Awesome day...
Started out around 4 AM (ocean temp 56F; river temp 72F and clearing up nicely)
and anchored up across from the needle. The tide had just turned to incoming.
Went thru 2 packages of herring in abt an hour, biggest fish was 29", all
released. Switched to tossing a deceiver for abt an hour (there were a few fish
breaking on the surface) but only managed one fish, 25". Went to Breaking
rocks around 7AM (ocean was like glass!) and in a little over an hour jigged up
a couple of dozen mackeral in the 8" to 15" range with a "tree rig".
Came back to the mouth of the river around 10AM and drifted with the now
outgoing tide, and in the Sunday morning boat traffic. There were at least 30
other boats doing the same and the current was really moving... what a Zoo! Lots
of boats with hook-ups... I fished the live mackeral with 4 oz. of lead and a
slip rig... WahOOooo! From abt 10 till noon I caught 14 fish over 30", the
biggest was 42" (!!!).
While reeling in the fish I ended up bringing home (32" and 15#), a buddy
followed up from the bottom.... Yikes, what a monster!!!! No kidding, this
guy/gal appeared to be around TWICE the size of the fish I had on!!!!! I have
never seen a striper that huge before! It was the main reason I kept catching
and releasing fish until I ran out of mackeral. A 32" fish in the box is great,
but a 50-60" fish could have been the fish of a lifetime! Back at the ramp at
1PM.
This brings up a question.... that 40+" fish really busted my balls! At the
time, I was using an 8 foot one-piece ("California fighting stick"; stiff
backbone, limp tip) with a Penn Squidder with 30# line and a 20# leader. What
would I have needed to hook and boat that monster? I know that fish don't get
that big being stupid.... Any hints on presentation, bait, and tackle would
be appreciated. Tight lines!
Mike Bernock (ex-lurker)
Wahoo 2100, "Laura Jean II"
mbernock@mediaone.net