NorCal Kayak Anglers
Kayak Fishing Zone => Hookups and Fishing Reports (Viewable by Public) => Topic started by: cafecraig on September 30, 2006, 06:07:08 PM
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Gorgeous conditions today - Lake Pacific - very small swell outside the cove, spaced well apart. Launching was moderate - average for past few weeks. Water was crystal clear. Should be similar tomorrow.
Also - HMB Art & Pumpkin Festival is advertized as Oct 14/15. There were some pumpkin farm festivities, but light traffic. Time from Hwy 1 to 101 at 2pm, - 20 minutes on 92.
Bite was hit or miss. Met up with Paul in his SIK Perception, and Ed (sudmucker) and one other person went out separately. I heard Ed did well, keeping 9 RF. Thanks for the hand carrying Ed! You and Mary seem very cool - hope to see you guys out again.
I caught a few small rockies, a decent blue (which decided to jump out of my yak while I was getting ready to knock it out), and a 17" cabbie which I kept. Drift was about .75mph towards west, then shifted towards South.
Several PB's out farther than 2 miles. Unlike other days, there were no PB's fishing shallow. Maybe the fish are deeper now.
Possibly related, Paul and I did have a GWS sighting, just FYI. It was non-threatening - only curious - but not a small shark. My "hookups" post comes back to haunt me -> Mooch, unfortunately no waterprooof camera!
Sorry I missed getting the sharkie pics.
Am going to invest in a waterproof casing for mine (or try to find an Optio W20 ultra cheap on eBay).
Paul called it a day @10.30, soon after GWS sighting. I stayed out, but wasn't really in fish-seeking mode from then on. Just made a few drifts for a couple hours.
If you have a particular aversion to GWS, note sighting and make your own call. I'm not deterred.
Will be out there at 7am-ish tomorrow also. Tomorrow I will paddle straight out, to find 120'+. Hope to see some folks out there!
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Camera, camera, camera! Damn, I wish I saw that!
When I pulled my yak out of thr water today I had a gallon or more of water in it. Its rigging time tom. for me. If there's time Ill hit Dux, but the Bean is too far for a half day.
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Ben, I am guessing that Paul woulda traded places with ya... hehe
Sorry we'll miss you tomorrow... Hope the rigging works out!
Paul, thanks for coming out - hope ya landed fine and at least somewhat dry...
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holy sh!t bro, 4 months of kayak fishing and you catch 2 halibut and see a GWS. you are either blessed or cursed, I do not know which.
congrats or condolances, I'm not sure which to offer you, you choose.
HOW BIG? what do you mean only f@cking curious. spill the beans and report the encounter to the shark research committee now!
curious today, HUNGRY tomorrow. that's how it goes.
Bill, what do you think of this one? where are you taking me for lunch? :smt004
I may fish tomorrow, but if I see a GWS 10' or above, that is it, I am on the beach.
J
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Hey Craig - how did you see GWS from fishfinder or straight down to water? How deep it was swimming? Wow ... Sooner or later we would have to give in this place for landlords. Take easy and care, tomorrow.
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curious today, HUNGRY tomorrow. that's how it goes.
ha! thats what i said at the paddlefest today when i heard craig talking about the encounter!!! and you(craig) acted so nonchalant about the whole incident. be careful dude! you know that the research guys feed these sharks in order to study and tag them. what happens when they see a boat with the scent of fish coming from it and its not giving free handouts??? (http://www.greatwhite.org/images/gws16a.jpg)careful out there :smt002 jtf..
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Bill, what do you think of this one? where are you taking me for lunch? :smt004
J
I would have to go back and double check but I am pretty sure we agreed that phsysical contact would have to be made.
I heard the whole story, Craig is being modest...
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I SOOOOoooo want to see a GWS on my kayak.
Lucky bastard!
Wish you had pics.
MolBasser
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Like I said in my post - let's start a CafeCraig camera fund!
