Copitola Sand Shark 9/19

Got back in the water after moving from the SC beach to the Felton sticks.  Launched with my bud's 16yo son at 0730 next to the Pier and paddled out to Pleasure Point.  Water cloudy and no bites throughout and beyond the kelp.  Saw a pb land a pretty good rockfish... that was it.  Drifting back inside the kelp about 200 yards from the end of the pier got hooked into a 2.5- to 3-foot sand shark.  I let him run with the squid and diamond jig for 10 seconds in freespool before locking down.  Got a nice sleigh ride.  A nice lip-hook made for an easy release back into the drink.  No fish tacos, but got wet and bent.

Swell was 3 to 5 feet, light offshore breeze, mostly glassy.  A picture perfect morning on the Bay.

Sorry for no pics.  The shark was a beauty and the morning was quite spectacular.  Don't have a WP camera yet... have to bring home a ling to get the WAF up to the required level.

all that and as safe landing! well done!

Thanks for the report. Was going to go out this past weekend, but after Casey7 posted that there was a GWS spotted out at 4 mile beach decided against it since I always go out alone. Capitola has been really slow as of late and the in climate weather and swell hasn't helped. If you want you can always pm me before going out and I'll be happy to share what little knowledge I have about current conditions.

Since this was my first season of kayak fishing (bought my first kayak in April '10) I don't have any past history, but I've been otw just about every weekend since Memorial Day, with the exception of those while on vacation. I've noticed that after July the number of kayaks fishing has decreased dramatically. The last few times I only saw one or two and usually when they were landing.

Right now all the decent size fish are being caught in deeper water and not towards the kelp. I might rent a pb this weekend and give it a go since the weather looks to be good, but I hate going out without my ff.

Sounds like you were jiggin a bar with squid and did not make bait, which has been spotty the last month or so. That is why I don't know if I will go out on a pb without my beloved ff.

Dean

Howard, thas pretty cool that you hooked up with a shark : My buddy LingKing has been dying to hook up on some sharks here locally. Gotta let him know that you c&r one :p

Anyways, thanks for sharing with us. Seems as your picking this madness up real quick!!

Hi Eric, through the breakers without crashing, what a concept.

Dean:  Thanks for the tips and offer.  At around 0600 that morning, I was waiting on egg McMuffins in my wetsuit and a surfer dude said "right on, the waves are good today".  Told him kayak fishing, not surfing was on tap.  He than said he and a buddy saw a freshly munched otter at 18th Avenue a couple days before.  He claimed it was the sharkiest year he could remember.

Hey Daniel... I can't decide to go to PP or MBK this Sunday.  What's the haps on the ghosts this week?

  

 I almost didn't post that shark report, because , as far as any information that I've been able to get from people who've fished or surfed Four Mile  for years, sharks being seen there this time of year is not uncommon and basically business as usual.

Hey Daniel... I can't decide to go to PP or MBK this Sunday.  What's the haps on the ghosts this week?

I wasn't able to hit the waters in a week, as I was in So Cal for business. However, I just got off the phone with a buddy earlier today, and he said his boat landed 14 today and over 1500lbs of wsb in the past 3 days lol!!

He said the wsb are pretty much everywhere, as he's been catching them at LP, the hotel, and even further north (which is where he caught the 14 today).

If you're looking to come down here, I'll be fishing Tuesday. There is also a possibility that I'll be going out Monday as well. If so, I may do 1 day for wsb and the other for lings/RFs.

Howard, in my book you and your friend's son earned extra respect for going out after hearing that. Being a newbie to the sport and ocean fishing the fear of the unknown (I'm not so much worried about the adult GWS, but more the juveniles just trying to figure things out buy sampling things in the water), I am going to err on the side of caution. Hopefully we'll meet otw someday. The weather looks great this weekend and I just ordered the accessories to convert my ff to a portable unit, I might rent a pb and give it a try. Thanks for the added info.

Dean

Dean:

I always assume the whites are around and try not to let the increase in sightings this year keep me out of the water.  There are plenty of other ways the ocean can kill or maim you at a much higher probability than a shark encounter.  Don't get me wrong, I have the same GW fears as you do. 

However, since GWS risks are minimal and very little can be done about it, it is better to focus on preparing for the risks that are likely to occur and very preventable.  Getting OTW in a yak is the best training to prevent the most common mishaps. 

Howard I know you are right, but with all the coverage they have been getting as of late has me more than just a little leery. I know they are here year round and consider them part of the sport. For the most part with pbs and others otw I have never been too concerned, but lately when I've gone out I seem to be at times the only one otw. A few weekends ago I had the whole area from Pleasure Point to the Capitola wharf to myself with only a few pb out in 60-70 ft of water for close to 2 hours with only an occasional pb motoring through.

If the fishing were hotter, like earlier in the summer I know I would be more apt to throw caution to the wind.