Victory 11/22 Lings, Lings, Lings w/pics

[tsurikichi]

Hey guys,
Lots of Large Legal Lingcod

Rode Pierpoint’s NEW ¾-day local moo-moo Victory yesterday … Wednesday. Mike Blue ran the boat with Jason decking and my old buddy Ron in the galley. Fished locally at the ‘Shoe’ kinda straight out from the LB Breakwater. Only 19 anglers today!

Just a Note !! The Victory will be running daily … that is … it will NOT be off-line on Mondays and Tuesdays. Still …….. call for reservations.


Target Fish: Lingcod, Sheephead, SWRF, and Surface

Short Report- Wednesday 11/22:

Today: 19 anglers caught 6 Lingcod, 30 Sheephead, 7 Whitefish, 40 Rockfish, 4 Sculpin, 3 Calico Bass, 10 perch, and 25 Bonito!! Rockfish included: Treefish, Starrys, Cabezon, Bocaccio (Salmon Grouper), Chuckleheads (Coppers), Reds (Vermillions), and Brown Rockfish. We also caught maybe 10 short lings, 3 sharks (we moved when they moved in), and two really baby BSB which …….. were quickly and gently returned to their watery homes.

Our fish per rod average was around 8 quality fish.


Wednesday 11/22 Jackpot:

Weigh Off .......................Winner!


6 Big Lings

Seems like all the jackpot chasers were after the elusive Lingcod and got them today. Even the nice sized Sheephead coming over the rail never had a chance. In the end, the jackpot was won by Chin Kuk Park with a nice Lingasaurus, who used a small piece of squid and a size 4 hook!! Congrats!![font size=2]More ling-type fishy photos in the gallery


Long Report:

Out the Door

All Aboard............................................ ............................... Past the Piers!


Up and At ‘Em!!

Left the dock at the Winter schedule’s 7am. Knowing that we’re not far from the fishing grounds, everyone was pretty busy getting their stuff ready! Figure around 20 minutes to the bait receiver, baited up, then 15 to the LA light/breakwater, and another 30 minutes to the area where we made our first stop.


Baiting Up

Bass Boat......................................Nice Bait!


Nice Hook Bait!!

On the way to the bait receiver, we just had to pass by a couple of dudes fishing the wall !! Oh mannnnnn ! Throwing plastics no doubt! Arrrrrghhhhh !!
The bright spot was that Mike got us some nice dines today for the lings and maybe a little surface action. As always, we had a good supply of frozen Squid, some Shrimp, and later some Mackerel …….. caught to provide a little variety to the fishys diet.


The Days Fishing

Out a Bit!


Lots of Different Structure!!

Rockpiles, hard-bottom, reefs, a wreck and open water ranging from 90 to 180 feet made up our fishing grounds today.

As is often the case, I’ve had to advise newbies (if they declare themselves so) to NOT watch me. Fishing plastics, I can get my lure out, down, and faster than the guys with baited rigs. I can also avoid other angler’s lines more easily and quickly. For some, it takes fishing time and aggravation to believe me!


Moo-moo Pasture

Name This Moo-moo!


Pasture Lands!

The moo-moos that were able to get out to pasture were pretty much scattered and out of our sight early morning’s grazing. However, as the morning turned to near noon, we ventured out toward the 150 a bit and found that others were there munching away too!


Fishing Day

Round 1
The first part of our day consisted of hitting a couple of spots that produced in fairly close. Plenty of Lings ….. scratchy on the legals, nice Cabezon, Sheephead, and other fish. Most lings were caught with Sardines or the occasional mackerel.

Sheephead loved the Squid but wouldn’t refuse Shrimp either. Most were using the tried and true dropper loop with 3 to 6ozs of lead….. depending on where we were fishing.

Anchored on every drop. Fished a lot of structure but got fair warning that we’d have to pay attention! Pay attention …. What a concept! To the guys propping themselves against the rail with their elbows! ha ha ha

Conditions: There was a little wind, current varied, and swell hardly noticeable. It took a move or two to see how the conditions would stabilize for the day.