I think I need some of what you're on, bro! :smt001
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Ha! JTF I promise I will not give the yak a seal oil rubdown tonight! Molbasser and all, totally... What a disappointment not to have pics - my (landbound) cam has a great movie mode on it too. That would have rocked. The water was so clear.
It's a good point, JTF - it's probably safer to keep your catch inside your yak, as opposed to on a stringer over the side... Mine stays safely down below! For all at Bean tomorrow, it's probably a wise thing to do, instead of the usual stringer overboard thing.
Alright, this will probably help you all feel better. I am going to give you the abridged version.
Heard a small splash behind me, turned to look back to the left (north), saw the dorsal, about 10 feet from my yak. It was only above water about 8 inches. I called at Paul to check it out. He was about 40 feet on the other side of the shark from me, and not impressed I think (in a manner of speaking). Shark was swimming slowly, harmlessly past my left side, from back to front. It didn't leave a wake or boiler behind. It circled to the left, submerged, still just casually moving.
I looked straight off my port midship where i last saw it, and in the clear water, I made out the shape, then color, moving torwards me. Saw the grey on top, then eye, then part of the white belly and gills, right at my boat. I thought it was just a couple feet below surface, and it passed quietly and slowly straight under my knees, and out the other side. I didn't feel a thing. All I could think was to freeze, not make a move. Which I did with flying colors. (Bill is correct in saying that there was no contact, J - sorry!)
I was a bit mesmerized - just wanted to follow the front of the fish, and I didn't let my eyes linger looking for tail or overall length estimate. As it passed under my yak, it looked to be about the width of the yak. But since I didn't feel the dorsal fin scrape my yak, I suppose it was a bit deeper than I thought, maybe 4-5 feet below me. Miight have been about 28" wide from gill to gill, based on the width of the yak comparison. I don't know how long that would make it. As soon as I saw the gills go by, I just looked on the other side of my boat to see it passing under.
It was really cool, and the shark seemed friendly. I didn't try to pet it though.
It circled back behind me, then we heard the tail splash and saw the boiler on the surface when it left, curiosity satisfied.
I googled a bit after I got home - since then, I'm not worried at all. It was pretty amazing, and I wouldn't mind experiencing it again actually. But next time, with a camera :smt010
Oh... So much for the abridged version. I was glad to hear that the PF Derby was a big success, and very sharky for you all in the Bay too!
Hope to see you all out there tomorrow! And that someone brings a camera out on the water!
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Hey Guys,
You surer it wasn't a sun fish I was out there today. The loner I was actually out there with Ed for awhile. I saw him go back in and he did not mention anything about a shark, he just wished me good luck and paddled in.
From your description it almost sounds like my encounter with the sun fish(mola mola) I saw today. I saw about three differnt ones today one almost 6ft in diameter. They always give mea scare when I first see them they have the coloring and when their fin comes out it looks like a dorsal.
Well shark or no shark I had a descent day two large reds, couple blues and a copper. I also caught a skate but I let it go because I dont know if there is a size limit or regulations. If anyone knows let me know. They are good eating from what I hear.
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James - nice catch today! I was looking for you in your Tarpon but didn't feel like paddling back out to find you after i met Ed coming back in. I wanna head out where you were today!
I have never seen a mola mola before in person, so I can't be sure how to compare it to a GWS. I did see the fish pretty clearly a couple times, especially as it was coming towards me and under my yak, and figured what I saw of the length and width to be about yak-sized. But I see your point!
Thanks for the pics - very cool!
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I looked straight off my port midship where i last saw it, and in the clear water, I made out the shape, then color, moving torwards me. Saw the grey on top, then eye, then part of the white belly and gills, right at my boat. I thought it was just a couple feet below surface, and it passed quietly and slowly straight under my knees, and out the other side. I didn't feel a thing. All I could think was to freeze, not make a move. Which I did with flying colors. (Bill is correct in saying that there was no contact, J - sorry!)
:jawdrop
Nuts! You lucky bastard. That must have been so cool/freaky Wow! What a story...
MolBasser
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Craig~
You are King of Cool maintaining your composure like that. I am not so sure I would have been so at ease in that situation. I would like to think I would be, but the proof is in the puddin'.
