NorCal Kayak Anglers

Kayak Fishing Zone => Hookups and Fishing Reports (Viewable by Public) => Topic started by: LoletaEric on November 20, 2005, 09:56:28 AM

Title: 23.5# lingcod - photos later
Post by: LoletaEric on November 20, 2005, 09:56:28 AM
Yak-fished near Petrolia Friday evening solo and Saturday morning with two friends.  Friday:  10 lingcod to ~17# - all legal, all released, 2 blacks (released), 1 china (released), and 2 reds (kept)--1 was 7.5#.  Awesome day.  Saturday:  9 lings - only 1 underling; 2 released that were ~17-20#, 4 blacks (3 released), 2 greenlings (released), and 1 blue (released).  The lingcod that I kept had an empty belly, was 40" long, and didn't quite have that huge bucket-head yet, but it was big!   :smt003   I only have an older 0-100# spring scale, but it's proven to be accurate.  23.5#'s...  I feel kind of bad that I didn't have a clearer scale before fillet-time...  I'll put several pics up and let the board decide if it's well-documented enough to put me in first in the pool.  I don't know if it's a rule, but I didn't measure it around the middle.  Anyway, had a great time, and pulled a 10.375" ab too!
Title: 23.5# lingcod - photos later
Post by: chefstefano on November 20, 2005, 11:55:46 AM
right on :smt003  sound like good catching. were is Petrolia?
Title: 23.5# lingcod - photos later
Post by: BigRed on November 20, 2005, 03:10:02 PM
http://www.californiacoastline.org/cgi-bin/image.cgi?image=10577&mode=sequential&flags=0&year=2002
Title: Re: 23.5# lingcod - photos later
Post by: eyeatbay on November 20, 2005, 04:39:42 PM
Wow, what did you use?
Title: 23.5# lingcod - photos later
Post by: Seabreeze on November 20, 2005, 06:36:42 PM
If there are bigger lings than Brians, I suppose another hour or two north would be the place.  Congrats...... :smt023
Pat
Title: 23.5# lingcod - photos later
Post by: LoletaEric on November 20, 2005, 07:58:45 PM
Petrolia is an hour and a half from here on winding roads with logging trucks!  And I'm already 5+ hours north of the Golden Gate.  Top that with the fact that it's usually blowing hard and big swell over there...  it has to be just right.  As for bigger lings and lots of rockfish in general, I've worked several years to score a few lings over 20 pounds.  I've been very impressed with the reports of Big Sur, Elk, and other Sonoma and Mendocino spots that Scwafish and others have introduced to the board.  That said, if anyone wants to come up I'm into corresponding and getting together.  The main factors by far are the wind and swell.  I was using 6 oz. lead-head jigs with split tails in white, red, blue...  Most of the time I didn't use my usual shrimp fly above it as I wanted to only target lings.  At the end of the fishing yesterday I went into a heavy kelp bed and jigged with a 3 oz. fish-looking jig with a treble hook, thinking, "oh well, if I get snagged in the kelp it's gone..."  I go on to catch the underling, 4 blacks, 2 sea trout (greenlings), and the blue in about 10 minutes!  I admit that I use some basic and archaic gear(!), but the fishing's good enough to get away with it most of the time.  There have been about a half dozen days in the last 2+ months that you could fish out there.
Title: Re: 23.5# lingcod - photos later
Post by: SBD on November 21, 2005, 07:12:45 AM
Abking is right.  While the fishing in Humboldt is good, its about the same as Elk or Big Sur.  However being off of the Cape the weather there is essentially the shits 98.5 % of the time.  I have tried to fish with Abking several times and the stars have only aligned once.  Essentially you can't plan a trip to this area, you need to be ready to drop everything the second the conditions are right.  Unfortunately for most of us, its far enough north that the conditions won't hold til we get there.  The one time I went I left in the WEEEEE hours and by the time I got there it was already unraveling.  I am glad it worked out once because I had a great time with Abking and his crew and witnessed amazing things before jelly got sick and I had to head in.   I wondered how "different" it really is, and the rock structure and kelp and algae are nothing like what we have.  Abking is way up there!  You would get your ass ultra-kicked if you launched in marginal conditions because you need to launch off of and navigate through a boulder field, not off a beach. 

