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Topic: are you guys/gals finding blacks?  (Read 1514 times)

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dirkbeachman

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Some you probably noticed the sweet window this Monday of the swell dropping to 2 feet up north. I made the run north with my trusty companion, Skipper. It was cool to see even on a Monday guys heading out in both Albion cove and Mendo bay. I just figured I'd go for an efficient shore dive and wanted to check out a NW facing wash rock where I've reliably found blacks in the past.

A couple weeks ago, I wrote about how shocked I was about finding a previously very kelp area completely bare and the great structure covered in little purple urchins. So I guess I shouldn't have been surprised but I still was to get to this rock where there were always blacks and it seemed lifeless. I know they're not that exciting, but for me getting a few in the 2-4 lb range makes for good eating and a reasonable stringer.  There were some blacks around, but they were literally in the 3, 4, 5 inch range- I don't even remember seeing such dinky ones in the past.   After scouting all over, I shamefully shot one that was about 10 inches. That was the biggest I'd seen and no lings, cabs, and not even a single greenling. Weird!  After all the talk about starved abs, I looked very carefully at the few around to see if they were actually fat like hanging way off the rocks or not. Most looked skinny.

I decided to skip the spearfishing and go look in the kelpy shallows for healthier abs. But I decided to give myself one last drop and by dumb luck saw a decent ling and shot it. It gave me a little excitement because I was using my little 50 gun and I had notice that after months of not being used the spear barb was really sticky, like I wasn't sure it would flop open. So as soon as the spear went through I chased the ling so he wouldn't have a chance to pull the shaft out with the barb working. I chased him under a rock and managed to get a hand on the other side of the spear and pull the mother out. Man a lungful of air felt good after that! But if I hadn't seen that ling, I would have been coming home with the most embarrasingly small black ever.

I went into the kelpy shallows and was pleased to see the abs seemed like their usual fat and meaty selves. You can see them in the photo. No tens, but these were butterball nines, quite thick and heavy. But I did notice you could literally see the battle line where the still kelpy rocks meet the urchin territory. I think I might paint some fishing weights bright orange and mark the line next time to see if the kelp is winning or the urchins. Probably take my hammer out next time too and do my little part to help the battle in a small area or two.

Ended up being a good morning for both Skip and myself, one of us being pretty tired and the other smelling like a dead seagull.

My question really is about the blacks. Are you guys/gals still nailing them up and down the coast? I don't really know what I'm doing but have the gut feeling that they like the NW facing sides of wash rocks or channels facing into the current. Obviously those types of places are rpetty frigging turbulent and too rough (at least for me) much of the time.  But when calmer, I've had good luck in those places.  Am I just living in the past? Are there still plenty of blacks around, just in different places or depths? Where are you finding them if so? Any observations/wisdom appreciated. Thanks!


Zzz

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All my dives have been in Mendocino County and rarely deeper than 40ft so far. I have only seen/taken one small 13in black and plenty of 16in blues. From what I see and hear the Blacks are up north in Humboldt and Mendo has mostly Blue. I'm interested in other's accounts.

That's more than a decent ling! I always try to grab my fish by the gills before I surface. There are few worse feelings than a fish that slides off a spear or tears out.


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Saw some kayak fishermen come in with 20+ inch blacks at Shelter Cove this weekend.

Took my son spearfishing and only saw 11 inchers in 20 FOW.

Took some 19 inchers in the same spot last year. Also lots of skinny abs and a shit ton of uni. Past up on about 30 - 9 inch skinny abs.
Finally took two but both 9s were nothing to brag about in meat quality.

Congrats on the fat abs and nice ling.
Pronounced in Spanish  ka·be·za de mar·t·yo
Translates to Hammerhead in English for my Gringo amigos.
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Rick

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The key with blacks is to find remote areas. The habitat doesn't matter as much-- you'll find them anywhere from shallow, eel grass-filled reefs to offshore pinnacles. They are a slow-growing fish and are easily hammered by fishing/diving pressure.


DG

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The key with blacks is to find remote areas. The habitat doesn't matter as much-- you'll find them anywhere from shallow, eel grass-filled reefs to offshore pinnacles. They are a slow-growing fish and are easily hammered by fishing/diving pressure.
That's about right.  I usually see a few in or near every school of blues.  But the spots I have seen big blacks are usually the spots boats overlook for whatever reason.  I usually just leave them to get bigger but occasionally take one. 

I would take a ling over a black RF any day. 
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ApneaAddict

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When conditions aren't right for them, it seems like the blacks disappear out to deeper water. I have seen them totally vacate an area, only to find them back in thick a few months later. I suspect (hope) that's whats going on. The R&R guys still seem to be hitting them, which I see as supporting this theory.

Nice abs and ling! Looks like a hell of a day in the end, even if it felt slow while you were hunting.


BigJim

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I've seen some nice ones this year diving...at least as many as I have in previous years...both here in Monterey and on my one dive in Mendo...

Hopefully they are all good all over and just spot/time dependent as mentioned above.

Congrats again on a great Ling dude!

 :smt006

Sincerely,

Jim

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LoletaEric

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At Shelter Cove over the last several weeks I've noted very slow fishing over the inner reef where it's usually very reliable - I'm talking right in front of the hotels, the lighthouse point and over to the Bell pinnacles.  Outside by the Whistle it's been better, but even there I've not seen schools of blacks as much as I have in the past.

This urchin thing is a big deal.

PS:  Nice ling.  :smt001
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dirkbeachman

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I really appreciate the feedback. It sounds like from what Zzz and Cabeza are saying, that what I'm seeing, formerly fishy spots now barren, is happening elsewhere. That's pretty alarming since the coast up north has always felt more like lightly touched wilderness than, for instance, Monterey, Carmel, and north Big Sur.

I curious Rick about those different habitats. Like over eelgrass. I haven't really hunted over eelgrass, but maybe I need to move in closer. Do you find them actually down in the channels, like on the bottom as other rockfish might be? I think of blacks as closer to open water fish, but that could be just because I've noticed (and shot)the obvious ones that are silhouetted in clear water.

Jim, your front kayak is the stuff of dreams (and I know good diving and hard work). But that's how I thought Mendo was. Not trying to pick your honey holes, but if that's a recent take, it totally looks like you got onto some solid blacks. Can you share what sort of situation you found them in? Like down in the rocks, or under kelp canopy, or out in a surge-y channel over gravel? Oh, maybe roughly how deep?

A couple of you mentioned lings over blacks, and I wouldn't deny there's a thrill to getting a decent ling (or cab). I guess my interest in blacks is that whenever I have found good solid blacks, I then seem to be in really good habitat for other species. I suspect there have been many times I have taken blacks or other rockfish and completely overlooked a big ling lying camoflaged nearby. But I would really like to adapt to whatever is going on out there and start being more productive.  I just noticed the forecast for this Thurs.  looks pretty good and am tempted to go explore and learn.

Apnea, when you say conditions not being right, are you talking about water temp? Swell size or direction? Anything we can observe and then react to?
Thanks again everyone!
« Last Edit: October 02, 2017, 11:01:02 AM by dirkbeachman »


 

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