Round 2
Fished a little further out from our original area and suffered some slack current and a bunch of sharks moving onto the spot. Don’t get me wrong …. Fellow anglers caught fish with their dropper-loop rigs …. It just wasn’t worth testing the spot any longer … and we moved.

Conditions: The water and wind started to slowly lay down and it got to be really easy to fish although the current was growing in strength ….. translation ….. boat swing.


Round 3
We moved further out but not out past the 150 area as has been the pattern for moo-moos recently. Looked and found some Lingcod, Sheephead, and other fish….. including a bunch of Barberpole and Treefish!

Conditions: Got a little warmer and the water stayed clear yet the current started to pick up considerably.


Round 4
We once again moved back in closer and targeted the usual suspects along with bass and boneheads. With steady fishing on a variety of rockfish, we managed to get our bass and a good number of bonito.

Conditions: Got a little colder, current got stronger, swell larger, and bite slower as it often does in the late afternoon.


Sharing the Pasture!!

Quite a few really nice looking private boaters/anglers out on the water!

Lots of Nice Rigs!


Gallery:
The Fish – Lings, Goats & Others

3 of 6 Lings ............................................... Dream Team ................ Goats!


Variety and Quality!

Fished lots of different areas and caught a lot of different fish. It’s always cool to be fishing and not quite not know what’s coming up next.

The photos below are just a sample of the fish and things of interest, at least to me, on this week’s trip. Note: If you see a friend in the pictures, let them know they can copy the photo off the report and print it on their computer.


Anglers and Their Fish

Ling! ..................... Another .................................... Jim's Ling ....................................... Yet Another



More Fish!

Ron’s Fish ..........................Art's .........................Michelle's ...............Whitefish!



More Fish and Other!

Nice Fish ...........................Great color ............................. Wolf Eel .................................................A rt's Giants


My Corner


Let Them Know!

If you know the guys here let them know their boats here and they are welcome to take the photo for printing if the quality is sufficient.


Plastics

Big Baits


Plastics …. Tough …. But …. Do~able!

Fished plastics throughout the entire day. Caught only a few fish. I planned to fish exclusively on the very bottom using big baits and got not a single hit for my efforts.

That’s while everyone else is pulling in short lings all over the place! ha ha ha Not whining mind you. If the 3B’s showed, I was determined to then switch and go with the swimbaits for mid-depth and surface. At near the last, some bonies showed and we had a little bait to chum so we got a few.

Leadheads used were from ¾ to 3ozs. As I believe that fishing the leadhead without encumbering Carolina or Texas rigging, is more effective, I traded expedience in getting to the bottom for a single leadhead/plastic and slower but more natural action down where it counts. Applied attractant from the get-go.

With the shallower depths (90 feet or so), I used ¾ to 1oz leadheads with the 5 inch plastics when the current wasn’t ripping. With the inevitable increase in current and deeper structure (180 feet plus) I used up to 3oz leadheads with various swimbaits. Naturally my JerkIts with Smelly Jelly applied fit into this plan quite well. As has been the case the last few weeks, I am willing to earn fewer hits by fishing larger baits for a better grade of fish.

Tomorrow, along with the Smelly Jelly Sardine Glitter on my JerkIts, I will use the Hot Sauce (Crawdad) on the plastic Crawdads, mutant grubs, and even a Scampi. Hot Sauce will do ok but one thing you need to do is to keep it in a cool place …. out of the sun, as it will get runny if hot. Smelly Jelly is much more resistant to the heat and sticks to the lure like …….. er …….. really well.


Tweeking Plastics #1

Standups .................................................. ............3/4oz Addition!



Making a Stand-out Stand-up!

Looking in all the fishing mail-order catalogs, there doesn’t seem to be larger models of the stand-up leadheads that are commonly in use by the freshwater bass anglers. With the main application being for use in saltwater and depths of up to 180 feet, 2, 2 ½, or 3oz versions would not be unwelcome.