Now lets see pics of this ling!
Title: Re: 23.5# lingcod - photos later
Post by: bsteves on November 21, 2005, 11:28:13 AM
First of all, congrats AbKing on the nice catch.  I'd love to see some pictures.

But a half pound margin!!  Six ounces!! Why couldn't you just catch a 25 lb or larger fish so I don't feel compelled to make a quick minor protest before the fish pool judges (i.e. Bill and the rest of the community) make their final ruling on this one.

I have no reason so suspect Abking would be anything other than truthful as to what his scale showed his fish to weigh, in fact I suspect that he probably made sure to photograph the weighing itself.  My concerns are with the accuracy of a 0-100lb spring scale.  I suspect that such a scale could be off by as much as a couple pounds and still be considered fairly accurate.  But even if this scale is truly accurate, I doubt that the scale has half pound increments. In fact most 100 lb scales that I've seen have 1-2 lb increments at best.  I did some research on the topic and discovered that the IGFA will certify spring scales 100 lb and less, however an angler using such a certified scale is required to round down to the nearest increment when reporting weight for possible record inclusion.

http://www.igfa.org/ScaleCertificationInfo.pdf


Okay, I feel better having said my peace.  Now with regards to this fish pool, karma and the like, I certianly realize that I won the Elk Tourney with a fish that was arguably identical to Lonny's second place ling and at best only larger by an increment far less than a half pound.  I feel I got pretty luck there and that fish has already won me a brand new kayak.

Again, congrats on the big ling and please post some pictures!

Brian
Title: Re: 23.5# lingcod - photos later
Post by: Seabreeze on November 21, 2005, 11:31:25 AM
Pictures....Pictures........we want pictures
Title: Re: 23.5# lingcod - photos later
Post by: SBD on November 21, 2005, 01:22:03 PM
Brian-I think you voiced legit concerns.  I also, however feel Abking is a very honorable guy, who could do a lot more boasting here if he wasn't a humble and concerned dude.  Look forward to the pics, and checking to see if the rules of the game were followed.  Either way, helluva catch.
Title: Re: 23.5# lingcod - photos later
Post by: LoletaEric on November 21, 2005, 04:17:07 PM
I am having a hell of a time figuring out this picture thing...  I hope something shows up with this post.
Title: Re: 23.5# lingcod - photos later
Post by: BigRed on November 21, 2005, 04:19:27 PM
Well, I see a picture there of a guy holding something.   But it's hard to tell what... doesn't look like a ling -- it's way too small for that. 

Maybe you accidentially posted a picture of someone who captured a kingfish?
Title: Re: 23.5# lingcod - photos later
Post by: Seabreeze on November 21, 2005, 04:21:30 PM
Tough crowd.  Handsome fish Abking.  Got any other shots of him?

Pat
Title: Re: 23.5# lingcod - photos later
Post by: LoletaEric on November 21, 2005, 04:27:54 PM
OK, now I know how to work this thing...  

Regarding the shots of the scale:  the sun was higher than the scale, the photographer was lower, so the shadow vs the line of sight shakes out to 23.5#.  I can get another scale and hook its hook to the big spring scale and see if they both read 23.5#'s when I pull against each other.  I did this in the past and confirmed it.  I'll do it again soon.  Based on Brian's post earlier I think he'll concede on this one (if I followed all rules..)--especially since he won a kayak!  Seriously though, I don't really care how it turns out...

I just attached 5 more photos and tried to submit, but it won't...  I'll do one per post...
Title: Re: 23.5# lingcod - photos later
Post by: LoletaEric on November 21, 2005, 04:29:25 PM
I promise to buy a good scale with the money!  8>}
Title: Re: 23.5# lingcod - photos later
Post by: LoletaEric on November 21, 2005, 04:30:30 PM
I've got to come up with a better stance...
Title: Re: 23.5# lingcod - photos later
Post by: LoletaEric on November 21, 2005, 04:31:21 PM
40" - check this by finding an '02 Silverado tailgate!
Title: Re: 23.5# lingcod - photos later
Post by: LoletaEric on November 21, 2005, 04:32:44 PM
This one's my favorite - that lingcod looks kinda average next to that little ab!  That's the 10.375"er I pulled.  This concludes my report - I'll put something on the tournees page too.
Title: Re: 23.5# lingcod - photos later
Post by: polepole on November 21, 2005, 04:47:12 PM
Uh oh.  That scale pin looks like 23# on the money to me.  This one is going to be close.  I'm thinking you and BrianG will have to split as it's too close to call.