I am just glad you got the experience safely.
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Hey Guys,
You surer it wasn't a sun fish I was out there today. The loner I was actually out there with Ed for awhile. I saw him go back in and he did not mention anything about a shark, he just wished me good luck and paddled in.
From your description it almost sounds like my encounter with the sun fish(mola mola) I saw today. I saw about three differnt ones today one almost 6ft in diameter. They always give mea scare when I first see them they have the coloring and when their fin comes out it looks like a dorsal.
Well shark or no shark I had a descent day two large reds, couple blues and a copper. I also caught a skate but I let it go because I dont know if there is a size limit or regulations. If anyone knows let me know. They are good eating from what I hear.
Catch any length shovelnose. And they are very good eating. The one you caught would have made some good meals!!
No limit on length that I know of.
MolBasser
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Thanks for the info Mol :smt004. I will know next time and I,m sure there will be a next time. I never got to tell you nice fish at Mendo and whats up with the Cuda at Capitola?
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Thanks Tote... I wasn't feeling particularly at ease, but I hear ya. I think all my systems just shut off and there wasn't much else in my mind at the time, so it wasn't hard to focus! I am quite sure you'd react the same. No reason to paddle anywhere at that point.
Yeah Molbasser, skate wings are pretty meaty I think! I wouldn't mind hooking into one tomorrow. From what I hear, James was farther out that what we usually do at Bean. Ima head out that way tomorrow.
Regarding GWS, I was thinking James had a good point, so I was just looking up mola mola pics, and one thing I remember well was the big gills I saw... I didn't take the time (or thought) to count them, but i definitely saw defined gills. So I am thinking it wasn't a mola mola I saw, but based mostly on that observation, because there definitely are similarities, based on what I rememeber and on what James said.
Oh, after I read more, the other thing is that the fish I saw today was swimming and making 2-3 mph maybe, and when it left, Paul and I heard the swish of surface water and saw a pretty big boiler left behind... Mola mola appear to be more like floaters, either carried by current, or by spitting strong jets of water from its mouth for propulsion...
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Cuda seem to have left the building....
MolBasser
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I have seen molas in the water and they definitely dont move with much authority, though the color can catch you off guard when they roll on their side showing lots of silver flash.
if wilderness ever wants to know how fast the tarpon 160 can go, just clock me as I head for the beach after I see a GWS travel under me. Craig, you are one cool individual.
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I definitely have to give the calmness award to craig. I can not believe that he kept his cool like he did. i had just changed and dropped me lure, and all off the sudden i see a blue or two swim around my yak, about a foot deep(thinking that was strange)- i hear craig just say something like "oh wow- look over here"- i said what is that(hoping it was a seal or dolphin), and right as he said shark, i saw the huge bulge in the water, the tail, and tip of the dorsal. frightened i yelled what kind, and he just said like it was nothing "white". while i shat my pants, craig says "i wish i had a underwater camera". --- so i chxend out and paddled in.
glad there were no other encounters with the friendly shark. besides that and the landing, i had a great time. only caught 3 blues, but had a ton of bites. i glad that all you other dudes really want to see a gws, but personally, i never want to see one again unless its at the aquarium, tv, or a really big boat.
Lessons learnt today:
- be calm around really big fish
- get rid of all hazards on your boat before landing (rope paddle and rod leash), and keep them from getting tangled around your feet
BUt it was fun, cant wait till i get another chance to get out on the water again, assuming my juevos drop back down.
thanks craig for showing me around- and good job to ed too.
Paul
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Its whitey season and you guys are right by Ano so its no big surprise. You got cased, and thank god he decided you weren't what he was looking for...damn brother thats a CRAZY story.
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King of Cool, King Craig.............. :worship
Though, when the boss comes sniffing around what'cha gonna do but be respectful.
Are you going to change your list name and avatar now? SharkCoolDude. Getting an avatar of you riding a gws might be tricky.
The Mola image was cool. I've not yet seens a live one from my kayak.
