mistakes.
Smart ones, learn from the not-so-smart ones.

Jeff, you must be a smart guy. See you on the water.

dos ballenas · 05-23-2010, 08:43 AM

Nice fish new guy

There are a lot of lessons to be learned here.

Some days the fishing is on, and some days its off.

Never leave fish to find fish.

Never leave a hot bite when its hot.

Take only what you can use or distribute without freezing.

and

Quote:

Originally Posted by yani

Like I tell my son: There are two kinds of people in this
world. Not-so-smart people and smart people. Not-so-smart
people learn from their mistakes.
Smart ones, learn from the not-so-smart ones.

Are you trying to say the private boaters and kayakers that follow sport boats around are smart?

oh ya, and wind sucks!

aftahour · 05-23-2010, 09:08 PM

wow.. thats all i can say and JOSH is the man to find the fish.

Limits · 05-23-2010, 09:18 PM

INSANE! I'm jonesing for just ONE.

Congrats.

Vikingj · 05-23-2010, 09:30 PM

Super job and great report!

Pescavore1 · 05-23-2010, 09:34 PM

Congratulations, Jeff. What an epic day that was, especially for you.

Next time you go fishing with Josh, be sure to bring plenty of game clip and make sure you have a cooler big enough

Jay

05-22-2010, 08:34 AM	#1
computerguy computer angler Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Bonita Posts: 45	CAUTION! Josh tried to sink my kayak! I’ve been lurking on this site for quite some time. Over the last couple of years I noticed a common thread with many posts, they all said thanks Josh, I learned so much. These posts are all followed by a picture of a trophy catch. I kept wondering who is this Josh (The Darkhorse) and how can I go fishing with him? I started putting out the feelers asking some of the kayak fishermen that I know about Josh. I asked ffice:smarttags" />Jon Schwartz http://www.bluewaterjon.com and he went on and on about how great Josh is and how he can read the water like no other. I read an article about Josh on Jon’s site and my blood was boiling with anticipation. A few weeks later I was talking with Paul, PAL (http://www.kayakfishingzone.com ) and he told me that I should definitely go out with Josh. That sealed the deal. My 51^st birthday was coming up and I decided to treat my self to some fishing lessons. I wasn’t too interested in catching fish I just wanted to learn the things that I could not figure out. What kind of line, what kind of hooks what size, all the nitty gritty details that I could not put together myself. I finally hooked up with Josh and gave him an inventory of my rods and reels and got recommendations of what kind of line to get and how to rig up my gear. On our 1^st trip out, less than 10 minutes after we pinned on the 1^st mackerel, it was an instant hook-up . I could hardly gain on this fish it was peeling drag like crazy, and Josh is barking at me like a drill sergeant. Reel REEL reel it was tough gaining any line on this fish. Finally I start making some gain and paused for a second to rest. Josh yelled at me, this is not time to rest, get it in this is a done deal. His concern was that a sea lion would steel the fish. I get the fish to the boat, swing it to Josh and he gaffs a beautiful Yellowtail . After we bleed and secure the fish I thought that we would be doing the happy paddle back. No way, Josh wasn’t done, we were off to look for the next Yellowtail. After fishing for a while without any more luck for Yellow’s we decide to target White Sea Bass. Josh showed me some things that just blew my mind. I couldn’t believe what I saw. I did hook-up to a White Sea Bass, unfortunately it got away. But from what I learned I have the knowledge to got out and feel confident in catching one. Here is a picture from my first trip with Josh . fficeffice" />>> A few weeks later I’m feeling more confident and thought I knew what to expect from Josh. I got to the beach and started to rig-up. I could tell it was a really fishy day. There was a guy that just got back with 2 beautiful Yellowtails. Just past the surf zone we see Yani doing the happy paddle with a quality Yellowtail. The red tide was crazy dark brown water. As we get past the red tide the water was looking great. I pinned on a Mackerel and put out about 50 yards, I didn’t even get the rod into the rod holder and I got bit. I was fighting this fish and it was dejaview with Josh barking orders at me, coaching me all along the way with the fight, followed by a successful gaff shot. Sweet I was so stoked. After catching two more large Yellowtails, my arms were like rubber. I didn’t have any more fight in me, but Josh insisted that we keep fishing. He said you can’t stop fishing now, you can’t leave while the bite is hot. I got another hook-up followed by Josh doing a great gaff shot and now we have 4 on board. I thought how epic is that 4 yellowtail on a kayak. I hardly had room to put my legs, with over 50lbs of fish on board. Now my arms are aching, I begging with Josh, can we now go back? He said we should try to get your limit of 5 Yellowtail. I was praying that I wouldn’t catch another fish, I was beat. Josh now wanted to go after a White Sea Bass. With 4 very nice Yellowtails on board he now wanted to get a WSB, holy cow, this guy was trying to Sink My Kayak. Josh was very insistent in going for the WSB he said that he could just about guarantee that we would catch one, and I believed him. However I was beat, I didn’t have any strength left to fight a WSB. I pleaded with Josh to call it a day. I could tell that Josh was very disappointed. But I was delighted that we were headed back. We saw several others out there mostly with one Yellowtail but I was the only one with 4. What an epic trip. >> I really enjoyed meeting and fishing with Josh and what I learned was absolutely mind blowing. I caught more Yellowtail on these 2 trips than I have ever caught in total. But more important is the knowledge that I gained and the confidence that I now have to go back and give it a try on my own… Thanks Josh for the great time . This photo was taken by Jay.. Nice to meet you Jay, thanks for the awesome picture. Normally I wouldn’t even dream of catching and keeping 4 Yellowtail and won’t in the future. One nice fish is plenty. This was a once in a life time experience for me. None of the fish went wasted. I gave a lot of the fish away. I have lots of happy friends and neighbors. I would rather have the fish eaten fresh than keep it in the freezer for 6 months. The Yellowtail have been excellent on the Grill. A friend of mine smoked some and it was out of this world. Another friend recommended making some cevichie, I’m looking forward to trying that next. Tight lines. -Jeff Last edited by computerguy; 05-22-2010 at 10:58 AM.

