Humboldt Double Days - 8/4, 5, 6

Packed up the truck after work until 1AM Friday night in preparation for the yearly family campout at Bear Harbor in Sinkyone Wilderness State Park south of Shelter Cove.  We headed out Saturday morning and had camp set up and kids eating sandwiches on the beach by around 1:30 after one heavy Rolleez trip and 3 wheel barrow/framepack trips down the .4 mile trail from the truck to the beach camp.  It was time for dad to yak fish!  I went out a 1/4 mile or so to 50/60' and jigged what is usually relatively productive water, with several different years in the past when I've easily caught dinner on day 1 including a couple of nice lings.  The warm water may have had something to do with my poor results in 1.5 hours or so of jigging metal and plastic - skunkage!  I headed in and we enjoyed BBQ chicky and s'mores before crashing in the tent.  The night winds unique to Bear Harbor whipped the tent for most of the night, so I knew in the morning that my wife would be into bailing out to Shelter Cove for a hotel room.  I did a big camp breakfast for everyone then headed out for a little more torture on the yak.  Skunked again!  There was a party boat about 1/2 mile outside me in 120' of water or so, and I would've gone out if I weren't solo in a known sharky spot and already hanging out up to 1/2 mile from my campsite at the beach.  The fishing was very very slow one other year with abnormally warm water too, so I'll have to make note of that...  It was, as always, a totally awesome place to hang out.  The elk came down right by camp (within 10' of my tent) and onto the beach and right into the water!  That was odd and cool.  Check out the elk in the "surf" - that's how protected the Bear Harbor launch is.  It's like a mini Shelter Cove, with a point and large rocks sticking out prominently to the west/southwest protecting the 250' wide cove where there used to be a wharf and railroad out onto the water way back in the day...  I packed up camp, Rolleezed and wheel-barrowed back to the truck and we headed to Shelter Cove.  Got there right before 7PM, scored a SWEET beachfront room at The Oceanfront Inn for a buck thirty nine, ordered dinner for the fam at the restaurant and then hauled ass down to the Cove for a sunset launch in familiar fishy waters.  I cruised out to the Bell with a cold brew and enjoyed the sunset as the only boat on the water.  Caught one black which I'd intended to stay up and BBQ on the beach, but I ended up scarfing the kids' and wife's leftover grub when I got back to the room.  Showered, hit the local watering hole where an old friend bought me a brew, and filleted the black for the cooler.  A little late night TV and I was out, determined to wake myself early to fish before the fam rose - no alarm clock in the hotel room!  Woke at 6:30 - burnt from double day #1.  Straggled down and hit the water about 7AM.  The word from the day before:  3 salmon caught all day - by the Commercials!  (there's like a dozen or more of them)  NO salmon caught by the sporties again...  So I trolled a WMA - the bite's gotta come back at some point, right?!  I got nada - not even a rockfish, and I did stop and jig for a total of 30 minutes or so.  The time on the water was awesome, of course, and I saw a couple of guys yak fishing that I'd spoken to a few months ago - they're from Sac.  I should've told them to come to the site, but we passed by each other quickly...  It was a flat day and I paddled right up and landed on the beach right below the hotel - it's the 3 story light gray place.  I knew my wife had had enough of watching our little ones while I was on the water, so I started packing up.  I did manage to convince her to let me do a little more fishing and dive for a quick 7.5" ab in 10' of water right there at the hotel.  I caught and released a 14.5" cab messing around in the rocks.  Finally got all loaded up and hit the road, arriving home around 3PM.  Shortly thereafter I get a call from Greg, who I've called many times to hookup for a Cape trip since he's from out that way, and he's telling me he's going to the Cape right then.  I told him thanks, but I just got back from camping, wheel-barrowing, a double day, and an early morning that day...  I thanked him for calling.  I quickly got all the dirty camp gear unloaded, sorted, put away...etc., and made like a dentist pulling teeth convincing mama and my number one girl that I just need one more fishing trip this vacation!  Mama was pissed...     So like 1.5 hours after Greg called I had a pass, so I loaded up and jammed to the Cape.  Got in the water around 5:45 and saw Greg out there bobbing in windy conditions.  I headed out in the new X-Factor (Scrambler XT went camping for space considerations) and came out to the reef well north of Greg so I could drift right in on him.  Well, I start my drift and then see him paddling.  He's like 300 yards from me in wind, so he can't hear me and never saw me.  He bails and I fish, glad I have a legitimate excuse to be out there alone on a windy day!     I picked up a nice red and a china, then caught and released two blacks and 6-7# ling, all on the 6.5 oz. Megabait in Dorado colors.  The ling puked up a great big octopus tentacle, so I put that on a 6 oz. leadhead with red split tail that I switched to, but lost that piece of lead on the reef a while later and headed in after an hour or so.  I'd seen Greg's car move when he was loaded, then realized that he'd stopped at my truck when he realized I was out there.  He was cool to hang out until I came in, and we had a beer and shot the shit for a bit.  He was a bit sketchy on being out there in the wind and had worked his way out from the farther south launch he'd gone out from, having just gotten to the good reef and caught several blacks in the kelp bed when I'd pulled up and seen him there, and he bailed in but would've stayed out with me if he'd known I was there.  He doesn't roll with a radio - he agreed he needs one.  I absolutely loved the X-Factor in the 10-14 knot wind with whitecaps, but I needed some 12 oz. leadheads!  Hit the road and got home in time to not be in too much trouble.  No pics from the last part of double day #2 - I was actually too burnt!   

AWESOME pics.  Getting skunked in the right place can still be a great expreience.

WOW, that's a nice place and looks just like a "mini Shelter Cove" as you said.  Wish I was there fishing with you!  Thank you for the report.

Sailfish

Abking I am impressed. way to get the whole familly involved. Anytime a guy can fish and spend spend time with his kids at the beach in one fell swoop; he has achieved greatness. It is no easy task. The planning,packing,and negotiations alone can be quite daunting. Hats off to you dude. That's a nice double.

Wish it was more fishy for ya. Great effort and better report. Bro you must have been exhausted. Randall

Dude - another awesome report on a sick trip . .you're the man!

BTW . .I attempted a solo mission to the Cape but did not launch because it was too windy.  I got a chance to scout it out, though, and I am totally psyched to fish there as soon as possible.  What's the deal with turn-outs where Mattole Rd runs along the ocean (ie . .before Petrolia and the turn off for the Lighthouse)?  

It looks like there are lots of spots where you can park and access the ocean but my gf said she parked there a few years back and got a nasty note about trespassing on her window.  

There were no 'keep out' or 'no parking signs' and there were people parked there when I was there so I am of a mind to give it a shot next time unless I hear it's off-limits.  There seemed to be a number of launchable spots with access to kelp and epic looking reefs.  

Hopefully we'll get a chance to hit it up soon . .give me a shout next time you're headed down there.

Chris

Xcellent report and documentation to follow!    I feel as if i made the trip with you.   That takes alot of planning and hardwork to make it REAL! 
WTG and you will be rewarded in BIG FISH for all your efforts and positive karma.

Chris:  the ranchers got extra uptight a couple of years back and posted lots of signs along what I believe are public access pullouts along the beach there - hasn't been any flack since then as far as I know.  Sunday looks like a potential Cape morning - I'll call you.

Today I salmon fished on my dad's Triumph out of Humboldt Bay.  Kind of slow, but we brought home a 19 and a 24.  Caught and released two silvers including about a 12 pounder.

Eric

beautiful, thanks for the report
james

Great report and pics!