Wish us luck! Last shot at a big Ling 12-31-2016...We're back & PJ rocks

Started by Big Tim, December 29, 2016, 08:55:53 PM

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theswimmer

OK so here we go....

Finaly blow off work about 1pm , pick up Miss Mari and get on the road.
We get to all of about Riverdale and the rain starts.
Combine this with every Yaahoo who has a motorhome and  who wants to head west and we are in for a Slo Ride.
Kettleman is a 30 minute adventure just to make it thru the light and we are off ...again.
Land at the http://www.sundowninn.com/ , dump the gear and head for the rondayvoo with BT and PJ at the Tani compound.
Greetings and hugs all around and we get to the serious stuff. Get me a BEER!
I will echo BT's comments about PJ's food , everything from baked brie to some fresh vegie concocktion , artichoke dip and much more.
The boy can cook. Thanks for the swag as well PJ!  Thanks to Mari as well for the great lasagana....
I also traded with PJ for the ownership of a very clean Super Stroker for a custom knife design TBDL.
Thanks again for all the effort and thanks to Mrs and Mr Tani for the use of the house again. ::)

We retire to the Inn about 8 or 9 and 4 am comes way to soon.
Meet with the boys at the Landing and as we look around we realize the boat is over booked.
OK so deal with it.
Tabby gets Endeavor rolling about 15 minutes early and out past the Rock we go.
Very quickly BT and I are looking at each other and the verdict is a wet ride.
At the start we are in short period rollers 7-10' about 9-12' apart.
Kinda bumpy but not bad.
I chat with Brad League the skipper and he is thinking what BT and I are, if it is 7-10' about 9-12' apart at Morro by the time we get to Cape San Martin it will be 12-15' and 25-30 ' apart , and it is. 30% of the fisherman are sick by the time we start fishing.
First drop I lose everything ,I hear PJ shout and he already has a Ling.
Second drop I pull up a double Red, both fish over 5 lbs.
And so it goes. We are just killing the Reds, more than I have ever seen on one trip.
Somewhere in there I pull in a huge Cabazon and follow up with a big Boccacio.
For three hours solid if you can stop from getting slammed into the rail or the guy next to you we just crank in the rock fish .
PJ had the hotstick for Lings with 6 total I think.
BT got 1 really nice Ling and I got 2 small ones I threw back. Thanks for the keeper PJ!
By the time the skipper decided to head in shallow I had at least  2 limits of rockfish , 10 or more of which I donated to other peoples bags because we still had people who were sick and not fishing. I was giving away 3-4 lbs Reds!
Shallow was not as productive with a couple more Lings and a bunch of Johnny Blues.
As always the ride home was a lot smoother and we managed a couple of Coors lites in celebration of the New Year and Tim's Bday.
Fantastic trip , great company , nice to meet PJ in person.
I think PJ gets a honorary membership in the Wrecking Crew based on fishing ability and culinary skills alone !
Back to Morro Bay and the http://www.sundowninn.com/ , hot shower and some take out Chinese and I was done.
Woke up about 11:45 for the fireworks and a shot , back to sleep I go......

Thank you everyone especially my best friend , Miss Mari, Thanks for putting up with me ,  Big Tim Happy Birthday , PJ ,  for all the effort in the kitchen and the prodigious swag and the Super Stroker , and especial;ly Alan and Mr and Mrs Tani for all the accommodations  and opening your home once again  to the Wrecking Crew.
Happy New Year to all ,here is to best wishes for a safe and Wonderful New year!

Best,
Jonathan

PS
The Golden Carp trophy is definitely Big Tims :D :D

There is nothing like lying flat on your back on the deck, alone except for the helmsman aft at the wheel, silence except for the lapping of the sea against the side of the ship. At that time you can be equal to Ulysses and brother to him.

Errol Flynn

pjstevko

It was a great trip with new friends.  Friday nights appetizers consisted of baked brie,  bruschetta,  artichoke/jalapeño cream cheese spread with the main course being Mari's lasagna with fresh grown garlic on French bread.  

4 am came early the next day and the landing was packed when we got there because apparently they were running 3 boats that day. The ride out to the fishing grounds was a little rough with plenty of big waves to make it uncomfortable sitting or standing.

We fished deep (220-260ft) most of the day.  Jonathan and Tim had spots at the rail near the stern and I was up towards the front by the wheelhouse. The first drop of day Tim snagged the bottom and lost a brand new bladerunner jig and I think Jonathan was held to the same fate on the first drop as well. I on the other hand landed a nice ling on my first drop! After that it was fish after fish after fish with big reds and lings coming over the rail all around the boat.  After about 2 hours I decided it was time to break in that psychedelic 501 and put it through its paces. First drop with the reel produced my biggest ling of the trip! I managed a couple quality reds and smaller lings on the reel and it performed flawlessly. About an hour later as I'm working my jig back towards the boat the rod doubles over and I set the hook; I pull up and reel down barely gaining line and then as I pull up I hear "crack ting" and I'm left holding half a rod! The line snapped as the rod broke so not only did I break a rod I also lost a  jig.  After a couple hours in the deep water Capt. Brad moved us in shallow to finish out the day so everyone could round out their limits of rockfish.  The size and quality of the fish inshore wasn't great but it offered a different variety of species so that was OK.  We fished inshore for an hour or two then Capt. Brad said haul them in we're headed home a little early since almost everyone had reached their limits.  The ride back in was nice and calm and it was cool to see what everyone caught as they were getting cleaned.  I'd say there were about 6 big lings over 18# brought in but the average size was closer to 8-10# with a few of us getting a couple in the 10-15# range.  The reds were great size averaging 6-8#. Seeing as how this was only my 2nd fishing trip in California my weight estimates may be a little off but I'm sure Tim or Jonathan will gladly correct me if I'm off.  

