Area 10 chinook 8/12

Got out at first light for some mooching yesterday. First herring did its job until it got macked by a light biter. I settled into my next drift and halfway through it I get some good nibbling bites so I drop my rod tip to give it some more line and in a few seconds the rod tip is buried. Being the first big fish on the mooching rod and reel I took it easy and the reel was really spinning through some nice big runs. Really cool palming it. Just like a fly fishing but with bigger fish. Because of it I let the fish run a lot more than I usually would and think it tired the fish out quicker and overall was less stress on the line. Got it to the weight and noticed it was as big as it felt. Made an attempt at netting and the fish didn't like it so did a few more laps. Next try it was thoroughly tired and got an easy net. It was a lot of fun and real heart thumper with that BC setup. Chinook went 34.5" and 20#. I gave a shot at a gyotaku print and I think I did ok. It's still not done but has some promise. I'll post another pic when it's done.

Z

Hell Yeah!!!!!

Nice friggin fish!!!!!!  You're on fire Zee!!!!

You may have to post a how to on the gyotaku print.  Even for a 1st shot, it looks awesome!

-Spot-

That got the blood pumping this morning.  Nice report.

Sweet fish there Z!! That print is cool too

AWriiight!!  Nice nookie, love the print.  Were you at Point No Point???  Used to fish there a lot in the 1990's, loved the trolley launch!

Well done! Thanks for the report! Nice print, too. A friend of mine did that kind of print with a good fish once. Looks cool!

Kings are taking center stage!

I'm just finished prepping my PB for lazy tidewater trolling with a large cooler full of ice, snacks, lunch, and a couple of beers. Backsliding to the Dark Side, I know.

wow! nice fish.  You got my blood pumping too. My wife and i are hopefully  going out to freshwater bay for sunday afternoon high tide. I hope we can catch his brother. I have not caught a salmon on a kayak yet. Can you be a little more agressive with the drag since the kayak is more mobil and can be pulled around somewhat? doug

Thanks guys. The print is rather easy with the right materials. That and you can make lots of prints so if one doesn't come out well you can keep on trying. I followed Seahunter's tutorial (from NCKA) and watched his video a bunch. http://www.norcalkayakanglers.com/index.php/topic,10008.0.html

Can you be a little more agressive with the drag since the kayak is more mobil and can be pulled around somewhat? doug

I don't have a lot of PB experience so maybe someone else can answer that better. I like letting the salmon do its running right off the bat and just keep it at bay until it tires and then get to putting the screws in. In my experience, most salmon will tire themselves out quicker with moderate pressure. I think they run harder and longer and get really pooped. And that's the kind of salmon you want to net. Don't ask me how I know...

Z

Doug, I fished Freshwater Bay with  a local (to P.A.) guy named Bob, he said be tied to the kelp at high slack, the candlefish will come out of the kelp and the kings come right into the 40-foot depths to eat them, he caught a nice 15# nookie while he was telling me how to jig them up!!!  White or silver Pt Wilson dart, 1/5 or 2 ounces.  cast out, let the kig hit bottom, lift and reel, lift and reel, till it's right below you, then jig it for a few minutes----slow lift and fast drop.

Sweet looking fish, Zee. Can't wait til I get some down time!

I'll get to your boat question one of these days!

Very nice!     The mooching setup looks like a blast, too.

Great fish!  I'm in pain waiting for Monday morning to go out.

Here's the fish and the print. Obviously still have some work to do (I also made a lighter print) but the paper I'm using is too thin and getting a little weak.

Z

That print is very cool! another one of those got to try it things...