6/30 Caspar Cove, aka Lake Pacific

Met up with Dave(Pescador) at Caspar Cove for a mid day fishing trip.  We hit the water a bit after 1100 and were met with very flat seas and no wind.  I have had some calm days on the North Coast, but this was at least as calm as I have ever experienced.  It felt like fishing on a lake most of the time. 

The bite was never wide open, except for when we played with a school of hungry blues on light tackle for a while, but we managed to pick away and get some nice results.  I ended up catching three keeper lings and an underling, three very nice vermillion, a few china's, a fat gopher, a nice greenling and lots of blues.  Dave performed a long line release on two nice lings and ended up with a nice bag of rockies for dinner.  Most of the better fish were on 7 inch swimbaits and a large tube bait.  Got a few more on a megabait 3.5 oz, and picked a few more off the boilers on the way in on a 4 inch swimbait, including the underling (see action photo).  Bit was slow and fish not overly agressive, so it required a slower presentation to coax the big bites.  (try working your baits much slower when the bite is off)

We ended up staying on the water until 5 or so.  The wind came up a little, but not enough to make you want to get off the water.  It was just one of those days (perfect weather, great company and good fishing) that make you want to stay on longer.

Thanks again for meeting up with me Dave, look forward to seeing you again soon.....

Norm

Having trouble posting, keep timing out, so i will post the pics seperately.....

Next time i go out with Norm, I'm bringing a notebook.  He's got like a PhD in fishing.  He starts chucking out this giant (about a foot long) tube-bait squid looking thing and I'm thinking well OK.  Sure enough he picks up 2 nice lings on it.  Meanwhile i'm trying everything in my bag of tricks for nothing. Norm out-fished me by about 4:1...or more.

If I were out by myself, I would have thought the Lings were not around.  But Norm's sitting right next to me and pulling them out of the same holes.  Ditto with the reds.

Great company and a beautiful day, but really, next time I'm carrying a field notebook.

Also, the kelp production this year is amazing.  The best I've seen in a long time.

pics

I saw you guys out there yesterday. It was a little slow, but I ended up keeping a 21" cabezon and 19" vermilion. I did get a pic of the new coastal Sheriff's boat, while they got a pic of me.

CHEERS!

Nice trip and sweet shots!(*underwater underling a plus) Thanks for the port!
Gettin out in the conditions we've been dealt with lately is a blast! Like a lake on a windless day! 
I've been huntin hard for some nice Vermies' like yours....only small ones so far.

Great report, guys.  I wanna see the big tube bait squid thingee... 

 

Great report, guys.  I wanna see the big tube bait squid thingee... 

 

Yeah, Norm, post a picture of the giant squid.

Norm - I'm fortunate to live close to such awesome fishing grounds and admit that I'm a "hack" when it comes to finesse gear.  If Dave says you've got some spiffy tricks up your sleeve I believe it.  You'd probably catch some big lings up here.

Of course, there's no guarantee of anything around here - especially a weather window...

Eric

Here is a pic of the mighty 12 inch tube bait.  I pulled the rigging out so you can see it.  Pretty simple rig, 50 pound Mono, two 9 or 10/0 hooks in tandem with a 2 or 3 ounce egg sinker with a split shot for a stop.  I tied a swivel about 12 inches above the bait and connected that to my 30 pound main leader in case the bait fouls and starts spinning.  The bait was a prototype that was given to me years ago for big largemouth fishing and I never used it.  It is faint rainbow trout like in color and made from very soft plastic.  I will be looking on-line to see if I can find anyone else making them these days, as the biggest tubes I have been able to find at retail are 6 to 7 inches.  The cool thing was that after beign hooked the bait tended to slide up the line which prevented it from getting shredded too bad by the toothy critters.  Two keeper lings and only a few scars to show for it.  Both fish were hooked on the top hook, so the trailer may not be necessary.  Looks like they were eating it head first, so without the trailer it will get hung up even less.  I only snagged it once though, even with the trailer hook, and it came off pretty easy.  

Eric, I'd like to come try it at the Cape some time......what to do a trip in early August?  I bet we could talk Dave in to coming up too....

Norm

Oh yeah, forgot to add, Hey Mahi!  I thought I saw a big green kayak on the North side of the cove.  Nice day on the lake eh?

We had the Sherrif boat come by and glass us too.  Nice rig.....

Norm