Back to the landlord, does one shark eat both fish and mammals? Would a shark looking for seals want our fish?
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craig, you are either a naive city guy, or you have serious guts. or some strange combination of the above. I have seen people crack under pressure, and others stay cool as cucumbers through anything, there is just no telling who can take it and who can't until it happens, so I no longer judge guts by appearance or gender or anything else. there is no telling till the sh!t hits the fan. I am okay until about 5 minutes after an event, then I skake like a leaf. probably average to below average in the guts department.
So don't take any of my comments the wrong way, you have my respect regardless, you are one of us
kayak fishermen, but I'd like to ask a few more questions.
I have had the mola-mola experience at bean hollow. I have also seen a 6 to 8 foot very thick and very fast shark while surfing. possibly a very young GWS, maybe a mako, I don't know what other possibilities.
the experiences are a world apart. I am somebody that cannot understand how a guy that catches fish can't tell the difference between a harbour seal and a sea lion but I know it is common to not really know the difference between ocean going animals.
mistaking a mola mola for a GWS should not ever happen unless you don't get a good look. sounds like you got a plenty good look.
anyway, 28" wide, would not be a super long GWS, we need some kind of guy like bsteves or ralph collier of the shark reseach committee helping us with length to width (and weight) calculations. but yes, it does not sound "small" in any real sense of that word.
please don't project 'friendly' or other anthropomorphic aspects on a wild animal like that, that kind of silliness gets people killed. the shark is not 'friendly'. you just did not pass the 'edible' test which is good, maybe that shark will pass up all other kayaks now it knows that they don't appear yummy.
GWS are a heavy bodied shark, super fat. but if you have see the one at the monterey aquarium and read reports, you know that they are plenty fast when they want to be. refined power for sure.
A mola mola, well I feel like I could outswim that silly fish. good for them they taste terrible.
what about the possibility of it being a large blue shark? they are long and skinny. why are you thinking GWS, how much of it did you see? the broken line between dark top and white bottom is pretty distinctive in tall the photos, I think that is a real distinguishing feature to see from a kayak. Also the fatness of a GWS.
anyway, I partied with the wife and slept in this morning, bought some salmon from Patrick of Mission Fish, haven't had that for a while, how suburban of me! at least the WAF is high!
J
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Craig - consider yourself VERY lucky :smt002
1) You were not attacked or harassed
2) it's not often you see such a spectacular "eating machine" - especially on a kayak (Pics would have been da bomb)
Go to Seven Eleven and get yourself a lottery ticket :smut001
Make sure your report your "close encounter" to the Shark Committee AND GET A FRIGGIN CAMERA :smt003
a lesson to others: NEVER leave your fish hanging on the side of your kayak :smt009 To this day, I still see guys doing that :smt011
Just like I have predicted before: it would only be a matter of time till one of us would come across the Land Lord - our Nor Cal Kayak Fishing Community is growing and so will be the sightings....BE SAFE OUT THERE :smt002
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Great reactions Craig, you did exactly what you should have.... except to keep on fishing after the event. GWS are very curious sharks and due to their size, larger animals (ie. humans) like us are interesting and don't really scare them. From what you mentioned it sounds like it was a juvenile GWS in the 8-10 foot range. The reason I think everyone should leave when sighting a GWS is next.
The most common GWS attack scenario is this:
1. The shark gets a visual and makes 3-4 wide circles tightening consecutively. The last circle may be tight enough that it bumps the prey. If the prey is on the surface they sometimes roll onto their side to get a better view.
2. The shark goes deep below the prey and comes straight up and makes it's best attempt to disable the prey and waits for it to bleed to death.
So if a shark does check you out and then "leave" you should be weary.
I've had an experience with a GWS when surfing Ano 10 years ago. I was cool too but only because it felt like my heart was filled with ice water :smt103 and stopped!! I was petrified and paddled strongly and swiftly straight in. When I got on the cliff I not only saw one GWS but three all patrolling the same area. There's plenty of them out there. Ano Nuevo is known as a nursery for GWS so you can expect them to be quite territorial and aggressive in those parts. That's what makes for so many attacks and run-ins with them out there.
