ARW 28jul

ok...its 0/4....on the hali-quest.

showed up at  Berk Marina t opick up anchovies from dock..
the bait shop in front quoted me a dozen for $7...
figured I can go to dock and try for better rates..

guy on dock is behind Hana Japanese restaurant..go thru gate.

the bait guy was very cool..
normally chares $15 for half scoop but he gave me a break since he saw I was new to this...(I guess me showing up w/ Home Depot bucket was a give away.
I figured that my drive time to ARW was going to be 20 mins..
I was shocked on the atrition rate on those anchovies..
I lost about 75% of them in such a short time.. I know I should have bought an aerator and / or circulation pump.. but still in acquisition mode so I had to make due with what I have.

anyway..got on water around 8 then paddled out to outer wall where I met up with Arial and dave...later met redyak.

they fished w/ shiners which I envied as I knew they were going to outlive my anchovies which were in my Frabill Flowtroll II bucket..
my few anchovies actually did ok.. they remained alive until around 2...6hrs.


the guys took off towards Port of OAK side but I was too lazy, plus still tired from the paddle out in the wind.. decided to drift the walls..wind settled down around 11.

in terms of equip. acquisition...need to get VHF radio before anything else..
I have been eyeing Cabella's Uniden for $99..but open to suggestions..
Redyak told me that Boater world had one for $65...don't know if that still is around...either way.. I fully realize how ridiculous it is to try to hookup w/ others w/o a means of communicating..

It would have been nice to know where the bite was on...
turned out though that it was slow everywhere..

hopefully I will have better luck in Paradise tomorrow.

Shiners are much hardier than Anchovies (but cost more).  Thanks for the report and keep on trying, you'll get them soon    Good luck tomorrow at Paradise Dave.

Good tryin' and fishin' even if not catchin' yet--keep it up and you will.

Anchovies are the most fragile of baitfish--I swear I have a nearlyh quarter of them die before I use them just from the trauma of just being caught and unhooked on a sabiki rig in being in a bait tube. Wussies--too bad carnivorous fish love them. I'd use them only as a last resort if nothing better was available and you have to aerate their water from the first minute.

Anchovies can keep alive well in a 5 gallon bucket if they are not overcrowded and kept cool and aerated.  It also helps if they aanchovies are not too small.  The small ones are extra fragile.  

Heres a tip - Get a big cooler or additional 5 gallon bucket(s), already filled w/ seawater and aerated.  Use the 5 gallon bucket to transport the anchovies from the dock to the car.  Transfer the bait to the cooler or divide them into the other buckets.

Dave

Was nice to meet you on the water. Too bad the fishing sucked not even a nibble for me. Don't know how the other 2 did. Saw some fish netted by the party boats on the Port of Oak side. Nothing big but all the hootin & hollaring on the party boat made it sound like the biggest halibut in the world.

Hey Daviator,
I'm in the acquisition stage of things as well. I'm not sure how easy it is to catch bait at this location being that I've never been there but I'd get yourself a sabiki or 3. They're $3-$4 each and you can catch fresh baits on the water for free. That means launching earlier and no worrying about your baits dieing. If there's bait around, it's very easy. I have nothing except a 5-gallon bucket right behind my seat with a screw top implanted in the lid for easy on/off. I keep a SF Giants beer cup in there and I just scoop fresh water in every 15 minutes or so. If you're drifting live bait, you're kind of just sitting around a lot of the time anyways. It's definitely time intensive to keep baits alive but it costs nothing while I'm saving up a few bucks for a pump and battery.

hey ariel sea...

thanks for the advice on the water...sorry I didn't have VHF yet so we had to shout...caught most of what you said.

re: those yahoos on the PB...were they wearing wife beater tanktops?


Thanks Slay ride RE: sabiki..yeah I carry them too..although first time at Paradise..I wasted an hour on the dock w/ no luck...

technically...am I supposed to park my main rod while catching the bait? ie single rod.?

I see cabellas sells an aerator thats portable and has various power setups ie home/car/rechargable batts but its around $31...
I may just get the walmart deal for $13.

dave

Those aerators work okay for shiners but for anchovies or other fragile bait you really need a system that pumps water through your bait tank. Check out the Hook 1 website because they sell everything you need or even a tank that is already assembled for a good price.

http://www.kayakfishinggear.com/
 
Like someone else mentioned the anchovies can be kept alive for extended periods by just filling your bucket with fresh water from time to time the key is to cut way down on the number of baits in you bucket. A half scoop from berkeley is huge and you should throw 75% of them into your cooler to use later as frozen bait this way you can keep the remaining 25% alive and well to use throughout the day.

-Eliot

Good to meet you Dave/daviator, Dave/Relentless, and Ariel. Thank you Dave/Relentless for the shiners. I appreciate your generosity. I caught my first bat ray and it really tricked me good. Sorry guys for calling that bite out on the radio. Mucho embarrassed. That thing fought pretty good. Oh well, next time it will be a striper. jim

P.S. I asked the "Daily Poacher" if he caught anything and he said "No". Of course "anything" doesn't include the four shakers in the black hefty bag. j.k. guys. I hope.

Those aerators work okay for shiners but for anchovies or other fragile bait you really need a system that pumps water through your bait tank. Check out the Hook 1 website because they sell everything you need or even a tank that is already assembled for a good price.

http://www.kayakfishinggear.com/
 
Like someone else mentioned the anchovies can be kept alive for extended periods by just filling your bucket with fresh water from time to time the key is to cut way down on the number of baits in you bucket. A half scoop from berkeley is huge and you should throw 75% of them into your cooler to use later as frozen bait this way you can keep the remaining 25% alive and well to use throughout the day.

-Eliot

I second all that!!!!

thanks for the report...on boater world VHF i picked one up for 65 works great but right after i purchaced someone was beratting them about their service...apparnently they are going out of business and things are shaky...i got mine in about 4 days...and it works fine...and was just glad to get it...

Cant offer any advice on the live fishing seen...but can't wait to try one of these days....

I caught my first bat ray and it really tricked me good.  That thing fought pretty good.

Yup - they don't call 'em "Mud Marlin" for nothing!

WTG on boating it - was it hard to get into your yak? They are heavy and pretty awkward.

It was easy to net it, unhook, and release. I wouldn't mind catching one again. As long as it's not on my last shiner. I've been going 1/0 on the hali hooks but you could go slightly smaller. jim