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31

General Talk / Classic Bushy predictions

« on: June 05, 2015, 07:09:05 AM »

I always look forward to reading Allen Bushnell's (our own "Bushy") "Fish Rap" column in the Santa Cruz Sentinel on Fridays. His optimism (And where would we anglers be without that?) is overflowing:

From today's column:

"Observations from this past week suggest the pattern is evening out somewhat, and I tentatively predict an upsurge for rockfishing, a beginning for consistent halibut, a hope for tighter schools of bait surrounded by salmon and a hint of tuna possibilities in the near future."

Yes, I do get home delivery (A quaint practice, but it helps support our local fishing guru.)!

32

General Talk / 5/29/15 big Red Tide in Mtry Bay -website for info

« on: May 29, 2015, 09:02:30 PM »

I was browsing the KSBW (Salinas -Central Coast TV) website for the weather and saw a story about a big red tide happening in Monterey Bay that poses a threat to, among other species, anchovies an sea lions. So I Googled "Red Tide Monterey Bay" and got this interesting site:
http://oceandatacenter.ucsc.edu/PhytoBlog/
If you cruise around on the site you can find the current readings amount of the algae than creates red tide, and a lot of other interesting data taken at both Monterey and at the SC Wharf. Indeed, the red tide algae is "abundant".
Some of the legends that you can use to make sense of what you are seeing on the above page are in some of the links on this page:
http://oceandatacenter.ucsc.edu/
One of the measurements they take is visibility. Another is the color of the water as measured against a palate of standard colors, and they show you the palate. Also temps, current winds, etc.
I'll check this site a few times to see how the measurements change and how they compare with I see on the water.

33

CA Regulations / Reg-Notes Chart for Tackle Box

« on: March 28, 2015, 09:58:13 AM »

Thanks to whoever posted the handwritten version of this, I can't find the post so here's a new thread. I added a few items (Bonito? Well, I might get lucky!) that I have trouble remembering when I've gotten up at o'dark thirty and bounced around a while, then added a dose of adrenaline from some interesting hookup.
I laminated it with some transparent shelf liner (Target) and glued (maybe better to use transparent duct tape, the glue melted the liner a little) it inside the lid of my Flambeau Box.
Oh, for those who couldn't find it in the Reg booklet, the new Black Rockfish reg is not there, it's in the D of F&W website, and as most know, all these things can change mid-season, though most don't, and that's where you'll find the changes.
Have a great season!

34

General Talk / SC Harbor ramps are open

« on: August 02, 2014, 04:19:24 PM »

From Harbor website:
PRESS RELEASE 4
Saturday, August 2, 2014
4:00 pm

PROGRESS MADE ON ANCHOVY CLEAN-UP

For the past three days, volunteers from the community have been working alongside harbor staff to remove dead fish from harbor waters as the fish float to the surface from the bottom. Productivity of the clean-up effort has slowed over the course of today because there are fewer fish, and those that remain are decomposing to the point that crews are having difficulty netting the fish.

At this time, we estimate that 110,000 pounds of anchovies were removed from the harbor, with Friday’s clean-up effort netting the largest yield, with approximately 58,000 pounds of fish removed in one day.

Harbor management will reassess the situation tomorrow to see if it is possible to remove any more fish waste from the harbor. Sunday evening, a longer period southwest swell is forecast to arrive which should help keep the harbor waters moving. It is anticipated that the turbulent water will enhance the ability of the tidal exchange to remove fish debris.

All of the launch ramps are open at this time, but the harbor is still closed to paddleboards due to concerns about water quality. All harbor businesses are open during normal operating hours.

Acting-Harbormaster John Haynes
Santa Cruz Harbor

35

General Talk / SC-Cap Wharf to wharf this Sunday 7/27/14

« on: July 25, 2014, 09:37:04 PM »

Just a heads-up: I think you could launch at the SC harbor if you did it before 7:45am - the roads are blocked at 8:30-10:30, but Capitola will be full and roads closed 5 am -noon.

36

General Talk / Santa Cruz Harbor parking/launch-paying changes. Same fees.

« on: May 02, 2014, 05:47:47 PM »

Looks easier to me, but same prices, I think. They've installed central pay stations and taken out the meters on the west (yak launches) side. And instead of filling out envelopes and having the exact cash, you can use your card (or cash). And the station dispenses the permits to launch. $1/hr to park car, or $5 all day. $10 to park and launch, or $5 to launch only. Additonal kayak launches are $5 each. The station is out in the middle of the whole lot at the Aldo's area, and near the sidewalk and a little toward the Velocity at the launch near the bridge.
I didn't see anything about season permits. If they still have those, maybe you get them at the Harbor office.

37

Craftsmen's Corner / How do you attach radio to PFD?