-Allen
Title: Re: 23.5# lingcod - photos later
Post by: LoletaEric on November 21, 2005, 06:49:08 PM
Quote
Regarding the shots of the scale:  the sun was higher than the scale, the photographer was lower, so the shadow vs the line of sight shakes out to 23.5#...

I know that's not the most precise analysis!  I am in the process right now of calibrating my scale with an electronic Berkeley unit.  I'll get back on here with some results, but I'll admit right now that my preliminary work on this before I was called in for dinner did not look good for me... 
Title: Re: 23.5# lingcod - photos later
Post by: ChuckE on November 21, 2005, 07:12:12 PM
Abking... I will say that your honesty and attempt to show the accurate weight is very commendable!
You could have called it a 24 pound ling to prevent this kind of controversy....  but you called it as you saw it on the scale - 23.5 lbs.

Since our Big Fish Pool rules don't require any type of certified scale, it is makes this type of contest difficult to judge fairly.  In the future, we may need to require big fish entries be weighed by one or more official scales.
Title: Re: 23.5# lingcod - photos later
Post by: FishFinder on November 21, 2005, 08:04:42 PM
Whew, tough crowd.  Great fish, great photos Abking.  Do your ever fish Shelter Cove?  It's been 20 years since I was there but as I remember, we launched our small boat from the beach and the fishing was out of control.  Maybe we've both changed since then...

Pete
Title: Re: 23.5# lingcod - photos later
Post by: KZ on November 21, 2005, 08:05:56 PM
I agree with Chuck... nice to see the good sportsmanship prevailing here both from Abking and Brian.  

I'm pretty confident that the margin of error on a 100# scale is probably greater than 1/2 pound... Looks more like a tie than a clear leader.  

Perhaps we can put it to a vote of those who entered the Lingcod pool as to what the decision should be.  I think that would be a fair way to do it.

Erik

P.S.  Abking... NICE AB :smt023... that's a much more rare and difficult harvest than the 23# ling... great work!
Title: Re: 23.5# lingcod - photos later
Post by: LoletaEric on November 21, 2005, 09:07:12 PM
I spent about an hour in the shop this evening, and after dinner I finalized my comparison and calibration.  With top hooks of both scales nailed to the floor and bottom hooks linked together I was able to show that my old spring scale is consistently about a pound or more light in its reading.  At first I was thrown off by hanging each of them and testing by pulling down or attaching my weightbelt, but I figured out that gravity and the weight of the lower scale were affecting that.  That's when I figured to put both scales on the plywood subfloor and link them in a direct comparison of pounds of pressure.  I pulled each in both directions too so I could make sure they weren't just stuck on a favorable reading.  I have photos of the process and results, but they're too high in KB to load at home.  I'll burn them and load them from work tomorrow where I can shrink them down.  Between that and Bill announcing on the tournee board that I'm in the lead I feel good about it.   :smt001
Title: Re: 23.5# lingcod - photos later
Post by: jmairey on November 21, 2005, 09:15:29 PM

congrats to all you bad-ass ling catchers, bsteves, ling cod lonny, abking, john z,
lots of others.

very impressive, very inspiring.
Title: Re: 23.5# lingcod - photos later
Post by: skyboy on November 21, 2005, 09:25:53 PM
This was all a great thread, however, Freddie and I are headed to a secret location on Thanksgiving, and plan to put an end to this discussion with a 30lb lingzilla. but I am pretty sure the Ab is going to stand as the record of the year. Maybe next year we can add a Abalone pool, but after seeing this post, maybe Abking can be an official Judge in the Pro class. The fish was impressive, but that ab, that is a monster hubcap. maybe next year on the ling Abking. I am the "future" leader in this pool! :smt003
Title: Re: 23.5# lingcod - photos later
Post by: Seabreeze on November 21, 2005, 09:32:38 PM
The weather must be more promising up there.  Thanksgiving day is the last fishable day down here.........hence my attempt tomorrow...... :smt012
Pat
Title: Re: 23.5# lingcod - photos later
Post by: polepole on November 21, 2005, 09:56:42 PM
Abking!!!  I don't mean to take anything away from your catch.  Nice catch and worthy of our praise.  Way to go bro!!!!

