GSXIX - Thank you!!

I'm toasted!  What a day!

We have, drumroll please, a repeat champion again!

Matthew Mayes came in with a 31 inch lingcod and a 20 inch rockfish to take the title of AOTD at GSXIX - his second win in the last four competitions.  Allan Sanchez held the lead all morning, coming in with 49 inches that included a 23 inch cabezon - he ended up in 2nd.  Chris Coleman and Chris Mayes tied for 3rd at 48 inches, and the aMayesing Bros solidly backed up what has become legendary status with their team score domination - likely only rivaled by the Saufferer brothers over the years, who had a respectable finish today tied with each other at 45 inches. 

The wind came up and booted everyone off by around 1245, and it was off to switch gear kits and get the Gyotaku fish printing Extravaganza pumping!  Brandi did another fabulous job directing a strong team of volunteers as we had heavy participation from both kids and adults as well as some general public and campground staff.  The kids each got a new fishing pole as prizes for their participation, and the entire group got to have interaction with and appreciation for the Gyotaku scene since it was conducted right where we also had the raffle and potluck.

Wrapped the Gyo right before 5, got the raffle set out - with Captain Jake Mitchell tackling the heavy lift of selling all the raffle tickets, with help from his son Mason.  It was Jake's 2nd year in a row doing that for me and for the Gimme Shelter community, and it was awesome having Mason join in.  The potluck also got fired up right at 5, and Ricci/Fishworks' taco shack scene came together right then too.  As usual, the community brought top notch grub made with love and shared with pride, and I can safely say that I don't think there's any way that it's possible that everyone there wasn't totally satisfied with a buffet style, extended dinner and party scene.

By 615 or so I started the awards and other recognitions by getting all the kids who printed fish to come up on stage and receive their fishing poles - it was definitely one of the highlights of the entire event, with happy kids receiving schwag that ties them right into the heart of the entire event, just for participating.

I worked the crowd for a while by telling people to eat up the food and to do another lap through the raffle because there were a ton of great items and some good odds of winning.  It was time to give out some thank you abalones, and four of them went to Ricci Chavez, his dad Rick, and their two faithful Taco Shack helpers:  Steve and Brian Takagi.  The guys did an outstanding job with the Shack, and everything went great!  Other thank you abs went to Sean/Piscean Artworks, for his generosity and support for the community through his art over many years; captain Jake and his son Mason for their support and time devoted to our gig; and to Paul Chang, who brought raffle items as well as laminated name tags with lanyards for all competitors.

Had a few more tacos and wet my whistle with a beer, and then it was time to award the AOTD with his new 44" oldgrowth redwood Trophy Trough, a custom-tagged ten inch abalone shell, the ceramic mini Hawg Trough and two seats on Captain Jake's boat - the Seahawk.  Matthew's a great champion, and, as has occurred at basically every Gimme Shelter, I cannot think of someone more deserving of the win.

With the new champ crowned and the crowd worked over for all raffle tickets I could get them to purchase and all the food I could get them to consume, I executed what turned out to be a really great raffle. 

Last week I had emailed the entire roster of participants for GSXIX and let them know that the forecast looked fine for us to be able to fish.  Many (everyone, hopefully) could see the different forecasts pointing toward heavy north/NW wind, but the swell height was low.  I explained that north and NW are largely blocked at the Cove, so even if there was wind slop coming in from previous days of offshore heavy afternoon winds, I was confident that we would have our chances to fish.  In that email I also appealed for two things:  one was to let people know that I'd not had much engagment regarding raffle items that people might bring.  This is largely my fault, as the tournament thread on NCKA and any other social media (FB) that I was putting out about GS just didn't seem to get much traction - it's not how it used to be, and that's fine.  The response I got from appealing to the people was very strong.  A bunch of folks stepped up and brought quality raffle offerings - it was highly appreciated, but, as I've noted happening over the years, record keeping on all of the raffles items, who brought them, who won them...etc. doesn't end up well documented.  Again, my fault - I'm busy executing, and it all just flows.  I'll say this:  the generosity in our community is awesome.  Captain Jake's son Mason ended up winning some nice gear, and the crowd was hooting and hollering as he racked up the makings of an awesome kit.  What's so cool about it, is Mason is like 10, and Jake just got him a kayak!  Destined for greatness, and, again, so deserving - everybody was cheering!