« on: February 16, 2014, 08:44:03 PM »

I don't want to put my radio in a pocket. I want to put it on the outside front, up high, so I just need to hit the button to transmit. I got this new PFD with a square attachment point, and my radio has a knob on the back that I can unscrew.
I'm thinking of unscrewing the knob, then reattaching it through a hole in a short piece of webbing, then running that through the square thing, and using Velcro to join the two ends of the webbing. That way I can remove the radio to recharge it, store it, etc.
I can run a string through the small hole on the radio that is for a hand strap and loop that around the shoulder strap of the pfd to make sure it doesn't get lost.
But you guys probably have better ideas, don't you? Thanks

38

General Talk / Another reason not to discard fishing line

« on: January 24, 2014, 07:25:34 PM »

For a couple of days, I'd been hearing a slight squealing noise when applying the brakes on my car, so I took it to the shop thinking it was time for a brake job. The mechanic fixed the squeal: he removed some fishing line wrapped around the brake line. How that managed to make the brakes squeal puzzles me, but I was happy not to lay out a couple of hundred bucks. I just hope it wasn't some line I left on the garage floor!

39

General Talk / Surfboard & milk crate rig for chuckles

« on: November 17, 2013, 05:24:51 PM »

I saw this guy walking down Rockview St. at Pleasure Pt. in Santa Cruz last week - you can sort of make out the pole sticking up from his crate. He put in at the walkway in the middle of the block in not exactly flat conditions late in the afternoon. I damn near had a wreck trying to take a pic with my phone as I was riding my bike chasing him down the street.

40

Ocean Kayaks / What seat for Prowler 15?

« on: October 30, 2013, 03:08:03 PM »

I've been using a low-back seat with very little padding for the butt for the last 10 years. But that means by back and butt are that much older, so I'm looking to upgrade to a high back seat with some decent padding. Do you have any suggestions?

A couple of follow-up questions:
My Prowler 15 has straps that lead from the back of the seat to the top sides of the tankwell - some of the seats I've seen seem to be rigged for some other kind of rear hold-down. Do I modify the new seat or the yak straps? (Looks like a lousy area to access the inside behind the seat.)
I'm due for a new PFD as well (Yep, I'm making a holiday wish list.) - will most of them work with a high-back seat?
Thanks for the help.

41

General Talk / Santa Cruz Fish Die-off: 9/16-9/20/13

« on: September 22, 2013, 07:05:32 PM »

I was told by two different people that sometime this last week there was a big fish die-off in the SC-Capitola area. One guy told me he went down to the beach and saw a bunch of "monk fish" (the way he described them, I think they were "eels") and several good-sized ling cod. He said he collected and ate some of the monk fish, but left the lings. Another guy told me he saw something like surf perch on the beach, he described them as being flat and small.

Probably related: This week there have been hundreds of birds working the water just off the beach. I suppose the huge amount of bait fish in the water could have used all the oxygen. And the water was murky brown in areas between the harbor and the mile buoy on Friday.

42

Gearing Up and Rigging Up / Cover for GPS worn on thigh

« on: August 15, 2013, 11:15:24 AM »

I like to wear my GPS rubber-banded to my thigh, so I can see it well and check it often,but it can take a beating there, but if the screen gets hit hard, the screen and GPS are toast, so I've been taping a piece of clear hard plastic I cut with a box cutter from a CD case over the screen, and it works pretty well. I also made an extra long lanyard to tie to the bottom of my life jacket, and I can stuff it in a pocket when I'm not using it, or transporting it. When I need to pull my rain pants down on the yak, I just slip the rubber bands down to my ankles. Low-tech, but it works. I score the plastic with the knife and then break off. I tried a fine hacksaw blade but it didn't work, maybe there's an easier way to cut the plastic.

43

Hookups and Fishing Reports (Viewable by Public) / 8/4/13 Ditch Fishing Salmon SC Harbor

« on: August 04, 2013, 03:44:40 PM »

3:30 pm: 40 guys on top of 20 ft of culvert at upper end of harbor. I saw 4 30"(?) salmon taken in 15 mins of watching. Looks like harbor has limited fishing to that one area. They probably should just let them dynamite them - there'd at least be some risk to the "anglers" - sort of like bullfighting.

44

Hookups and Fishing Reports (Viewable by Public) / SC Salmon Mon 7/22/13

« on: July 21, 2013, 01:35:44 PM »

I could see the boats out beyond (about twice as far or more) the mile buoy this morning as I sat on the beach with family in town.
Launch at Aldos early as I am able - 5:30- 6:00.

45

Gearing Up and Rigging Up / Wheeleez Tire leak at base of valve - any suggestions

« on: July 14, 2013, 12:36:52 PM »

When I pump air into my wheel, it hisses out from the bottom of the valve under the hole in the grey stuff that allows the valve to exit. The valve is of different material than the tire. I'll call Wheeleez, but I'm hoping I'm just missing an easy fix that one you have made before.

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