Plastics baits to be used effectively would include Crawdad, Scampi, many of the grub designs w/tails and collars, and even Squid in the large sizes would be suitable. Here on the Southern California saltwater scene, this leadhead, in only my opinion should have a lot of potential. So once again, the only option I have, if I want to try out this idea, is to make the leadhead myself.

Choosing the Right Leadhead!

As a matter of fact, most of the standard triangular leadheads made for swimbaits willl stand upright. The trick to make the leadhead stand upright with a plastic bait will be to widen the bottom with a base. I plan to simply mechanically attach a foot or base to the leadhead which both stabilizes, lowers the center of gravity, and adds weight to the combo.

Here’s the Drill:

Already having an adequate supply of a variety of the triangle style leadheads, your next step is to either find a suitable fishing or otherwise weight or make some from the weights that you have to serve as the foot or base. Lastly, you’ll want to select a type, length, and diameter screw that will adequately secure the base to the leadhad.

Making the Components:

Leadhead:

Step 1- Secure the leadhead in a vice or clamp with the bottom edge facing up for squaring the edge.

Step 2- Shave the bottom edge of the leadhead flat so that it sits seamlessly atop the base with no tilting from side to side.

Base:
Step 1- Trim, shape, and mark a sinker for drilling a through-hole.

Step 2- Drill a small diameter through-hole. I’m not going to counter-sink the hole for now.

Assembly:

Step 1- After securing the leadhead back in the vice, position the base on the flattened bottom edge, center and mark where the hole should be drilled in the leadhead.

Step 2- Tap a 1/8ths inch deep starter hole at the mark on the leadhead.

Step 3- Just to check all is well, put the base on the leadhead’s flat edge and align the drilled holes.

Step 4- If alignment is good, using a drill-bit slightly smaller than the screw’s diameter you plan to use to assemble the leadhead, drill a hole through the base.

Step 5- Again, align the base on the leadhead and drill to a depth to be determined by the length of the screw. Due to the possibility that the base and leadhead may come apart in an undermined future mishap, both the screw diameter and the depth of the hole should be less than the maximum.

Step 6- As an option, apply adhesives to the two joining faces.

Step 7- Secure the two components with the screw. (again, applying adhesives just beforehand as an option)

Testing:

There is really no testing other that putting various plastics on the finished headhead and dropping them to a bottom within a depth you can see. That the leadhead and plastic stand upright on the bottom after the fall should be a sufficient indicator the balance is correct and the project is a success. Only time will tell if the screw loosens. Estimated project time: 30 minutes.


Wednesday’s Conditions:

Fishing Grounds: The air-temperature ranged from the 50’s to warm until mid-afternoon. Fished under hazy, then clear skies….. as usual. Water clarity varied but was overall pretty good. The further out the clearer the water got …. Maybe 15 feet.

Water temps went from the morning’s 64 to 65 degrees later in the day!! Had some chop during the morning but is was minimal. Swells were less than 2 feet at 15 seconds, with the wind blowing at just a slight breeze. Heading outside the down-hill swells died down, came slower, and the West wind dropped considerably …..

Wild Creatures: 1, 2, then 3 Sealions made their usual visit and were rewarded with those who were using Sardines for bait. The usual Seagulls, Pelicans were hanging out, along with those pesky Cormorants…… which still seem to get caught more than other birds.

Asides:

An Aside: Trying to educate a Cormorant. There are bird-brains and then there are bird-brains!! After having my swimbait chased, attacked on 4 consecutive casts and bitten twice, I made a concerted effort to ‘educate’ this one Cormorant. Dipped the lure into the water and here he or she came. Held it high enough, just out of reach, so said bird could see clearly (head moving from side to side) it didn’t move, was not real, had a big yellow (colorblind??) leadhead. I even timed it so that my neighbors real bait could be compared to my plastic almost side by side.

