Eric, The Man and Ted's EXCELLENT Adventure!!

Started by Ron Jones, June 30, 2019, 04:52:08 PM

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Dominick

(sung to the tune of Singing in the Rain)  Just fishing in the rain...Just fishing in the rain...  What a glorious feeling Dominick
Leave the gun.  Take the cannolis.

There are two things I don't like about fishing.  Getting up early in the morning and boats.  The rest of it is fun.

Ron Jones

#16
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!
Ronald Jones
To those who have gone to sea and returned and to those who have gone to sea and will never return
"

Ron Jones

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.
Ronald Jones
To those who have gone to sea and returned and to those who have gone to sea and will never return
"

witty1

Fish don't care what color your reel is.  ;D

Ron Jones

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!
Ronald Jones
To those who have gone to sea and returned and to those who have gone to sea and will never return
"

Shark Hunter

Life is Good!

David Hall

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.

Fishy247

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

Ron Jones

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
Ronald Jones
To those who have gone to sea and returned and to those who have gone to sea and will never return
"

Ron Jones

Some more
Ronald Jones
To those who have gone to sea and returned and to those who have gone to sea and will never return
"

Ron Jones

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.
Ronald Jones
To those who have gone to sea and returned and to those who have gone to sea and will never return
"

Ron Jones

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
Ronald Jones
To those who have gone to sea and returned and to those who have gone to sea and will never return
"

Gfish

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

Crow

There's nothing wrong with a few "F's" on your record....Food, Fun, Flowers, Fishing, Friends, and Fun....to name just a few !

Hardy Boy

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
Todd