Your Best "One that got away" story

[mtnbykr2]

Originally Posted by bus kid

I call BS on everyone without pics

but then it would not be a "story" then would it?
this outta be a good long thread ...lol

[JoeBeck]

I have a few memories of losing some good fish . The worst fish I lost actually was not mine, it was my wifes, 2 years ago in the Steve moyer tournament. She hooked a good size halibut, her fist legal halibut, not a tournament winning fish but would have won her the female division. She could not figure out how to gaff it, the fish looked completely wiped out from the battle. So I paddled up, I knew it was not a 20 pound fish, she had 30 pound line, I grabbed the line brought the fish to my boat grabbed it and put it between my lap. It went nuts!!!!!!!!!!! Jumped off the boat, still hooked, grabbed it again and it jumped off the other side coming undone and being free. She was crushed, I was crushed more losing her fish.

The good news is my wife didn't weigh a bigger fish than me . Actually I didn't weigh a fish either.

[GregAndrew]

I would not know where to start. Let's just say that most of the contestants for the honor were due to user error.

[Aaron&Julie]

Jim,
You're my kind of fisherman. I liked your stories, and I can relate. Besides the fact, you fish out of my original stomping grounds, Redondo and such.
Gotta say though per Joe Beck's post, Julie's lost halibut, was my greatest loss.
Aaron

[Matt]

As for mine ask Gary Sullivan hahaha j/k Gary

[steveooo]

[deepdvr]

Originally Posted by steveooo

I think that one got hit by a boat prop

[Fiskadoro]

Originally Posted by Aaron&Julie

Jim,
You're my kind of fisherman. I liked your stories, and I can relate. Besides the fact, you fish out of my original stomping grounds, Redondo and such.
Gotta say though per Joe Beck's post, Julie's lost halibut, was my greatest loss.
Aaron

Thanks Aaron. Yours really hit home as well. It's a drag to loose your own fish but I really hate loosing a fish like that if it's someone else's. My old Redondo fishing buddy Mike hooked a huge dorado off SBI during the late 90's El Nino~ maybe five feet long. He hooked it on ten pound as there were some small line shy yellows on the paddies. So he had it on for a good while, and we eventually tried to chase it down. I had to gaff it off the bow while the boat was in gear, and I gaffed in the gut and there was no-where to drop it. So I tried to walk it back to the stern deck, it went ballistic and it then ripped out shaking off the gaff by tearing it's own guts out before I could flop it on board. So it not only broke off in the end but with the hole in the belly I killed the fish as well. Still haunts me to this day when I think about it.

Jim

[WahooUSMA]

Ask Kent and Premo

[mtnbykr2]

as most have said,
probably too many to count, and without a pic I will add mine, with only witnesses and a failed Go Pro film attempt...
Most recent one I let get away....a couple months ago I took a fishin partner up to Santa Barbara, four of us launched at the landing, sunrise...calm water easy bait, anchovies everywhere, but the gang had decided we all had to leave early so we cheated and bought bait at the barge a couple of the guys headed out to 1 mile or there abouts...a couple of us decided to fish the beach and drift for buts...I had a 15 lb rig out on the drift with a anchovie pinned on, we had a few calicos around the pier, and the bass bite was pretty good, however we were after dinner...we paddled underneath the pier to get to the sand on the other side and as I went under the pier I decided I would drift with squid on another rod, I left the one rod in, while I was setting up the other rod.
I had the clicker on the Corvallus and set it in the holder, just as I came out from under the pier, I had finished the squid rig, and started to drop it down. I took a quick look around and up at the rod tip that was in the holder, and I noticed the line was slack, I was facing the beach at the time so the horse shoe end of the pier was to my stern and I was moving in a forward drift, I thought that's funny that line is in the wrong place according to my drift, adrenaline level rose I quickly set the squid rig in a rod holder and picked up the Corvallus and reeled up the slack paying attention to the end of the line, I felt a couple of shakes and knew this was not a snag.
Now I have the slack tightened up and the line is going out and back to the stern, I set the hook and the sliegh ride was on...when I set the hook, this fish turned my yak around like I was hooked to a train, after the 180 degree turn I was headed straight for the back of the pier approx 150 yard away, I yelled over to my partner and he heard the echo of my voice
"turn on your camera" I said, now I am settled in on the fight and ride. Now unknown to me my friend had fired up the Go Pro and looked in my direction and I was gone...he thought to himself that's rude he's not there anymore...I was headed toward the back of the pier at a rapid pace. though the that got away was not taking large amounts of line off it was
still taking out some line, I realized it was either I stop the fish now or my yak and I will be slamming into the pilings in a very short time, you can get through on the sides of the pier but the pilings at the end of the pier
are in such a way that there would not be enough room for my kayak to fit through especially being towed at about 2-3 mph, I thumbed the spool.
the line started to come up like the fish was going to go airborn, by this time I knew I was going to be the loser here, I was running out of real estate as they say...I was about ten yards off the pilings, by this time my friend caught up to me only to see the line coming up, I had to put the binders on and tighten the drag, thumb was getting hot and "click" it was all over, but the adrenaline rush was awesome, I couldn't tie a hook on without shaking for a good half an hour after that...it was definately a wonderful feeling even though "it" got away

[premo]

Originally Posted by WahooUSMA

Ask Kent and Premo

I will let Kent to write Roger's embarasing story.
I would blame Kent anyway for been lousy gaffer
one time i have been towed by fish in LJ so strong that this them thing allmost pull me out of my yak I couldn't lift my rod( it looked like water skiing). I was scraming like a guy in kayakhunters video and my buddy couldn't keep up with me on his prowler 15,unfortunetly fish broke me off in kelp.