PC 8-27 report

So I was able to get out to PC after all and I'm sure glad I did! Got to the beach around 7:30, on the water a little after 8. Madoc showed up after crabbing in Netarts. It was sort of slow for the first couple of hours. We were hanging out at my usual place and I was slowly putting blacks in my bag. We got bored and headed out to find the edge of the reefs to see if some lings could be found a little deeper. We were sitting between 100 and 110 ft. and the bite was starting to pick up a little. Madoc had just pulled up a couple of nice rock fish when my line was SLAMMED and my rod tip went into the water. I was feeling some very wide head shakes and began to thing it was a really big ling. After getting it within fifteen feet underneath my yak only to have it run half way to the bottom twice, I finally got a look at my first pacific halibut!  Too bad the season is closed!  After about 40 minutes total fight time and several more drag-burning runs to the bottom, I finally hooked him in the jaw with my gaff and slid him onto my lap. Aaaahhhhhhh!    After a few pics, I began to wonder if I had wore it out too much. As I went to slide him off the boat head first, the instant his head hit the water... THWAAP!! His tail slapped the side of my yak and my paddle with ferocious force as if to say, "Thanks a lot a** hole!" and he was gone in an instant. I extended my retractable gaff to match his length while he was laying in my lap and when we were back on the beach, I used the fish checker's hawg trough to see that it was a bit more than 38". Thanks to Madoc for helping out and taking lots of pics!





Bendo!!


Double!

Dude!! Are you kidding me? First, congrats on the 'butt! Just awesome! That's a good looking one and sounds like the fight was a blast. Next, what a heartbreaker that the season's closed. I hope you marked that spot. When the season opens again I think I know where you'll be..

Z

Holy Cow!  What an awesome catch!

It does suck that the season is closed but now you know where and how for next year. 

What did he bite on?

-Mark-

Props out to Yaknitup for landing that beasty.  What a fun (and long) day.

I followed my plan - got up at 330, out the door by 4(ish), in Tillamook by 545.  Got to Netarts and on the bay by 630.  Started prospecting for crabs, only brought a collapsible ring with me to speed up the process.  Finally found some crab around 7 (as in, headed to where the PBs were).  Brought in a keeper on the small size (about 6" across), and then a mondo keeper that was 8" across.  Both were on the thin shell side, the quality should be better in a couple of weeks as they fill out.  Got off the bay and headed south around 8.

Hit the beach at PC around 820ish, and contacted Yaknitup over the VHF to let him know I was there.

Headed out, and met up with him past the Haystack.

I had no real game plan, and was just going to bump around for fishies.  So basically I just trailed Yaknitup around.

I landed two doubles - a quillback and a black, and two blacks.  I was working on getting the quillback and black unhooked and on the stringer.  I turn around, and Yaknitup's rod was bendo.  I pedal over, and ask what's up.  He had almost gotten the fish up, but wasn't able to get a view before it decided to head back down.  I got out of his way, and bumped around a bit.  I was thinking that he had a great fish on, and wouldn't it suck if it were a hali, since the season is closed.  I kept my mouth shut about that.  Turns out I was right  

I hooked into a ling shortly after the hali was released, and, much to my surprise, landed my first keeper.  Hooray!

Slowly filled the rest of my limit with blacks.  At one point I had a fish in my lap, and saw more below me on the FF.  Dropped the rig down as fast as I could, and hooked into a second.  Got to fight and reel in a fish with another loose in my lap.

Hit the limit, pulled the shrimp flies off and replaced the swimbait with a big scampi, hoping for a Ling limit.  Got a good strike, a head shake and a little bit of a fight.  Ling?  Nope, another big quillback.  Which sucked, because I had a limit of rock fish already, and had yanked the gills on all of them.  I was worried when I unhooked it that it was just going to end up as gull food, as it had come up from about 90 feet, but a poke with the net and it darted back down.

That was pretty much it.  I got a couple of really crappy shots with my iphone of Yaknitup fighting the halibut, but nothing really worthwhile.  I think, now that I have seen a boom rigged camera up close, that I am going to try and cobble on together this fall.

The ling came out to over 25", and the quillback was just under 19" and fat - 5+ lbs.

Cheers!
Madoc

Nice job on the halibut.  You've been talking about getting one since I met you.  Next year I'm sure you'll get one when the season reopens.

BTW, I'm not sure I'd ever really want to point the head or a very much still alive halibut towards my crotch like this..



P.S.   Your youtube video seems to be on "private" mode. 

Some pics, crappy ones from a cellphone.

Yaknitup looking dejected after realizing
a.  It is a halibut
b.  This is the second or third run to the bottom.
c.  The season is closed.


My haul for the day back on the beach.  Six black rocks, a quillback, and a keeper ling


A better look at the quillback


A better look at the ling


The bigass crab, post encounter with boiling water and old bay.

What's with the batman gloves?   

What's with the batman gloves?   

I'm worried about leaving fingerprints on the evidence.

I happened to pick up a bunch of black nitrile gloves when Joes tanked.  I glove up when cleaning fish - especially since I put a hole in my thumb yesterday and didn't want the combination of fish guts, slime, old bay and then kitchen cleaner in the wound.

What, you don't wear gloves all the time?

Whoa mule! That'd be a fine fishy!

Where the heck is 100' to 110'? Was that like Japan or something?

What, you don't wear gloves all the time?

Nah, mom taught me how to wash my hands.   

Thanks guys!

Ok, the original just didn't process right. Here it is:

What did he bite on?

-Mark-

Jiggin' on the bottom with glowy things!

What a very extra cool catch.  Those butts move closer to shore in August, to bad the season doesn't stay open for them.

Great catch!   Way to find the one that got away from me earlier.  I knew there were more there. To bad the damn season is closed.  Next year!

Sweet!  Now, if you can just get to em next season before they close.