SO..
2 days on the water, 45 or so miles each way, 390 to 600+ feet of water, a really cool camping spot with a LOT of rain and three guys who fell in step like they have been fishing with each other for years going after ling, halibut and a crazy wide open black rockfish bite equals an awful lot of time with The Man stuffing lots filets into plastic bags that were cut by Eric and Ted...EXCELLENT!!!
Yes, that means I am not great with a filet knife and am much more effective in any support capacity that does not require me cutting off the skin of a fish!
I have lots of pictures, and will be posting them at a later date. For now; the fish is trimmed, bagged and in the freezer, I have gotten a long shower and now I am going to the rack.
I cannot say thank you enough to Ted. This man can place a boat on fish like a world class pro and the way he puts this thing in and out of a slip is a pure pleasure to watch.
Goodnight
The Man
The Man has fish blood pumping thru his veins.....and some on his pants too :D :D
And so it begins.
I got out of work late AND had a few things to button up at the house, so I didn't leave until 6:00 PM on Wed. Ted was already up at Neah with the boat in the slip and the tent up, in fact I think I interrupted a nap by telling him I was leaving. It is a very good thing that that I am fortunate enough to live in the middle of paradise and so it only took me a couple hours to get to Ted. On the way, I ran into these guys.
I promise I'll figure the picture thing out.
On the way, I wanted to show you guys the sun disappearing over the Contiguous 48. This isn't technically over flattery, I was just a bit late, this is over Sekiu, Pillar point and a few other points. Maybe 25 miles from Cape Flattery.
Quote from: Ron Jones on June 30, 2019, 04:52:08 PM
SO..
2 days on the water, 45 or so miles each way, 390 to 600+ feet of water, a really cool camping spot with a LOT of rain and three guys who fell in step like they have been fishing with each other for years going after ling, halibut and a crazy wide open black rockfish bite equals an awful lot of time with The Man stuffing lots filets into plastic bags that were cut by Eric and Ted...EXCELLENT!!!
Yes, that means I am not great with a filet knife and am much more effective in any support capacity that does not require me cutting off the skin of a fish!
I have lots of pictures, and will be posting them at a later date. For now; the fish is trimmed, bagged and in the freezer, I have gotten a long shower and now I am going to the rack.
I cannot say thank you enough to Ted. This man can place a boat on fish like a world class pro and the way he puts this thing in and out of a slip is a pure pleasure to watch.
Goodnight
The Man
So true, we were on the fish consistently throughout the day. He knew the spots and we limited out on halibut, lings, and rockfish!
Where's the pics of the fish-hold?
Great fish Ron! Sounds like you guys had an excellent trip. 8)
Very nice, can't wait for some pics.
Sal
Sounds like a fun trip.....and pretty scenery, to boot !
Nice report Ron, sounds like you all had a great Day, good memories, lovely sun rize, cheers Don & thanks.
Thanks for the report Ron, and way to go Ted! Great job putting those guys on the fish!
Nice trip,thanks for posting.
I'm going to have to do this the long way because the Network administrator can't figure out how to post more than one photo.
After arriving at about 10 at night and sleeping for a few hours that was interrupted by pelting of rain we woke up and said why not and we went for it.
It rained hard ALL...DAY...LONG.
That is until we decided that we've had enough and headed home without our halibut. Shortly after Ted put the hammer down and we headed West the rain slowed down and then stopped.
That flat run gave me an opportunity to snap a pic at Ted getting his work done. The man can drive a boat for sure.
Alway love seeing the Ohana getting together for a safe and productive trip.
Ted has a solid boat and plenty of time solo running her, so I have no doubt what the Chief says is on point. Heard you were the high hooker this time. ;)
Well done gentlemen,
Dom
Great report Ron. Those Black's are 2nd in taste only to Blue's when it comes to rockfish. Cool thing about both species is their schooling behavior. Assume Eric is "witty1", welcome to the site whitty one! Never thought of it quite that way Ron, but glad you got to have the pleasure of watching.
Quote from: broadway on July 01, 2019, 05:52:55 AM
Alway love seeing the Ohana getting together for a safe and productive trip.
x2
sounds like terrific trip, looking forward for more pics of the adventure
(sung to the tune of Singing in the Rain) Just fishing in the rain...Just fishing in the rain... What a glorious feeling Dominick
So, on our way in, just inside the "hole in the wall" between Tatoosh and Cape Flattery, Ted stops and says, look at that beach, this is where we take pictures!
