Foggy Bay 2010

[[WR]]

Damn i hope it gets posted in the clear soon. i dont do social networking sites and the suspense is killin me.

[polepole]

Awesome ling BJ.

-Allen

[Zee]

That's f*cking amazing YM!!!!
That's gotta be a kayak ling record.

Z

[[WR]]

wait... how much did that monster weigh??

[Ling Banger]

how gosh darn long was that thing 46" maybe?

absolutely fantastic fish dude! nice haul

[polepole]

I'm guessing 50+ inches and 40 pounds.  That sucker is a FATTY.

-Alen

[coosbayyaker]

holy sh*t!! that's the real lingzilla!! 

50 pounds...

[YakontheFly]

I love the file name...Though I think Foggy should be replaced with another word that begins with "F"!   

Comparing that things head to YM's nugget, and the Boga Grip to its jaw, I suspect it was longer than the 55" allowed to keep...

Still better to put her back as quick as possible and let her make more Lingzilla's...

So, who is ready to commit to the same place next year?   

YotF

[polepole]

So, who is ready to commit to the same place next year?   

I got a new place in mind.   

-Allen

[YakontheFly]

So, who is ready to commit to the same place next year?   

I got a new place in mind.   

-Allen

Going to be REAL HARD to beat that Kayak Fishing Paradise...  Unless it involves a remote lodge, with soft beds, showers, comperable fishing, and the ability to preserve some of your smaller catches for shipment home.   

[polepole]

So, who is ready to commit to the same place next year?   

I got a new place in mind.   

-Allen

Going to be REAL HARD to beat that Kayak Fishing Paradise...  Unless it involves a remote lodge, with soft beds, showers, comperable fishing, and the ability to preserve some of your smaller catches for shipment home.   

Oh come on Troy ... ye of little faith.  Do you think I'd suggest something as being better than Foggy Bay if I didn't really think it was indeed better than Foggy Bay.   

-Allen

[YakontheFly]

Well,

First we had Hinchenbrook...  Pretty damn good...

Then Montague...  Not as good...

Now Foggy Bay...  Best yet....

See a trend?   

Yes, me of little faith...   

YotF

[polepole]

Now Foggy Bay...  Best yet....

Was it?  I haven't seen very many pictures or a full report yet.   

-Allen

[YakontheFly]

Now Foggy Bay...  Best yet....

Was it?  I haven't seen very many pictures or a full report yet.   

-Allen

ROFL....  Still trying to get all the participants to share their pictures, and a full report will be done then.

Suffice it to say, I left the camera at my house, and was forced to use my Blackberry for all my pictures...  Not the best p[icture to say the least.....  Howie took some great ones, as did several of the other participants...  SCAllen has one of me with my 32 lb Hali.

YotF

['Yak Monkey]

So, where do I begin?  The trip to Foggy bay was, as Doug Wilson would describe it, LEGENDARY.  Although there are more stories that I can easily share here, there are several aspects of the trip to foggy day that I didn't think deserve some photos and some words.



The pic above illustrates how the weather was astounding for most of the trip.  In fact the bulk of this summer the weather has been quite moderate and it felt more like western Washington that it did like Alaska.  What does that mean?  Well, it means that sunny and mild with low lying clouds and light breezes have been the predominant weather pattern for the last few months.  This is also true of the time spent in Foggy Bay.  Although we did experience a little bit of rain and wind on a few days, it was short lived and moved through quickly. The only portion of the trip where weather was a nail biting concern was before the trip began, and whether or not the conditions would be favorable for the ride out to the island on "The Boat".  Captain Bill was able to take advantage of the good weather we had, and the trip down to the island was smooth and pleasant.