Glad everything turned out ok!!
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Thanks for the props all. Paul was there too, and he saw it as well, and was close enough that I didn't have to raise my voice so he could hear me - he was very cool too!
J, you're right, friendly is not the right word. I hope that he stays not unfriendly with kayaks now tho!
About the ID, I have seen GWS on TV and such, but didn't know enough to compare with Blue Shark. Honestly, I can't remember enough details. It looked like it was big enough for me to fit inside it, and that was enough for me to know at the time. I am from Ohio (which makes me, by definition, yes, naive) and til I moved here, the biggest fish i saw alive in person was like a 24" carp. All I could think about was to "be the debris" or else I might make some actual debris. I saw Jaws this summer on AMC and remembered those kids got munched because they and their boats made noises. So, I just didn't move. i guess Richard Dreyfus would have been proud.
It looked like it did a figure 8, but I don't know how long it was there before it surfaced. From when I saw it, and it made its passes, it was only about 20-30 seconds. So, I didn't need to keep my cool for very long!
Thanks for the info and advice Z and Mooch! Noted, definitely.
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As far as ID'n the shark a blue is quite different. From what you've described it sounds like you saw a White because it's body was so wide.
The White has a very thick, tall, triangular dorsal fin with a sharp point, the blues is skinnier, less pronounced, and has a rounder point. The White is very wide bodied while the blue is long and slender by comparison. Blues are pelagic so cover great distances in open water. They need that long slender body to get the best glide and fight strong currents. Whites do cross large oceans but spend most of their time nearshore and have that stocky body for their bursts of speed. Although they've been known to make trips as far as from Calfornia to Hawaii, coverng lots of open ocean, so are actually quite well rounded swimmers.
The easiest way to tell the difference from sitting in the yak is by it's body width and nose length. Even a juvenile White shark (3rd pic) is really thick, they look pretty stocky with a short nose, while the blues are long, slender and a long nose. The big ones are amazingly skinny looking.
Z
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I can say that I for sure saw a great white shark on sunday. I was in Monterey, at the aquarium. HA....
I was very cool to see it so close.
Anyway I have stated over and over that the sharks are in full force this time of year around Ano. The researches do feed the sharks to tag them as someone mentioned and they are very curious. I doubt a shark attack would happen but some investigative bites is not out of the question given the experience the sharks have with researchers. Furthermore, GW's can eat an elephant seal up to 15 feet long.
Jason
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Good pont jselli. A lot of times a GWS isn't in full attack mode, just curious, but just their investigative bites can cause some serious damage. Some researchers say that their mouths are very sensitive and they use them as a way to feel around.
Z
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Jason, I know what you mean... It was cool, though at the time, I was definitely nervous and very careful (and not thinking about how cool it was). Glad you got you enjoy your visit for longer and more safey tho!
Z, thanks for posting those pics. The fish I saw was long but not as pointy as a blue. One thing I will say is that the white belly on the one I saw went up higher than on the juvie picture. I was looking at it from a little to the right, but mostly above, and i clearly saw the white up onto the side of the fish. Also, I remember the gills extending into the white color.
About the size, as I said, it was so clear that it seemed right below the surface, but as I didn't feel anything when it came towards me and under/through below my yak, I am guessing it was like 4-5 feet deep at least. So it may have been a little bigger than it looked from my angle.
The dorsal looked more like that of the juvie, although I just saw the top 6-8". I didn't see the tail, either - just heard it. The tail may have been more behind me than I was looking. I don't know how much of a tail Paul saw.
It could be that it was an adolescent - not full grown, but not very young either. I was thinking shortly afterwards that any contact, test bite, or significant bump, would toss me from my scupper pro. I was feeling pretty rigid at the time, and even given good secondary stability/rocker, I would have over-corrected and dumped.
Thanks for the helpful input! I appreciate it. It's jogging my memory a bit. Positive side note: have not had dreams of sharks!