Then it was back to camp to meet Eric, who promptly showed us a completely higher grade of fishing gear than we were using before, and man would he show us how to use it.
Fish don't care what color your reel is. ;D
Friday morning, up at 0400 and in the water and passed the wall by 0500 and we're off. We got to the rockpile by 8:00 and Eric was hooked up maybe 5 minutes later. He then demonstrated what it was to be a hot stick by catching several ling cod, each larger than the last, in succession. Eventually, I got my act together and within no time we had our limit of lings and were looking for halibut. Ted moved the boat maybe a couple hundred yards to his halibut hole and down went the jigs. I used the 1000 gram Cod jig for the first time and man does that thing work! We went through about 7 or so halibut before we were satisfied and then we were off to black rockfish. When Ted pulled up to the beach I was floored.
Let me be clear, their is no place on Earth anywhere near as amazing as the Olympic Peninsula. Its geography and the various formations are unbelievable and the flora and fauna are out of this world. All that being said, where Ted took us, along the coast half-way to La Push that you can only get to by boat, was the most breathtaking spot I've ever seen.
As soon as Ted got us sorted out, I dropped in a shrimp fly and found out that I was in the middle of a huge school of black rockfish. After 3 doubles in about 3 minutes I told everybody to get out there and it was on! we caught something like 40 fish in 35 minutes. Including 3 cabezon and even a surf perch!
Wow! I am in Awe! :o
Way to go. Congratulations it has all the aspects of a truly worthy of the term Epic fishing trip.
I spent a lot of years in the PNW, mostly north of there, the straits of Juan de fuca amd there is no place like the OP for natural unspoiled beauty.
Wow! This sounds like an amazing trip. Thanks for taking us along!
I'm really digging on this report format. I really get to digest the story slowly, so it isn't over so fast!
Mike
Last chapter, including some more scenery.
Once we limited out on black rockfish, released a blue ling cod and surprise surprise, three cabezon, Ted lit the fires and we surfed up the coast and back to the barn. As I said in the beginning, Eric and Ted are wizards with fillet knives, and they immediately went to work on an overflowing fish box. Eric had to head on home and Ted and I got some dinner and headed back to camp. The next morning, after two days of open ocean bouncing and deep water bottom fishing, neither Ted or I were exactly "spry." I woke up to thick fog and knew that odds were not good that we would bet wetting a line. I gotta hand it to Ted, he gave it his all and we got underway, but as soon as we got out of the harbor it was clear that good mariners would stay home unless necessary, we couldn't even see the lighthouse. So we put the boat in the slip, had a good relaxing breakfast, broke camp, put the boat on the trailer and said our goodbyes. What an awesome trip! One I hope to de every year for the foreseeable future.
Thanks again, boys.
The Man
Some more
It is difficult to get shots of everything while your turning and burning, this is the best we got of Eric, the man never stops.
On our way to the boat launch, we saw these two bald eagles (the pigeons of the Olympic Peninsula,) one drying his wings. It was a cool shot. Finally, in the end, dinner is what this is about.
Some commentary, Eric and I both used Okuma Halibut specific rods. His was the heavy SST and mine was the Celilo. My rod is magic with a 750 gram jig, but the tip is just to soft for much more than that. Eric's did way better with the pipe jigs. Speaking of pipe jigs, they caught the majority of the deep water fish over the last two trips. I have used them forever and will continue to. If you have any doubt about their effectiveness, I've got a full freezer to show you.
We used stock 113Hs, it just sort of happened that way. The number one upgrade for bottom fishing with these reels is a better handle, my hand cramped up a few times. I would also recommend a higher retrieve rate if you can stand it. I did all right, but I also use the rod a lot. Apparently, if you stop a fish by bending the rod it is called "high sticking" and somehow doesn't work the way it used to. It does stop a fish the way it is supposed to and lets you rest your hand.
Finally, don't get hungry and remember that the wind dries you out.
Finally, GET UP HERE!! There is no place like it, there is always something to fish for and everyone needs to fish with Ted at least once. I can't wait for the three of us to have a shot at this again.
The Man
Coooool!
Awesome !
Nice job boys for finally getting it done; maybe next year the weather won't blow us out three times !! Ted I love your hat ............... makes you look like a pro for sure !!
Cheers:
Todd
Bravo Ted!
Thanks! And good pics!
great pics!...good job guys!
Sal