Maiden voyage and hull bloodying, Tarpon 140

Finally got my act together and found the time to do a respectable first go-out in the new fish sleigh and slay some fish!

It was foggy in the morning. Got to the parking lot and wasn't too bad, at least 1/4 mile of visibility. Looked to be thinning a bit. Hmmmmm....wind from the SW, swell not bad, no precip in the forecast...everything else looks almost perfect...good to go!

First thing was to paddle out and roll the boat and then climb back in. I just rocked back and forth I rolled. Glad to be wearing my wetsuit. I hauled myself up onto the deck and twisted my okole into position with no problem.  I tried sitting side-saddle, didn't like that, and then sat with my legs draped over each rail. Ahhh! Good balance and "roll control" in this position.

Went back to my rig and got my fishing stuff. Decided to really keep it simple and just took one spinning rod (one I use for salmon and bottom fish, rigged with 12# test Maxima mono) and some jigheads and various plastic worms, grubs and minnows, and of course some Mikes Anchovy Oil, for garnishing the offerings.

As I paddled around the tail end of the jetty and out into the thinning fog by myself, all of my prior doubts and sense of foreboding about this enterprise vanished. I felt right at home out there!

I was casting to the jetty and "walking" my jig down toward me back down the staircase of the sub-surface sloping rocks.
I ended up releasing 4 undersized Lings (cute little devils) and keeping 3 Black Rockfish.
 I missed some grabs and lost a couple medium sized fish after hooking up.

But then there is always the "one that got away."
I hooked a large Ling. At first, it came up easily, but before I could get a glimpse of it, it headed back down. It felt BIG! I kept it out of the rocks and gained some line on it, but it was a powerful fish and bore back down toward some cave in the base of the jetty. I kept the pressure on it, and seemed like I was going to be able to raise it to the surface, but suddenly it came unbuttoned. Hook either pulled out, or the ling just finally got tired of playing with me and let go. That was a powerful fish!  I marked the spot! I'll be back!

Another kayak angler, one in a dark green OK Trident 15 paddled out, and we exchanged greetings. We remembered each other from a conversation we had out on the jetty this last Spring, where we discussed our ideas of getting SOT yaks to better access the fishing there.    I'd been out for 5 hours by then, so I fished until the tide changed and was running back out, then headed back in.
I got into a conversation with some surfers and hung out for a bit, hoping to talk to the other yak angler, but he was hard core. He was still out there when I left at 7:15pm.

Winds aren't looking good for another go in the immediate future, so I'm waiting for another "window."

Nice. Glad it's working out for you!

J

NICE!  Glad to see you've made it to the other side of the cast.  There's nothing like chasing Lings and Rockies to make your day/week/month.  Now get back out there and grab us a picture of that big Ling/Cab.

Were you fishing the groins or the south jetty?

-Spot-

Thanks, guys. I didn't want to take my camera until I felt more comfortable with the balancing act, as it is only "splash proof."
The yak "end of the cast" is definitely the better end to be fishing from than the "rock-hopping" end of the cast. No doubt about that whatsoever!

Spot, that was the South Jetty. The tip is whitewashed with bird dung. There's a gazillion pelicans out there, like a scene from some Hitchcock movie. Another reason why yakin' it is better than hoofin' it.

Nice. Sounds like a lot of fun. Thanks for the report.

Z

Congratulations on your first yak fish and reentry. 

I'm keeping my radar and weather radio tuned for the right conditions for my next go-out there. Can hardly wait. I'll post here before my next planned Jetty trip, in case anyone here wants to join me. Its easy enough, and even though its at the Harbor entrance, sometimes susceptible to strong ebb currents, large breakers, whipping NW winds (blow you right into the rocks), and big/snotty/merciless wind chop, you can avoid a mis-adventure by paying attention to the conditions and doing proper planning.
You only go for it when it looks user-friendly in places like this. Then its likely to be a good trip.
 
Ravdakot mentioned he'd like to try fishing the Jetty. On the right day, its a cakewalk!