Repeated variations of this 4 times and STILL my pupil was not getting it! Birdie never gave up until some other luckless angler hauled it onto the rail and removed their leadhead !! Pelican or Cormorant …. Which one is dumb and which one is dumber?!


Another Aside: One angler that I suspect might be fairly new to riding the moo-moos, or at least the ¾-day boats remarked to me at the end of a trip the other week ……‘wasn’t the trip from 7 to 5? I sensed he felt we should have stayed out to fish longer or maybe have the skipper say something about the ‘early’ return.
As for myself, when the wind picks up, a good chop is developing, the current is ripping, we’re swinging like a grandfather clock’s pendulum, and ………….. fishing has gone from ok to a mere one or two fish being caught in the last 45 minutes to an hour and two moves, I’m begging to get off the boat! I understand that I fish a lot so I might not think so much of the time but ……… in my not so humble opinion …. In the Winter …….. the late (3pm~5pm) afternoon bite simply doesn’t materialize with any frequency. Certainly not like in the Summer! Am I ‘right thinking’ on this!? That’s a rhetorical question! There’s a funny saying … ‘You’ll be beggin to get on and beggin to get off’. ……. Sometimes


Yet Another Aside: This is a blatant ‘want to buy’ advert. I am looking for a reel. It’s the older Abu-Garcia 7000, round, level wind model. The one’s I’ve seen on the boats are maroon in color. The one I’m looking for has a narrow spool … not like the 9000. I use graphite 5500’s and the 6500C size guys right now. I am NOT a collector and use my stuff so I don’t care about a box, original parts, if it’s appearance is rough ……. as long as it’s in pretty much working condition.


Useful Information

Stern Shots .................................................. ....Colors!


Spot On the Spots!!

For the moo-moo patrons that may not have ridden a certain boat in a while or is new to a boat, this info should eliminate one common question. We all know that every spot on the boat is equal ….. just some are more equal than others. Ha ha ha This is especially true if you do a certain kind of fishing …… which …... may not necessarily be the other way anglers are fishing.


The Victory

George-Owner........... Mike- Skipper


On Deck

Jason- Deck............................... Ron- Galley!


Into Rainbow Harbor!


Trip’s End!

Today, the skipper, crew, fellow club-members, and some regulars made Wednesday a great day to be on the water and fishing. Everyone that wanted fish came off the boat with filets from what I could see. We were off the boat by 5:00 and I was home at around 5:30pm.

tsurikichi

[EricM]

Another great report dude! Man that jackpot ling is a great size! Surprised you didnt get a ling...they love plastics!

Great report and pics!

[NESSIE HUNTER]

Way to go Ron...

Another winner buddy... Thanks..

[Captain CABO]

I've read your reports for awhile and I must say that they are awesome. You must sit there for two hours just writing them. Nice job and glad to see that you got some fish.

Barrett

[reel toy]

Another great report.. Keep up the great work....

[WreckinBall]

Ron, you've definitely got an eye for detail.

[tsurikichi]

Hi guys,

Thanks for the atta-boys. Always great to get input from fellow-anglers. I went out again for those lings yesterday but didn't get mine ....... somebody else on the boat did! Only a few days left !!

Will post yesterdays report this afternoon,

tsurikichi

[makojoe2004]

Send me a better pic of the wolfeel

[Mot's Sr.]

Another awesome detailed report and totorial (sp) Ron, you do such a great job at it and must spend a lot of time doing them.

It's appreciated man. Thanks

Great pictures and details too.

[sealskinner]

Thanks for the in-depth report.

[F15hK1ll3r]

Originally Posted by sealskinner

Thanks for the in-depth report.

Ditto that

[tsurikichi]

Hi Makojoe2004,

I would but I just got that one shot. I'm sure you know how they twist around and ride on the gaff, net or whatever. Before I could get a better shot he or she was in a tight ball only to be shaken off with much effort.

After putting the photo up, I deleted the original in the camera. Sorry 'bout that one. Seems editing posted photos doesn't always work out well.

tsurikichi