Once we arrived, setting up camp was the first priority followed directly by the first fishing outing.  While everyone was getting ready with their tents and chopping firewood and doing the very first things that were necessary to establish camp, I started working on the kitchen.  I gotta say, that with my years of experience camping in the rain forests of the Pacific Northwest the fundamental importance of a strong tarp system can't be underestimated.  So, I began finding a way too contrive a temporary shelter that did not intrude past the intertidal zone.  This part of the Misty Fjords park system requires that campers (after securing a permit) practice zero impact camping.  What this effectively means is that you must stay out of the trees: no tents, camp fires, or latrine activities in the woods. All of your things and most of your time should be on the beaches.  Howard had done some significant scouting of this area in previous years and is quite keenly aware of the tidal effects on this island. So, with just a little bit of guidance we were all able to set up our equipment above the tide line but outside the trees.  This very effectively highlighted the wisdom in the choice of location because we actually had enough sandy beach to spread out the tents for a semblance of privacy, and we had room to spare.



Unfortunately, I wasn't able to get my tarp system up and arranged on the first day and had to make dinner without the benefit of a tarp roof.  Mother nature was cooperative, and I had no difficulty or concerns about leaving the kitchen exposed.  All of the fisher folk came ambling back into camp and I could tell right - from the radio chatter and broad smiles - that everyone is very pleased with what they had found.  To be honest, I do not have a standing record of who caught what, when, how or where exactly.  But let it suffice that the quality of the fishing is unsurpassed by anything I've seen this summer or in my recent memory.
The next few days were a blur of activity, including making the kitchen prepared correctly and just providing for the general needs of a group of this size, and proved to be very entertaining for all.  I should let those who have had more focused memory of their specific accomplishments tell their own stories.  Hopefully, there should be a large number of photographs arriving on howard's desk, and we'll try to add them to this report as the trickle in.  It doesn't always work out when people mean to send things in, but we can always hope!j



When I mention just a little while ago that the time at Foggy became a blur, well that effect became more pronounced as time went on.  I had originally been slotted to be in camp for five days, however that changed to the full 10 day outing.  Howard Rocks!  Even though it wasn't a vacation and included a lot of work, it was the best 10 days of working I've ever had in my life.
Let me back track a little (and you wonder why it takes so long to get these reports out?).  Halfway through the 10 day period was a transition day between our first and second group of clients.  The tradeoff of groups went very well and we showed a level of expertise that apparently impressed Captain Bill.  The first night for the new group was quite a bit easier as camp was already established and everything was in full swing.  These were some very serious guys, intent on fishing like madmen, and they did exactly that. (just don't ask about the blue shoes!) It was nice to see that both groups of clients had it together and knew how to make the best of the time that they had.  I can safely say that no one left Foggy Bay with any sense of dissatisfaction.

Here is are the fish I photographed (not all of them, that's for sure) on my one full fishing day.  The boss was kind enough to take over the kitchen so that I could get a good day off the clock for serious lure slingin'.  My apologies on my horrible pics.  My camera is nearing it's last legs, and I don't have the right one chosen or the spare dough to replace it quite yet.






So, above is my best fish of the trip.  She came in on a fast tide rip, on a submerged point in about 80' of water.  Epic fight, and I think the most fun was trying to figure out what it was before it made it to the surface.  It wasn't fighting like a big rockfish, it didn't feel like a barn door, and it wasn't a snag.  Howard was there, watching the fight, and we were both surprised when it came up a big ling.  I got her to calm down (she made another good line peeling run) and we got a picture.  Then I laid her in the boat and did my best to measure.  Because I was rollin' without my pedals, I had a good space to fit her in the big footwell, where I tried to measure her quickly.  Her head was at my toes, and her tail at my ribs, but she had a significant curviture that caused my relatively flat folding measure device to read just over 40".  There was no way she was going to die that day, so I just slid her back into the water and accepted that there were no AOTY points for that beauty.  I would have had to get a fish over 55" in order to be able to score it, and I wasn't willing to keep her out of the water any longer than I already had. I'm happy with the picture, and to know that she is probably sitting right back on the same spot I pulled her from. 

I'll have to stop by and say hello to her next year.