-Allen
Title: Re: 23.5# lingcod - photos later
Post by: eyeatbay on November 21, 2005, 10:06:36 PM
plan to put an end to this discussion with a 30lb lingzilla. ... I am the "future" leader in this pool! :smt003

I would love to see everyone comes out and beat this lingcod. It will not be easy, but definitely possible. Go out as many times as you can before the season ends - only a few days left. Anyone?
Title: Re: 23.5# lingcod - photos later
Post by: LoletaEric on November 21, 2005, 11:08:03 PM
Thanks, guys.  Go, Skyboy, Go!  Thanks for the compliments.   :smt002

Pete:  sorry I forgot to reply earlier.  Shelter Cove and areas around it are favorite destinations for me.  While the Cove area is kind of fished over within a mile or two of port, the Old Man and the Hat still hold their claims to fame as awesome offshore rockfish reefs.  I haven't gone there on my yak--too far, but I've scored plenty of nice fish near the Cove, including a 21.5# salmon last summer, and lots of 10"+ abs there and around there.

As for the remainder of this ling season:  good luck and I mean it!  I hope someone bags the big bucket-head and gets the report on here--that's what it's all about.  NOTE:  Wednesday's Cape Mendocino to Pt. Arena forecast is sounding VERY SWEET.  I don't know if I'll be able to fenagle another trip out of the WAF that I have (and I've been meaning to get someone to tell me WTF WAF is!!), but I will be doing whatever I have to in order to get a trip that day.  May go to Trinidad for Ling/Ab combo trip...

...and as far as an abalone pool for next year, sounds good!   :smt003 :smt004
Title: Re: 23.5# lingcod - photos later
Post by: Potato_River on November 21, 2005, 11:14:00 PM
Nice fish abking.

At the begining of the season, I had a feeling this was coming, though I really thought it would occur in the rockfish category.

Based on your calibration test, sounds like your fish is in the 24.5lb range.

I know there is variability between scales, but all tape measures are the same.  Next year, maybe we should throw out the weight, and just go by the OAL of a fish.  

Stuart

Title: Re: 23.5# lingcod - photos later
Post by: Bill on November 21, 2005, 11:14:31 PM
WAF = Wife Approval Factor. There is also GAF for the "uncommited" guys, Pat has to get BAF or the more politically correct SOAF but seriously Pat how hard is that?!?! Not even worth an abbreviation  :sad3:
Title: Re: 23.5# lingcod - photos later
Post by: Bill on November 21, 2005, 11:16:13 PM
Nice fish abking.

At the begining of the season, I had a feeling this was coming, though I really thought it would occur in the rockfish category.

Based on your calibration test, sounds like your fish is in the 24.5lb range.

I know there is variability between scales, but all tape measures are the same.  Next year, maybe we should throw out the weight, and just go by the OAL of a fish. 

Stuart



Yep Stuart next year we are going to length, that should eliminate some issues, but I am sure other will show up  :roll:
Title: Re: 23.5# lingcod - photos later
Post by: LoletaEric on November 21, 2005, 11:39:46 PM
Thanks, Stuart. 

Wow, Wife Approval...  that sounds like some kind of Sci-Fi trip to me at this point!  She just doesn't understand how legitimate it is that this stuff keeps me sane!   :smt013 :smt004 :smt005 :smt002 :smt008 :smt010 :smt006 :smt001
Title: Re: 23.5# lingcod - photos later
Post by: Seabreeze on November 22, 2005, 09:16:55 PM
Yeah, Bill, I've got it good........... :smt007
Pat