05-22-2010, 04:08 PM	#8
T Bone Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Redlands CA Posts: 871	JOSH YOU SUCK ! oh no wait,I suck.Nevermind........ AWESOME !!!!!! __________________ Barachit Baralah,Elohim-In the beginning,God-Genesis 1:1 "Who among you,if your son asked for a fish would give them a serpent " Jesus Matt. 7:10

05-22-2010, 05:25 PM	#10
herbo Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Canyon Country, Ca. Posts: 116	That's totally awesome!!!!!! what a report and great pictures too! I'm going to have to enlist the services of the Master one of these days.....H __________________ mellow yellow malibu eXtreme

05-22-2010, 09:22 AM	#2
Yakking101 Junior Join Date: Jan 2010 Posts: 26	what are you talkin' about? You have PLENTY of room for a WSB on there! That is awesome, congrats!! Another happy customer! Im sorry Josh, but you are going to have to donate your brain to science one day... we have to see if its wired up like a fish in there.

05-22-2010, 10:40 AM	#3
dsafety Olivenhain Bob Join Date: May 2008 Location: Olivenhain, CA Posts: 1,121	I just don't get it. Everyone knows and Josh is always among the first to say it. THERE ARE NO FISH IN LA JOLLA! Good story though. Bob

05-22-2010, 10:55 AM	#4
Rob929 Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: San Diego Posts: 134	Wow! Nice report. 4 yellows and no sashimi?? Nigiri?? You are missing out my man. Either way, congrats

05-22-2010, 03:43 PM	#5
roadx . Join Date: May 2010 Posts: 1,155

05-22-2010, 03:48 PM	#6
blitzburgh Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Menifee Posts: 2,509	F N A!

05-22-2010, 04:01 PM	#7
umtduckhead Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: San Diego Posts: 147	congrats!

05-22-2010, 04:22 PM	#9
h2ofishfo Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Santee Posts: 821	muther f'er im always there when people say u shoulda been here yesterday & this is one of those days shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiii!!!comgrats though i heard about that bite

05-22-2010, 06:00 PM	#11
Aaron Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2010 Posts: 175	Look at the weather in both of those pics...unreal. The fish aren't bad to look at either! I'm willing to bet the secret is chartreuse powerbait...

05-22-2010, 06:57 PM	#12
Whizz Bang Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2009 Posts: 396	Nice fish, congratulations!!! I was one of those unlucky guys with only one... it fed me and mine for a few days though. At least thru sunday until I caught another. That much fish at one time would send me into panic mode. Josh, however, said it best....these were transient bastards stealing food out of the mouths of OUR fish. Keep'em all until they flee back to Mexico or head up the coast. Again well done, you had the trifecta going on that day....great weather, tons of hungry yellowtail, and josh. You may not see a day like that again, savor it.

05-22-2010, 08:35 PM	#13
radastaff Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Posts: 314	epicness

05-22-2010, 09:18 PM	#14
The Kid Loves Surface Irons Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: San Diego Posts: 455	anything on da surface iron?

05-23-2010, 07:18 AM	#15
yani Guest Posts: n/a	Jeff, It's a wise man who learns the right way. I know so many bull headed kayakers, like me, know insist on learning things on their own. They end up spending oudles of time and gas money just to get lucky in La Jolla. Learning includes a good teacher. Josh is the best teacher out there. Brutal and unrelenting, Josh sets you straight, yet gives you a foundational fishing experience for life. Like I tell my son: There are two kinds of people in this world. Not-so-smart people and smart people. Not-so-smart people learn from their mistakes. Smart ones, learn from the not-so-smart ones. Jeff, you must be a smart guy. See you on the water.

05-23-2010, 09:08 PM	#17
aftahour Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: torrance Posts: 155	wow.. thats all i can say and JOSH is the man to find the fish.

05-23-2010, 09:18 PM	#18
Limits Kayak Fanatic Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Cypress, CA Posts: 200	INSANE! I'm jonesing for just ONE. Congrats.

05-23-2010, 09:30 PM	#19
Vikingj Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Dana Point area Posts: 438	Super job and great report!

05-23-2010, 09:34 PM	#20
Pescavore1 Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Scripps Ranch Posts: 82	Congratulations, Jeff. What an epic day that was, especially for you. Next time you go fishing with Josh, be sure to bring plenty of game clip and make sure you have a cooler big enough Jay