The second thing I appealed for, in that email to the participants last week, was to know whether anyone wanted to get in on a guided trip on Friday for pre-fishing and a Shelter Cove refresher/intro trip.  In the past, with very active participation in a prolific thread about the event, it's been pretty easy for me to fill a short trip with four participants for Friday morning, but, again, the thread was pretty slow this year - that's fine.  I was about to just cancel Friday, since I'd only heard from one person interested, but my email brought out 3 more to add for the trip.  I was able to execute a plan to show my Friday guests around, catch some fish (so many lings) and earn a few bucks doing what I love while feeling good about passing on info on Cove layout, safety, wind, current, tide, the tractor, species, history...etc. in a way that I intended as strong guidance in not only how to make the most of their fishing but also their overall understanding of the Cove scene.  A big thanks to my guys who did the Friday trip.

Massive thanks to my family, who supported me throughout and also kicked down hours of work helping with the Gyotaku and the potluck.  Big thanks as always to Brandi for being Gyotaku Queen.  Huge thanks to everyone who donated for the raffle, bought raffle tickets, brought killer food, shared their best energy with the community and showed Shelter Cove how we do it.  We got nice compliments from the Campground staff and other locals who checked out what we were up to, and my intention going forward is to include the locals in our activities as much as possible.  Again, super stoked with Ricci and his crew and their taco excellence, and highest praise for Captain Jake for stepping up to be an ambassador for the Cove in helping with the raffle and hanging out with us for the evening - young Mason winning all those prizes was so outstanding.

Last thing:  I just want to thank everyone who signed up.  I do my best to craft an experience that goes beyond expectations - that's as true for my guided trips as it is for Gimme Shelter.

Another year in the books!   

Another great time at the Cove.  Thank you Eric and your family for another outstanding event.   Chef Ricci and the crew had people lining up for their delicious fish tacos.  Brandi and Claire did a tremendous job with the fish prints.

Congratulations Matt!  Another job well done.  It was really nice to catch up with you and your brother Chris, who also brought in some quality fish.

My brother and I got on the water early and started to head for the red can.  There was a nice breeze early so about half way there we decided to turn around and fish closer to shore.  The rockfish bite was slow, but, the lings were on the chomp.  My brother brought in a 29” ling and a 16” vermillion, while I turned in a 28” ling and a 17” cab.

Awesome!  Sounds like good times for all 🤙.

Thanks Eric for the great event year after year. Thanks to all the volunteers. The Cove is something special!!!

Nice pics. It really shows the feel of the weather. Dramatic. Love it!

Captain Jake got back to me to let me know that we raised just over $2300 for Shelter Cove Fishing Preservation Inc., and he also let me know that he and Mason had a great time.   

Picked up 4 species just now at the ramp on one of the left over little Dock Deamons!   

Report at ~8 - heading for some Gyppo.   

Picked up 4 species just now at the ramp on one of the left over little Dock Deamons!   

Report at ~8 - heading for some Gyppo.   

And what were those species?

And what were those species?

Larry, Curly, Moe and Shemp.   

Thanks for a great event Eric!

Nice job with the Dock Demon!

Conditions seemed to be improving this morning so did a little shore excursions as well. Decided to hit the low tide for tide pool viewing and urchin picking. Row was still developing but once cleaned ended up with some tasty uni hand roll for dinner!


Thanks for the great event Eric! I really enjoyed my first Gimme Shelter. It was for sure an intense experience in part due to the radical changing conditions.


 
 

It was my first time to Shelter Cove and even though it was windier with larger swell than I would like, I caught a few lings each day. I signed up for Eric's Friday pre-fish and that was a great introduction.  I could definitely imagine how good the fishing could be there if you didn't have to fight the wind and waves. Having the extra 50 lbs of unpredictable GSP live load in the back leads to some nervous moments in such conditions.
I camped with Nick who was a great fishing partner and camper. Dinner at Gyppos with the gang including 3$ was a nice break from my weak camp food.
Meeting the Mayes brothers and finally meeting Poop Smith and some others and talking fishing was a reality check on how much more I need to learn fishing-wise.
The fish tacos were outstanding and I also thought the Gyotaku was really cool. Thanks Eric and family and everyone who contributed to this event.

Hanging around the campfire with Eric, Steve,  and Brian.

Thanks for a great event Eric!

Love you, bros!   

It was for sure an intense experience in part due to the radical changing conditions.

Great to have you at GS, Michael!  And thank you for that perspective on the conditions.  That, right there, is part of the heart of GS - it's the realization of being in the heart of the Lost Coast - the farthest west, most remote, most volatile and mysterious, enticing, exciting, alluring spot along the coast. 

If you let it.   

It was my first time to Shelter Cove...

Joe - I was so stoked to get to include the latest AOTY on my pre-fishing trip!  And it was great to meet you and Mabel.  Sorry I had you guys on the edge of sketchiness!

I'm really stoked that you attended Gimme Shelter - great to meet you.