I had a great time and it was great to finally meet some of the AT Ohana! Once I met Tim and Jonathan it felt like I've them them my whole life.  A big thank you goes out to Tim and Jonathan for the hospitality and to Alan for letting Tim and I crash at his family's house.  

Hopefully I'll get to meet more of the family on whatever trip I can make next.....

pjstevko

Just a couple more pics.....look closely at the old school penn in the rod rack one of the cross posts is twisted or spiraled and it had a very cool rod rail bracket....

theswimmer

Penn 350 to be exact.
That was not a boat rod , someone fished that rod although I did not see who...
There is nothing like lying flat on your back on the deck, alone except for the helmsman aft at the wheel, silence except for the lapping of the sea against the side of the ship. At that time you can be equal to Ulysses and brother to him.

Errol Flynn

Swami805

Man that's some good rockfishing, be hard pressed to find better. Almost any of those reds would be jp on a lot of trips I've been on.Thanks for the report, Sheridan
Do what you can with that you have where you are

theswimmer

Sheridan,
The three fish in front of me ( green jacket ) go probably 7-8 lbs+ each😁
There is nothing like lying flat on your back on the deck, alone except for the helmsman aft at the wheel, silence except for the lapping of the sea against the side of the ship. At that time you can be equal to Ulysses and brother to him.

Errol Flynn

Vintage Offshore Tackle

Thanks for the great reports, and congratulations on the beautiful fish and on toughing it out at the rail on that nasty ocean!
Randy

Swami805

Those reds and chuckleheads are fat, Getting one or 2 like that a trip would be a great trip. I did the same trip a few weeks ago, I've never seen rockfishing as good as that. Looks like you guys really got into them pretty good too. Looking forward to March when it opens up again. Hopefully get a few AT trips in next year. Sheridan
Do what you can with that you have where you are

alantani

send me an email at alantani@yahoo.com for questions!

Gfish

Allright! Great report. Is a "Starie" a Stary Flounder?
You guys that know about charter boats (operators, employees, guys with lots a time fishin on 'em), do they overbook on accident, on purpose(I spose in case there's no-shows, or just to max out the profit) and isn't there a legal max. For persons onboard?
Gfish





Fishing tackle is an art form and all fish caught on the right tackle are"Gfish"!

theswimmer

Looks like a star printed on a flounder 5-6" in diameter,
I've never seen one much bigger ;D
There is nothing like lying flat on your back on the deck, alone except for the helmsman aft at the wheel, silence except for the lapping of the sea against the side of the ship. At that time you can be equal to Ulysses and brother to him.

Errol Flynn

Big Tim

Quote from: Gfish on January 02, 2017, 11:31:59 PM
Allright! Great report. Is a "Starie" a Stary Flounder?
You guys that know about charter boats (operators, employees, guys with lots a time fishin on 'em), do they overbook on accident, on purpose(I spose in case there's no-shows, or just to max out the profit) and isn't there a legal max. For persons onboard?
Gfish







This overbooking  was on purpose as it was the last day of the year and season. If we were on a 65' boat with a wide beam it wouldn't have been so bad...It's all about the $$$ and the crew was rooting for one of us to win the jackpot as they new that we would tip big. It is was it is. Tabby got her own boat so we may not see her and Sean next year (it will be hard to replace those 2). To add to the confusion the landing ran 3 boats out at 1/2 hour apart which made for some congestion  ;D. Still we had ha quality fish  ;D the bag of fillets I gave my son John was a bit over 12 pounds and that was just 2 fish, the neighbors are happy as well.

BT

MarkT

When I was your age Pluto was a planet!

Bryan Young

:D I talk with every part I send out and each reel I repair so that they perform at the top of their game. :D

Porthos

Quote from: pjstevko on January 02, 2017, 07:01:20 PM
...it was time to break in that psychedelic 501 and put it through its paces. First drop with the reel produced my biggest ling of the trip! I managed a couple quality reds and smaller lings on the reel and it performed flawlessly. About an hour later as I'm working my jig back towards the boat the rod doubles over and I set the hook; I pull up and reel down barely gaining line and then as I pull up I hear "crack ting" and I'm left holding half a rod! The line snapped as the rod broke so not only did I break a rod I also lost a  jig....

So it was a conventional casting rod? Which series? Was the tip at > 90° when it snapped? Want to know since I have a Tsunami Trophy TSTBS-J 701XH...