More notes on my Tarpon 140:
Paddles noticeably faster than my Ultimate 12, for sure. Other than that, i don't have anything to compare it to.
Turns easily enough without a rudder. I didn't have to fight any cross winds or side chop, so a rudder would have been excess baggage on this trip. The few times that my yak spun to a bad casting angle only required a couple of paddle strokes to re-adjust to the preferred angle of attack.
Boat seems about as big as I want to handle loading/unloading/transporting, but once in the water, it almost felt a bit minimal for the ocean.
Water was just at the top of the scupper holes. No water coming into the yak thru these. I weigh about 170. Seat was very comfortable, with adjustable back and thigh support.

No leaking whatsoever thru the hatches after rolling the boat over a few times on flat water and then hosing it down afterwards. Dry inside. Might not be the case if I huli it in the surf, though. I did not hose water directly at the hatch seals to test them, though.

140 vs 160? I think Lee's choice of the Tarpon 160 with a rudder for downrigger trolling was probably a wise one. I don't downrigger troll, so I don't need the extra length and capacity. And myself being only a skinny old man, I think the 140 isn't gonna kill me loading and unloading like the 160 might.

I'm staying tuned!

CHM,
Remind me, what are you using to haul your boat, again? i think you mentioned it once before but I'm not positive.

if it's within your budget sometime in the future,you might want to look at adding a Thule Hull A Vator set up to your rig, if it has a rack and cross bar system. that will allow you to load the boat into the cradles at waist level, then lift it up and lock it on the roof with the assistance of gas pistons and spring power. pretty slick system. just be aware it will set you back about $590.00 a set ( pair) depending on where you buy and whether or not you need cross bar adapters.

yes, i know it's relatively expensive, but it will definitely save you unnecessary wear and tear on your back and muscles. being self employed as you are, i'd look at it as an investment in my health and well being. 

yeh, i'm sold on the things. i'm scraping pennies to add the set up plus a Thule rack and cross bar system to my F150. i tested a set out at back packers supply in tacoma and immediately added it to my short list of must have back saving devices.

sounds like you had a blast breaking in your tarpon. hope you finally get that trophy fish out of it's hidey hole and to your boat.
[WR]

The Hullavator is great!  With me being only 5'2" and having a bad back it makes loading my T-13 on top of my Tacoma a lot easier.  It was definetely worth the cost for me and came with some excellent ratcheting straps.  I bought mine from Rack n Road for $494.96.

I use the Yakima "Boat Loader" as a very cheap alternative.  It's just a rod that extends out from inside one of your Yakima cross members.  It locks in place, either extended or retracted, and it has a stop on the outside end of it to keep your boat from sliding off while you are down at the other end.

Basically you just extend the rod, load one end of your boat onto that rod, load the opposite end next, go back to the first end and slide your boat the rest of the way onto the cross member.  Collapse down the rod, lock it in place, and then tie down your boat like normal.

You still have to tie the boat while it's way up there instead of waist level.  But by "cheap" I'm talking about $60 added to an existing Yakima system.  I'm certain that Thule has an equivalent mechanism.

Fishin-T

Dang! Had a brief window this morning, but missed it! Light S winds! Had other plans for today (work, etc) but would have scrapped them if I had known the front would hold off hitting. The wind is just now starting to pick up, and it hasn't even started raining yet.
 
I see this morning's NOAA forecast changed from last night's. Last night I figured the wind would start picking up with the front hitting at about high tide this morning. Now I see things unfolding differently. I should have gambled and "gone for it." Had at least three more hours than i thought I would have had when I was thinking about it yesterday... Ya snooze, ya lose.

As far as loading my Tarpon, I have 58" bars on my Yakima racks. They stick out pretty far on my Forester. I use an old welcome mat on which to rest my stern. I lay a bathroom rug (the kind with non-skid backing) on the edge of my roof between the racks. Then I lean the Tarpon on the rug, against the forward rack bar.  I lift the bottom end of the yak up and swing it into the rear saddle, and then lift the front end of the yak into the forward saddle. Rides right side up. Strap 'er down.

I have a Wheeleez beach cart with the big urethane tires for hauling it down to the water.

CHM,
that's cool. my purpose of being long winded like that was to try and get suggestions going for aids to help you load a heavy boat. as we all know, they aren't all that bad at the beginning of the day, but they somehow seem to get seriously heavy at the end of the day,. well OK, exception to that being the 138lb Hobie Probattleship that starts out heavy to begin with.

nice to hear that you have a lower load point to achieve than those of us who have pick ups...