Moss Landing Salmon, WFO!!!

THanks fellas!

Many thanks to Stuart "The Fish Finder" and Fred "Savage"....these guys put me on fish  

Had a blast (and almost a heart attack) fighting Mr. Lunker. I was dropping my chovie down to 80 feet and at around 60 feet, my line went slack   I was hoping it wasn't a shark - as Stu had caught one just minutes before. Sure enough, my line went south and in a hurry = the tug of war began   I did not see the size of the fish until he made a run on the surface exposing his dorsal and tail fin.....there was a big gap between them....Fred and I saw this display and realized it was big rouge salmon. After what it seemed to be forever, I finally started gaining some line...the fish then made 3 more runs around my yak - after doing a 360 three times on the yak, the fish was finally within sight. When I  saw the girth of this bad boy...I freaked and wondered if my 15 # line was going to hold as I was pulling him up on dead weight. I got him in the net (I need a bigger net) on the first attempt. This guy then freaks out.....I had to tuck my rod under my thigh as I held on the net with both hands....I nearly flipped the yak while the fish was in panic mode. I leaned over to the opposite side of the yak just so I could get the leverage needed to get the rouge on board. After two attempts, he was on the deck - but still full of life! His tail almost slapped my fish finder right off the bracket! Stu then came to the rescue and threw his LAPD fish bat   to me with perfect aim = right on my knee   I did not feel any pain as my adrenalin was still on high gear....and as soon as the bat was on my hand, I went psycho   on the fish.....it was over in a matter of seconds and the eye of the fish turned into an "X".     WHAT A RUSH!!  

After my shaking hands were calm enough....I blew kisses to my comrads and looked for another fight! I decided to troll an Apex behind an 8 ounce banana sinker and hooked up with a shaker. I tolled some more and saw  a lot of boiling bait in around 120 ft. but no takers. I decided to head in around 11:45 as Stu and fred began their own carnage  

Thanks again to Stu and Fred - it's always a blast when fishing with these guys - even if the fish are not cooperating. There's just never a dull moment  

Stu = thanks for sharing your bait with me - I'll hook you up on the next trip!

Fred = what can I say: you are a "SAVAGE"  

congrats!   Man and I thought I had wide open fishing this weekend. The brookies were hitting hard in the mountain streams and lakes. but they were probably the side of your bait!

-Brian

Thanks Brian!

I opened up the salmons belly and found 8 anchovies.....4 to 5 inchers  

Sweet sweet toad action!

Excellent.

MolBasser

First photo (one of many) this was taken by one of the employees of Kayak Connection - from a digital camera phone.


http://myfishingpics.com/photopost48c/showphoto.php?photo=3516&size=big&sort=1&cat=500



more pics to come!

Now we're talking!!!

How did you get that PIG in the net?

-Allen

man that is one ugly looking brute!          Hope there is still a bite this weekend!

-Brian

How did you get that PIG in the net?

VERY CAREFULLY    As you can see, my net is not that big to begin with.....when I had him in the net, I was actually afraid that he'd be able to jump out of it because his head and tail was sticking out   Somehow the Fish Gods were on my side this time around  

man that is one ugly looking brute!

Brian, I hope you were talking about the fish and not me  

Nice fat-ass-fatty-mcfaterton salmon. I think you got me beat on salmon now(but not in Alaska). So where's the fish now? I'm hungry. Lee

Joel,

That's a really nice fish, but's what's with the photo tease? Where are the real pictures?

Oh, I get it you're just trying to make your fishing glory last as long as possible.  That's cool, I'd probably do the same with a fish like that.

Brian

he's in the freezer...speaking of which...does anyone know of a cheap Vacum Sealer? What's the best brand to buy and where can I get it locally? Please advise / thanks!

That's a really nice fish, but's what's with the photo tease? Where are the real pictures?

None of us had a digital camera - Bayside Marine had a digital but it was not working so some tourist saw our need for a photo op and took several shots of us. I gave him my email and he has not been in touch with me yet. Believe me, as soon as I get those photos - I will have Bill post them.

Oh, I get it you're just trying to make your fishing glory last as long as possible

and to answer your question - no I'm not / see reason above

I love this thing...just keep it in your PFD and its always there.

http://www.steves-digicams.com/2004_reviews/optio43wr.html

Joel, that's a heck of a fish. congrats.

plus an awesome blow by blow report. next time, for get about the bat, make fist and take that rouge fish out with one good blow. it really does works well.  and if you think the net is too small, (and you're sure it's a king) gaff it. it's legal.

Vaccuum Sealer: you can go to costco and get the FoodSaver by Tilla.  i got one a few years ago and it's still going strong. i think i have the model #1075. runs about $100.  well worth the price. i highly reccomend it!

again, congrats on you catch!

pierre

Thanks Pierre!

I'll look into Costco this afternoon. For now, I'll do it old school and store it in a zip lock bag...suck the air out with a straw and seal the bag asap.

Sean - that digi camera looks good! I'm debating over a digi camera or a GPS   .......think I'll get a digi camera instead...(can only afford one over the other   )

Those hogs steaks and fillets come out much bigger than what you buy in the store, it's hard to cook it all the way through and evenly when it's 4" thick.  I'd suggest cutting it down to pieces of the size you're used to cooking to get the same results.  

You should also look into smoking a bunch of it, smoked salmon stays good in the fridge for a reasonable amount of time while still being yummy.  It goes pretty quickly that way.